Stop 13

From the Wisteria arbor enter Building 1. Inside on either side of the hallway, you will find exhibit cases containing specimens of rocks and minerals from all over the world, including two cases devoted to California minerals and one case displaying exotic animals and mineral deposits from submarine hot springs at mid-ocean ridges. Interspersed with the cases are posters about USGS research.

Turn into the second hallway on your left and enter the world of Pacific coastal and marine geology. On the walls of this corridor are photos of fish, other sea creatures, and volcanic rock formations filmed more than 3 miles beneath the surface of the ocean. In the video window is changing footage on current coastal and marine research. Cases along the corridor contain specimens collected by USGS scientists, including intricately patterned sand layers from a beach in the Grand Canyon; rocks and fossils from Monterey Bay; and iron-manganese nodules from the deep Pacific Ocean. One case includes “shrunken heads” (styrofoam heads used for displaying wigs) and tiny styrofoam cups that were compressed by ocean pressures when attached to the outside of the submersible Alvin on a dive to the deep-sea floor.

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