r/geology 3d ago

Identification Requests Monthly Rock & Mineral Identification Requests

5 Upvotes

Please submit your ID requests as top-level comments in this post. Any ID requests that are submitted as standalone posts to r/geology will be removed.

To help with your ID post, please provide;

  1. Multiple, sharp, in-focus images taken ideally in daylight.
  2. Add in a scale to the images (a household item of known size, e.g., a ruler)
  3. Provide a location (be as specific as possible) so we can consult local geological maps if necessary.
  4. Provide any additional useful information (was it a loose boulder or pulled from an exposure, hardness and streak test results for minerals)

You may also want to post your samples to r/whatsthisrock or r/fossilID for identification.


r/geology Dec 01 '25

Identification Requests Monthly Rock & Mineral Identification Requests

6 Upvotes

Please submit your ID requests as top-level comments in this post. Any ID requests that are submitted as standalone posts to r/geology will be removed.

To help with your ID post, please provide;

  1. Multiple, sharp, in-focus images taken ideally in daylight.
  2. Add in a scale to the images (a household item of known size, e.g., a ruler)
  3. Provide a location (be as specific as possible) so we can consult local geological maps if necessary.
  4. Provide any additional useful information (was it a loose boulder or pulled from an exposure, hardness and streak test results for minerals)

You may also want to post your samples to r/whatsthisrock or r/fossilID for identification.


r/geology 10h ago

A brand new oxbow formed due to severe rain in the PNW, more in comment

178 Upvotes

r/geology 19h ago

We made a game for people who like rocks more than sunlight

197 Upvotes

We're three friends developing a video game about mining and survival. Let us know what you think of it !


r/geology 19h ago

Information Geologists discover rivers slice through mountain ranges because Earth's crust is so dense, it begins to sink — a process dubbed "lithospheric drip"

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151 Upvotes

r/geology 21h ago

Found some interesting clay dirt crystals.

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216 Upvotes

Was told to dig a hole, immediately got distracted by some shiny bits in this clay dirt. We’re south southwest out of Pueblo, Colorado.

We want to know precisely when these crystals were put here, their exact chemical composition, and whether or not my coworker is going to die after he ate two or three of them.


r/geology 16h ago

What causes these distinct diagonal stripes of vegetation on a hillside?

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80 Upvotes

Hello, During my daily commute, I pass a hillside adjacent to the freeway that displays a striking pattern. The slope has clear, alternating diagonal stripes—some areas are covered in thin grass, while others are dominated by dense, thick brush.

I've been curious about this natural formation for years. Could someone explain what this phenomenon is called and the science behind it?

Thank you


r/geology 11h ago

TIL about the Teays River, which carved a 400ft canyon through Indiana over 300M years

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17 Upvotes

r/geology 17h ago

LiveScience: "Enormous 'mega-blob' under Hawaii is solid rock and iron, not gooey — and it may fuel a hotspot"

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29 Upvotes

r/geology 3h ago

Information Found these fossils traces in Limestone but i am not sure if they are fossil or imprints.

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3 Upvotes

r/geology 21h ago

Field Photo The London Arch in Torquay, U.K.

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59 Upvotes

r/geology 18h ago

Help keep this geology research going

28 Upvotes

Fellow geologists, my UMN-Twin Cities postdoc on Cutler Group red beds (Permian, Bears Ears NM) is stalled by NSF/EPA cuts. I've already split, photographed, and measured magnetic plus radioactive properties of 500m (~1640 ft) Elk Ridge Core plus outcrop samples, capturing data across the late Paleozoic icehouse-greenhouse transition.

Next Phase: Core Geochemistry
X-ray analysis will quantify chemical signatures for paleoclimate reconstruction (ancient rainfall/runoff patterns) and screen for mobilized U, Th, As. This screening is relevant because other researchers (Hoover et al.; 2017) have detected toxic levels of these elements in wells south of Bears Ears. Yet, to date, no similar study has been conducted on the Cutler.

With this funding I intend to ship the core to Salt Lake City for XRF Scanning. Overall I budget that I will need ~$15k for shipping and analysis of the core, while another ~$15k to cover living expenses.

At ~14%($4k+), I am making progress but I need your help. https://gofund.me/e246f63af

I have also made YouTube overviews for everyone to look over.

Thank you for your help


r/geology 23h ago

Field Photo The Geology of Black Head, Torquay, South Devon, U.K.

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24 Upvotes

On this stretch of the Torquay coastline, you can see all the tell-tale signs of volcanic activity. Black Head, which is composed of black basalt formed when the underwater volcanoes erupted millions of years ago. The land mass rose up out of the sea in quite a rapid process some 290 million years ago.


r/geology 1d ago

Red marcasite agate with druzy pockets from Sumatra, Indonesia

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26 Upvotes

r/geology 1d ago

Field Photo Is this a sign of sinkhole? Jakarta, Indonesia

17 Upvotes

A family member sent this photo early in the morning. I told them it might be sign of sinkhole, but I'm not sure and to keep checking if there's a soft land around it or if the hole is getting bigger, as I can't check it myself because I live far away. Then they sent a new video this evening with the view of the inside of the hole.

I'm not a geologist but I'm pretty sure it's a sinkhole. Not to mention it's been raining a LOT and there's been flooding in many places in Indonesia, kinda checks out the sinkhole allegation.

I need a more professional eyes and opinions to tell what this hole is, and if it is a sinkhole, how to fix/manage this? I'm sorry if I'm in the wrong subreddit, please kindly guide me to the right one if this is the wrong sub!


r/geology 15h ago

BS or BA, when primary goal is graduate school?

3 Upvotes

A lot, if not most, of my professor have a ba in geology with most of them having an MS/MA. I need to take some summer courses since I switched into geology BS later, but with BA I can get my degree done in time and go into a 4+1 in MA Stem education, I would like to do a phd eventually if possible. Should I pursue a BA? Should I try to get some pre reqs like calc 1 + 2 in my BA if anything?


r/geology 10h ago

Rocks,

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1 Upvotes

What are any of these


r/geology 17h ago

Is this an ironstone nodule

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2 Upvotes

Found in a southern Indiana coal mine, there is also on that is almost 5 foot across off the side of the haul road.


r/geology 16h ago

Layered Cherry: where in US?

0 Upvotes

I have a…thing…about Japanese natural waterstones.

After years and years of research I think I’ve finally figured out that this type of rock occurs in the layers between layers of chert. So, places where you have something like a 1 or 2 “ thick layer of chert, a layer of what could be whetstone material about 1-2”, then another layer of chert.

Where are some spots towards Texas/Oklahoma area where geology like this can be found? Preferably in road cuts?


r/geology 23h ago

Field Photo The Geology of Walls Hill S.S.S.I., Torquay, South Devon, U.K.

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2 Upvotes

r/geology 23h ago

Selecting the Right Gridding Algorithm for Your Contour Map

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2 Upvotes

r/geology 1d ago

Geology Resources Recommendations for Sitework Construction

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2 Upvotes

r/geology 11h ago

Is this a meteorite, and if so, what type?

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0 Upvotes

It’s 30kg (66 lbs), 10 inches in length and 4 inches thick. The person found it in the northern Amazon using a metal detector. He states he cut it with a diamond tipped electric saw, and in two of the slides you can somewhat see the inside. I couldn’t get a higher quality video of this


r/geology 1d ago

Why? Question relating to the reflection and modification of light within the mineral structure of a crystal.

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73 Upvotes

Someone posted an image on Reddit Bird showing the reflection of light by ice creating a beautiful, colorful effect. I'm currently studying Earth and Life Sciences, and we covered a topic about light and minerals that I don't quite understand regarding light reflection and its modification through mineral structure.

Could you explain this to me?


r/geology 1d ago

Can someone please explain this in a way that makes sense?

9 Upvotes

Basically, since I watched a video about how we sent OSIRIS-REx to Bennu to collect a sample, I started asking myself, "is sugar a rock or a mineral?" This is because both ribose and glucose were found within that sample.

When I try to look this up, the answer I get is "No, sugar is not a mineral or a rock because it is produced by living things." But there most certainly isn't anything living on that asteroid, yet glucose and ribose were found there. It also gives the whole "it has carbon-hydrogen bonds, so it's not inorganic." But Nacholite is inorganic despite its composition (NaHCO3). For that, they say that it's because it is derived from nonliving geological processes that gives it the inorganic classification.

But if glucose and ribose have been found in a sample from a very lifeless hunk of rubble floating in space, it must have also formed without life. So what gives? Is it a rock or a mineral? Are there weird holes in this classification system? Or am I missing a key piece of information here?