Field trip to Arabia Mountain

Following is taken from abstract by Dr. Aislin N. Reynolds, Georgia Tech

The formation of surface parallel exfoliation fractures in rock domes produces some of the most celebrated and curious landforms on Earth. More than a century of observations, including direct measurement of active exfoliation events, highlight the key roles of solar heating and subcritical fracture propagation in rock exfoliation. Here we present new insights from Arabia Mountain, a biotite orthogneiss dome near Atlanta, Georgia (USA) that experienced a spontaneous exfoliation event of a formerly quarried surface in July 2023. The event uplifted a ~250 m2 area over 30 cm, as revealed by digital elevation model differencing and field measurements. Following the event, instrumentation was installed to monitor continued fracturing during summer 2024, including surface parallel stresses, local seismic waves, and surface air and rock temperatures. Multiple additional exfoliation events were witnessed in-person during equipment installation, including direct observation of progressive fracture propagation and explosion.

Participants will meet at the Davidson-Arabia Mountain Nature Center at 8:30 AM on Sunday, August 4th, 2024. The hike will start at 9:00 and last until approximately 11:30 AM. Please bring water and sun protection.

Participants must complete a waiver: https://atlantageologicalsociety.org/participation-waiver/