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New!Mexico!Geology!and!Paleontology—A!Pre6History!and!Exo6History!of!D’ni! % Introduction* Welcome!%Shorah%b’shemtee!%I%am%Ainia%and%am%very%pleased%to%be%here%today%to% present%an%overview%of%New%Mexico%geology%and%paleontology,%and%if%we%have%time,% some%more%detailed%information%about%presentFday%New%Mexico%geology%as%it%relates% to%the%location%of%the%Cleft%and%caldera.% I%would%like%to%acknowledge%Dr.%Virgil%Lueth%of%the%New%Mexico%Institute%of%Mining% and%Technology%(also%known%as%New%Mexico%Tech)%who,%with%the%help%of%the% Supercomputing%Challenge%Community,%created%the%geologic%evolution%maps%shown% in%the%slides%I%am%presenting%today.%There%are%numerous%other%source%who%will%be% quoted%here;%I%will%include%the%attribution%when%I%read%each%citation%during%this% presentation.% Also,%many%thanks%to%AlanD%for%helping%me%with%all%the%technical%details%and%testing% as%well%as%acting%as%the%audience%participation%liaison%today;%EdisonRex%for%synching% my%voice%stream%with%the%music%stream;%and%Lyrositor%for%providing%a%handy%script% for%getting%my%slides%uploaded%to%the%imager.%I%most%definitely%would%not%have%been% able%to%get%this%put%together%without%all%their%help!%We%are%listening%tonight%to%the% music%of%Piboc%and%Turjan,%two%very%talented%musicians%within%our%Uru%community.%% Ainia% September%2013% Page%1% ! New!Mexico!Geology!and!Paleontology—A!Pre6History!and!Exo6History!of!D’ni! For%those%who%are%not%familiar%with%my%Cleft%Location%Project,%I%have%been%posting% my%surface%research%and%road%trips%to%a%MOULa%thread%for%about%a%year%now.%The% forum%thread%grew%out%of%a%personal%project%I%had%been%working%off%and%on%since% 2008.%I%have%lived%in%New%Mexico%for%most%of%my%life%and%became%interested%in% tracking%down%the%surface%location%for%the%Cleft%and%caldera%after%the%last%Cavern% closure.%I%am%convinced%it%is%a%genuine%location%here%in%New%Mexico,%which%has%now% been%confirmed%during%a%recent%conversation%I%had%with%a%MOULa%oldFtimer.%% We%know%that%the%D’ni%Art%of%Age%Writing%creates%a%wormholeFlike%connection,%or% Link,%to%a%specific%planet%within%a%specific%universe.%I%find%it%deeply%interesting%that% something%about%the%way%Ri’neref%Wrote%the%Book%of%D’ni%caused%the%Tree%of% Possibilities%to%choose%our%particular%universe,%our%particular%galaxy,%our%particular% solar%system%and%our%particular%planet.%And%out%of%all%the%locations%on%Terra,%the% Descriptive%Book%Linked%to%a%cavern%6%½%miles%beneath%the%New%Mexico%land%surface.% What%an%amazing%turn%of%fate%for%the%humans%here%10,000%years%ago!% And%so%I’d%like%to%start%with%the%geological%history%of%Terra.%Even%though%it%seems% unlikely%that%the%D’ni%ever%bothered%to%learn%this%amazing%history,%I%think%it%must%be% an%essential%part%of%why%the%Tree%of%Possibilities%branched%out%to%us%here.% % % Ainia% September%2013% Page%2% ! New!Mexico!Geology!and!Paleontology—A!Pre6History!and!Exo6History!of!D’ni! % Part*1*Ancient*Geologic*History*of*New*Mexico* Rather%than%start%with%the%creation%of%our%solar%system%and%planet,%I%am%starting%with% the%geological%evolution%of%our%water%and%land%masses,%for%this%is%the%point%where%I% think%our%planet%began%to%evolve%itself%into%the%destination%that%Ri’neref%would%Write% millions%of%years%later.% It’s%important%to%point%out%that%pretty%much%everything%I%will%talk%about%is%current% paleogeological%theory%rather%than%established%fact.%However,%to%keep%things%simple%I% will%speak%of%them%as%if%they%are%true.%% New%Mexico%shows%a%great%diversity%in%its%geologic%history.%Rocks%from%each%of%the% four%eras%can%be%found%exposed%within%the%state.%Through%the%study%of%these%rocks,% geologists%have%put%together%a%chronicle%of%New%Mexico’s%history%as%it%has%changed% over%time.% All%the%maps%on%the%following%slides%mark%the%location%of%New%Mexico%with%a%red% square.%%All%the%images%that%follow%are%photos%of%New%Mexico%geology%or%represent% stages%of%New%Mexico’s%prehistoric%evolution.%In%cases%where%I%was%unable%to%find% New%Mexico%photos,%I%opted%for%similar%photos%from%surrounding%states.%% Ainia% September%2013% Page%3% ! New!Mexico!Geology!and!Paleontology—A!Pre6History!and!Exo6History!of!D’ni! % The%first%known%supercontinent,%Rodinia,%forms%about%1.2%billion%years%ago%and% endures%for%more%than%500%million%years.%Between%850F570%MYBP,%the%first%softF bodied%marine%animals%and%plants%evolve.% Precambrian*igneous*and*metamorphic*rocks*more*than*1.5*billion* years*old*have*been*found*in*New*Mexico.*In*general,*these*rocks*form* the*core*of*mountain*ranges*along*the*east*side*of*the*Rio*Grande*River.* The*oldest*of*the*Precambrian*rocks*are*found*in*the*northern*part*of* the*state*in*the*Brazos,*Taos*and*Nacimiento*mountains,*dating*1.8* billion*years*old.*These*Precambrian*rock*formations*most*likely*have* been*buried*and*later*exposed*by*the*uplift*of*mountain*chains*and*the* erosion*of*sediments*that*had*once*covered*these*formations.*The* picture*of*ancient*New*Mexico*during*the*Precambrian*is*one*of* volcanic*activity*and*mountain*building,*with*periodic*episodes*of* submersion*under*the*sea.*After*millions*of*years*of*erosion,*only*the* remnants*of*these*old*mountain*systems*remain.*Most*have*since*been* affected*by*a*new*round*of*mountainHbuilding*followed*by*further* erosion.*–University!of!New!Mexico* The%globe%image%in%the%upper%right%depicts%an%artist’s%version%of%Rodinia;%scientists% do%not%know%the%exact%configuration%of%this%land%mass.%The%two%images%in%the%lower% right%show%some%of%the%earliest%forms%of%life%to%exist%on%Terra,%a%Cyanobacteria%and% an%impression%fossil%of%a%Sea%Pen,%dating%between%850F570%MYBP.% Ainia% September%2013% Page%4% ! New!Mexico!Geology!and!Paleontology—A!Pre6History!and!Exo6History!of!D’ni! % There%is%enormous%diversification%of%sea%life,%many%becoming%hard%bodied;%life%on% land%is%limited%to%microbial%soil%crust%(cyanobacteria),%though%mollusks%begin% adapting%to%living%in%both%land%and%sea%environments.% A*shallow*sea*with*a*sandy*bottom*covered*much*of*southern*and* western*New*Mexico*during*the*Cambrian.*Trilobites*and*brachiopods* flourished.*–The!Paleontology!Portal* An*unconformity*is*a*span*of*time*for*which*no*rock*record*is* represented*because*it*has*been*eroded*away*or*because*sediment*was* never*deposited.*The*Great*Unconformity*was*coined*by*John*Wesley* Powell*during*his*epic*run*of*the*Colorado*River*through*the*Grand* Canyon,*AZ*in*1876.*Here*he*noticed*that*deformed*ancient* metamorphic*rocks*were*covered*by*much*younger*undeformed* sedimentary*rocks.*New*Mexico*has*some*of*the*best*exposures*of*the* contact*between*these*very*old*Precambrian*rocks*(1.7*billion*years)* and*younger*sediments*(300*million*years)*of*anywhere*in*North* America.*–New!Mexico!Bureau!of!Geology!and!Mineral!Resources* The%upper%right%photograph%shows%an%example%of%a%Great%Unconformity%exposure%in% southern%New%Mexico,%with%undeformed%Cambrian%rock%above%a%deformed% underlying%crustal%granite.%Underneath%is%a%photograph%of%a%Cambrian%Orthrozanclus% from%Canada%and%a%Trilobite.%% Ainia% September%2013% Page%5% ! New!Mexico!Geology!and!Paleontology—A!Pre6History!and!Exo6History!of!D’ni! % Sea%life%continues%to%diversify%and%existing%Brachiopods%and%Trilobites%develop%more% exotic%forms%while%some%early%eelFlike%fish%evolve.%Oceans%are%filled%with%algae,% diverse%invertebrates,%as%well%as%corals,%crinoids,%Cephalopods%(squid)%and% Gastropods%(snails).% A*warm*sea*covered*much*of*southern*and*western*New*Mexico*during* the*Ordovician.*A*great*thickness*of*limestone*and*dolostone* accumulated*in*these*seas.*Brachiopods,*nautiloids,*and*other* invertebrates*flourished*in*the*tropical*waters.*–The!Paleontology! Portal! The%upper%right%photograph%shows%a%Declivolithus%Trilobite%from%Morocco;% underneath%is%a%Platystrophia%Brachiopod%from%central%New%Mexico%and%a%group%of% Sowerbyella%Brachiopods%from%Kentucky;%at%the%bottom%is%a%photograph%of%an% Ordovician%deposit%in%central%Colorado.%% Ainia% September%2013% Page%6% ! New!Mexico!Geology!and!Paleontology—A!Pre6History!and!Exo6History!of!D’ni! % Sea%life%continues%to%flourish%and%the%first%coral%reefs%form.%Fish%diversify,%with%some% species%developing%jaws.%The%exodus%to%land%begins%with%tiny%vascular%plants,% followed%by%centipedes%and%scorpions.% A*shallow*warm*sea*covered*much*of*southern*and*western*New*Mexico* during*the*Silurian.*It*deposited*a*thin*layer*of*dolostone.*Brachiopods,* corals,*ammonites,*and*other*invertebrates*flourished*in*the*tropical* waters.*–The!Paleontology!Portal! The%upper%right%photograph%shows%Silurian%deposits%in%Ohio;%underneath%are%worm% fossils%from%Pennsylvania;%the%lower%two%show%a%Giant%Sea%Scorpion%along%with%a% size%comparison%drawing.% [I%don’t%know%about%you,%but%to%me%the%Giant%Sea%Scorpion%looks%like%a%relative%of% Teledahn’s%Shroomie]% Ainia% September%2013% Page%7% ! New!Mexico!Geology!and!Paleontology—A!Pre6History!and!Exo6History!of!D’ni! % It%is%the%Age%of%Fishes;%many%new%varieties%evolve,%including%sharks,%rays,%and%a% number%of%armorFplated%fish.%RayFfinned%and%lobeFfinned%fish%appear%for%the%first% time%and%Trilobites%become%even%more%elaborate.%The%land%environments%are%further% colonized%by%fourFfooted%vertebrates,%insects%and%spiders% A*warm*muddy*sea*covered*much*of*southern*and*western*New*Mexico* during*the*Devonian.*Brachiopods,*corals,*ammonites,*and*other* invertebrates*flourished*in*the*tropical*waters.*–The!Paleontology! Portal* The%upper%right%photograph%shows%pyritized%Brachiopods%from%Ohio;%to%its%left%is%a% Trilobite%from%Morocco;%the%middle%right%photograph%shows%a%form%of%fossilized% Hexagonia%coral—called%Petosky%Stones—found%on%the%shores%of%Lake%Michigan;%the%