This document discusses a rock found in Hanford, California. The author examines the rock's physical properties and performs tests to determine it is basalt, an igneous rock. Basalt is common in the Lovejoy Basalt formation near the location it was found. The author believes the rock may have originated from that geological area.

1. By Kristin Lynch

2. •This is an igneous rock. I was fairly sure this rock was granite,
•Granite is cooled intrusively (beneath but decided to break it open with a
the surface of the Earth). hammer and see the inside to be sure.
•The composition of granite is Sialic Once broken, I could see the signature
with coarse grains and flecks of quartz salt-and-pepper look of granite along
and potassium feldspar. with the shimmery flecks of quartz
and potassium feldspar!

3.  I found this chunk of granite rock in a field in
Hanford, California, near my workplace. There are
many fields around the area and a variety of rocks can
be found there. Yosemite National Park’s bedrock is
formed mostly of granite. There are many formations
(El Capitan, Cathedral Rocks, etc.) that are formed
from this granite (Time). This chunk of granite is
fairly large and I believe most likely came down from
the Yosemite area.

4. I first identified this rock as a  Studying this rock in low light,
sedimentary rock, identified by its one can see the few shimmery
several strata from compressed layers flecks in the surface of the rock.
of sediment and brownish-gray color.
The texture of the rock is not
gritty, like the sedimentary rock
It is also very smooth in texture, most sandstone, but instead is
likely from water. Further identified, I extremely smooth. I assumed
believe this rock may be basalt. this may be either from long
exposure to wind or water. Some
of the layers in the rock look like
they are etched in and possibly
disintegrating. This leads me to
the conclusion that some layers
of the sediment were not held
together as strongly as the others
due to the material they are
made up of.

5.  This rock is extremely hard and would
not break with a hammer. I had to use a
sledge hammer to break it open. Once
broken open, the layers that were so
apparent on the outside of the rock
became almost non-existent on the
inside. The entire rock is extremely fine-
grained and the inside is a dark grey and
very shimmery. Because the shimmers
are so many and so tiny, I would guess
that they may be flecks of mica. There
are flecks of mica in basalt. I also did the
scratch test with this rock, and was not
able to scratch it with a nail. Using a
knife, I was able to scratch thin, shallow
lines into the surface of the rock. Further Outward appearance, this rock looks
testing with vinegar, I dropped a couple sedimentary, but the inside makes
of drops onto the exterior surface, as well
as the inside, and nothing happened. me think metamorphic. Due to the
This is common for basalt rocks, unless physical properties and the tests that
there are patches or bands of calcite, I did on this rock, I concluded that
which there weren’t in my rock.
this rock is the igneous rock, basalt.

6.  I found this intriguing and perplexing rock on a
country road in Hanford, California while out taking
photographs. If I correctly identified this rock as
basalt, then it may be from the Lovejoy basalt, the
largest eruptive unit in California. The Lovejoy flowed
to the Sacramento Valley, which is very near to our
Central Valley, where Hanford, California is located (A
Mantle Plume).

7. This rock is white with semi-  I deduced that this rock
translucent high-shine flecks in it. In
this piece, there are a small amount of was marble due to the
gray streaks and many medium-sized color, shape, shining
crystals that glitter when light is flecks, and scratch and
shined on it. I scratched this rock vinegar tests. Marble is a
with a knife and white powder came metamorphic rock that was
off easily. I also tried the white
vinegar test, which produced slight once limestone. Limestone
bubbling. is a sedimentary rock, but
once exposed to high heat
and pressure underground,
it morphs into marble
(Neighborhood Rocks:
White Marble).

8.  I found this chunk of marble in another field between
my house and work in Hanford, California. It really is
a beautiful rock and it stood out in the field because of
its stark white color and reflective flecks throughout
the rock. I deduced that this rock probably came from
someone’s garden/landscaping project because, after
researching, I found that there aren’t any large marble
areas around here. Marble chips are sold at home
improvement stores and nurseries and are commonly
found in landscaping.

9.  Kingdom: Animalia (animals)
 Phylum: Anthropoda (crustaceans,
spiders, insects, and relatives)
 Class: Arachnida (arachnids)
 Order: Solpugida ( solpugids and sun
spiders) (ADW)

10.  Sun spiders are otherwise known as
camel spiders or wind scorpions.
The names come from the color,
humped back, or speed of the
spider-like insect. These creatures
are commonly found in the desert
but they do not like the sun. It looks
like a scorpion mixed with a spider,
but it is not a spider. It uses its front
legs (which are sticky) to grab its
prey and pull it towards its pincers,
which work like tiny saws to liquefy
it before consuming it. They are not
venomous and usually go near
humans merely to stand in the
This sun spider was found in Hanford, shade of their shadow (Cranshaw).
CA, in a home improvement store.
Since these insects are desert dwellers,
I’m guessing this guy hitched a ride
from one of the seamen that came back
from Navy business in Fallon, CA.

11.  Kingdom: Plantae
 Subkingdom: Tracheobionta
 Division: Magnoliophyta
 Class: Magnoliopsida
 Subclass: Magnoliidae
Order: Papaverales
Family: Papaveraceae
Genus: Eschscholzia
Species: Eschscholzia Californica
(Biogeography)

12.  The California Poppy is the
state flower for California
and grows wild throughout
the state. They flourish on
hillsides and in grassy,
sandy, or rocky areas that
are dry. They grow
primarily in Southern
California, but are also
This poppy is growing in Hanford, common up the coast
CA, located in the Central Valley, through Oregon and into
which is a very dry area. Washington, as well as in
Nevada, New Mexico, and
the northern part of Baja,
Mexico (Biogeography).

13.  The Kings River that runs
through Kings County, Fresno
County, and Kings Canyon
National Park in California
begins in the Sierra Nevada.
Some parts of the river are
dammed and much of the river
is utilized for its
agricultural/irrigation
purposes. It has also carved
one of the deepest canyons in
North America, beginning in
the Sierra Nevada and
dropping more than 13,000ft to
the upper limit to the Pine Flat
Reservoir! (Friends of the
River)

14.  This is a picture of what the
part of Kings River looks
like that runs near
Lemoore, Ca. It is
commonly utilized during
the warmer months for
rafting, floating, boating,
and fishing. This part of
the river is far from the
Middle and North Forks
that are more commonly
known for its rafting
opportunities.

16. References
A mantle plume beneath California? The mid-Miocene Lovejoy flood basalt, northern California . (n.d.). Geological Society of America Special
Papers . Retrieved November 15, 2011, from http://specialpapers.gsapubs.org/content/438/551.abstract
ADW: Eremobatidae: Classification. (n.d.). Animal Diversity Web. Retrieved November 18, 2011, from
http://animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/site/accounts/classification/path/Eremobatidae.html#Eremobatidae
Biogeography of the California Poppy. (n.d.). redirect. Retrieved November 18, from
http://bss.sfsu.edu/holzman/courses/Fall02%20projects/calpoppy.html
Cranshaw, W. (n.d.). Sunspiders (Windscorpions). Colorado State University Extension. Retrieved November 18, 2011, from
http://www.ext.colostate.edu/pubs/insect/05589.html
Friends of the River: California Rivers - Kings River. (n.d.). Friends of the River: Home Preserve Restore Sustain California Rivers. Retrieved
November 18, 2011, from http://www.friendsoftheriver.org/site/PageServer?pagename=FORCalRiversKingsRiver
Neighborhood Rocks: Gray Slate. (n.d.). Salt the Sandbox: Home Page. Retrieved November 18, 2011, from
http://saltthesandbox.org/rocks/grayslate.htm
Neighborhood Rocks: Scoria Basalt. (n.d.). Salt the Sandbox: Home Page. Retrieved November 12, 2011, from
http://saltthesandbox.org/rocks/basalt.htm
Neighborhood Rocks: White Marble. (n.d.). Salt the Sandbox: Home Page. Retrieved November 12, 2011, from
http://saltthesandbox.org/rocks/whitemarble.htm#HowFormed
claystone (geology) -- Britannica Online Encyclopedia. (n.d.). Encyclopedia - Britannica Online Encyclopedia. Retrieved December 1, 2011, from
http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/120751/claystone
time, m. C., & ago, a. f. (n.d.). CVO Menu - America's Volcanic Past - Yosemite. USGS Cascades Volcano Observatory (CVO). Retrieved December 1,
2011, from http://vulcan.wr.usgs.gov/LivingWith/VolcanicPast/Places/volcanic_past_yosemite.html