Colorful Layers

The above photo is from our stop at the Painted Desert and Petrified Forest National Park in Arizona while full-time RVing in March 2016. We had a beautiful day for our visit.

The different colors in the rock layers at Painted Desert and Petrified Forest National Park in Arizona result from millions of years of sediment deposition and mineralization. Each coloured layer corresponds to a particular kind of sediment—such as mud, silt, sand, and volcanic ash—which was deposited over time by rivers, lakes, and wind. The different colors reflect variations in mineral content; for instance, reds and oranges come from iron oxides, while blues and purples generally result from manganese compounds. Through erosion, these layers have been slowly exposed, revealing the park’s vivid, colorful scenery. ~ Various Sources