EARTH SCIENCE
Magazine of the ES2k Group
Ireland
In this Issue:
Mineral Crystals
Life Drilling Offshore
Two Angry Men
Dublin Soils
Schools Items
SW England Visitors
Life Fantastic
Rock Star
Two Book Launches
Irish Research Meeting
And more ….
ISSN 1753-5271
www.habitas.org.uk/es2k
Issue 7 Spring 2010
Earth Science 2000 – raising awareness of Earth science across Ireland
Chairperson: Matthew Parkes; Secretary: Catherine Adamson, email [email protected]; Treasurer: Joanne Curran.
Committee: Tony Bazley (Magazine Editor), Peter Crowther (Website Editor), David Kirk (Publicity Coordinator); Co-opted:
Bernard Anderson, John Arthurs, Marie Cowan, Philip Doughty, Garth Earls, Ian Enlander, Martin Feely, Sarah Gatley, Bettie
Higgs, Kirstin Lemon, Barry Long, Paul Lyle, William Lynn, Patrick McKeever, Jenny McKinley, Karen Parks, Sophie Prétesaille,
Alistair Ruffell.
Editorial Board: Editor, Philip Doughty (Deputy Editor), Marie Cowan, Ian Enlander and Enda Gallagher.
Earth Science Ireland is published by Earth Science 2000, Belfast and printed by Dorman & Sons Ltd. Tel: 028 9066 6700
EDITORIAL
The very harsh winter has been a
photographer’s delight. They, and those
who like testing themselves against
extreme conditions, will have been seen
scurrying up Macgillycuddy’s Reeks and
the Mourne Mountains. They will have
joked about climate change.
Not really a joke. It is happening as
it has over the millennia but there is
the rub – how quickly and hot or cold.
Climate apart, we do need to face up
to the problems we cause by polluting
our air with noxious gases, our land with
nasty chemicals (some radioactive) and
our water, both that we drink and the
seas, with just about everything. Even
without significant warming the predicted
population growth is a threat, not just to
us, but to most other life on Earth.
So the work of scientists in trying to
understand our impact on the planet
has never been more important. Yet, in
relation to climate change, never has the
integrity of scientists been questioned so
seriously. Accusations of suppression of
data; deliberate manipulation of results;
bullying of anyone with a ‘contrary’
opinion and...
programmes. It is
also easy to mislead,
even
when
not
intended. There is
a back-lash coming
and scientists are
going to have to
re-establish
their
credibility.
We give a review of two books that have
‘stirred the pot’. Next issue I would
love to have an article to balance the
conclusions in those books! Is there a
willing author out there?
Also in this issue are some beautiful
mineral specimens - not everyone is
fixated on dinosaurs and the beauty of
crystals cannot be denied. Then there
is a report on the big Irish research
geology meeting where the excitement
of Earth science really shone through.
Life as a student features again and
may act as an inspiration for our younger
readers. There is, of course, life after
university and a career is described in a
seriously important oil/gas industry job
on the offshore platforms. There have
been important book launches featuring
government ministers. It is always
pleasing to see the profile of geology
being raised by new publications.
Finally, it is good to have up-beat reports
from groups visiting Ireland to see our
landscapes and rocks. I enjoyed putting
this issue together. If you enjoy reading
it do drop me an email or letter to say so
– and maybe suggest some new ideas
for content.
Acknowledgements
Without their sponsorship the magazine
would not exist. Thanks to: The Northern
Ireland Environment Agency; The Heritage
Council; The Geological Survey of
Northern Ireland; The Geological Survey
of Ireland; The National Museums &
Galleries of Northern Ireland; The Royal
Irish Academy; The Belfast Geologists’
Society.
The views expressed in the magazine
are those of the authors. All rights
reserved. Permission to reproduce, copy
or transmit all or part of the publication
must be obtained from the Editor.
■ Tony Bazley, Editor, Earth Science
Ireland, 19 Inishanier, Killinchy, Newtownards, Co Down
BT23 6SU Email: [email protected]
So, with claim and counter-claim,
where do we go from here? We
concentrate on collecting good
data. The data coming out of
computers is only as good as the
data fed in. Modelling is so, so
easy these days with computer
Cover photograph
EARTH SCIENCE
ISSN1753-5271
Magazine of the
ES2k Group
Ireland
InthISISSue:
MineralCrystals
LifeDrillingOffshore
twoAngryMen
DublinSoils
SchoolsItems
SWenglandVisitors
LifeFantastic
RockStar
twoBookLaunches
IrishResearchMeeting
And more ….
2
2k
www.habitas.org.uk/es
Issue7Spring2010
Coastal
Range, British
Columbia
with (inset)
Leicester
students in
the Swiss
Alps – see
Tripping the
Life Fantastic.
Earth Science Ireland Magazine
DOWN TO EARTH – A Letter from
CONGRATULATIONS
ES2k and Earth Science Ireland offer warm congratulations to Chris
Darmon and all at Geo Supplies for achieving 25 years of retail
business. Starting as a one man show in a tiny windowless room,
Chris has 6 staff and a reputation for excellent service, supplying
geologists, schools, universities and the wider public.
Yet he will be best
known to many for the
magazine Down to Earth
written, yes to help his
supplies company, but
clearly by someone who
really loves geology. A
true ‘rockaholic’. The
magazine almost pushes
you out into the field to
see the extraordinary
sights Nature has to
offer. It also makes its
(our) voice heard about
worrying issues, like the
reduction of fieldwork by
schools and universities.
As we all know we are living
in
very
recessionary
times. However, it is
very
encouraging
to
be able to report that
the IGA is growing from
strength to strength. This is
due in no small way to the
greatly improved and monitored website and the recent
addition of the IGA to Facebook.
We also need to remind our existing members to renew
their yearly subscriptions.
The advantage of a networking system recently started,
whereby the many student groups across Ireland at
university level are helping by intercommunicating
to spread the word regarding lectures and field trips,
has increased attendances at all recent events. This
obviously is to everyone’s advantage.
Chris Darmon
Raise a glass to Chris and his team for their success and the
future. We picture Chris in Connemara, a geologist of distinction and
discernment.
We would like to thank all our guest leaders and
lecturers in the past and invite any new ideas and
suggestions to: - [email protected] and the website
www.GEOLOGY.IE
Regards
Peter Lewis, President
Want to know more? See www.geosupplies.co.uk
celebrating
years
Looking for a summer placement with a difference?
To celebrate its 175th anniversary the British Geological Survey is offering more
Nuffield Science Bursaries than ever before.
If you are a student at Key Stage 5 or in Year 13 of a STEM course in England,
Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland and want to:
▪
▪
▪
▪
▪
Work alongside professional earth scientists
Gain insight into scientific research
Carry out a specific project
Earn £80 per week
Be our guest at our 175th symposium in London in
September 2010 and meet globally famous TV presenters
Then contact your local Nuffield coordinator now!
Evelyn Heaslip
Sentinus
19a Ballinderry Road, Lisburn, Co. Antrim, BT28 2SA
 Tel: 02892 627755
Details at www.nuffieldfoundation.org
Issue 6
British Geological Survey
[email protected]
0115 9363100
www.bgs.ac.uk
3
ROCKS
SLIPPING
AND
SLIDING
Ronnie Creighton
(Landslides
Workshop
Coordinator) reports
Figure 1: The landslide event in Pollatomish, September 2003
attendance (90) reflected the importance
of landslide hazards in Ireland today
and, indeed, the serious impacts that
landslides can have.
Background
The Geological Survey of Ireland (GSI)
ran a major Landslides Workshop on
21st April 2009. It was the first of its
kind in Ireland. The two main aims
of the workshop were to introduce
the
GSI
landslides
susceptibility
mapping project and also to provide
a forum for presentations on current
landslide research in Ireland. The large
(a)
The background to this workshop goes
back several years. Subsequent to the
Pollatomish (Figure 1) and Derrybrien
landslides in the autumn of 2003
the GSI established a Landslides
Working Group to examine the whole
area of landslides in Ireland for the
first time. The report of the Working
Group, “Landslides in Ireland”, was
published in August 2006. The report
made several major recommendations
for future work. These included - the
continued development of a national
database of past landslide events; the
promotion of geotechnical research into
the principal landslide materials such as
peat; landslide susceptibility mapping
across the country on a phased basis;
the inclusion of landslide data in the
planning process; and increasing public
awareness of landslide hazard. Multidisciplinary attendance
(b)
Figure 2: Proposed landslide susceptibility
mapping areas (a) Greater Cork City area
and (b) The East Leinster area
4
An important point to emerge from this
report was the multi-disciplinary nature
of landslide research. This range of
expertise was reflected in the wide
range of stakeholders who attended the
workshop. They included geologists,
geomorphologists,
geotechnical
engineers, planners, GIS specialists,
ecologists,
botanists,
and
other
environmental scientists. Attendees
came from government departments,
state and semi-state agencies, local
authorities, universities, consulting
engineering firms and wind farm
developers. Mouchel Ireland Ltd strike
keynote
groups - landslide susceptibility mapping
methodologies and GIS technologies;
geotechnical engineering research; and
landslides within the planning process. The keynote presentation was on the
GSI landslide susceptibility mapping
project which commenced in June 2008.
It was given by Robert Bone and
Stefan Morrocco of Mouchel Ireland
Ltd which is the consultant working
on the project. The consultant’s brief
is to build a landslides inventory of
past events and produce landslide
susceptibility maps for two designated
areas of Ireland, namely East Leinster
and the Greater Cork City Area (Figure
2). The intention is that these maps will
be robust enough to introduce into the
planning sphere both in development
plans and in development control. The
Department of Environment, Heritage,
and Local Government (DEHLG) is very
supportive of this project. The Mouchel
consultants described the datasets
they were using and also their proposed
susceptibility mapping methodology.
New Technologies
Tim McCarthy from the National Centre
for Geocomputation (NCG) at Maynooth
(NUIM) then described some recent
developments in geotechnologies for
landslide mapping and monitoring. There
are clearly new technologies coming
on stream which will be very useful for
landslide mapping and monitoring in the
future. Alexei Pozdnoukhov (NCG)
and Xavi Pellicer (GSI) then discussed
their ongoing remodelling of the Breifne
area landslide data from the Landslides
in Ireland report. This new work will
substantially improve the modelling
of the landslide susceptibility for the
Breifne area. The final presentation on
mapping methods was given by David
Fleming of the RPS Group, who talked
about the mapping of peat instability in
Ireland (Figure 3).
The workshop was split into three
Earth Science Ireland Magazine
the standards that will have to be met
if landslide data is to be incorporated
into the planning process, either in
development plans or in development
control. She was very supportive of the
GSI project but is keen that everyone
should be aware of the downstream
ramifications of the inclusion of
landslide susceptibility maps in the
planning process. The day finished
with two practical planning examples.
Eamonn Hore from Wexford described
the coastal erosion problems in Wexford
from a planning perspective and the
great danger to settlements close to the
shore (Figure 5). Then Ian Douglas from Mayo described
the planning difficulties encountered in
the area subsequent to the Pollatomish
landslides of 2003. The repair and
mitigation
measures
were
very
expensive. He emphasised the need for
susceptibility mapping to be undertaken
as soon as possible.
Figure 3: Peat stability assessment map
Future climate change impact
Figure 4: The Londonderry – Belfast train following the Downhill Rockfall, June 2002
Two geotechnical presentations were
given on the strength of peat and glacial
till in the context of slope stability by
Mike Long and Ken Gavin, UCD. Their talks emphasised the complexity
of measuring the strength of these
materials. Coastal protection
Jim Casey from the OPW described
Ireland’s coastal protection strategy. He outlined the various high resolution
coastal surveys that had been completed
and the assessment of erosion rates
and flooding susceptibility. This work
is linked to the European EUROSION
project.
Northern work
Then came two contrasting presentations. Terry Johnston (GSNI) gave an overview
of landslide hazards in Northern Ireland,
Issue 6
showing examples from the basalt
escarpments on the east and north
coasts (Figure 4). They have had a
significant impact on infrastructure. In
contrast, Mark Cassidy of Byrne Looby
Partners gave a practical example of a
road repair after a landslide. The road
in question was the Torr
Head Coast Road in Co.
Antrim. He described the
geotechnical assessment
and the remediation work
done to repair the road.
The workshop ended by emphasising
the diverse nature of landslide
issues, the need for more interdisciplinary work and the importance
of landslide susceptibility mapping. The talks throughout the day had also
repeatedly referred to the impacts of
climate change. Ireland is expected
to experience more intensive rainfall
events in the winter months and in
northwest Ireland where there are
many vulnerable slopes. It is hoped
to repeat the workshop this year so
the progress on landslide research
can be given. Check www.gsi.ie for
further information.
Planning issues
The final session of the
day covered planning
issues. Aileen Doyle
from DEHLG gave a
general
overview
of
the planning system in
Ireland. She emphasised
Figure 5: The White Cliffs of Blackwater
5
Water – the landscape artist
David Kirk tells the story
This boulder, more than a metre long and half a metre square,
was lifted more than 10 feet vertically from the bed of the
Glen River above Newcastle and dumped on the roadway
during a storm.
The musical gurgling of a youthful
mountain stream, sparkling as it tumbles
down the rocks, the drama of a torrent in
flood, the gentle curving flow of a languid
reach, can all add delight and interest to
a walk in the hills and the countryside –
but how often do you stop to ponder the
vastness of the earth-shaping energy
machine of which they are a tiny part?
Realization
Do you realize the extent to which they
have shaped our landscapes – and
the mechanisms they employ to do it?
Leaving aside the great tectonic dramas,
which few of us are likely to experience in
our lifetimes, water is the most powerful
earth sculptor there is. Someone wrote
– ‘Crystal water and crystal rock,
together shaping mountains – streams
sparkling in eternal youth as the
mountains grow old’. And of course to
geologists rivers and streams, exposing
the successive layers of rock as they
dissect the landscape, provide revealing
‘windows’ through which the past can be
viewed and read.
Every stream is created by hundreds,
maybe thousands, of tiny rivulets
running down the hillsides, usually on
the surface, sometimes beneath it.
The coming together of many streams,
draining sometimes great valley systems
carved from solid rock, creates rivers.
There is no symbiosis as intimate as that
of rivers and their landscapes; no closer
6
interaction.
Powered
by gravity, rainwater
and melting snows
gather into vigorous
young
mountain
streams that cascade
down
pre-ordained
channels created by
geological forces. But
as they travel they
in turn shape these
landforms – sculpting
rocks, moving earth –
and finally, at the end
of their journeys, laying
down the stuff of new,
future landscapes
Rivers have a wide
battery of tools they
use for the landscaping activities, and
in another example of the interaction
between them and the local geology,
their sculpting power is vastly increased
by the ease with which the local rocks
are weathered. They provide the rivers
with particles, from sand-sized grains
to boulders, which become their cutting
tools.
Looking at a sparkling pure stream you
might wonder how it wears away ancient
hard rocks.
Wearing down rock
Pure water, rain soaking through and
filtered by layers of peat or compacted
soil, has little cutting power – but by
being slightly acidic, both as a result of
absorbing carbon dioxide from the air
and organic acids from the peat and soil,
it can slowly dissolve the minerals of the
rocks it flows over, especially
limestones, but even the
feldspars of granite. This is
Solution.
However, given sufficient
speed and volume, especially
in a confined channel,
water develops sometimes
irresistible Hydraulic Power
which can sunder rock with
cracks or lines of weakness
and tear them from the
banks and beds. This
action is responsible for the
‘plunge-pools’ often found at the bottom
of small waterfalls where a stream flows
downwards over a flat rock. It is also
largely responsible for the cutting of
deep gullies in hill areas when torrential
downpours create flash floods that are
channelled into tracks of men or sheep.
But water is seldom totally pure – seeping
through sands and soils it will carry
away minute particles. Corrasion is
where the river uses its load of particles
to grind away at its sides and beds,
dislodging even more cutting material.
It operates horizontally, abrading away
the banks (usually by undercutting which
leads to collapse) and vertically, cutting
downwards. Round pot-holes in solid
rock in river-beds are caused by abrasive
particles and by pebbles swirled around
by circular eddies.
Attrition
is the fourth erosion tool. This is where
the loosened grains and stones that
are being carried away smash against
each other and others in the banks
that then themselves get chipped and
worn away and rounded. Small particles
eventually end up as silt or sand in lakes
or the sea, bigger ones as pebbles and
cobbles, either forming banks where the
current is no longer strong enough to
move them or as pebble beaches, where
the sea continues the work.
Transportation
Because rivers are not just forces of
erosion, an equally essential part to
their landscaping work is transporting
material away, eventually to lake and
Water and rock – shaping each other
Earth Science Ireland Magazine
The cutting and transporting power of rivers is the product of its
velocity and volume. A range of factors determines speed of
flow – the gradient of the river, the smoothness of its channel
(a rough, boulder-covered bed creates friction which slows the
water flow) and the width and depth (wider bottom, greater
depth, mean more friction – deep calm pools).
Influence of vegetation
Water may be soft – but has the power to shape landscapes
sea. They do so by several methods – suspension of fine eroded
particles, saltation- the hop-skip-and-jump method by which
rock fragments are repeatedly lifted briefly and dropped again,
and traction, by which big boulders, usually already rounded to
some degree, are rolled down the river bed. It seems like stating the obvious but volume, at any particular
time, is dictated by rainfall levels and the size of the river’s
drainage basin. However, other factors play a part. Vegetation
breaks the force of rain and enables water to soak into the
ground, reducing surface flow into the streams (witness the
disastrous consequences of forest clearance on hill slopes
and even peat cutting as in several parts of Ireland). The
permeability of the rock also determines how much can be
absorbed, to be later released slowly.
So remember, the next time you sit by ‘a purling stream’ you
are watching a landscape being shaped!
NEW ‘BUILDING STONES OF
IRELAND’ POSTER
Mark Cooper tells us
Natural stone is naturally attractive
when used as building material
especially, it always seems, when it is
in the region from which it derives. This
Building Stones Map is in poster form
and covers all Ireland. It illustrates the
main stone types used in construction
and demonstrates the links between
our heritage, the built environment, and
Ireland’s natural geological foundation.
From Neolithic times to the present,
Ireland has a history of using
stone for building. Many areas, and
indeed some counties, developed
a distinctive character based on
their built heritage. Only with the
advent of modern transportation has
the movement of local stone and
the importation of exotic varieties
blurred the boundaries of such areas.
The use of natural, locally derived,
building
stone
has
growing
environmental significance. Not only in
renovation and conservation of the built
heritage but in linking new buildings to
the landscape. It can also revive local
skills and employment. Increasing
Issue 6
costs of transportation and the carbon
footprint that this entails are further
reasons to recommend building with
local stone.
The poster is available free of charge
(although subject to a charge for
postage and packing). Copies will be
included with some of the magazines
of this issue, If you don’t have one, or
would like more copies – for instance
for the classroom – please contact
either the Geological Survey of Ireland
or the Geological Survey of Northern
Ireland.
For a related article see the Review of
‘Stone by Stone’ elsewhere in this
issue.
7
200, 50, 50, 53 - ‘New’ Ulster
Museum hosts IRGM 2010
Your Editor looked on
Visitors from another planet would
wonder what that row of numbers means.
So for that matter would anyone who is
not an Irish geologist. 53 is the number
of years the Irish Research Geological
Research Meeting (IRGM) has been
taking place. It changes venue every
year. This year it was at the completely
redesigned Ulster Museum in Belfast
and proved as popular as ever. 210
people signed up, coming from all over
Ireland as well as across the Irish Sea.
These facts come from the nicely
produced programme for the meeting.
What a programme it was. More figures
- 43 talks, 2 guest lectures and 34
posters all delivered and on show during
the weekend of February 19th to 21st.
Prof Nick Arndt (Grenoble University)
mentioned earlier. It was mostly about
Ireland but included a paper on Tanzania
– the first of many international topics to
follow during the meeting.
Grenoble Professor
The second evening, before the well
attended conference dinner, included the
IRGM Guest Lecture given by Professor
Nick Arndt of Grenoble University. He
talked us through magma deep in the
Earth’s crust passing upwards and
leaving us, in the form of solid rocks
at the surface, with signatures that
help interpret the origin of that magma.
There are implications for the formation
of economically important Nickel –
Copper ore deposits. Also intrusions
into sedimentary rocks near the surface
can produce large amounts of gas,
including carbon dioxide and methane
Guest speaker sparkles
Aoife Brady (NUI Galway) and her
poster
Back to the figures
50 years ago the Tynagh Zinc-Lead
deposit in Co Galway was discovered,
transforming the Irish mining scene. 50
years ago a Cretaceous chalk deposit
was found at Ballydeenlea in Co Kerry –
a huge surprise and still hard to explain.
200 years is the time that has elapsed
since the birth of Robert Mallet, a
Dubliner widely recognised as the father
of seismology.
Prof Mike Bailey (QUB)
8
The conference was sparked off by the
opening IGA Guest Lecturer Professor
Mike Bailey, ‘How a perfectly rational
scientist came to believe comets
could be dangerous’ was the title. It
encapsulates the lateral thinking of this
provocative speaker. As people reach
senior status in the science so they have
a responsibility to inspire those coming
on. Mike certainly does that with his just
brilliant – and different - analyses of past
and present events.
Climate in the last few tens of
thousands of years dominated the first
session, with clear implications for our
future? Then the remarkable research
that has been seeded by the Northern
Ireland Tellus survey was showcased.
Already, only a few years since the
remote sensing plane was flying, the
understanding of the northern rocks
is being fundamentally changed. The
results have wide implications, not least
for animal and human health. A title
‘Cancer and trace elements in Northern
Ireland’ gave – and gives – pause for
very serious thought.
There followed a session on geophysics,
appropriate for the 200th anniversary
Hugh Anderson (UC Dublin) talks faults
and dykes
- the infamous greenhouse gases. In
some situations large quantities of
toxic gases like sulphur dioxide and
halocarbons might also be given off into
the atmosphere. It was speculated that
toxic gases released in this way might
have caused the mass extinction of life
at the Permo-Triassic boundary some
248 million years ago.
Early bird colours
The final day saw talks by Irish scientists
who have been working around the
world, from Greece, Switzerland. Tibet,
Oman, Sumatra and China. Studies of
fossilised colour pigments in feathers
– from specimens in China and around
100 million years old - were reported.
Earth Science Ireland Magazine
Queen’s University, Corrib Natural Gas,
Conroy Diamonds & Gold Plc, James
Stevenson (Quarries), Gypsum Industries
and the Irish Salt Mining & Exploration
Company to thank for sponsorship that
‘made all the difference’. Not forgetting
the Ulster Museum who memorably
hosted the event and the organising
committee of Mike Simms, Garth Earls,
Jenny McKinley and Alastair Ruffell.
Steven Hollis (Southampton University) admires the poster of Catherine Mottram
(St Andrews University)
Fascinatingly they are allowing us to
reconstruct how those ancient dinosaurs
and early birds really looked in life.
Stripes and patterns with chestnut to
reddish-brown tones were revealed.
which they were quarried, some 50km
distant and half way up the Mourne
Mountains.
There is much main-stream geological
research being carried out by Irish
geologists but at a meeting like this
it is hard not to be impressed by the
amount of collaboration taking place.
Not only between universities but
also with those from other disciplines,
including archaeologists and even Save
the Children. The latter was in relation to
disaster risk reduction by the University
of Ulster, Coleraine, operating in western
Sumatra. It was pointed out that the
positive benefits of science are often not
reaching the neediest. Scientists need
to develop better ways of disseminating
important data to the local communities.
All who present a talk or a poster are
winners at a friendly conference like this.
However, there are two formal awards
for student presentations.
Mourne Mountain millstones
The archaeologists commonly need help
in sourcing rocks and tools found at
ancient sites. This way past trade routes
and ways of working can be established.
At this meeting one talk was about
millstones in a 6th to 8th century tidal mill
at Nendrum in County Down. Detailed
work has identified the precise site from
Winners
The best talk prize went to Milo
Barham of NUIG (UC Galway). His talk
was entitled: Stable Isotopes and the
Carboniferous glaciations – No evidence
for rapid climate change at the Visean –
Serpukhovian boundary.
The best poster prize winner was Colm
Pierce (University College, Dublin).
The title: 09-CE-UCD-01, a first behindoutcrop core in the Ross Formation, Loop
Head, Co Clare. This work is in an area
extensively used by industry for training
and oil/gas reservoir characterization
purposes.
The prizes were supported by the
Petroleum Exploration Society of Great
Britain, Irish Exploration Group and the
Irish Geological Association. Apart from
these organisations those attending had
the two geological surveys (GSI & GSNI),
Next year’s meeting is in Galway. Sure
to be a ‘not to miss’ occasion with
so many exciting things happening in
geology these days.
Ode to the
Lonesome
Rockhound
Another day another stone,
(or maybe quite a few);
With flinty eye and hammer cocked
Alone the rockhound moves across the
land, By beach and quarry, tor and gully
Ever seeking the time-shaped
snapshots
That tell his planet’s tale.
Nice gneiss and quirky quartzite
and other muddled metamorphic,
Laid-back limestone, grey old
greywacke, Glinting granite and sequential
sandstone, showing evidence of depositional
dilemmas
and tectonic tribulations;
Amiable ammonites,
Chatty chalk with many tales to tell,
Pristine pebbles and curvacious
cobbles,
Errant erratics far from home
Each find a treasure,
Sculpted gem or silent witness,
The finding and the keeping, With all his many, many others,
Well worth the cold or wet
or learned field-trip briefing under a
scorching sun.
Homeward bound with pockets heavy
Well contented, oft reflecting – After all,
You’re never alone with stone.
David Kirk
Friends meet again - John Gamble (NUI Cork) and Bernard Anderson (QUB)
Issue 6
9
REVIEWS by Peter Hirsch
TWO ANGRY MEN
IAN PLIMER – HEAVEN AND EARTH – GLOBAL
WARMING: THE MISSING SCIENCE
CHRISTOPHER BOOKER – THE REAL GLOBAL
WARMING DISASTER
Very different books by angry men: one
volcanically hot and one bitingly cold.
In Heaven and
Earth Ian Plimer
is very angry.
Anger is reflected
on almost every
page of a detailed
and informative
book. Stuffed with
facts,
Heaven
and Earth glows
with resentment.
Plimer’s anger draws one irresistibly
from page to page of a book repetitive
and dense with references and notes.
An unlikely thriller – but thriller it is.
Plimer sees his science, geology,
prostituted and the very spirit of science
despoiled: a cascade of lies about what
most of the world – and particularly
politicians – see as universal truth,
a warming world climate. Emeritus
Professor of Earth Science at Melbourne
and Professor of Mining Geology at
Adelaide, Plimer’s opinion must count
for something and his book should
be read, no matter how loud the bees
buzz in his bonnet. When you have read
the book, you may find a bee or two is
buzzing in yours, for there is nothing
more convincing than the anger of an
intelligent sceptic backed by an ocean
of well-documented information. Every
time Plimer makes an assertion, he
supports it with a reference, a quotation,
a graph or a map. Dense with verifiable
facts, the book has sections on prehistory and history; on the sun; on Earth
itself; on ice; on air; and, finally, Plimer’s
own position with regard to global
warming. Or cooling? He examines the
work of the Intergovernmental Panel
on Climate Change (IPCC), the motives
of its members and supporters, their
behaviour with respect to those who
disagree with them and their attitude to
accuracy and completeness of data.
10
“History” covers the period from
100,000 years ago, when ice sheets
began to increase, maximum glaciation
at 20,000 and the end of severe
glaciation at 14,000 years ago. Real
history covers the Roman Warming,
when wine was grown in Yorkshire, the
cold, wet Dark Ages, the warm, fertile
and rich medieval period, and the bitter
cold “Little Ice Age”, lasting until around
1850 that brought famine to all Eurasia.
Warm and cold periods are described and
causes where possible identified: from
ice-dams failing so that sea temperature
fell sharply and levels rose; to volcanic
eruptions and orbit irregularities. Plimer
cites evidence of weather and harvests,
levels of lakes and seas, spread of
settlements across the world and rates
of growth of limestone stalagmites.
Drawing together evidence from different
continents to derive a pattern, he deals
with each period in turn and shows a
kaleidoscope of changes over a vast
swathe of history.
Noting the IPCC ignores or minimises
the effect of the sun on climate
change, Plimer examines whether solar
heat output is constant (no) and if its
radiation is affected by debris in space,
cosmic rays and its magnetic field (yes).
He shows sunspots’ effects on harvests
have been documented since 1801 and
that an array of data from snow cores,
lake deposits and sea bed sediments
show that solar radiation variances
are a major influence on climate in
combinations of cycles, some decades
and some thousands of years long.
On “Earth”, Plimer notes geological
evidence of the beginning of life and
its evolution. He places carbon dioxide
into context as a vital plant food. He
draws evidence widely: from 19th century
records from a Royal Naval survey vessel
to NASA satellites to deep ocean-floor
drillings and astronomical deep-space
observations. The story covers the
last few hundreds of millions of years.
It treats with extinctions, atmospheric
conditions and crop yields. Plimer shows
malaria is related, not to climate change
or latitude, but to land use. He gives
both the Stern Report and All Gore’s
Inconvenient Truth short shrift. He
controversially argues volcanoes, both
visible and submarine – the great majority
– expel vastly more carbon dioxide
and other pollutants than mankind’s
activities and that one – 74,000 years
ago – very nearly wiped man out. Finally,
the effects of Milankovitch cycles on
climate are examined as yet another
cause of climate change.
Plimer considers ice and the ages when
ice has covered much of the surface
of the planet, the causes, effects and
trends of ice ages, how glaciers and
ice-sheets affect the crust, grow and
retreat, how icecaps retain records of
the past and pack ice coverage varies
by season and year and presents
interesting information about historical
arctic sea ice extents.
The section on water deals with the
nature of water – “weird” according to
Plimer – with the effect of oceans, their
currents and the organisms they contain.
Sea level changes are considered over
thousands of years. Their current trends
and the effect, cause and extent of global
and local cloud cover are considered.
“Air” examines the atmosphere including
the content of greenhouse gases and
temperatures at various altitudes.
Claimed as far more important than
carbon dioxide as a greenhouse gas is
water vapour. The historical relationship
between temperature and carbon dioxide
content is that raised temperatures
precede increased carbon dioxide levels.
Plimer concludes climate change is
cyclical. It comprises cycles within
cycles. It warms and cools irregularly
according to the sum of the cycles’
effect. The sun, with its own cycles of
sunspots and magnetic field variance,
has the most important influence.
Earth Science Ireland Magazine
A good blast from a volcano makes
human pollution insignificant, at least
in the short term. There is a host of
volcanoes, many deeply submarine
where tectonic plates are moving apart.
All emit vast quantities of gas, including
a lot of carbon dioxide. Plimer is largely
untroubled by carbon dioxide, which he
points out is an air-borne plant food of
vital importance and not a pollutant.
Without it, plants do not grow and
harvests are reduced. He believes – and
current conditions may be thought to
confirm – that global temperatures are
currently falling.
He is more worried about standards
of scientific veracity, about the quality,
independence and objectivity of peer
reviews, about the muzzling and
discrediting of dissenters, and the
withdrawal of invitations to lecture,
believing as he does that dissent is
essential to good science, that every
hypothesis should be constantly
challenged and tested, every avenue
explored impartially and that every
opinion should be aired for critical
analysis.
If you care for a well-presented case
then you should
read this book.
Booker’s The Real
Global Warming
Disaster anger is
cold, analytical and
almost surgical in
style - a detective
story with both
victims and villains.
Since Booker has
yet to be sued by the IPCC or by any of
its leading luminaries, it is likely that his
allegations are hard to refute.
Booker, a Sunday Telegraph journalist,
has frequently attacked the global
warming scenario.
This book is his seminal work. It follows
Scared to Death, an analysis of why
scares about salmonella in eggs, BSE,
avian flu, the millennium computer bug,
dioxins, passive smoking, white asbestos
and (too late to be included) swine flu
catch the attention of government and
opinion formers, cost a great deal of
public money and then fade. Booker
thinks global warming another such
scare but the cost of its life and burial
will constitute the most costly scientific
blunder in history.
In each of these scares, consensus
Issue 6
passed through a series of stages. A
body of scientists becomes convinced of
a threat. Public opinion and politicians
become convinced – but by this time
some of the scientists have begun to
check the data and dissent. In the third
stage, the consensus begins to crumble
and powerful people begin to become
exposed – politically, financially and
professionally – resulting in a bitterly
fought rearguard action and a cover-up.
Booker sees global warming commencing
the last stage now. The fourth stage is
clearance of the wreckage. As Britain
commits to building thousands of offshore wind-turbines, Denmark has
concluded that its Danish-made windturbines were a waste of resources,
producing at the vagaries of the wind
disappointingly little power that had to be
off-loaded at a loss. Britain’s more costly
offshore turbines, made overseas, must
be paid for with increasingly expensive
foreign currency producing few green
British jobs.
The book follows the stages of the
consensus. Beginning in 1972, at a
time when some climatologists were
concerned about the possible onset of a
new ice age, others began to fear global
warming. Measurements on a Hawaiian
mountaintop showed that the level
of carbon dioxide was increasing and
predictions were made of an increase
in temperature of some 4° within 25
years. In 1988, the IPCC was formed.
Its members, a powerful political
pressure group, rapidly became not just
convinced of the truth of the prediction
but also that disagreement with that
view was dangerous, wrong and should
be suppressed. Dissent was treated as
heresy.
In the IPCC reports prepared, for first the
Rio, and then the Kyoto conferences, it
is claimed that report summaries were
exaggerated out of proportion to the body
of reports, peer review was carried out
only by scientists known to agree with
the conclusions already reached and
opposing papers were suppressed from
publication. The consensus acquired
momentum.
The IPCC relied largely on computerised
statistical modelling of climate change.
It was only in 1998 that unequivocal
evidence of data manipulation appeared
in Mann’s infamous Hockey Stick
model. It showed temperatures rising
remorselessly over the last 1,000 years
and convinced many of the seriousness
of the situation. It was based on data
sets carefully selected, altered or ignored
to produce the desired effect of a sharp
and unprecedented rise in temperature.
In fact, it is said, only carbon dioxide
levels had risen. Temperature highs
in Roman and medieval times were
smoothed out. Mann’s data was
challenged by statisticians and shown to
be erroneous. The IPCC, dismayed, tried
hard to defend the hockey stick but two
US Congressional Committees decisively
rejected it. Booker tells this convoluted
tale of claim and counterclaim concisely,
supporting the story with copious and
apposite quotations and references.
By 2007, it was clear that global
temperatures had stopped rising
and had begun to fall as early as the
beginning of the decade. A great gulf
of credibility developed. The IPCC
(comprising surprisingly few scientists
and fewer with relevant qualifications)
and politicians were on one side. On
the other were increasing numbers of
dissenting scientists and much of the
public. Dr Pachauri, a railway engineer
and chairman of the IPCC, with his tightly
knit group of warming enthusiasts, held
falling global temperatures to be a
temporary anomaly.
As the Copenhagen summit approached,
a further gulf emerged between the
convinced western politicians and the
unconvinced of the aspiring East and
Africa.
Finally, Booker castigates politicians
and journalists alike for their gullibility
and failure to examine the evidence.
He examines how the consensus was
achieved in this and other scares and
considers how to prevent a reoccurrence.
The book was written too soon to cover
the Copenhagen results and before
two occurrences that undoubtedly give
Booker satisfaction: the publication in
November 2009 of emails written by
officials at the Met Office Hadley Centre
and the embarrassed retraction in
January 2010 by Dr Pachauri of a claim
by the IPCC that Himalayan glaciers are
in course of immediate meltdown.
Whether you hold to the global warming
hypothesis or regard it as a confidence
trick, read this exciting, authoritative and
combatative book. Check its assertions.
What is certain is that carbon dioxide is
steadily increasing as forests are felled
and more coal is burnt, and that human
population is rising exponentially. Both
issues need urgent and considered
action.
11
REVIEW
Stone by Stone
A Guide to Building Stone in the
Northern Ireland Environment.
J Curran, P Warke, D Stelfox, B Smith
& J Savage. Published by Appletree
Press, Belfast, 2010. ISBN: 978-184758-141-9. List price: £12.99 or
€14.50. 317 pp
Dawson Stelfox’s foreword states
that “the primary purpose of this book
is to be a practical working guide to
identifying, assessing and specifying
stone and stonework, to encourage
good practice and informed decision
making. It charts the transition from
rock in the ground to building stone,
from the quarry to the high street”.
The publication complements the
Natural Stone Database for Northern
Ireland - www.stonedatabase.com which details the use of stone and
its condition in over 2,000 buildings
and monuments.
The book is usefully pocket size
although with its thickness and
weight it needs to be a strong
pocket. It starts by explaining how
to identify stone and then guides
the reader through building stones
used in the past. From local rocks
to imported stone, from Cookstown
Sandstone to St Bees Sandstone
and from Mourne Granite to
Aberdeen Granite. A remarkable
variety of stone which in future
editions will no doubt include the
Indian, Chinese and South American
stones currently being used in
modern buildings.
Start to get worried
It then explains how to diagnose
decay, going through an assessment
process that if it was a medical
condition would earn high marks.
There is a plethora of ‘diseases’
that can attack stonework, some
brought on by using the wrong type
of mortar. If you are responsible
for an old building you will start to
get seriously worried as you reach
this part of the book. Then rescue
comes with a discussion of repair
strategies, followed by ‘Making it
Happen’.
Nobody can now be held responsible
for the work of architects and
builders at the beginning of the
last century and before. As far as
building conservation goes they
often got it wrong. Far less money
would have been expended if
buildings had always been carefully
monitored and maintained using the
correct materials and techniques.
Even so, the authors make the point
that starting now will save money
in future. For instance use of stone
sealers and waterproofers is said to
be nearly always a bad idea.
Know your terms
The book has a useful glossary of
architectural and stonework terms,
illustrated by excellent drawings,
one giving fine details of the Albert
Memorial Clock Tower in High Street,
Belfast. It ends with inventories of
almost 130 buildings around the
country, giving stone types, date
of construction, architect and
listing grade. It does not give an
assessment of condition – but
that can be found for many of the
buildings in the much larger list on
the web site given above.
The book and web site is an excellent
example of the combination of
university
research
(Queen’s
University) and industrial practicality
(Consarc Design Group). They are
thoroughly professional products
that place Northern Ireland ahead
of most of the rest of the United
Kingdom and Ireland for anyone
involved with building conservation.
This little book may prove to be
the new bible for architects and
builders. Beyond them, anyone who
enjoys past architecture will find
items that enhance their enjoyment
of the built environment. Lavish use
of colour throughout and printing on
good quality paper make the book
excellent value.
LAUNCH IN THE CANADA ROOM,
QUEEN’S UNIVERSITY BELFAST
That is not a misspelling for ‘lunch’,
although before these tight economic
times it might have been. It was light
refreshments and chocolates that
awaited the eclectic guests whose
numbers overflowed the forum. At
the side a representation of an Inuit
camp carved in ancient limestone
from the Canadian Shield seemed
appropriate.
L to R: Pro-VC James McElnay, Patricia Warke, Dawson Stelfox, Joanne
Curran, Bernard Smith, Minister Edwin Poots, John Savage
12
Earth Science Ireland Magazine
Minister is Chief Guest
Environment Minister Edwin Poots
formally
launched
Stone
by
Stone. He recounted his boyhood
experiences of collecting stones
from fields of barley for his father.
It was a heavy job and then he was
anything but in love with stones.
However, stripping the pebble dash
off a house in Ballycastle to reveal
the natural stone beneath made him
appreciate its attractiveness and
practicality. He extolled the buildings
of Northern Ireland with their
fantastic variety of stone. Almost
as an aside he then mentioned,
it seemed a little regretfully, that
much stone is now imported. Yet
he said we still do retain some of
the skills of stone masonry as so
well exemplified by S. McConnell’s
& Sons of Kilkeel. They ‘made’ the
stone for the Diana Memorial in Hyde
Park, London and were involved with
the renovation of the Albert Clock in
Belfast. “We take stone for granted”,
he said. We shouldn’t.
Heritage Science Course
Speaking before the Minister was
a Pro-Vice-Chancellor of Queen’s
University,
Professor
James
McElnay. He talked of the ‘real world’
outputs that are the advantage of
collaboration between academia
and industry. The cooperation that
had led to this book, he said, is of
advantage to the economy and the
community. Queen’s would like to
see such partnerships all through
the university.
He then announced that a new
course in ‘Heritage Science’ is to
be introduced at Queen’s University
soon. It is an exciting new initiative.
End piece
The writer of this account couldn’t help
but feel a little sad that it is now nearly
ten years since the Geology Department
at Queen’s University, Belfast closed. If
you look around geology departments
elsewhere in the UK it is clear that they
are commonly the nucleus for just the
sort of collaborative research that it was
said is now being sought. The university
missed a trick when it threw out geology.
EARTH’S TREASURE
Kenneth James (Ulster Museum) reports
Conroy Diamonds & Gold plc, a mining company which has been exploring the rocks
of the County Monaghan/Armagh area for gold has just announced results from
two drill holes in the Clay Lake district of south Armagh. The company chairman,
Professor Richard Conroy, said:
“I am very pleased that the first drill holes at Clay Lake have returned such
positive results from a location some distance along strike from the zone of gold
mineralisation we identified in a stream bed late last year. The drill intersections
indicate that the mineralisation continues both at depth and for several hundred
metres along strike from the stream bed zone and remains open in all directions.
However, we have done little more than scratch the surface of just a small part of
this very large target, which extends over an area of more than 1.4 million square
metres, yet the results achieved at such an early stage are quite outstanding and
encourage us to believe that much more is yet to be revealed. In addition, one
needs to recognise that, relative to Clontibret... in nearby Co Monaghan... the Clay
Lake target is much larger and has returned significantly higher gold-in-soil sample
values.”
Conroy Diamonds & Gold began prospecting around Clay Lake following
the discovery there in 1989 of a 28 gram (one oz) gold nugget. It had been
found in the gravels of the lake by a local man using a metal detector. It
was the first and so far only significant gold nugget to be found in Northern
Ireland. As this discovery was not made by a licensed surveyor, the
ownership of the nugget passed to the Crown Estate Commissioners,
who subsequently donated it to the Ulster Museum. In recognition of the
importance of the discovery the museum made a payment to the finder
based upon the bullion price for gold. The Clay Lake gold nugget is on show in the Ulster Museum, in the
‘Earth’s Treasures’ minerals display, in the ‘Gems and jewellery’ case,
object number 79. It is amongst the half-dozen largest gold nuggets
to have been found in Ireland coming, in terms of weight, just after the
legendary gold nuggets of the Wicklow gold rush of 1795. As well as its mineralogical significance, the Clay Lake nugget has also
proved to be of interest to archaeologists. In 2002, in a programme to
determine the origin of the gold used to make Irish prehistoric ornaments,
it was subjected to X-ray fluorescence analysis, to establish the trace
elements in the gold. The results of this and similar analyses of other Irish
gold nuggets suggested strongly that it was Irish gold that was used to
make these ornaments and not, as had been previously thought, European
sources. Note: No part
of this article
should be taken
as promotion or
encouragement
to invest in
any company
mentioned.
Investment in
exploration and
mining is very risky.
Tony Bazley
Issue 6
13
Irish ‘Rock Stars’
The series by Patrick N. Wyse Jackson,
Trinity College, Dublin
Valentine Ball (1843–1895)
If you visit the Dingle Peninsula in County
Kerry, and feel like a bit of exercise, the
ancient pilgrim’s route up to the summit
of Mount Brandon, one of the country’s
highest peaks, would satisfy most
intrepid walkers. On the way you might
be lucky enough to find a diamond – not
one washed out of the Silurian-Devonian
bedrock – but the one lost by my cousin
on her honeymoon. Have diamonds ever
been discovered in Ireland? In 1887
the subject of this article published
a paper that recalled the discovery of
the Brookeborough Diamond in County
Fermanagh just over seventy years earlier
(see also Barry Long, ES2k 8 (2003), p.
3-4). Interest in this find led to diamond
exploration in the 1990s that focused
on counties Donegal, Fermanagh and
Tyrone. While some tracer minerals for
diamonds were located the exploration
companies involved have not confirmed
the presence of diamonds. I think that
the jury is still out on the question of
native Irish diamonds.
Valentine Ball was a large man who in
the prime of his life like many Victorian
Figure 1. Valentine Ball (centre with
beard, standing at the end of the
trawl) with colleagues on a dredging
trip in 1885. His brothers Robert
Stawell Ball (wearing the flat peaked
cap) is to the left and Charles Bent
Ball is seated on the right. Samuel
Haughton is immediately below
Robert (from R.L. Praeger, Some
Irish Naturalists)
gentlemen sported a distinctive beard
(Figure 1). He acquired an encyclopedic
knowledge of geology, of diamonds,
and coal, and gold, and of birds, and is
unusual for a geologist in having had a
species of owl named for him. Among
other honours he was a Fellow of the
Royal Society and a Companion of the
Order of the Bath. Born in Dublin on
14 July 1843, the second son of the
naturalist Robert Ball, he was educated
in Chester and later at Rathmines School
in Dublin after which he became a
clerk in the Four Courts. At the same
time he attended Trinity College, and
in due course he joined the stream of
Irishmen who followed Thomas Oldham
to India where they were employed with
the Geological Survey of India. All told
he spent seventeen years on the subContinent during which he worked under
difficult conditions. It was not unusual
for the geologists to be afflicted by
various tropical ailments, some of which
proved fatal. While in India Ball discovered and mapped
several extensive coal deposits in West
Bengal which are still mined today, and
he also investigated occurrences of
economically important minerals. Much
of his work was published in official
Survey memoirs and in a useful synopsis
The Economic Geology of India that
appeared in 1881. Of particular interest
to students of anthropology, culture and
social history is his book Jungle Life in
India (1880) which includes wonderfully
Figure 2. A geological camp in India (from V. Ball, Jungle life in India)
14
Earth Science Ireland Magazine
atmospheric accounts of the everyday
life and working conditions of a geologist
surveying in remote parts of the country
(Figure 2). He also penned a number of
articles for the ornithological magazine
Stray Feathers, whose editor named the
Andaman Scops Owl Otus balli for him.
Ball returned to Dublin in 1881 and
succeeded Samuel Haughton as the
Chair of Geology and Mineralogy at
Trinity, while at the same time he became
involved with the Royal Dublin Society and
the Royal Geological Society of Ireland. In Irish journals he published accounts
of meteorite falls in Ireland, discussed
the distribution of metamorphic rocks,
zinc, diamonds and gold in India, and
contributed to the then topical debate
on floating ice and its deposits. He gave
a large collection of Tertiary mammals
from the Siwalik Hills to Trinity College,
but following his resignation after only
two years removed them. Perhaps
influenced by the work of his father who
had been Director of the Dublin University
Museum, Ball had always shown a
great interest in museums. In 1883 he
was appointed Director of the Science
and Art Museums which included the
Science and Art Museum (now the
National Museum of Ireland, where his
Siwalik collections are housed today),
the Botanic Gardens, and the National
Library. In 1890 imposing new premises
were opened at Leinster House for the
complex, and I find it surprising that for
his efforts in planning and organizing
the new museum Ball was not knighted.
The architect Thomas Newenham Deane
was. Such an honour would have been
the second in the Ball family; as it was,
this came when conferred on his younger
brother Charles in 1903.
Ball did not enjoy his new museum for
long. Probably as a result of overwork
and perhaps due the lingering effects of
his work and travels in India he suffered
from poor health and had to resign. He
died aged only 51 on 15 June 1895 at his
home on Wellington Road, Dublin leaving
a widow and four young children. He is
buried in Mount Jerome Cemetery where
he now lies close to his brother Charles,
the eminent surgeon and baronet who
died in 1916. Ball’s headstone is carved
in dark Larvikite from northern Norway,
and is one of the few examples of this
stone in the cemetery.
Now whenever I read of diamonds and
other precious gems from India I cannot
help but recall the work of Valentine Ball. He was a giant of a man in every sense
whose dual legacy remains the powering
of the industrialisation of India, and the
National Museum of Ireland where he
was an unrivalled museum administrator.
Issue 6
School Geological
Society
Natasha Midgely 4th Form GCSE Geology
student, Methodist College, Belfast, writes
These are some of topics covered in
our Geology Society:
Volcanoes
geology of rock salt while putting it on
our chips! The following recipe makes
roughly 15 portions:
Conglomerate cookies
20 digestive biscuits broken up –
mechanical weathering
Iain Stewart (we love his programmes)
3 tablespoons of golden syrup
The (indoor) ring of fire!
2oz melted butter unsalted - slightly
more healthy A large part of our GCSE syllabus is
based on volcanoes and their affects.
So when given the opportunity to
replicate the features we could not
otherwise experience in the class
room, we exploded with enthusiasm.
With the combined efforts of our
geology class and members of the
Geology Society we made our very
own ring of fire. We used a bottle
for the vent and paper maché to
represent the surrounding rock. With
the classic cocktail of bicarbonate of
soda, vinegar and red food colouring
for a dramatic eruption, we had a really
explosive lesson. In the process of the
construction we learned how and why
volcanoes formed and after the event
we used them to attract new members
to the society, and also at our school
open night!
Conglomerate cookies
Our ever ingenious geology teacher
Mrs Parks found a way for us to really
get our teeth into learning about rock
types- by cooking in class!
We discussed how the mixture was
eroded,
transported,
deposited,
compacted and cemented and most
importantly, observed this process
via making tray bakes. We sampled
our ‘conglomerate cookies’ in geology
society and to top it off we studied the
One box of Maltesers 175 g
100g of melted milk chocolate
All of the above are transported and
deposited into a bowl and mixed
together, the melted ingredients and
the syrup form the cement to bind the
clasts - Maltesers - and the matrixcrushed digestives together. These
are compacted into a baking tray and
the Law of Superpositon is observed
when a younger layer of melted
chocolate 200g is deposited on top. The Rock Cycle and conglomerates
were well understood after making
these in class.
Iain Stewart
In our GCSE geology class we have
found one geologist who seems to have
a seemingly perfect series for each of
the topics we are learning about, Iain
Stewart! All of the programmes are
pitched for our level of understanding
and knowledge. We actually learn much
more from a 30 minute program than
an hour of note taking. Even early on a
Monday morning his programs manage
to enthral us all. However his biggest
fans are among the female staff of
the department (the geology society is
affectionately called the “Iain Stewart
Appreciation Society”).
15
COVER UP - M1 meets A1
Tony Bazley travels the new road between Dundalk and Newry
Making the cutting
Cutting its way up from Dundalk to Newry
the section of the MI in County Louth
was completed over a year ago. ‘Cutting’
is the word because there were masses
of hard rock in the way. The rocks were
sediments, some baked, of Lower
Palaeozoic age but mostly the granites
of the Slieve Gullion Complex. Heavy
rock breaking equipment operated for
months slicing out a track for vehicles
to travel between the capital cities of
Dublin and Belfast.
Now the new A1 dual carriageway
immediately north of the border is
starting to take shape. Cutting has
been just as difficult and
local residents must be
relieved that some of the
toughest work appears to
be finished. Even so it will
be some months before
the new fast south to
north route is complete. Then, at last, the agony
of waiting in traffic
queues, whilst your boat
or plane departure time
gets closer, will be over –
Ryanair and Easyjet wait
for no-one.
Viewing points?
If you have travelled south – north by
train and looked out of the window
around Newry you will have already
noted some striking rock sections. The
word striking is used
because of the rock
colour contrasts. Light
coloured rocks (usually
granite) are cut by near
vertical black rocks. The
latter are basic igneous
dykes. Similar intrusions
have been revealed in
the cuttings for the road
and maybe someday a viewing point will
be put in. Currently they are at the side of
the motorway and you are not allowed to
stop. Any geologists driving this section
should take extra care because their
attention will definitely be distracted.
Engineers love covering rocks
These are the most obvious geological
features that are exposed. There are
many more interesting variations in rock
types, jointing patterns and weathering.
A cover up was mentioned. Engineers
just love grading rock cuts back to an
angle where they can put soil on top and
grow grass. As a result many of the rock
sections have already gone.
Happily some rocks will remain in
view. Certainly the vertical rock faces
will be left. Perhaps many more rock
Racing to finish the job, cuttings already greening up
Basic intrusions
Border line fireworks
16
Working back into the granite
Earth Science Ireland Magazine
look spectacular and certainly
does around Newry. Keep your
eyes open when next travelling
this route.
Scenic treat
It should be mentioned that
the entire route through the
Cooley, Gullion and Mourne area
is a scenic treat. A sign that
Covering the cut slope with soil
always brings amusement is the
‘fireworks
factory’ right on the
exposures could have been preserved
border.
It
is
good
that
we can now think
but the geologists obviously didn’t ask.
of
this
as
funny
and
feel
that, maybe,
We might need to try to educate our
the
dark
days
of
the
very
recent
past are
engineer friends to leave natural rock
over.
wherever it is reasonable to do so. It can
COOLEY, GULLION,
MOURNE & SLIEVE CROOB
In the last issue of this magazine there was a full review
of the Geological Field Guide to Cooley, Gullion, Mourne and
Slieve Croob by Sadhbh Baxter. The review was written from
an on-line version before the printed hard copy was available.
Since then the book has been released following a launch on
1st March, an event planned for January but that had to be
postponed due to snow.
The launch eventually and appropriately took place at
the Carrickdale Hotel, Carrickcarnon, Co Louth between
the Gullion and Cooley granite complexes. Jim D’Arcy,
Cathaoirleach, Louth County Council opened the event by
commenting on how the geology and fables of this part of the
world are linked. He mentioned some of the many names that
resonate with folklore and history – Long Woman’s Grave,
Maeve’s Gap and Bloody Bridge.
John Feehan, Mayor of Newry and Mourne District Council,
said the area had been very popular with students in the
past. It now had the potential to become a tourism centre of
international importance with geotourism at its heart.
Pat O’Connor, Assistant Director of the Geological Survey
of Ireland emphasised the value of collaboration with the
Geological Survey of Northern Ireland since 1994. Since
then there had been a variety of geotourism products whose
potential for education and conservation are now starting to
be fully realised.
As an additional postscript it is wondered
if any geologists have examined the
rocks newly exposed along the route. If
so please let us know, maybe with an
article with your findings because they
are certain to be interesting. If not, an
opportunity will have been lost. Again the
lack of a university geology department
anywhere near becomes significant
because in the ‘old days’ Queen’s
University geologists would have been
swarming over the sections. Now, at a
time when the mode of emplacement
of the Tertiary granites is once again
being actively debated, the closing
of that department means research
opportunities are being lost.
those who appreciate the landscape are much more welcome.
He said the book is a tool to help develop this region.
He expressed appreciation of the positive attitude of farmers
in the area and said there is no intention to restrict their
activities. There are advantages to all in this area of it
continuing to grow as a cross-border gateway, like that
between Letterkenny and Derry. He mentioned a visit earlier
in the day to Castle Espie in County Down. There he had seen
a display of fossils and felt full of humility at the vast time
involved since their formation. It was great cause for thought.
Author speaks
Sadhbh Baxter gave those present a lightening tour through
the region – and her book. There are 28 localities/walks
described, all relatively short and easily accessible. The A4size book is in full colour and is a high quality product. It is
going out to all secondary schools in Ireland, free of charge.
Congratulations
Many have been involved with the book and all deserve
recognition. However, Sadhbh and Brendan McSherry, the
Louth Heritage Officer, have obviously been the main driving
forces.
How do you get hold of a copy of the book? Contact Brendan
McSherry on 086 601 3839 or go onto the web site www.
louthcoco.ie .
Editor
Minister does the honours
The actual launch was carried out by John Gormley TD,
Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government.
In congratulating all involved with the project he said this was
a time when all the titles mentioned in his ministry came
together. He was pleased the book has been so carefully
tailored to the school geography curriculum. He was looking
for high quality tourism and cast doubt on the real value of the
hen and stag parties at Temple Bar in Dublin. Ramblers and
Issue 6
Martin Carey (CEO Mourne Heritage T), Minister Gormley
TD, Brendan McSherry, Gerard McGivern (Newry &
Mourne DC)
17
Letter to
the Editor
Giant’s Eye on Jersey
CAVES in
Belfast!
Johanna Sonnex visited Northern Ireland
with Birkbeck College Geological Society
in 2008. The group featured in an article
and on the cover of Issue 4. She tells me
that they returned last summer:
Where can you go
caving in Belfast?
Did you know that
Belfast has an ALP
or an Adventure
Learning Park?
I was very surprised to visit the
Belfast Activity Centre in Barnett
Demesne and find out that there
are artificial caves.
Belfast Activity Centre is a
Northern Ireland based personal
development charity. Their aim is
to engage young people aged 1425 from all backgrounds in a range
of programmes and activities,
providing them with the opportunity
to explore and advance their
personal and social development
mainly through the medium of
Adventure Learning and Outdoor Activity. Barnett’s Stable Yard is based in Barnett Demesne, which can be accessed
from the Milltown Road on the way to Shaw’s Bridge. The Stable Yard is
tucked in amongst mature trees on the right just past Malone House
Further information about the caves and other activities can be found on
the website below.
www.belfastactivitycentre.com
You can try caving in the largest realistic caving system in the world. It
has three large caverns, two rivers, a waterfall and over 200 meters of
passageways. This fun, safe and totally unique activity is sure to keep
everyone captivated. When you go you will get a red boiler suit, wellington
boots and a helmet and light - and be prepared to get wet. It provides an opportunity to learn about fossils, limestones and the impact
of weathering and solution...and is good fun. Karen Parks
18
Jersey Giant's Eye or two
We had another great time. This time we
stayed in Ballycastle as the Bushmills
hostel was fully booked. There were
15 of us. I think word got around what a
good time we had last year!
We visited Ballintoy Harbour to start
with and what a delight that was! Not
least of all it was just so pretty. And the
geology was an added bonus. We walked
along the cliff path to Carrick-a-Rede and
most of us ‘did the bridge’. Even I did
it this year (I get vertigo on high rock
faces, a bit of a handicap for a geologist
I know!).Then, by popular demand of
those who came last year, we returned
to Cushendun. The last day we spent at
the Giant’s Causeway. It really is just so
amazing - as a geologist and a tourist it
takes my breath away.
Then Jo reports on her degree course:
I’m currently 2/3 of the way through my
mapping project. I’ve picked the north
coast of Jersey to map and it’s proving
quite a challenge. Half the area is
ignimbrites and the other half is granites. I’ve found some great sedimentary
sequences in the cliffs around the bays. Also some interesting lava formations
that remind me of the ‘Giant’s Eyes’
seen at the Causeway.
(Delighted to hear from Johanna. Good
luck with the degree – Editor)
Earth Science Ireland Magazine
REVISION HELP & PRIZES
Lectures in the Ulster Museum for Geology A Level Classes
At the end of November there was
a special series of lectures in the
Ulster Museum to help Upper Sixth
Geology students to revise the
Environmental Geology Module. The event brought together geology
students from Methodist College,
Belfast,
Oakgrove
Integrated
School in Londonderry, Foyle and
Londonderry College and Regent
Grammar School, Newtownards.
They attended a series of lectures
on the extraction of Oil and Coal
with the associated geological and
environmental problems, as well as
focussing on the exploration and
mining of mineral resources. Presentation group: prize-winning students, their teachers – Karen Parks and
William Lynn – and, in the centre, Toby White who gave the lectures.
The talks were delivered by Toby
White from the IOM3 – the Institute
of Minerals Materials and Mining. They were very useful for the Module
mock examination the students
faced in December and the public
examination in January.
Prizes for top students
There was a presentation to the top
3 AS students in Northern Ireland
in last summer’s exams. Diane
Burns from Oakgrove Integrated
School in Londonderry gained
almost full marks in her modules and
joint second were Daniel Williams
from Methodist College and Patrick
Morton from Foyle and Londonderry
College. All were presented with a
Geology of Northern Ireland book
from the Geological Survey of
Northern Ireland. Thanks to GSNI
for their donation of the books but
most of all congratulations to the
students.
Good wishes to everyone for this
summer’s exams and their future
careers.
The students were able to visit the
new Geology Galleries in the Ulster
Museum and we thank the Ulster
Museum staff, in particular Mike
Simms, for allowing us to use the
Lecture Theatre.
Activities:
- Field Trips
- Lectures
- Geology Tours
- Social Events
Membership open to all:
- Student
- Family
- Amateur
- Teacher
- Professional
- Corporate
IGA members range from
professional geologists to
beginners of any age. See
our nationwide programme
of events on our website
www.geology.ie
You are welcome
to join us at:
www.geology.ie
Karen Parks
Issue 6
19
Cavanacaw cavities captured
Norman Moles (Brighton University), David Green (Manchester
Museum) and James McFarlane explain a most unusual find
Needle-like crystals of a
bright pink to orange-red
colour are an unusual
occurrence, so when James
McFarlane noticed them
coating fractures in the
rocks at Cavanacaw gold
mine in County Tyrone,
he
collected
samples. Until recently, geologist
James was employed by
Omagh Minerals Ltd at the
Cavanacaw open-pit mine
which has been producing
gold from a hydrothermal
vein deposit since 2007.
fractures, or possibly
globules
of
another
immiscible fluid within
the watery fluid. Our
hypothesis is that the
baryte crystals nucleated
at the interface, wrapping
themselves around the
bubbles or globules – as
shown in the mock-up
image – a bit like soapy
scum forming on a bathtub. The composition of
the gas or liquid phase
is speculative: carbon
dioxide, hydrogen sulphide
or a hydrocarbon fluid
are all possibilities. The
bubbles have long since
gone, but the shape of the
baryte ‘nests’ is evidence
of their former presence
as the baryte and ankerite
crystallized out of solution
within the fractures.
Baryte not crocoite
The initial investigation,
focusing on the visual and
hardness
characteristics
of
the
bright-coloured
crystals, suggested that
they might be crocoite –
a lead chromate. This
theory was supported by its
Highly elongated prismatic
occurrence in hydrothermal
baryte crystals are known
lead deposits (Cavanacaw
from elsewhere in Britain
produces lead, silver and
and Ireland, such as
gold) and the occurrence
in the west Cumbrian
of chromium minerals such
iron mines and from
as fuchsite (an apple-green
nodules in the Sidmouth
chromium mica) locally
Top picture - mineral as found, Lower picture - with 'bubbles'
Mudstone Formation in
inserted (field of view 10mm)
within the same geological
Devon. In both cases, the
unit. Further investigations,
baryte was produced by
reported in the 2009 volume of the
rings are seen to comprise aggregates
relatively low temperature hydrothermal
Journal of the Russell Society, showed
of stumpy baryte crystals each 10 to
processes. However, at these locations
that the mineral is baryte – barium
100 microns in length, together with
blocky and tabular baryte crystal habits
sulphate – although crystallized in a very
tiny globular masses of a clay mineral.
are also common, so we do not know
unusual form.
Each ring is made of hundreds of these
what controls the development of the
In the fracture coatings, the needle-like
baryte drapes over crystals of colourless
quartz and yellow ankerite, an iron–
calcium carbonate. The needles tend to
be aligned in any one area, and in places
they form small nest-like circular or oval
clusters 2-4 mm in diameter, surrounding
hollow centres in which the quartz
substrate is visible. Examined under
high magnification, the needles and
20
tiny crystals which are not themselves
curved, but are offset consistently at a
small angle to each other.
Gas bubbles cause unique form
The most likely explanation for this
unusual feature is that the rings formed
around objects with a circular or ovoid
form. We think that these were gas
bubbles trapped within the fluid-filled
needle-like aggregates. Further research
on the unique occurrence at Cavanacaw
will include studies of the compositions
and homogenization temperature of fluid
inclusions in both baryte and quartz.
This is of interest as the fracture-coating
minerals may have been deposited from
the same fluids that remobilised and
concentrated gold and silver within the
ore deposit.
Earth Science Ireland Magazine
HARRY FOY — ZEOLITE COLLECTOR
Kenneth James, Curator (Geology), Natural Sciences Department,
Ulster Museum tells us about a remarkable man.
“I especially thank Harry Foy...for
guiding me to zeolite localities in
Co. Antrim, providing specimens for
study, and compiling information
on zeolites of Northern Ireland.”
Mineralogist Rudy Tschernich wrote
these words of thanks to Harry Foy in
his book Zeolites of the World (1992). This is a remarkable tribute. Tschernich
is the world’s leading authority on the
zeolites, a group of minerals which occur
in basalt. Harry Foy is a Belfast man who in midlife became interested in minerals and
later made the collecting of zeolites
his speciality. From the late 1960s
he single-mindedly hunted for these
minerals in the local basalts, becoming
a self-taught expert on the occurrence
and appearance of the Ulster zeolites.
He labelled and arranged his zeolites
in a cabinet in his home and to these
he added other Irish minerals that he
collected and also minerals from around
the world that he bought from dealers or
by swapping with other collectors. In time
this collection amounted to nearly 500
specimens, becoming one of the finest
private mineral collections in Ireland. Harry generously shared the knowledge
he acquired about mineral localities with
other collectors and he collaborated in
zeolite research with the late Dr Rab
Nawaz, Curator of Mineralogy at the
Ulster Museum (1970-2000). Harry Foy was born in Belfast in 1920
and educated at Belmont Primary School
Harry Foy at the ‘Diamond Rocks’ in the
Mourne Mountains in the 1960s. Crystals of
smoky quartz, orthoclase feldspar, topaz and
beryl have been found here.
Issue 6
and Strandtown Primary School until the
age of 14 years. Then he went to Belfast
Technical College, where he studied
wood and metal work, mathematics and
English. At the age of 16 he successfully
sat the entrance examination for the
Civil Service, which qualified him to take
up the post of trainee staff officer in the
telephone service of the Post Office. He remained in this organisation (now
British Telecom) until his retirement in
1982. In the later years of his career,
his work involved surveying sites for new
telephone exchanges, an outdoor role
that suited Harry’s temperament. ‘Loch Ness Monster’ fish
Harry Foy from earliest days was curious
about the world around him. He enjoyed
the outdoors life and became talented in
several hobbies. His first interest was
fishing and he became self taught in fly
and rod making. He liked the wilderness
of river and lake and for many years he
recounted to anyone who would listen,
the tale of “a fight with a Loch Ness
Monster of a fish” he had in a lake in the
west of Ireland. He took up photography
and wood carving. He searched for old
bog oak, carving the pieces into animal
shapes and selling the best to studios
in Belfast. He hunted for blackthorns
suitable for walking sticks and he sold
many bundles of beautifully finished
blackthorns to the famous Belfast
umbrella and stick shop, Johnston’s
of Ann Street. Harry also had a keen
interest in sketching and painting. He
was a capable painter of landscapes,
selling his work in Belfast, Dublin,
England and the United States. His work
bearing the name ‘H J Foy’ still turns up
in auction houses today. During his
time outdoors, Harry Foy occasionally
picked up minerals. For example, in the
slate-like rocks at Bradshaw’s Brae near
Newtownards, he found galena (lead
sulphide) and pyrite (iron sulphide) and
took them home, as he remembered
later “because I liked the look of
them”. However this interest remained
undeveloped with his other hobbies
intervening. ‘Treasure’ makes minerals
serious
Harry Foy’s serious interest in minerals
happened by chance. His son (also
called Harry) recalls how this happened. “It was in 1964 when I was 9 years
old. I had a children’s magazine called
‘Treasure’, which had a centre-fold
illustration of the sorts of minerals that
a rock hound could collect. I had left it
lying open at home and my father saw
the pictures of the minerals. He read
the notes about the minerals which
explained what they were and where
they could be found. That sparked off
Dad’s real passion for minerals. Soon
whenever we were out on the road he
would stop at rock faces to look for
minerals.”
Belfast is on the edge of the ‘Antrim Lava
Group’, the geological name given to the
basalt that covers most of County Antrim
and neighbouring parts of Londonderry,
Tyrone and Down. This basalt makes
good rock aggregate and there were
many quarries opened in it to produce
stone for the construction industry. The quarries provided Harry Foy with
opportunities for mineral collecting. Also,In the 1960s, there were no ‘Health
and Safety’ worries and gaining access
to large quarries like Magheramorne
near Larne was easy. Harry was free
to quietly chip away at zeolite-bearing
rock while large dumper trucks rumbled
noisily by! Harry would return Saturday
after Saturday to the same quarry,
systematically working his way through
the rock piles, breaking open boulders
to expose the zeolite crystals. Natrolite
Natrolite, Magheramorne
County Antrim.
Northern
Ireland’s
M2
quarry,
motorway,
21
which runs north out of Belfast, was
built in the early 1970s. The bit of it
that runs along the shore of Belfast
Lough required foundations of hard
rock. This was obtained from the basalt
in Magheramorne quarry. The basalt
was originally red hot molten lava that
poured out from volcanoes 65 million
years ago. The lava contained gas and
steam bubbles. As the lava hardened
into basalt, the bubbles became hard
cavities, lined with minerals. The
chemical composition of the lava and
its temperature determined what sorts
of minerals crystallised in the cavities. Mostly these minerals were silicates of
aluminium with lesser amounts of other
metals, and water molecules, arranged
in an open framework structure. These
form a group of minerals consisting
of about 40 in number, known as
the zeolites. These are crusts of the
needly crystals of natrolite, one of the
commoner zeolites. The name ‘zeolite’ was coined in
1756 by Freiherr Cronstedt, a Swedish
mineralogist, from the Greek words ‘zein’
(to boil) and ‘lithos’ (stone), because
zeolites when heated, give off water. Gmelinite
Gmelinite, Glenarm, County Antrim.
Many former gas bubbles can be seen
in the basalt photograph. The larger
ones are lined with gmelinite crystals. Gmelinite is one of the easier zeolites to
recognise; its crystals have a fleshy-red
tinge and have a shape described as ‘an
angular version of a UFO flying saucer’! Harry found this sample of phacolite
in Craigahulliar quarry, just outside
Portrush, County Antrim. Phacolite
is a variety of the calcium-rich zeolite
chabazite, characterised by having
twinned crystals.
The open framework structure of the
zeolites makes them micro-porous. This
means they can act as molecular sieves,
blocking large molecules and filtering
through small ones. Zeolites are used
to separate and purify gases. Closely related to the zeolites is the
silicate mineral apophyllite, which is
popular with collectors because of its
well-formed angular crystals. Harry
Foy brought to light these apophyllite
crystals when he chiselled open this
piece of basalt from Catcairn Hill quarry,
County Antrim. “Dad had a ‘good eye’
for minerals” says Harry’s son. “He
seemed to know, just by looking, which
rocks contained crystals. It was if he had
x-ray vision. And he was good with the
hammer in opening them up.”
Gobbinsite
Pyrite
Gobbinsite
The white patches in this basalt sample
are the rare zeolite mineral gobbinsite
which Harry Foy helped to discover in
1982. At that time he was exploring the
Gobbins basalt cliffs on Islandmagee,
County Antrim. He collected over a
period of weeks several examples of
a white mineral, typical of the zeolites
but of a kind he had not come across
before. He alerted Dr Nawaz at the
Ulster Museum, who with a colleague
Dr John Malone from Queen’s University
chemistry department, confirmed by
mineralogical analysis that it was indeed
a zeolite mineral new to science. Apophyllite
Phacolite crystals.
Pyrite in schist, Malin, County
Donegal
Harry Foy did not confine himself to
zeolites. He found on the schist rock
at Malin in the far north of County
Donegal a seam rich in pyrite cubes,
seen here in this sample. Pyrite, which
is iron sulphide is a common mineral
and occurs in many different sorts
of rocks and environments. Schist
is a metamorphic rock and the great
pressure and heat undergone by the
rock produced these cubic crystals. The
yellow brassy colour of pyrite gives it the
popular name ‘Fool’s Gold’. Harry Foy’s zeolite collecting spanned
nearly 40 years and his reputation is
known around the world amongst zeolite
enthusiasts. Today he lives quietly in
retirement with Ruby, his wife of over 60
years, in their Belfast home where they
are supported by his family and a wide
circle of friends. Although as alert as
ever, Harry Foy’s eyesight has weakened
and in 2009 he made the painful
decision to sell his mineral collection. His contribution lives on in the Ulster
Museum’s new mineral gallery, where
some of his finest mineral samples are
on public display. Many thanks to Harry Foy (Junior)
for providing the family history and
photograph
Phacolite
22
Apophyllite, Catcairn Hill, County
Antrim
Earth Science Ireland Magazine
Quartz is from the old
German
querkluftertz,
meaning
‘cross-vein
ore’. It describes the
way quartz veins often
cut across rock strata. Garnet is from the Latin
granatum,
meaning
pomegranate, because
garnet crystals look like
pomegranate seeds. Harry in front of the zeolites case in the Ulster
Museum’s mineral display
Postscript about mineral names
The newcomer to minerals is usually
puzzled by the bewildering variety of
names. Some mineral names are very
old:
Cinnabar, was named by the early
Persians zinjifrah, meaning ‘dragon’s
blood’. New minerals names
are often coined by
the mineralogists who
discover them. They
may be inspired by:
People:
Gmelinite was named after Christian
Gottlob Gmelin (1792-1860), a German
mineralogist. Chemical composition
Natrolite is from natrium the Latin word
for sodium, reflecting natrolite’s sodiumrich composition. Locality
Gobbinsite is named after the Gobbins
cliffs, where it was first discovered. Appearance
Phacolite gets its name from phacos the
Greek word for lentil grain, because its
crystals look like lentils. Chemical behaviour
Apophyllite is from two Greek words
for away from and leaf, because of its
tendency to split into sheets when
heated. Physical properties
For thousands of years pyrite was used
to light fires, because it produces sparks
when struck with steel. This gave it its
name from the Greek word pyros for fire. Be careful with similar sounding names! These are all different minerals:
Chrysoberyl, Chrysocolla, Chrysoprase,
Chrysolite, Chrysotile
MinSoc – what is that?
This ESI Issue has several articles about minerals - so we
asked Kevin Murphy, Executive Director, to explain ‘his’ society
The Mineralogical Society of Great Britain
and Ireland was founded in 1876. Listed
amongst our current and former Honorary
Fellows are many of international renown,
including Nobel Prize winner, Linus
Pauling. The first meeting of the Society
was held at the Scientific Club at Savile
Row, London, and included presentations
by Sorby and Heddle. A key founder and
early ‘organizer’ was Mr Joseph Henry
Collins after whom the Society has
recently named a prestigious medal.
Joseph Henry
Collins, founder
of the Society
Issue 6
There have been
many stalwarts of
the Society. L.J.
Spencer
edited
the Mineralogical
Magazine for 55
years, M. Hey and
A.M. Clark for 25
years. Max Hey,
in particular is
remembered
for
his support of new authors in the journal
and for his innate sense of humour:
Lord, though my little balance swing
From left to right like anything
Pray, let the pointer indicate
Precisely the expected weight.
Prof. R.A. Howie, of ‘Deer, Howie and
Zussman’ fame, edited Mineralogical
Abstracts for >30 years and was its
mainstay for longer than that. The
third edition of the Introduction to the
Rock-Forming Minerals, in glorious
technicolour, will be published by the
Mineralogical Society in early 2010.
The Mineralogical Society is somewhat
unique in terms of its name ‘….Great
Britain & Ireland’. From its foundations
134 years ago, it has maintained this
name, in spite of the various political
and other changes through that time.
All universities throughout Britain and
Ireland are included in the Student Award
Prof. R.A. Howie
Scheme; Irish universities have featured
prominently in the list of sites visited by
Society Distinguished Lecturers; there
have been several Irish representatives
23
on Council; and this author is Irish and
living in west Cork!
Structure
The Society is formally run by a Council
and at present has three full-time and
two part-time staff. It’s office is in
Twickenham, on the outskirts of London.
Publications
Journals
The Mineralogical Society publishes
Mineralogical Magazine and Clay
Minerals, two ISI-listed journals attracting
international audiences and authors.
form along with expert commentary from
a recognized authority on the subject.
Titles at the moment include Volcanic
Petrology (Ian Carmichael), Metamorphic
Petrology (Bernard Evans) and Structure
Topology (Frank Hawthorne).
Elements
The Mineralogical Society is a founderpublisher of Elements, a magazine for
those interested in mineralogy, petrology
and geochemistry. Each of the bimonthly
issues contains 4–6 thematic papers.
Journal publishing has probably changed
as much in the past 20 years as it did
in the previous 200. The Society works
hard to keep abreast of changes in terms
of electronic publishing. We publish
both journals online in two platforms,
Ingenta and Highwire, the latter as
part of a geo-journals aggregate: www.
geoscienceworld.org
Learned Societies exist to promote the
science. In an ideal world, it would be
wonderful to be able to publish material
and make it available to everyone,
online, free of charge. However, readers
are often not aware that sale of journals
to libraries generates a considerable
proportion of their overall income. Most
Societies, however, do offer journals
at membership (i.e. below cost of
production) rates.
For Mineralogical Magazine online
submission is now the norm and many
of the tasks involved in the process are
automated. Currently submission to
publication times can be as little as 6–8
weeks.
Website
The Society has an extensive website
(www.minersoc.org) and it includes freeto-all archives of its journals (extending
from 1886 to 1999 in the case of
Mineralogical Magazine). The website
is now our prime means of publicizing
our activities and relaying information to
members and others.
Books
Over the years the Society has also been
involved in the publication of a number
of book series. The latest initiative is the
‘Landmark Papers’ series where series
of classic papers are republished in book
24
Mineral Physics, and Metamorphic
Studies, Geochemistry, and Volcanic
and Magmatic Studies (the last three
are joint with the Geological Society).
Ancylite and Kainosite from
Whitesmith Mine, Strontian,
Scotland. Photo courtesy of David
Green
Membership
The number of members is currently
just under 1,000. Student members, for
whom Elements has been particularly
welcome, are entitled to a free year’s
membership of the Society in order to give
them an opportunity to experience the
benefits (sign up at www.minersoc.org).
The Society offers many opportunities
for younger members to give their first
scientific presentations.
Membership by amateurs and from those
in the wider geological community is also
encouraged. It is now possible to be an
amateur member, receiving Elements
and other benefits of the Society, without
breaking the bank (£33 for 2010). The
Society, in conjunction with the Russell
Society (an amateur mineralogical group)
and the Gemmological Association,
runs an annual meeting, ‘Nature’s
Treasures’, which is pitched at those with
a broad interest in geo-mineral matters.
Special Interest Groups and
Meetings
The Society has seven special interest
groups: Applied Mineralogy, Clay
Minerals, Environmental Mineralogy,
Calcite from Craig’s Quarry,
Ballymena, Co Antrim. Photo
courtesy of David Green
There are regular meetings. Most
recently the Metamorphic Studies Group
jointly organized the ‘Microanalysis,
Analysis, Processes, Time’ meeting, held
in Edinburgh. Colleagues from French
and German mineralogical societies
were also involved and it attracted 200
delegates from 27 countries. It included
two field trips (To the famous Arthur’s
Seat and to the equally famous Barrow’s
Zones).
The future
So, what does the future hold for
societies like MinSoc? As the number
Earth Science Ireland Magazine
Calcite from Strontian. Photo
courtesy of David Green
of paper copies of journals declines,
we lose that ‘plop’ factor, i.e. the thing
that happens when a journal arrives on
someone’s desk. We rip off the plastic
and sit back for a few minutes with a
cup of coffee and scan the contents.
We need to find ways of putting our
electronic content ‘in front’ of readers:
RSS feeds, more effective TOC alerts,
and use of social networking tools.
Mimetite from Dry Gill Mine,
Caldbeck Fells, Cumbria. Photo
courtesy of David Green
The Society will continue to reach out
to and work with other organizations. It
will encourage authors to publish in our
journals and books. We want to attract
the most interesting works, the results of
rigorously performed science, reviewed
by people who care about quality.
Persuading scientists that membership
of a learned society will continue to
Smithsonite from Kintore Opencut,
Broken Hill, NSW, Australia. Photo
courtesy of David Green
serve their needs, albeit different needs
than those of previous generations, will
be a constant goal.
Kevin graduated from University College
Cork in 1989 and began working for the
Mineralogical Society in early 1990. He
was based in London until 1999 and
now works as the Society’s Executive
Director from his home in Ireland.
PHOTOGRAPHY COMPETITION
The Belfast Geologists’ Society held a competition last year to find the best photograph taken on one of its field trips. The winner
was announced at the first autumn meeting of the society. The competition was supported by the Geological Survey of Northern
Ireland.
First Prize went to Trevor
Edwards for his photograph
‘Glasdrumman Port’ which
is reproduced here. If you
are wondering about that
‘igneous-looking’
rock
in the foreground it is
suggested you look at page
193 of that vital handbook
The Geology of Northern
Ireland by the GSNI.
Second
Prize
winner
was Philip Doughty for a
photograph called ‘Jurassic
hieroglyphics’.
Third
Prize
was
for
‘Xenolith’ taken, again, by
Trevor Edwards.
Glasdrumman Port
Issue 6
25
Life on an Offshore Oilrig
by David Gibson
I live on a farm in Ballygowan, Co Down,
and graduated from Queen’s University,
Belfast, Geology Department in 1998. I
have since worked in the offshore drilling
industry.
away from the rig and we are expected
to be within one meter of the plan. To
put that into perspective, next time you
fly long haul look out of the window
and imagine us hitting a target on the
ground within one meter - good going in
anyone’s book. This is all done under
the pressure of an offshore well costing
£/€ 10 - 20,000,000 to drill. There is
no room for error and realtime decisions
to change direction have to be made in
an instant as we can drill at penetration
rates of up to 100m per hour.
At work in the unit
I work as a Directional Driller for a
worldwide drilling service provider to the
major oil and gas exploration companies.
In a nutshell, it is my job to drill the well
along the predefined wellplan that the oil
company wants to intersect its reservoir
targets. It sounds relatively easy but
when we drill horizontally through a
turbidite reservoir with an undulating
roof we sometimes have to drill around
3000m constantly fine-tuning the
wellpath in realtime to remain in the
best producing upper reservoir. This
is all done at depths of up to 6,000m
A rotary steerable drilling tool for 3D
well profiles
So how did I end up on an oilrig?
This is a question I am often asked and
sometimes ask myself when things are
not going so well! After Queens, as I
was interested in sedimentary petrology,
I applied for a mudlogging job that was
advertised in the Belfast
Telegraph.
Success
meant I quickly found
myself on a land rig in
middle England drilling
for gas. Suddenly I
was in another world
of acronyms. The oil
industry is full of them:
Bottom hole assembly,
BHA, Pull out of hole,
POOH to name just a
couple. As a mudlogger
you collect and describe
samples of the rock
cuttings
transported
Sunrise in the North Sea
26
Helicopter problems
to surface in the drilling fluid. You also
record all drilling parameters and gas
data as you drill and monitor the well
pressures and volumes.
After a year of mudlogging the oil
industry went into the doldrums as the
price of oil collapsed to $9 a barrel.
Rather than turn my back on it I decided
to compliment my skills by going to the
UK’s oil capital, Aberdeen, to complete
a MSc in Integrated Petroleum
Geoscience. A risk but worth it as when
I graduated in 2000 the oil price had
picked up and so had drilling activity.
I went back to mudlogging for a few
months as 6 gas wells were drilled in
Co Fermanagh and Co Cavan - a good
opportunity to work close to home. After
this I moved on to be Measurement
While Drilling engineer (MWD), with the
company I am with now. Here we made
up special logging tools behind the drill
bit to measure, amongst other things,
directional position, natural gamma ray,
resistivity, bulk density, porosity and
formation pressure. All this information
is transmitted to the geologists in real
time both on the rig and in the clients
office. Clients can log onto our secure
network anywhere in the world to view
realtime data of how the drilling is
progressing. Technological advances
include density and gamma image logs
to identify individual bed boundaries,
fractures and apparent dips relative to
the wellbore, as well as nuclear magnetic
resonance tools to identify bound and
free waters while drilling. There is huge
industry investment in new tools to keep
up-to-date with the geologists demand
for more and more complex data.
I also trained as a geosteering engineer
which involves realtime interpretation of
these logs and advising on changing the
wellpath when entering and drilling the
reservoir section.
Then in 2005 I moved into Directional
Earth Science Ireland Magazine
problems. Usually a
day is divided into two
twelve hour shifts, so
if I am away for a three
week hitch, I will work
21 twelve hour shifts,
either days or nights. I
get up around an hour
before shift starts and
get some food. Then I
head to our unit to do a
good handover with my
Having fun with swelling clays
workmate on the other
shift,
so
I
know
what
has happened and
Drilling, running our fleet of rotary
what
is
expected
to
happen
over the next
steerable tools that can drill 3D well
twelve
hours.
profiles in record times. These tools are
controlled by communicating with them
Planning is the key to success as
from surface to get them to change
backup equipment can be 30 hours
direction and drill the well along the
away by boat. Technical support on the
required path.
end of a phone is never quite the same
as someone on the spot. It’s very much
a sink or swim industry - you often work
alone in your job but as part of a bigger
team, you have to think on your feet and
react quickly to resolve issues. I liaise
with the oil company representative
and drilling personnel to hit my subsea
targets while maximizing penetration
rates. The shifts can be long but often
they just fly by as you are so busy.
It seems a glorious job to live by the
mobile phone, get a last minute call to
mobilize you to fly to Aberdeen, get on a
helicopter and disappear into the sunset
to drill a well that keeps the nation in
heat, light and fuel. It’s certainly not all
glamour and not for everyone but it can
be a good life for a young geologist who
wants to make a mark in a global industry
that offers boundless opportunities.
A typical day on a rig?
There is no such thing as a typical day
as so much changes from hour to hour.
Problems with drilling, logistics and the
effects of the horrendous weather we
have to live with. A drilling rig works 24
hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days
a year. We don’t stop for bank or public
holidays or for lunch! In fact I worked last
Christmas day and was so busy I didn’t
get any lunch but that is life as an oilfield
service hand. You have to do whatever
it takes to make every job a success. A
few times I have had to work 36 hours
straight when we have had severe
Drilling onshore
IRISH GOLD PROSPECTING
Have you seen the UK Journal of
Mines & Minerals? If so you will know
that for anyone interested in minerals
the photographs are exceptionally
beautiful. At least, this was the case in
Issue 29 (2008) where I came across a
wonderful picture of gold from Croagh
Croagh Patrick ( 9 X 7 cm)
Issue 6
Patrick, Co Galway. The finders
of the specimen were Robert
Lawson and Andrew Moreton.
They had found a ‘hot spot’ that
yielded over an ounce of metal.
Andrew Moreton authored the
article ‘Facts meet Fantasies’
in our last issue. He is a keen
mineral collector and kindly lets
me reproduce two photographs.
One shows a Croagh Patrick
specimen of quartz with gold
scattered
throughout.
The
other is of alluvial gold (largest
nugget only 5.2 grams) panned
from an Irish river.
Editor
Alluvial gold
27
TRIPPING THE LIFE FANTASTIC
Sarah Caven enthuses about her, mostly geological, experiences
feel on campus and the setting, adjacent
to parks and green spaces; great in the
summer! The variety of entertainment
found on campus and at halls in addition
to that found in the city centre is an
added bonus.
The course itself gave me a broad base
of knowledge from which I focused on
my personal interests during my final
years. It gave the chance to learn about
everything from the origin and evolution
of the universe to the future of our
planet. This is one of the best aspects
of geology as a subject - aside from the
fieldwork!
Isle of Skye, relaxing after busy day, Sarah on left
Growing up in rural County Down I was
lucky to be surrounded by the outdoors
from an early age, exploring the Mourne
Mountains and North Coast. The hows
and whys of life, the Earth and the
universe were always fascinating to
me. It wasn’t until I had the opportunity
to study Geology at AS level at Down
High School that the chance came to
really start learning about the workings
of the Earth. Unfortunately I wasn’t able
to take it to A-level but an enthusiastically
taught year with Dr Rogers and Mrs
Smyth was enough to make me realise
this was the subject for me.
I chose the University of Leicester for
its MGeol programme, a four-year course
with lots of fieldwork opportunities
and a variety of exciting modules. The
department’s friendly atmosphere and
an informal introductory fieldtrip to
Ingleton made it easy to settle in and get
to know everyone. I was also drawn to
the university by the friendly community
Bogs, birds of prey and a ram
I have taken field trips to a range
of locations including NW Scotland,
Anglesey, Arran, the Swiss Alps and
Spain, all of which were valuable
learning experiences and a great
way to travel. Also the trips are well
subsidised making them accessible to
everyone. Not only is fieldwork a great
way to get to know fellow students and
lecturers, it is extremely rewarding. A range of practical skills are taught
such as detailed structural mapping,
mapping onto aerial photos, interpreting
sedimentary sequences and ultimately
opening your mind to how complex and
fascinating the landscape around you
can be. One of the most rewarding trips
is the independent mapping module. I
spent 6 weeks in total on the Isle of
Raasay gathering geological information
to produce my own map and geological
history. In addition to expanding your
geological knowledge while surviving 6
weeks in the middle of nowhere, coming
away with a fair few funny stories is
inevitable. Falling in numerous peat
bogs, having a bird of prey land on my
head and being stalked through the
ferns by an angry ram being just a few
of mine!
Canadian flights
Columnar basalts in British Columbia
28
I have recently completed my fourth and
final year of which the focus was my
MGeol research project. I also took a
Earth Science Ireland Magazine
range of modules including topics such
as climatology, ore genesis and igneous
petrology. My project included fieldwork,
which allowed me to spend my summer
in Canada where I gained some valuable
experience and further developed my
skills. I worked as a volunteer with the
Geological Survey of Canada, first on
my project with Dr Graham Andrews,
originally from Bangor, Co Down and
a former Leicester student, and second
on a mineral exploration and mapping
project run by the GSC in British Columbia.
One of the highlights was flying into the
Coast Mountains in a helicopter where
we were dropped off at 9000 ft to get
on with the fieldwork! I also spent some
time in the lab learning how to prepare
my rock samples for analysis. It was a
great experience and gave me a taste of
life as a geologist. I also managed to
pick up a few more unusual skills such
as “bear awareness”!
Flying high in BC. Photo: Graham Andrews
Rock –and jazz
In addition to work the geological society
at Leicester has been a brilliant way to
get involved socially. Regular socials
such as a summer BBQ, Bar Crawls,
informal fieldtrips and outings including
paintball and laser quest bring everyone
together and reinforce the friendly
department atmosphere! One of the
highlights of the year is a formal ball, a
chance to dress up for an extra special
night out. I particularly enjoyed being
part of the University of Leicester Big
Investigating mantle xenoliths in volcanic rocks, BC. Photo: Graham Andrews
Band, an informal group playing a range
of jazz, blues and modern songs at gigs
and events.
Given the nature of geology as a subject
there are many exciting opportunities
such as exploration and research pretty
much anywhere in the world. Undertaking
my MGeol project has not only given
me a taste for independent research
but also the confidence and desire to
travel and take on new challenges!
Since graduation I have been working
in the Geological Survey of Northern
Ireland back in Belfast. It has been
a great experience to get involved in
projects closer to home and seeing
different ways in which geology can be
applied to everyday issues.
In praise of Leicester
Fold complexity on Anglesey, Wales
Issue 6
Geology really is so much more than
“Just rocks”- as a course I would highly
recommend it to anyone with an interest
in the world around them. The focus
on careers, fieldwork and placement
opportunities at Leicester makes it easy
for you to increase and diversify your
experiences, ultimately allowing you to
be better prepared for life as a geologist
following graduation!
29
DORSET & WESSEX* COME TO
ANTRIM & DONEGAL
Alan Holiday
The field trip resulted from a visit by me
to the north of Ireland ten years ago
and a further visit as a reconnaissance
with Kelvin Huff last February. An early
start was required on 17th August to be
at Bristol Airport for the flight to Belfast
and all went according to plan although
those flying from Southampton had a 6
hour delay! We got to the hotel outside
Londonderry or Derry, which ever you
prefer, without a hitch. Most of the group
arrived in time for the drive along the
north coast towards Portrush. Between
Derry and Downhill (the first locality)
there is some spectacular rotational slip
material where Tertiary basalt overlies
Chalk. The precipitous slopes possibly
represent a former cliff line prior to
post-glacial isostatic recovery and
hence the potential for mass-movement.
Near Downhill there are spectacular
exposures of basalt over Chalk although
access is not always easy as people
Echinoid plates, Carboniferous, Co Donegal
have placed holiday homes on land just
below the cliffs! At Downhill itself the
basalt is well exposed and we had our
first classic joke as on top of the cliff
was an aerial so the cliff was affected
by sub-aerial weathering! (Thanks Ted.)
Later we moved on to Portrush to see
the sill which in the 18th C caused bitter
debate between the Neptunists and
Plutonists as ammonites are preserved
in what was thought to be basalt but is in
fact slightly metamorphosed Lias shale.
Pipe amygdales, Antrim basalt
Tuesday 18th started with rain but we
braved the Craignahulliar Quarry which
was developed to exploit basalt but is
now partly a landfill site as well as an
ASSI. We were provided access by Brian
Crawford the site manager and saw a
range of features in the basalt as well
as weathered horizons with fossil soil
and plants. Later in the day the weather
*The Dorset Geologists’ Association and Wessex Open University Geological Society joined forces for an 8 day visit last
August. There is a full account on the website www.dorsetgeologistsassociation.com . The account is worthy of a prize, as
is the whole site. It gives a day-by-day story of the visit with good instructions for anyone visiting in the future. If you are a
teacher or excursion leader it is thoroughly worth checking. The photographs are excellent and note the dedication to the
rocks – people on the trip just do not feature except as fingers holding specimens. Editor
30
Earth Science Ireland Magazine
day was Muckros Head where the sun
shone, the wind blew and we witnessed
spectacular waves breaking against the
cliffs made of Carboniferous calcareous
sandstone.
On Saturday 22nd the sun shone at
Marble Hill in N. Donegal and again we
saw Dalradian schist and a sill exposed
in an overturned syncline and we found
the evidence of the way up too in the
form of cross-bedding in quartzites.
Waves at Muckros, Co Donegal
improved and we visited the beach
at White Rock with Chalk and vent
agglomerate and good specimens of pipe
amygdales were collected. The Chalk is
very different in N. Ireland compared
with southern England as it is much
denser (2.6-2.64 gm/cm3 compared
with 1.70-1.95gm/cm3 due to secondary
calcite cementation). The afternoon was
spent at the Giant’s Causeway, so some
of the group were going from one World
Heritage Site to another. The columnar
basalt is terrific with an excellent walk
along the coastal footpath although the
far eastern section is not accessible as
the footpath needs improving. The visitor
centre is good but unusually for Ireland
you have to pay to park even though it is
a National Trust site.
Friday 21st was another day visiting
Donegal and we travelled to Shalwy Bay
and were lucky enough to be helped by
Karen Parks who teaches geology at
Methodist College in Belfast. Shalwy
Bay exposes the boundary between
Dalradian mica schist (over 500
Unfortunately Sunday 23rd was very
largely a washout with torrential rain
starting around 10.30 and continuing
until early evening so the Inishowen
day was curtailed to visiting only three
localities including one found by chance
by Hilary Lewis. More Dalradian rocks
were seen including slates with microfolding at Fahan and metamorphosed
and folded turbidites south of Buncrana.
Although the weather was not great for
the whole week, this was the only day
where rain stopped play!
Wednesday 19th was also spent on the N
coast visiting Ballintoy, a brilliant locality
with superb raised beach features with
stacks, arches and caves in Chalk and
basalt. The afternoon was spent at
Cushendun and Cushendall studying the
enigmatic red-bed conglomerates and
breccias.
Thursday 20th proved to be a fossil
collector’s delight as we visited
Bundoran on the west coast of Donegal
after stopping at the Barnesmore Gap
and seeing a very impressive glaciated
valley. The Lower Carboniferous rocks at
Bundoran are full of brachiopods, corals
and crinoids and even an echinoid. The
fossils are well exposed on wave cut
surfaces including some of the longest
crinoid stems I have ever seen.
Issue 6
Dalradian plunging fold with bedding and cleavage, White Strand, Co Donegal
million years old) and Carboniferous
conglomerate and sandstone (about
320 m.y. old) so quite spectacular! Later
we visited Slieve League where some
of the highest sea cliffs in Europe are
to be seen as well as some spectacular
micro-folding in Dalradian quartzite. We
narrowly missed a convoy of 10 Italian
camper vans blocking up the narrow
winding roads! The final locality of the
On Monday 24th prior to our flight back
home we visited the Northstone Quarry
at Carmean where Angus Kennedy and
David Glasgow showed us basalt, Chalk,
Triassic sandstone and provided some
great fossil collecting from the Chalk.
Many thanks to all those who took part
and for the help provided by friends
made in Ireland.
31
DONEGAL
TREMORS
The North of Donegal was recently
shaken by a series of minor tremors
that have been felt widely throughout the
northern part of the county. The tremors
on January 7th, 26th and 27th were
felt throughout North Donegal and
originated from a centre south of Bridge
End. Their Richter Scale Magnitude
measured 1.6, 1.5 and 1.7 respectively.
One of the local schools, St Egney’s
Primary School, Desertegney, was lucky
enough to register these tremors on
a seismometer they are operating on
behalf of The Geophysics Section of the
School of Cosmic Physics, at the Dublin
Institute for Advanced Studies (DIAS)
as part of its Outreach Programme.
Tremors of this magnitude are not unusual
in Donegal and are associated with the
complex and large faultline systems that
stretch from Northern Scotland and pass
through the length of County Donegal.
The fact that 3 events have occurred in
rapid succession, while unusual, it is not
unprecedented. A similar swarm of minor
tremors occurred in the 1980’s and
90’s. These tremors are Nature’s way
of releasing the stress and strain that
have slowly built up over geological time
and are also, in part, due to the isostatic
readjustment of the region following the
melting of the Ice Age glaciers.
The Seismology in Schools (Seismeolaíocht
sa Scoil) Programme involves over 50
primary and secondary schools throughout
Ireland who regularly register earthquakes
from all over the world. For more information
regarding the project please visit the
webpage http://www.dias.ie/sis/.
Thomas Blake, Experimental Officer,
DIAS
Dr. Marie Cowan, Geological
Survey of Northern Ireland,
writes:
COMING SOON TO NORTHERN IRELAND
The UK Schools Seismology Project
developed by the British Geological
Survey is coming to schools in NI.
In 2010 this project will be introduced
to schools in NI who will have the
opportunity to host a seismometer,
record earthquakes and feed data into
a NI network including W5, Marble Arch
Caves Global Geopark and possibly
the University of Ulster. The roll out in
NI will be facilitated by the Geological
Survey of Northern Ireland. If you would
like to receive more information please
send your contact details to marie.
[email protected]
32
Claire McGinn, Dawn Montgomery and Orla Gallagher (GSNI)
proudly display the £410 proceeds of a cake sale for Haiti held
on Friday February 5th 2010.
BRITISH GEOLOGICAL
SURVEY TO CELEBRATE 175th
ANNIVERSARY
The BGS will celebrate its 175th
anniversary in September 2010 with a
symposium in the Royal Institution of
Great Britain in London. The audience
will include delegates from industry,
academia, government and the public.
Members of the public will have the
opportunity to enter a free competition
to win tickets to the event. Details of the
event and the internationally famous
keynote speakers will be given at
www.bgs.ac.uk in the coming months.
Earth Science Ireland Magazine
“Belfast Geologists look forward to
summer field trips” says David Kirk:
Stewart, who described the background
to his latest acclaimed TV series ‘How
the Earth Made Us’.
The Belfast Geologists’ Society is
coming to the end of another series of
winter lectures organised by Dr Peter
Crowther of the Ulster Museum. It was
with a distinct sense of homecoming
that members returned in November to
the finely refurbished Lecture Theatre
of the Ulster Museum. During the three
years it was closed meetings were held
just down the road in St Bartholomew’s
Church Hall, an excellent and convenient
facility for which the Society was very
appreciative.
Summer trips
Dr Philip Doughty has put together
a series of imaginative and exciting
monthly field trips ranging across the
north of Ireland.
In April Tony Bazley will lead an
exploration of the complex geology of
the Cushendun-Cushendall area of the
Antrim Coast and the next month Philip
will act as guide for a bus tour stopping
off between Larne and the Causeway to
‘revisit’ sites highlighted in the definitive
guide book to the area written in the
1950s by the late great Dr Peter Rhodes.
Appropriately the first Museum lecture
was that of new President Dr Mike
Simms, Keeper of Palaeontology at the
Museum, during which he recounted the
‘series of jobs’ he has done - which he
denies add up a career but which most
people would envy.
In June Mike Simms will lead a
Presidential Excursion which will get to
grips with the granite conundrums of
Donegal and in July Michael Dempster
will interpret for members the glacial
environments of the Sperrin Mountains.
The highlight of the winter is the annual
Harold Wilson Memorial Lecture and this
January the members and their friends
filled the 200-seat Lecture Theatre
It was to hear the man who has done
so much to open up the world of earth
sciences to the public, Professor Iain
The rich geological-industrial heritage of
the Antrim plateau will be explained by
Always a surprise
When you join a society like the Irish
Geological Association or the Belfast
Geologists’ Society you often do not
know much about your fellow members.
Except that they share an interest
in geology and probably the
countryside. They might be, or
have been, shop keepers, dentists,
teachers, nurses, accountants,
chefs, public servants, etc. It
doesn’t matter. It is that bit of
rock, fine landscape and wonder
at Nature that is the bond.
So it is always a surprise when
someone’s ‘other life’ or interest
is revealed. As was the case
when, leafing through North
Irish Roots - the Journal of the
North of Ireland Family History
Society, I came across:
Issue 6
Profile – David Honneyman.
Geoff Warke in August when he takes
members to some of the many sites
of mining and industrial archaeology to
be seen in the area around Newtown
Crommelin. In September John Arthurs
will host an ‘adventure workshop’ in
the Museum under the title of King
Solomon’s Mines, which will give
members a taste of Africa’s great copper
mining tradition.
It is also planned to hold a number of
‘short’ evening excursions to sites of
geological interest in the greater Belfast
area.
Contact the Secretary, Peter Millar (
[email protected]; Tel – 028
90642886) for more details.
Also note a Belfast Naturalists’ Field
Club trip from July 4 – 7 to Galloway
in Scotland including a visit to the
Gemrocks Museum in Creetown. Full
details from Philip Doughty ( philip.
[email protected]).
As always interested members of the
public are welcome to join any of the
field trips.
held from1982-3 and again from 19924. He is praised for being instrumental
in establishing and fostering an
inclusive society in which he remains
active.
There I learnt that Dr Honneyman was
the founding President of the North of
Ireland Family History Society, a post he
Hidden depths! This was the gentleman
whose company had been enjoyed at
the recent Annual Dinner of the Belfast
Geologists’ Society and
is pictured at an outing
to Magheramorne, Co
Antrim last year. He is a
regular attendee of the
BGS meetings, often
contributing
profound
thoughts. Now in his
90’s Dr Honneyman
is an inspiration for
everyone and we hope
to enjoy many more
years of his company on
the geological scene.
David Honneyman (alongside the ‘white hat’ and holding
a walking stick) with the Belfast Geologists’ Society at
Editor
Magheramorne, Co Antrim.
33
SURVEY OF DUBLIN’S SOILS
Progress report by Mairead Glennon, Ray Scanlon, Pat O’Connor &
Enda Gallagher
initiated an Urban Geochemistry Project
to investigate the chemical make-up of
urban soil in European cities. GSI has
lobbied successfully to have Dublin
included in the first phase of the project.
This is a very significant outcome for
Ireland since no baseline geochemical
information of any significance exists for
Irish urban environments, whilst many
European cities have been developing
such databases in the past decade.
The first phase of this Euro-wide project
will involve mapping soils in 10 selected
cities across Europe for a wide range of
potentially harmful chemicals (e.g. heavy
metals such as lead, arsenic, cadmium,
chromium, and organic compounds such
as polychlorinated biphenyl – PCBs)
which may pose risks to human health.
Fieldwork Programme
October saw the completion of the
fieldwork phase of a first-ever baseline
study of soil quality in Dublin. The Dublin
SURGE Project sets out to establish
geochemical baselines of metals and
organic chemicals in Dublin soils. The
project will provide information on soil
chemistry in the urban environment
relevant to human health, land-use
planning and urban regeneration. It will
also allow us to identify and quantify
human impact on soils in urban areas
through comparison with the rural
soil baseline geochemistry of the
surrounding countryside.
European Partnership
Eighty per cent of the European
population lives in cites. Most cities
have
well-established
monitoring
systems for air and water, while soils
have received comparatively little
attention. To remedy this, a consortium
of European Geological Surveys has
1065 soil samples were collected to
characterise the spatial variation in
soil quality over an area of some 600
sq. km in the greater Dublin area. The
sampling was carried out by teams of
trained personnel from NGU. NGU has
already carried out very successful soil
sampling surveys of its cities. Survey
teams worked off carefully planned and
mapped schedules and in accordance
with agreed sampling procedures. At
each sample site, GPS coordinates and
field observations were recorded and two
The Geological Survey of Ireland (GSI),
with the support of the Norwegian
Geological Survey (NGU), is co-ordinating
the survey and the fieldwork phase
is now complete. 1065 soil samples
have been collected and have been
prepared for laboratory analysis. All four
local authorities in the greater Dublin
area support the project and the vast
majority of samples were taken from
areas that are publicly accessible (like
public parks and school grounds). The
EPA and Teagasc have also expressed
support for the initiative. The results of
the survey will be publicly available by
early 2011.
34
Earth Science Ireland Magazine
development at GSI, will be used to
gather, display and interpret data from
the Dublin SURGE project. Analytical
data will be statistically processed and
digital geochemical maps of all elements
will be produced. The data will be freely
available to municipal authorities and
other stakeholders. SURGE will:
Establish baselines for environmental
monitoring;
digital photographs were taken (a general
landscape shot of the surrounding
environment and a site photograph
showing details of soil texture).
Interpretation & Results
The surface soil samples will be
analysed for inorganic elements at the
geochemical laboratories of NGU in
the coming months. Further tests for
Issue 6
organic compounds are underway at
a commercial laboratory. It is critical
that the samples from all cities in the
study are analysed at these particular
labs as one of the primary aims of the
project is to provide environmental
geochemical data that are harmonised
and interoperable. In this way the soil
quality from city to city can be compared
objectively. A Geographic Information
System map database, currently under
• Identify city areas in need of
environmental remediation;
• Assist authorities in setting soil
environmental standards for Irish
cities;
• Contribute to more informed
urban planning for both brownfield
redevelopment of inner city areas
and suburban development.
• Assist in compliance with EU
Directives (Soil and Water) and
national legislation protecting
groundwater, soils, habitats etc.
• Contribute to a better scientific
understanding of pollutant
accumulation and transport in urban
soil environments.
Further information is available at www.
gsi.ie/surge
35
More Travellers Tales by Stephen Thompson
The Spice Islands - Another Voyage,
Another Volcano.
that lot this English sailor, Nathaniel
Copthorne, made history by digging his
heels in and telling the Dutch to ‘Get
Lost!’ when they tried to evict him from
the tiny Island of Run…which eventually
was swapped for a lowly place called
‘New Amsterdam’ on some chilly island
now called Manhattan.
Now who got the best of that deal (The
Treaty of Breda – 1667) those Dutch
fellas or Rule Brittannia? Anyhow,
where are the Spice Islands? Sitting on
our verandah in Dili, if we hijacked the
‘Nakroma’ (Timor-Leste’s spanking new
passenger ferry) and sailed northeast
for 1,250k’s or so we’d bump into them.
The Spice Islands
The spice trade used to be the most
profitable in the world. In mediaeval
times nutmeg became more valuable
than gold as it was believed to be the
cure for all the plagues of the day,
including ‘The Plague’ itself. European
merchants bought it in Istanbul from
Arab traders who horded their knowledge
of the whereabouts of those fabled
islands of Fire and Spice.
Read Giles Milton’s book about the
history of the Spice Islands. It is called
‘Nathaniel’s Nutmeg’ (ISBN 0 340
69676 1). Just remember that the
Portuguese, the Dutch, the English,
Nutmeg and Mace from Banda
36
all sent their navies to find and control
the source of the world’s most valuable
commodity, the humble nutmeg. Men
died, ships sank, wars were fought and
Columbus thought he had found these
islands, but he was half a world away…
The Spice Islands have a long and
complex history, reflected all across the
orient. It was actually Arab traders who
‘found’ The Spice Islands first and they
created the first Sultanates of Ternate
and Tidore. The Portuguese and a few
Spaniards came next and then the Dutch
took over, who in turn often were beaten
up by the locals. Full circle.
No such luck. That’s where ‘PELNI’
comes into it. Indonesia’s state ferry
company. Without passage on their
ships you’d never get there…so…off we
flew via the hub of the Indonesian airline
network, Ujung Pandang, (great coffee
from the little café in the departure
lounge) to find PELNI, get on board and
reach our goals, Ternate and Tidore, the
most northerly of the Spice Islands, and
then Banda, the Original Spice Island, in
order to find out what all the fuss was
about...Nutmeg!
And
to
find
some
spectacular
VOLCANOES which is what the Spice
Islands are …something to do with Plate
Tectonics we think…
Then a man called Jan Pieterszoon
Coen, the boss
of the Dutch East
India Company, the
VOC, totally beat up
the Bandanese, but
his successor was
in turn beaten by
the English in 1810
(when
Napoleon
defeated the Dutch
and
everybody
else in Europe)…
so it is a history of
repeated fights…
Out of a storm…she does!
and in amongst all
Earth Science Ireland Magazine
certain historic menace….
This delightful place has echoes of a
grandeur, long past... old forts and
faded mansions and echoes of that
‘Beating Up’...
..and of course we climbed the volcano...
‘Gunung Api’….and the view from the
top was spectacular…..
Gunung Api last erupted in 1988 and the
Bandas were evacuated for 3 months…
because, you see, the Banda Islands are
really just the top of one great big volcano
sticking out of the Banda Sea ‘cos of all
that Plate Tectonic stuff again...
Tidore with Maitara island in front, seen from Ternate
So we climbed, walked, wined?? (“Sorry
Sir, no booze on these islands”) and
dined on Ternate and Tidore for 5 days
and then…….
We waited for the PELNI ship ‘Lambelau’
to arrive to take us to Banda.....
but …’Lambelau’ is in dry dock in
Surabaya…and no one thought it
necessary to tell the passengers that
you won’t see PELNI in these parts for
another 3 weeks..….so, courtesy of Lion
Air, it’s back to Ujung Pandang for a fine
cup of coffee and ON-ON to Ambon.....
but ……….will the MV Ciremai, another
PELNI workhorse, turn up…to take us to
Banda? Out of storm.....she does!
…and we arrive in Banda 8 hours later to
find....................
…Fort Belgica (see photo on next
page) dominating this little place with a
Issue 6
Banda
Banda
37
However, would the ‘Ciremai’ return to
take us back to civilisation or would we
be stuck there until the next eruption?
Luckily not, the ship sailed into Banda’s
harbour which is actually a drowned
volcanic crater!
Look up on the web about the Bandas
and their terrible history…about Mr.
Coen who killed or had killed all but 600
of the Bandanese, about his Samurai
mercenaries who beheaded all the village
elders one fateful day in 1621, inside
Fort Nassau. And all for the humble
nutmeg...such is human nature…
Post Script 1
But what about Run? The tiny little island
that Captain Copthorne stubbornly held
onto in 1600 and something? We never
got there, but we did see it, in the
distance, way off to the west, beyond
another island called Ai, when we got to
the top of Gunung Api volcano.
We sailed past it too, on the Ciremai. It
is actually the farthest remnant of the
original crater edge of the huge volcano
that is the Bandas, sticking up out of
the Banda Sea. A worn down remnant of
the original volcano... slowly eroding into
Fort Belgica, amongst the trees,
dominates Banda
the sea as the tectonic plate on which it
sits moves imperceptibly on, across this
Banda Sea.
The rich volcanic soils and the lush
tropical climate are perfect for the
nutmeg tree to flourish and hence its
importance all those years ago. The
VOC viciously fought for and won its
monopoly of the trade. Where they could
not control, they demolished, and on
several of these tiny islands they cut
down every single nutmeg tree to deny
the Bandanese their livelihood.
‘Gunung Api’
Centuries later, we travelled to see and
learn about these fascinating islands
and…to savour the delights of climbing
a volcano or two...
Post Script 2
But why are they there, these
volcanoes?? It’s all to do with Australia
bashing into Asia and the Pacific Plate
scuttling eastwards at a huge rate of
knots......
View from the top
38
We live in Dili, on Timor, which has no
volcanoes. Located near the junction
between the Eurasian and Australian
tectonic plates Timor belongs to the
Lesser Sunda Islands which stretch
over 1,000 km west from Bali. The
Lesser Sunda Islands form part of the
volcanic arc mainly formed as a result of
subduction of the Indian Plate beneath
the Eurasian Plate, an arc that continues
Earth Science Ireland Magazine
Banda Arc, putting Timor at the northern
edge of the Australian plate not, as
previously mapped, in Asia...
Timor has numerous oil and gas seeps
demonstrating a viable petroleum
system, and the now proven association
with the prolific Australian NW Shelf,
with its giant hydrocarbon fields and
finds, makes the island of Timor and the
deep water acreage to the south highly
prospective for oil and gas.
It’s always rewarding when, as a
geologist, you can help change the
map...or is it The World!
(Da Silva, G., Soares, A.G., Thompson,
S.J., Waddams, R., 2009. Hydrocarbon
Potential of the Deep Water Timor Sea.
Petroleum Geoscience – in press.)
Return ship in the drowned volcanic crater that is Banda’s harbour
to curve around to Banda and beyond as
we have seen on our travels.
Timor is however an exception; it is
offset from the island arc trend and
comprises a mélange of sedimentary
and metamorphic strata rather than
volcanics.
Exploring for oil and gas in the Timor
Sea, south of the island, we shot seismic
data in 2005 which was focused on the
Timor Trough and its flanks.
Issue 6
Long regarded as a classic subduction
zone marking the junction between the
Australian and Asian plates, the new
seismic profiles clearly defined the trough
as the thrust front of an accretionary
prism formed as a result of collision,
rather than a classic subduction zone.
This interpretation is substantiated by
the striking similarities in stratigraphy
between onshore Timor Island and
Australian NW Shelf and leads to the
need to re-draw the tectonic map of the
39
School Field Trips
Going out into the field to see the rocks is very important if geology is to be
taught properly. Others may be interested to know where we, Methodist College,
Belfast,go.
This year both Lower Sixth and Upper Sixth Geology groups went on residential
trips to the North Coast and visited Ballycastle, Whitepark Bay and Murlough
Bay. The Upper Sixth stayed at Whitepark Bay Youth Hostel which was excellent
and the Lower Sixth was in the Bushmills Outdoor Education Centre.
They were taken by boat to see geology ‘close up’ along the north Antrim coast.
Robin Roddick, one of the centre staff, took charge. They were able to see
the Skerries and Dunluce Castle as well as sail along the coast past the White
Rocks. It is a beautiful cliff section with lots of rock features to be explained.
We hope to report further on this in the next issue, with some photographs.
Karen Parks
Cartoon © Dan Piraro with thanks
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