Dusk meets the northern lights over the sea on the east coast of Sweden. As darkness falls, the Milky Way emerges, our galaxy consisting of billions of stars. The image shows the area in the Swan with a lot of nebulosity with the bright star Vega next to it. Below the Milky Way, faint colors of the northern lights are visible, which are eaten up a little by the twilight. Among the rocks are bright areas that are marble, a beautiful place with an exciting geological history.
1.9 billion-year-old bedrock, limestone, and marble. Limestone bedrock refers to bedrock that is dominated by limestone, a sedimentary rock that primarily consists of the mineral calcite (calcium carbonate). This type of bedrock creates unique conditions for both plant life and landscape forms. Limestone is a relatively soft and water-soluble rock. When acidic rainwater penetrates the soil, it dissolves the limestone, creating various types of cavities.
The image at the bottom shows something called Boudinage. It is a geological structure that occurs when a relatively stiff (competent) rock is stretched and broken into smaller pieces within a more easily deformable surrounding. The result often resembles sausages lying in a row, which gave rise to the name (from the French boudin, meaning blood sausage).
In the sky, the colors of dusk can be seen, but the northern lights also emerge along with the Milky Way.
A beautiful view on the east coast with fluorescent water in blue and algae in red. In the sky, the Milky Way is seen in the Cygnus area with the large nebula NGC 7000. Low on the northern horizon, a faint aurora is also visible with nice colors and some pillars.
Fluorescent limestone in red, calcite, in a folding pattern by the sea. Folding patterns in rocks are primarily created through plate tectonics, where the Earth's crust plates collide and compress the bedrock over millions of years. This process, called folding, occurs when rocks are subjected to enormous pressure and temperature conditions, causing them to bend and fold instead of cracking.
In the sky, the planet Jupiter is seen next to the bright stars Castor and Pollux.
The dark spots you see on the moon are actually giant, solidified lava fields called maria. These were formed billions of years ago when huge amounts of liquid lava gushed out of the moon's interior and filled large craters after meteorite impacts.
Composition: The fields are mainly composed of basalt, a dark, iron-rich volcanic rock similar to that found on the ocean floor here on Earth.
Volcanic activity: It was long thought that volcanism on the moon died out billions of years ago, but new analyses of lunar samples suggest that there may have been active volcanoes as recently as 120 million years ago.
Lava tubes: Beneath the surface are hollow lava tunnels, or lava tubes. These giant caverns are considered ideal locations for future lunar bases because they protect against radiation and extreme temperatures.
Asymmetry: There are significantly more and larger lava fields on the side of the moon that faces Earth than on the far side, which is because the crust is thinner on the front side.
Today's full moon, called a worm moon, photographed with a telescope and several images stitched together into one image.
At a full moon, the sun illuminates the lunar surface directly from the front, which hides shadows and makes it more difficult to distinguish topographical details such as craters and mountain walls. The use of HDR photography (High Dynamic Range) and stacking (combining many images) is therefore crucial to highlight geological contrasts and mineral variations that are otherwise lost in the bright light.
Geological details at a full moon
Beam systems: At a full moon, bright beam systems appear most clearly, for example from the crater Copernicus. These consist of material (ejecta) that was thrown out during a meteorite impact.
Albedo and minerals: The contrast between the light, calcium-rich highlands (anorthosite) and the dark, iron-rich oceans (basaltic maria) becomes extremely clear. By saturating the colors in an HDR image (so-called "Mineral Moon"), chemical differences in the soil can be visualized.
Bright Craters: Craters with high albedo, such as Aristarchus, shine brightly and can even be seen with the naked eye.
A clear and cold night by the sea on planet Earth. In the sky, the constellation Orion is visible with the star factory Orion Nebula under Orion's belt, visible to the naked eye. Our star Sun was probably created from a similar star factory long ago. The Orion Nebula (M42) consists primarily of gas and dust, where the absolutely dominant elements are hydrogen and helium. It is an emission nebula that shines because young, hot stars ionize the gas.
The Earth formed about 4.6 billion years ago from a rotating disk of gas and dust that surrounded the young Sun. By clumping together pebbles and cosmic dust, the planet grew. Originally, the Earth was a red-hot melt that cooled and formed a solid crust. Water was added later, probably via comet impacts. The theory of the origin of life is that life on Earth arose in the ocean about 3.5–3.8 billion years ago, probably in close proximity to hot springs on the seafloor where amino acids and simple bacteria were formed. The ocean served as a protective environment for the first organisms before oxygen and the ozone layer made life on land possible. The oldest traces of life are 3.5–3.7 billion years old and are found in marine environments. Early theories focused on the "primordial soup" in shallow sea bays, while more recent research often points to hot springs (hydrothermal vents) in deep water. Complex organic molecules (amino acids) formed in the water and assembled into simple bacteria. These first organisms were independent of oxygen, but later began to produce it through photosynthesis. Evolution started with simple microorganisms, followed by algae, and later the first multicellular animals developed in the sea. The picture shows algae and seaweed that fluoresce via UV light. They are clearly visible thanks to the current record low sea level. Algae contain chlorophyll for photosynthesis. When chlorophyll is hit by UV light or blue light, it absorbs the energy, but cannot use it all. The excess energy is emitted as a red or pink glow. This is called fluorescence and can often be seen underwater with special lighting or when analyzing algae. Under Orion, light pollution from civilization is seen, life has developed into an intelligent species Homo Sapiens Sapiens that eventually invented electricity. The place where the picture was taken, Nothamn Sweden, is known for its geology, 1.9 billion years ago there were explosive volcanoes here that spewed ash and lava over a shallow sea that covered the area. Early forms of life, microorganisms, lived on the seabed, which together built up limestone layers. Iron precipitated in the limestone and layers of iron ore were formed, something that is common throughout Bergslagen. Deep down, beneath the volcanoes, large magma chambers have solidified into the rocks diorite and gabbro. So the rocks in the picture were created during this time.
I´ve red about giant crystals of feldspar and small red
gemstones of garnet in the rocks by the east coast of Sweden and really wanted
to see/photograph them. For 1.9 billion years ago, there were explosive
volcanoes there that spewed ash and lava over a shallow sea that covered the
area. Early forms of life, microorganisms, lived on the seabed, which together
built up limestone layers. Iron precipitated in the limestone and layers of
iron ore formed, something that is common throughout Bergslagen. Deep below the
volcanoes, large magma chambers have solidified into the rocks diorite and
gabbro.
After a couple of hours of driving, I arrived at the port
that was supposed to be near the place with the crystals. Then how to find them
was another question. But I had looked at Google Maps and saw a trail that I
could take and then turn off towards the coast. After a rather sweaty walk with
heavy equipment, I was able to locate the outcrops where the crystals would be.
a beautiful place with the sea right on the horizon. When darkness fell, I
could see a nice starry sky with noticeable airglow, faint northern lights in
the north and the Milky Way. After searching for the crystals with a headlamp
in the dark for a couple of hours I finally found them and solved them with the
UV lamp and the crystals fluorescent red in the dark – beautiful!!
The view from the ground, the small things. Standing at a historical site, old burial ground from the Iron Age. The stoned ones moved by the people creating the burial ground. At the stones moss and lichens grow, some very colorful in UV light.
What are lichens?
Lichens are miniature ecosystems made of fungus and an algae
and/or cyanobacteria. These different life forms work so closely together that
the algae or cyanobacteria actually sits inside the fungus. The algae or
cyanobacteria provide the fungus with sugars made from sunlight, and the fungus
provides the home.
Mosses are small, non-vascular, flowerless plants that form
dense green clumps or mats, usually in damp places, lacking true roots, stems,
and leaves but having root-like rhizoids and simple leaf-like structures. They
absorb water and nutrients directly through their surfaces, reproduce via
spores, and are vital for soil stabilization, water retention, and creating
microhabitats, acting as an important link in ecosystems.
In the sky a faint green light visible below the Big Dipper. According to Spaceweather.com it is SOLSTICE STORM IN PROGRESS: A minor G1-class geomagnetic storm is in progress on Dec. 21st. Why? Earth's magnetic field is connecting to the sun's (SWx jargon: "BsubZ is pointing south"), giving the solar wind an unimpeded path into our magnetosphere. Arctic sky watchers should be alert for auroras.
The stone, which is made of red granite, is 275 cm high, 100
cm wide and 40 cm thick and has a rune height of eight centimeters. The
runestone stands in open pasture land near the Risbyle croft and between its
partner stone U 161 and the road. Both Risbyle stones are dedicated to the
great farmer Ulv in Skålhamra, a farm that in the Viking Age was located just
southeast of Risbyle.The stone's ornamentation consists of two winding rune
snakes, which in the upper part of the motif are locked with an Irish leash and
crowned with a large, Christian cross. The carving is extremely carefully
carved and well preserved, the carving says:
ulfkitil · uk · kui uk + uni + þiR × litu · rhisa × stin
þina · iftiR · ulf · faþur · sin · kuþan on · buki · i skul(o)bri · kuþ · ilbi
· ons · at · uk · salu · uk · kusþ muþiR · li anum lus · uk baratis
”Ulvkettil and Gye and Une they had this stone erected after
Ulv, their good father. He lived in Skålhamra. God and the Mother of God help
his spirit and soul, grant him light and paradise.”
Sweden has around 2,500 preserved runestones, mainly from
the Viking Age, as memorials to deceased relatives, often after journeys to
distant lands such as England, or to honour bridge builders. Most are found in
Uppland (around 1,300), but they are scattered throughout the country, from
Skåne to Frösöstenen in the north. The stones are important historical
documents that tell the story of the Vikings' lives, travels and religion, and
the best-known examples include the Rökstenen, the Gripsholmsstenen, and the
Sparlösastenen.
Common themes and types
Memorials: Most runestones were erected to honour a deceased
person, often a relative who died abroad.
Roads and bridges: Some stones mark the construction of a
bridge or road.
Personal information: The texts provide insight into the
Vikings' worldview, family ties, and sometimes even their own adventures.
Style variations: The stones vary in appearance; those in
Mälardalen are often more lavish, while stones in Småland can be more austere
but with exciting stories.
A closer look at cliff and stones in fluorescence, also
lichens. The blue stones are probably fluorite, the orange cliff is feldspar
and golden lichens. Lichens fluoresce in "gold" (yellow/orange) due
to natural pigments like xanthones and atranorin, especially under UV light,
revealing hidden colors not seen in daylight. Feldspars crystallize from magma,
this area was vulcanic 1,9 billion years ago.
In the sky bright planet Jupiter and a lot of airglow, even
some faint aurora borealis.
Feldspar, sometimes spelled felspar, is a group of
rock-forming aluminium tectosilicate minerals, also containing other cations
such as sodium, calcium, potassium, or barium. The most common members of the
feldspar group are the plagioclase (sodium-calcium) feldspars and the alkali
(potassium-sodium) feldspars. Feldspars make up about 60% of the Earth's crust
and 41% of the Earth's continental crust by weight.
Feldspars crystallize from magma as both intrusive and extrusive igneous rocks and are also present in many types of metamorphic rock. Rock formed almost entirely of calcic plagioclase feldspar is known as anorthosite. Feldspars are also found in many kinds of sedimentary rocks.
Airglow is a faint emission of light by a planetary
atmosphere. In the case of Earth's atmosphere, this optical phenomenon causes
the night sky never to be completely dark, even after the effects of starlight
and diffused sunlight from the far side are removed. This phenomenon originates
with self-illuminated gases and has no relationship with Earth's magnetism or
sunspot activity, causing aurorae.
The Big Dipper is an asterism consisting of seven bright
stars of the constellation Ursa Major six of them are of second magnitude and
one, Megrez, of third magnitude. Four define a "bowl" or
"body" and three define a "handle" or "head". It
is recognized as a distinct grouping in many cultures. The North Star
(Polaris), the current northern pole star and the tip of the handle of the
Little Dipper (Little Bear), can be located by extending an imaginary line
through the front two stars of the asterism, Merak and Dubhe. This makes it
useful in celestial navigation.
Potassium feldspar crystals are mainly created by slow crystallization from molten magma deep in the Earth's crust, where heat and pressure cause silicate minerals to arrange themselves into ordered structures as they cool, often in cracks and cavities in granite, or through weathering and transport of older rocks that are then reprecipitated from aqueous solutions. It is a natural geological process where the elements (potassium, aluminum, silicon, oxygen) slowly form the final crystal structure. How the process works: Magmatic Formation (Main): Melting & Ascent: Deep below the Earth's surface, rocks melt to form magma rich in silica, aluminum, and potassium. Slow Cooling: As the magma rises and cools very slowly under high pressure, the minerals have time to organize themselves into regular lattice structures. Crystallization: Potassium and aluminum ions bond with silicon and oxygen (SiO4 tetrahedra) in a specific monoclinic structure (like sanidine) to form feldspar. This process often produces large, well-shaped crystals in, for example, granite. Photo shows fluorescence of Feldspar once magma and almost looks like it during this condition.
