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Art of Science Gallery 06

aos06_18
Triton’s Tears

Zeiss Axiozoom V16 Scope

Stephanie Mager

Stephen Marshak Laboratory

Funded by the NSF

Over 300 million years ago, a shallow sea covered most of the Midwest. Over time, the sediment formed from the shells of marine creatures mixed with silt and precipitated minerals like calcite to form limestone. The contrasting shades in this luminous microscopic section of limestone, formed by the variety of minerals it comprises, allow researchers to infer the geological history of the rock and of the land it came from.