A geology extravaganza for the entire family. To download the updated flier, click here.
The Placitas Community Library presents Placitas Rocks: A Geological Extravaganza for the Entire Family on Saturday, July 16th from 10 AM-5 PM. Rocks are part of the heritage of Placitas! The Collin Meeting Room will feature a photographic, pictorial, and graphic display of the geology of Placitas and the area, with images from several professional photographers from Placitas. There will be geologists on hand to identify rocks you bring. Rockhound-jeweler, George Franzen will demonstrate faceting stones and lapidary art. Local rockhounds will have displays of stones they have found around Placitas and how they look all polished.
Carl and Jackie Allen will have an exhibit on “How New Mexico is like Mars and the Moon”. Geologist Jim Neal will display “How Rocks are like People” in their endless variety. Some samples may be available for a donation. Another display will show a variety of polished granite samples used in kitchen and bathroom counters. An exhibit, “Rocks in Literature and Libraries,” reveals that thousands of books deal with rocks in history, architecture, travel, recreation, and everyday life! The Library has many of them!
Enjoy short walking tours with our onsite Geologists—Jim Neal, Roger Moose, and Dirk Van Hart. Van Hart’s new book on the Sandia Mountains and vicinity will be available later this year or early next year. These tours will show arroyos, mountains, rift valleys, volcanoes and more. Rocks ranging in age from 1.7 billion to less than 100 years old are seen right here at our library, and continental movement can be measured. A variety of tours will occur throughout the day. Announcements will be made when it is time for a group to gather.
At 1pm, and not only for children, Storyteller “Indiana Bones” will share “Legends of New Mexico” in the Gracie Lee Community Room. Indiana Bones is an Emmy Award winning writer, producer and performing artist. Indy tales are a combination of history and NM mythology full of action, adventure, ancient legends, and the occasional fossil. Indy thrills and educates audiences, both young and old with his unique storytelling abilities. Indy is supported by his faithful companion, Draco, the puppet who provides comedy to his stories.
Are some of your neighbor’s wells running dry? Are friends trucking in water for household use? At 3PM well-known Placitas Hydrogeologist, Dr. John Shomaker, will discuss: Placitas Water and its Future: is it About the Climate, or Us? “The continuing availability of groundwater depends on the permeability of the subsurface strata, the volume under the area from which the water is withdrawn, the recharge derived from precipitation, and the rate at which water is pumped. Placitas has a variety of groundwater aquifers, ranging from high-yield sedimentary beds to nearly impermeable clays—but the sequence is broken and displaced by many faults, and parts of it are missing in most places. The geologic conditions governing groundwater sustainability will be addressed in a talk by Dr. John Shomaker at Placitas Community Library on July 16th at 3 PM. How this will affect Placitas residents during coming years will be the focus of his talk. Dr. Shomaker is President and Principal Hydrogeologist of Shomaker and Associates, with more than 50 years professional experience in geological and groundwater studies in New Mexico and surrounding states.
For a pdf of the schedule for all the events, click here.
