Welcome to Story Woods Park!
You are here to look at some incredible ripple marks preserved in the limestone. Ripple marks are sedimentary structures that indicate agitation by water or wind. In this case, the ripples were created by waves in the Ordivician ocean 250 million years ago!
Ripple marks are typically either symmetrical or asymmetrical, which depends on the water flow direction. In the figure below, the symmetrical ripple marks are caused by the water switching directions, such as in a wave-dominated area. The asymmetrical ripple marks are caused by unidirectional flow, like currents.
Ripple marks are also classified based the magnitude of the ripple's crest, trough and wavelength.
Logging Requirements
Once you log this cache, please send me the answers to the following questions within 24 hrs. Any logs not accompanied by answers will be deleted.
1. Measure the crest height of one ripple mark.
2. Choose two ripples and measure the wavelength or "cycle" (distance between the crests of two ripples)?
3. Are these ripple marks symmetrical or asymmetrical? What does this say about the water flow direction?
Thank you to Paulloud20 for the tip about this awesome site!