3 days ago
Zion museum's new temporary exhibit delves into research on end-Triassic extinction
SPRINGDALE, Utah () — A new, temporary exhibit featuring research on the Triassic and Jurassic periods is available at the Zion Human History Museum. It features research on geoscience and extinction, as well as a model phytosaur skull.
The new exhibit will bring guests through the late Triassic period, the end-Triassic Extinction, and the beginnings of the Jurassic period, between 227 to 180 million years ago. This is the culmination of a seven-year research project involving scientists from all over.
Dr. Celina Suarez, a geoscience professor at the University of Arkansas, led the team. The rocks at Zion National Park were key to this research, as they were used to study and understand the climate change that led to the end-Triassic Extinction.
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According to a press release from Zion National Park, Dr. Suarez and her team identified 'a spike in CO2 levels in the park's Moenave Formation.' Using this information, the scientists were able to pinpoint a rapid increase in volcanic eruptions that led to the supercontinent Pangea splitting.
'We've got to look at the geologic past and all these past events to understand where we're going in the future,' Dr. Suarez is quoted in a press release. 'If we can just get one or two people that come and visit Zion to understand that … I've done my job.'
Alongside that discovery, which is mirrored in sites all around the world, Dr. Suarez and the team of scientists found that the CO2 spike would also cause wildfires and 'intense weather patterns' that led to the End Triassic Extinction, which wiped out 'approximately 80 percent of all marine and terrestrial species on Earth,' according to the release.
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The new exhibit at the Zion History Museum was built on this research, and was created by a collaboration between scientists, artists, and partners. Zion National Park extends a special thanks to the Zion Forever Project, St. George Dinosaur Discovery Museum, the Utah Geological Survey and the National Science Foundation in their release.
'None of us could have done anything to this scale by ourselves,' Robyn Henderek, the park's physical scientist, is quoted. 'We all had a role to play in this process.'
For more information about visiting this new exhibit, visit .
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