SURFACE INDICATIONS [FIELD OPALOLOGY]

[KKHK]

SURFACE INDICATIONS [FIELD OPALOLOGY]

Postby crazy opal » Mon Feb 19, 2007 8:24 pm
What is Surface Indications?
If you looking for underground deposits of water, what would indicate water presence below the surface? If you are in the Australian outback and in need of water to survive. You mast look for surface indications that will help you to find that precious water. Your life depends on it.
One you look for low lying area like a billabong or deep creek old river bad were the trees are greener from the rest.
Deep areas of a gorge where water holes have formed during drier periods. I learned years ago back home in Bosnia during my school days for survival. How to locate water & bush taker.
The smallest birds insects such as native bees,wasps and hornets had to be near water supplies, because they cant live for long without it. So you follow the critchers to the water and soon you will locate water.
Opal deposits are found in desert sandstone country deep down in clay beds. For opal to form as a patch of many kilograms common opal referred as 'potch' and some gem opal amongst it has formed under special conditions during Tertiary Period. An inland sea flooded the areas and faults, rock joints formed. Water rushed down to the clay level where it saturated the strata we call it today 'opal clay level.'
The clay is so fine grit that water is trapped in the level. All the silicon collected from upper sand deposits that become sandstone is concentrated at upper part of the clay level near the junction of sandstone and the clay level. It took long time for this process to form opal.
There is evidence of glaciers activity throughout the major opal fields. The best example is Andamooka SA. It occered three times.
First was down in opal level, quartzite boulders were deposited when glacier melted and later opal formed in the joints and crackes cavities of the rock....Steven aracic [The opal hat man}