User:Buzz810/sandbox

Sources and Notes
I will add the sources I collect here, along with my notes and reference list items.

Sources:


 * Bestland, Retallack, G. J., Rice, A. E., & Mindszenty, A. (1996). Late Eocene detrital laterites in central Oregon; mass balance geochemistry, depositional setting, and landscape evolution. Geological Society of America Bulletin, 108(3), 285–302. https://doi.org/10.1130/0016-7606(1996)1082.3.CO;2
 * Bestland. (1997). Alluvial terraces and Paleosols as indicators of early Oligocene climate change (John Day Formation, Oregon). Journal of Sedimentary Research, 67(5), 840–855. https://doi.org/10.1306/D4268653-2B26-11D7-8648000102C1865D
 * http://npshistory.com/brochures/joda/painted-hills-viewpoint.pdf
 * the hills are made of claystone layers
 * ancient lake beds and soils comprise these layers
 * the exterior surfaces of the hills have been weathered and softened over time into clay
 * Looking back to the original formation of the shapes that now define the land, we can start around 30 million years ago. There were volcanoes among the original Cascade mountains to the west, and they spewed ash that eventually settled over the site of the Painted Hills. Plants and animals, as well as the flow of water, contributed to the oxidation of the ash and the mixing and redistribution of minerals and ash on the surface, which turned into soil over time through the processes of compaction, cementation, and recrystallization. The original ash layers were buried under new deposits and the changes of time and weathering led to the "hard and colorful stone" that constitutes the hills.
 * The colors of the painted hills are caused by the presence of different mixes of elements including Aluminum, Silicon, Iron, Magnesium, Manganese, Sodium, Calcium, Phosphorus, Titanium, Potassium, Oxygen, and Hydrogen, among others, which arrived in the ashfall that was originally light in color. The different combinations formed minerals, with different colors, that led to the hills' coloring.
 * The rust colored layers are full of iron and oxygen in the form of iron oxide.
 * The yellows come from iron and magnesium oxide s.
 * The black marks come from manganese oxide.
 * different levels of moisture in and on the hills (whether by climate or weather) causes light to reflect differently and the colors to shift slightly in their tints.
 * https://www.oregonpaleolandscenter.com/geological-history
 * The alternating red and tan layers within the hills are the result of cycling warm/wet and cool/dry in the climate between 34 and 28 million years ago.
 * https://www.oregongeology.org/pubs/ofr/O-02-03.pdf
 * This all traces back to the Eocene-Oligocene period and a shift in climate. There was a shift from the Eocene which was characterized by more tropical climate to the Oligocene, which was cooler and more temperate.
 * https://www-jstor-org.ezproxy.neu.edu/stable/20613307?sid=primo&seq=7
 * Volcanic sediments (pumice and ash) from the ash fall from the cascades, which was carried over by the wind, landing partially upon water, or watery lands.
 * The climate was mild and humid.
 * The layers of material eventually formed the colored bands as it turned to clay
 * The fossil leaf impressions found there, of redwood, cinnamon, fig, alder, and other plants and trees hint at a formerly much warmer and more humid/damp/wet climate
 * The fossil leaf impressions found there, of redwood, cinnamon, fig, alder, and other plants and trees hint at a formerly much warmer and more humid/damp/wet climate

Things I want to find/add:


 * The introductory paragraph mentions the “colorful layers of its hills corresponding to various geological eras, formed when the area was an ancient river floodplain,” and I want to say when, specifically, it was formed. How long ago?
 * Can improve some of the citations. The links are not all to great sources and it actually is not that easy to see where some of the things are coming from.
 * Sources 1 and 6 are the same link. Both of them go to a main web page and not something specific about the painted hills, so it might be a challenge to trace back to exactly where that information was found to relink it.

Paragraph 1
The Painted Hills is a geologic site in Wheeler County, Oregon that is one of the three units of the John Day Fossil Beds National Monument, along with Sheep Rock and Clarno. It totals 3,132 acres (12.67 km2) and is located 9 miles (14 km) northwest of Mitchell, Oregon. The Painted Hills are listed as one of the Seven Wonders of Oregon, and are named after their characteristic colorful layers. The initial formation of the Painted Hills corresponds to geologic eras as far back as the Eocene epoch, when the area was an ancient river floodplain.

NOTE: The above final sentence needs to be rewritten. The previous editor took it nearly word for word from the source they didn't cite, but then repeated and cited below.

Formation
The Painted Hills began to form when pumice and ash from volcanic eruptions in the Cascade Mountains traveled 100 miles east and settled over the area. Once there, the ash and other sediments were mixed by natural processes including the flow of water, growth of plants, and the movement of animals. Over time, this led to oxidation of the ash on the surface. Buried under new layers and deposits, the ash turned into soils by way of compaction and cementation. With more time and weathering, the exterior surfaces of The Painted Hills were worn into clay. Now, they are primarily made of hard claystone layers.

Colorful Layers
The Hills' colors originate from 35 million years ago, when the region was warm and humid. As the Eocene epoch gave way to the Oligocene, the tropical climate shifted, becoming cooler and more temperate. The colored bands are due to cyclical changes in climate that occurred as they were distributed through time. setting with distinct wet and dry seasons, reddish and yellowish layers formed that are made up of laterites, soils rich in iron and aluminum. Red soils come from a more tropical period, while the yellows are from a drier and cooler time. The red coloring is laterite soil that formed by floodplain deposits when the area was warm and humid. The darker, black soil is lignite that was vegetative matter that grew along the floodplain. The grey coloring is mudstone, siltstone, and shale.

An abundance of fossil remains of early horses, camels, and rhinoceroses in the Painted Hills unit makes the area particularly important to vertebrate paleontologists.

Section 3: Recreation
The Painted Hills are listed as one of the Seven Wonders of Oregon. The Painted Hills unit is open year-round with access for all visitors, but recreation can take a toll on the landscape; visitors who step off the trails can disrupt the naturally-occurring mineral layers, and damage the hills' visible features. There are several well-marked trails for visitors, who are encouraged to take a pledge to stay on the trails at all times: 'Don't Hurt the Dirt', and 'Leave No Trace'.

In 2015, the annual visitor count at the Painted Hills rose from 45,849 to 74,873.

On August 21, 2017, the Great American Eclipse passed directly over the park, allowing visitors a duration of totality of just over 2 minutes, 4 seconds.