Typical applications include clay and mineral identification. Cathode Luminescence Cathode luminescence is available for detailed petrographic descriptions of rocks. Jon, the resident paleontologist, takes care of the library research, identifies more difficult specimens, conducts taxonomic and morphological analysis and supervises student analytical research . Ronny G. Thomas, Analytical Lab and Field Research Specialist, prepares for excavation of a mammoth tusk. Weekly collecting trips are made to active sand and gravel pits along the Lower Nueces River to search for freshly exposed fossils.
Students learn to be observant and develop the necessary patience to find and recover fossils.
A working knowledge of fluvial processes, ground water, mineralogy , petrology and sedmentology is gained hands-on while searching for fossils. The Scanning Electron Microscope Photomicrographs below are taken from on-going studies of fresh sediment and water samples from Baffin Bay and Corpus Christi Bay.