Seitenhistorie

Sands are fascinating objects of studies for the layman and the expert alike. Each sample reflects a multitude of factors which affected its texture (size, sorting, rounding) and mineralogical composition. These factors are thus represented in each sample, can be documented, compared and calibrated against known influences. Sands can be considered players in the Earth's everlasting cycle of weathering, transport, sedimentation, diagenesis, metamorphism und uplift. They are the product of the bringing regions undergoing erosion and regions allowing sedimentation; they thus yield information on both. In addition, sands are the precursor to sandstones of the subsurface which act as reservoir to oil, gas, and water.

This wiki is meant to provide a base for the scientific study of natural sands by allowing contributors to add their own samples.

I encourage the addition of typical or of exotic sands if they are well documented and appropriately described .

Please browse through the database ("Blättern") or add your own sample.

This wiki is brainchild and hobby of Christoph Heubeck, Professor of Sedimentary Geology at the FU Berlin. It evolved from a card catalog, mutated through a series of xls sheets and a pile of web pages, and was transferred from the remnants of a previous open wiki which was vandalized in 2007 to the present version.

Thank you to
Julia Schulz
Alja Schmidt
Marco Sassnowski
Ulrike Gruhl
Stefanie Bock
Jördis Hofmann
Fabian Hecht
Christian Sehnert
Karolin Weber
... and all those who brought me samples!