Monday, December 01, 2014

A 1000-year old witness



History in the rings of a 1021 year old redwood tree -- from Muir Woods National Monument, north of San Francisco. The tree was born 930 AD and fell in 1930, and was alive during key events in North American history: a millennium of great tumult, especially since 1492. Each year produces a natural growth ring, varying in size depending on the type of year (dry, rainy etc.) so there are approximately 1021 rings in this cross section. Redwood trees are massive (350 feet tall), which is not conveyed by these pictures. Sorry for the poor images and the flash -- the forest created by these tall trees is dark even during the day, and my cell phone has poor resolution.

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