Photographer: Steven Poole 
Summary Authors: Steven Poole; Jim Foster

The view above shows the colorful sand dunes in Coral Pink Sand Dunes State Park, Utah. This is the only major sand dune field on the Colorado Plateau. It's estimated to be between 10,000 and 15,000 years old. The dunes formed as Navajo sandstone eroded in the Late Triassic or Early Jurassic, 225 million years ago. Persistent winds and the peculiar geographic orientation of terrain features steered the sand into the valley on leeward side of Moquith Mountain and Moccasin Mountain. The funneling effect of wind squeezing through the slot between these mountains accelerated the wind velocity, allowing even large sand grains to be lifted and redeposited miles away from the original sandstone outcrops. Coral and pink hues are attributed to the presence of iron oxides. Photo taken on April 9, 2013.

Photo details: Camera Maker: Panasonic; Camera Model: DMC-ZS19; Focal Length: 27.6mm (35mm equivalent: 154mm); Aperture: f/5.4; Exposure Time: 0.0013 s (1/800); ISO equiv: 100; Software: Ver.1.0.

• Coral Pink Sand Stone State Park, Utah Coordinates: 37.0378, -112.7203
• Related Links
  • Coral Pink Dunes
  • Geology of the Colorado Plateau
  • Tracing the Navajo sandstone
• Student Links
  • Fun with the Venturi effect
  • Creating Sand Dunes
• Earth Observatory
  • Zion Canyon, Utah