STUART BELL, EARLY EARTH (LANDSCAPE 2026)

The Pilbara is well known amongst geologists for its ancient landscapes. This series from the Marble Bar region looks at one such marvel. Vertically Plunging Schist. A metamorphic rock belonging to the Pilbara Craton, one of the oldest preserved pieces of Earth's crust. The unique vertical alignment and intense stretching of these rocks were caused by a massive geological event known as a "gravitational overturn". During this process, heavy volcanic greenstones sank into the crust while lighter, buoyant granite plumes rose up from underneath, permanently freezing the highly deformed, vertically plunging structures into place.

Images have been resized for web display, which may cause some loss of image quality. Note: Original high-resolution images are used for judging.