The Johnson Geo Centre is a
geological
Geology () is a branch of natural science concerned with Earth and other astronomical objects, the features or rocks of which it is composed, and the processes by which they change over time. Modern geology significantly overlaps all other E ...
interpretation centre located on
Signal Hill in
St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. The museum is named for philanthropist
Paul Johnson and opened in 2002.
Building Design
Most of the centre is located underground, in an excavated glacial formation that shows the exposed bedrock of the hill.
The building is designed to take advantage of the geological features of
Signal Hill where most of the structure is below ground exposing natural rock formations. The area was originally a
peat
Peat (), also known as turf (), is an accumulation of partially decayed vegetation or organic matter. It is unique to natural areas called peatlands, bogs, mires, moors, or muskegs. The peatland ecosystem covers and is the most efficient ...
filled area that was stripped of
overburden
In mining, overburden (also called waste or spoil) is the material that lies above an area that lends itself to economical exploitation, such as the rock, soil, and ecosystem that lies above a coal seam or ore body. Overburden is distinct from tai ...
and a glass-encased structure of 2.5 stories was built atop the excavation. The building was built through the
Johnson Family Foundation at a cost of $11 million. The building utilizes a heating and cooling system via six
geothermal wells drilled to a depth of 500 feet.
Museum Content
Visitors travel a 3.7 billion year timeline, exploring themes such as continental drift, glaciation, earthquakes and volcanoes.
The site also includes the outdoor Johnson GEO-VISTA Park, which shows how stone was used throughout Newfoundland and Labrador's history, including a replica of a root cellar, graveyard, and house chimney.
Affiliations
The Museum is affiliated with: Canadian Association of Science Centres (CASC),
Association of Science-Technology Centers (ASTC).
CMA,
CHIN, and
Virtual Museum of Canada
The Digital Museums Canada (DMC; , ''MNC'') is a funding program in Canada "dedicated to online projects by the museum and heritage community," helping organizations to build digital capacity.
Administered by the Canadian Museum of History (CMH) ...
.
Gallery
File:Johnson Geo Centre exposure of the Precambrian Gibbett Hill Formaiton, a greenish gray sandstone, siltstone and tuff.jpg, Johnson Geo Centre exposure of the Upper Precambrian Gibbett Hill Formation
Formation may refer to:
Linguistics
* Back-formation, the process of creating a new lexeme by removing or affixes
* Word formation, the creation of a new word by adding affixes
Mathematics and science
* Cave formation or speleothem, a secondar ...
, a greenish gray sandstone
Sandstone is a clastic sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized (0.0625 to 2 mm) silicate grains. Sandstones comprise about 20–25% of all sedimentary rocks.
Most sandstone is composed of quartz or feldspar (both silicates ...
, siltstone and tuff
Tuff is a type of rock made of volcanic ash ejected from a vent during a volcanic eruption. Following ejection and deposition, the ash is lithified into a solid rock. Rock that contains greater than 75% ash is considered tuff, while rock ...
File:Johnson Geo Centre space exhibit.jpg, Johnson Geo Centre space exhibit
File:Johnson Geo Centre solar system exhibit.jpg, Johnson Geo Centre solar system exhibit
File:Johnson Geo Centre rock garden.jpg, Johnson Geo Centre rock garden
References
External links
Johnson Geo Centre
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Museums in St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador
Natural history museums in Canada
Geology museums in Canada