有着丰富石化木材的石化林国家公园，美国亚利桑那州 Petrified Forest National Park, Arizona (© Ian Shive/Tandem Stills + Motion)

有着丰富石化木材的石化林国家公园，美国亚利桑那州 Petrified Forest National Park, Arizona (© Ian Shive/Tandem Stills + Motion)

Petrified Forest National Park

The burliest lumberjack with the best-oiled chainsaw couldn't slice the massive 'timbers' found in Petrified Forest National Park. So why are these giant stone logs segmented in such symmetrical stumps?

Each of these smooth splits occurred in an instant as the brittle quartz cracked under geologic pressure. But each of those instants was eons in the making. First, 225 million years ago, the trees were buried by torrents of river silt. Then mineral deposits slowly seeped into the trees and replaced the decaying wood. Much later, around 60 million years ago, the entire Colorado Plateau began shifting, generating crushing forces that finally divided the petrified logs.

The fossilized trees, surrounding land, and the many plants and animals that live here have enjoyed protection since December 8, 1906, when President Theodore Roosevelt created Petrified Forest National Monument. It was designated as a national park in 1962, lending still greater protection.

石化森林国家公园

最结实的伐木工人和最好的油锯无法切割石化森林国家公园中发现的巨大“木材”。那么，为什么这些巨石原木被分割成如此对称的树桩呢？

当脆性石英在地质压力下破裂时，每一个光滑的裂缝都会在瞬间发生。但是，每一个瞬间都在酝酿中。首先，2.25亿年前，这些树木被河流淤泥的洪流所掩埋。然后，矿物质慢慢渗入树木，取代了腐烂的木材。很久以后，大约6000万年前，整个科罗拉多高原开始移动，产生了最终分裂石化原木的压碎力。

自1906年12月8日西奥多·罗斯福总统创建石化森林国家纪念碑以来，这里的树木化石、周围的土地和许多动植物一直受到保护。1962年，它被指定为国家公园，提供了更大的保护。