Utah’s famous geological feature, ‘Double Arch’, collapses
America’s National Park Service has announced that an iconic geological feature in southern Utah’s Glen Canyon National Recreation Area collapsed last week. NPS Rangers revealed that the famous ‘Double Arch’ in Rock Creek Bay collapsed on August 8th. Fortunately, no injuries have been reported.
While the structure was mostly known as the ‘Double Arch’, it also had a string of other names, including the ‘Toilet Bowl’, ‘Crescent Pool’ and ‘Hole in the Roof’. An ancient structure, it was formed by 190-million-year-old Navajo sandstone dating from the late Triassic period to the early Jurassic period, the NPS states. It was so old that it stood when the Dinosaurs roamed.
Significantly, it must not be mistaken with the other famous ‘Double Arch’ in Arches National Park, just 186 miles away, which still stands and is known for appearing in the opening sequence of Steven Spielberg’s Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade.
Years of harsh weather conditions, including wind and rain battering the ‘Double Arch’, led to erosion and spalling, leading to fragments breaking off. Pointing to the present environmental conditions that might have contributed to the collapse, the NPS has said that erosion from the waves and changing water levels in Lake Powell could well have factored in.
The Grand Canyon Trust states that the construction of the towering 710-foot Glen Canyon dam in 1963 also made the lake’s water levels rise exponentially, connecting it with more than 2,000 miles of shorelines in the Recreation Area.
“This event serves as a reminder of our responsibility and need to protect the mineral resources surrounding Lake Powell,” Michelle Kerns, the Glen Canyon National Recreation Area superintendent, explained in a statement.
She continued: “These features have a life span that can be influenced or damaged by manmade interventions”.
“While we don’t know what caused this collapse, we will continue to maintain our resource protection efforts on Lake Powell for future generations to enjoy,” Kerns added.
Karen Garthwait, a spokesperson for Arches and Canyonlands National Parks, also discussed the incident with the Salt Lake Tribune. “The great thing about geology is that it happens extremely slowly — except for when it doesn’t,” she said, explaining that natural features such as the ‘Double Arch’ collapse more regularly than people think, particularly in an area with over 2,000 within its boundary.
Despite the rising water levels, she says that while the collapses might shock people they are accepted as a natural part of life for the park officials, who seek to preserve the natural process that create and destroy arches. They are not there to “stop time”, she said.
Other famous arches that have collapsed in the past include the ‘Wall Arch’ in 2008 and the ‘Rainbow Arch’ in 2018.
