Zircons tell us what earth was like 4.4 billion years ago; see how. Did you know animals can be identified by their hair?

A new feature at this site is an example of what can be learned by examining the fine atmospheric particles collected on the sub 2.5 micrometer filter (PM2.5 filter) using the light microscope. Take a look.

Asbestos fibers with widths well below the resolution limit of the light microscope are visible using the NIOSH 7400 procedure. You can see fibers with diameters down to about 100 nanometer, provided they are longer than five micrometers. If you used darkfield rather than phase contrast you could see down to 20 nm. Check it out.

I ran into some silica sponge spicules in a lake bottom sample. I have also seen these in some samples from indoor environments. Check these out at this location: Sponge Spiclule File.

The large transformers in Sub-Stations are filled with thousands of gallons of oil. The particles that are in the oil provide a history of the transformer. This file shows some of those particles. I will be adding information on what each particle type means in the future but for now you can see the types that are there at: Transformer oil particles.