Cliff Collapses At Grand Canyon, Scientists Celebrate
Edgar’s Discovery
The expert showed up to inspect what Edgar had discovered. He greeted him sternly before approaching the rocks to the left of the cliff. Once his eyes focused on Edgar’s discovery, a wide smile spread across his face. He was visibly excited.
The expert clearly knew something that Edgar didn’t. He found something massive that was about to change everything.
Family Adventures
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Edgar Miller loved his family as much as he loved adventuring. That was why he loved taking them out on adventures with him. He lived in Arizona with his wife Jessica and his loving sons, Ryan and Peter. He had the perfect life with his family, he couldn’t be happier.
But little did he know that his next adventure would lead him to an amazing discovery.
Weekend Trip
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Edgar was doing what he loved- planning his next family trip! Whenever he had a bit of extra money to spend, he would treat his family to an adventure. He loved it, it was the best way for him to bond with his wife and children. All four of them loved exploring the unknown.
He wanted to go somewhere close for their next weekend trip. That was when he had an idea.
Planned And Ready To Go
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He realized that they didn’t live too far from The Grand Canyon. His children had never been there before and he wanted to introduce them to it. It was a massive part of American history, they had to witness it! He made the arrangements and now they were ready for a road trip!
He never expected the experience to be different than what he expected.
On The Road
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They packed everything they needed, including their family CD case that contained songs all of them enjoyed. They got into their sedan and started their journey.
The drive was a few hours long, but they still enjoyed every second of it. But if they had known what they were heading towards, they would’ve been a lot less excited.
Safety Instructions
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They finally arrive at the canyon. They completed their payment and listened carefully to the safety instructions. After that, they enjoyed the beauty of the scene in front of them as a family.
That was when Edgar noticed something that he hadn’t seen the last time he visited. He didn’t feel good about it, but he was curious.
He Saw Something
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Edgar stood on a walkway and from that walkway, he could see a collapsed cliff. But he saw something that really stuck out to him. It revealed something he had never seen before.
He had no idea that as soon as he discovered what it was, his world would be turned upside down.
Gut Feeling
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As soon as Edgar spotted a local, he asked them when the cliff had collapsed. It had only happened a few days ago, it appeared that Edgar was at the right place at the right time. No one else seemed to pay any mind to it, maybe Edgar was mistaken.
But he had a gut feeling that he just couldn’t ignore, He hoped he was right.
Expert Opinion
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He discovered the strange marking on the rock, but he had no idea what they were. He didn’t know anything about this kind of thing, he was just a family man. He had to get an expert opinion on this.
He quickly dialed a number to contact someone more qualified. He was curious, he had to get some answers.
Calling In An Expert
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He knew he wasn’t qualified for this, he had to call someone that knew more about it than he did. He called a paleontologist, he had to see Edgar’s massive discovery.
He was so excited. This could be something amazing. Or was this about to be a waste of time?
Expert Arrived
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An expert finally arrived to see what Edgar had discovered. He got a closer look at the rocks that were left from the cliff. But once he had seen what was there, Edgar could see the excitement in his eyes.
Whatever the expert knew that he didn’t, he knew it was something huge, something that would change everything.
280-Million-Year-Old Footprints
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The expert looked to Edgar and told him that the markings were just as special as he thought they were. They were 280-million-year-old footprints, which predate even the dinosaurs. He investigated them further to find out just what had left them.
But he was clearly surprised at what else he found.
A Tetrapod
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The animal that had left the footprints was a tetrapod that had walked the landscape when the piece of rock he was looking at was still just a desert. The tetrapod in question was a diadectomorph – an early amphibian that resembles a lizard.
But the stranger’s question was why was it there?
A Strange Place
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The Grand Canyon, or just a desert as it was at the time, was quite an arid place like it is today. So why would a prehistoric amphibian be there when they needed a water source to breed and lay eggs.
But there were many discoveries to be made once, and the footprints were the key.
More Discoveries
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The footprints unlocked the door to new theories and possibilities surrounding the knowledge of tetrapods and diadectomorphs. Scientists studied the footprints and concluded that the animals found in the desert were much more common than they thought.
And all of this was thanks to Edgar having a keen eye the day he visited The Grand C.
