A big chunk of Salton Sea obsidian

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The Salton Sea is located in Southern California’s Imperial Valley. Long before the now toxic sea was created by contaminated farm water runoff, the Salmon Buttes were a hotbed of volcanic activity. There are lava domes on sea islands. That volcanic boiling still occurs far beneath the surface thus there are geothermal plants tapping good clean energy powering much of the area. Volcanic eruption doesn’t necessarily always happen with mountains as in Hawaii and Northern California. Molten lava explodes and a cool byproduct is obsidian. Shiny, smooth and extremely hard. Nature’s glass. Razor sharp edges which is why native Americans made obsidian spear and arrowheads. Jewelry can be made. Nearby the sea’s shore is Obsidian Butte, a small hill of massive obsidian boulders. The area around is littered with small fractured pieces. The place is wide open and anyone is free to visit. I went down there to marvel at this leftover from an ancient eruption. The obsidian is pure black glinting in the sun all over the area. I picked up a bunch to fill a jar. The obsidian in the pic I spied the top of peaking out and pried it out of the ground. Obsidian carries some weight and this chunk is heavy. A nice decorative piece in my room.