Death Valley National Park, California. The silt layer under desert pavement on the fans in Death Valley may contain 0.5 to 4.0 percent (by volume) of water soluble salts. The silt underlying the stones is very porous (vesicular) and cracked polygonally, apparently because there is enough wetting by dew and rain to cause the silt to swell when wet and later shrink again when dry. Circa 1960.
Digital File:hcb00985

ID. Hunt, C.B. 985