Bungai Beach

The trip to the beach was the most wonderful one of all. Here, we learnt from Pedro, our instructor, Professor Lee, famed in the G&G arena, and Than Wi, our senior geologist. The weather at the beach was cool, windy, practical and hands on. We got to witness the forming of tidal flats first hand from Mother Nature itself.

Laminated Sand, shale , sand shale (Tidal flats), sandwich of sand and shales , mud and sand. The sand was cut by a Parang.

Notice how these rocks are alligned in a straight line, at an angle towards the coming waves

Embedded Forams (lala), (Sliced in half) . Imagine all these lala burried alive! What a loss of livelihood for those who live by the sea, and a loss of delicious seafood for seafood lovers like me.

Have you ever seen a lagoon and a sandbar? Well, I haven't. It was a defining moment for me. Never have I imagined that such a depositional environment would occur. Perhaps this exists only at the coastlines of Sarawak. In Peninsular Malaysia, I've never seen it. Do let me know if you've seen one in Semenanjung Malaysia. I'll drive all the way htere just to snap a picture of it.

Asrul standing on the sandbar, in front of him is the lagoon.

Did you know the foams on the sea you see sometimes consist of little algae micro-organisms? A hah! That's true! I learnt that on my visit to the beach too!

Algae which will form corals later on (and become our source of hydrocarbon)

Raindrops, seashells and sand. Perfect combination.

Notice how the shells are facing down? It's for stability.

Our instructor, Pedro, taught us using his Parang, a long sharp, wielding knife. He drew a square on the beach, focusing on the burrows and crab pellets which was formed just a few minutes before we arrived. "These can be preserved! You don't believe me? Wait 'til I bring you to Miri!" he says.

I doubted his words. Only later on, when I saw proof in front of my eyes, that I believed him through and through.

Big Burrow by Big Crab, in the Holocene Period (Present)

"What are these? How can this 'pattern' possibly be made? What is it made of?" asks Pedro, our passionate teacher, who is so eager to pass on everything he knows to us that he rushes through every lesson, speaking like a walking encyclopedia. His students, equally eager, scribble down everything he says and clings onto his every word. Never a moment doubting, always trusting.

We think, but we can't relate it to our everyday life. Until Idzwan, one of the brilliant ones amongst us, suggests, "Raindrops!"

"You're right!" exclaims Pedro! "Excellent!"

Raindrops on the Sand

These rocks will never be formed at an angle perpendicular to the direction of the waves. When the waves hit the coastline, some of its energy is transferred and transformed and dissipated to the left and right at a particular angle. After some time, the rocks form along a certain pattern.

Mathematics in Nature: Rocks deposited at an angle, in a parallel line

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Relationship between water level and the Earth movement:

The way water circles the earth is like hoola-hoop on the Hawaiian dancers' waist. The earth is always tilting at different angles, and its axis changes from time to time. Water moves around the earth in elliptically and is dependent upon the following factors:
a) Gravity
b) Position of the planet
c) Magnetic field

From sequence stratigraphy, we are able to determine the climate and changes of sea level millions and billions of years ago. Why would we want to determine the sea level millions of years ago? Apparently, usually, high frequency events will contain hydrocarbon.

If one is dilligent enough, and decides to plot the shape of hydrocarbon accumulation in Sarawak, one will discover that all of it faces towards one direction and the shape is almost identical. This is due to the plate movement and highly fractured formation.

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