Let’s Watch: The Petrified Forest

Hafsa is visiting the Petrified Forest National Park in Arizona. What a creepy yet beautiful landscape she sees! It's hard to believe that these fossilized logs were once living trees, but Hafsa knows it’s true.

Millions of years ago, this area was a flourishing forest. The trees were alive. They swayed in the wind and provided homes and food for the creatures that lived there. Then, the climate changed. The forest was blanketed in layers of volcanic ash and mud. Over about 200 million years, minerals slowly seeped into the wood, turning the wood logs into stone.

The fossilized logs are a variety of colors, from pale blues and greens to deep browns and reds. They have a smooth, glossy finish, like polished marble. Some have complex patterns on the surface while others are smooth and featureless.

The petrified wood has been preserved and is now a work of art. Hafsa runs her fingers over the smooth surface of the logs. She imagines what life must have been like in the ancient forest.