Geologists are the men and women who study the materials, processes, history, products, and physical nature of the Earth. They do this by developing research proposals, traveling to various work sites, and fulfilling contracts. Sometimes they work out in the field, and sometimes they work in the lab, but either way, they are sampling, observing, and testing mineral, rock, soil, and liquid samples to get a better idea of the planet.

It’s this dedication and hard work that deserves recognition. Fortunately, there is now a formal holiday that recognizes the work of geologists. This holiday is aptly known as Geologists’ Day, and it’s observed annually on the first Sunday in April. It’s the perfect holiday to let geologists know that the work they do is important to all of us.

The History of Geologists’ Day

This holiday originally began in the USSR during the Cold War. It was invented in 1966 but quickly spread throughout the world. Now, few people remember where this holiday first began, but what is known is that geology is very important to our understanding of the planet, so it’s good that someone decided to invent Geologists’ Day.

Some Cool Geological Facts

Since we’re on the subject of geology and are celebrating the geologists of the world, let’s take a few moments to learn a little bit more about geology. We know the following geological facts because geologists did the work and discovered the information. Now, we’re going to share this information with everyone reading today. Enjoy.

• There are 18 volcanoes in the United States. All of them have the potential to erupt.
• The volcanoes in the U.S. are in Alaska, Hawaii, and the states of the West Coast.
• Diamonds are not only available as transparent. There are also yellow, purple, gray, blue, black, brown, pink, and red diamonds as well.
• People automatically float in the Dead Sea. That’s because the dissolved salts make the water denser than humans.
• Our atmosphere is made up of 80% nitrogen.
• It’s predicted that in 200 million years, North America and Asia are going to collide and form a supercontinent.

Observing Geologists’ Day

One of the first things that people can do on this holiday is to give a shout-out to geologists for the work they do. Since not everyone has a close friend who is a geologist, this may mean simply giving them a thank-you on social media using the hashtag #GeologistsDay. That’s okay. Another way for people to observe this holiday is by learning more about geology. Some students might even want to think about pursuing a career in this field.