Yangquan's first field natural science practice education site recently opened its doors to the public, according to local officials in Yangquan city.

Located in the local Sanquan village, the site is the No 1 pit for the protection of Permian fossil wood in the city. 

There are currently seven wood fossils in the pit, the most significant of which is the fossil of the thickest cordaite known in China -- with a diameter of 1.36 meters and the remained section of the fossil extending 8 meters. Cordaites are regarded as an important extinct genus of ancient seed plants. 

According to the field investigations conducted by the Chinese Academy of Sciences and experts from the United States, the most significant wood fossil is from the early Permian period, around 295 million years ago. 

The Yangquan planning and natural resources bureau organized its sub-departments and over 60 students from Sanquan village in a visit to the field natural science practice education site on April 30, helping to popularize fossil knowledge and the related rules and regulations that cover them.