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The Universe

The Universe – The totality of space and time – past, present, and
future

Galaxies – An enormous collection of heavenly bodies held together by

gravitational attraction. Each galaxies is light year apart from each other.

Light year – the distance traveled by light in one year

Speed of Light – 3x10^5 km/sec

1 light year = 9.4x10^12 km

Origin of the Universe Stages of the Universe’s Evolution

The Big Bang Theory 1. Radiation Era

is a model for the evolution of the universe in which a
incomprehensibly large explosion occurred 13.7 Billion years ago - named for the dominance of radiation right
that sent all matters of the universe flying outward at incredible after the Big Bang.
speed. In time, the debris from this explosion, which was almost
entirely hydrogen and helium, began to cool and condense into
the first stars and galaxies.
2. Matter Era
- presence and predominance of matter in the
In 1927, the Belgian Catholic priest Georges universe.
Lemaître proposed an expanding model for the universe to
explain the observed redshifts of spiral nebulae, and calculated - spans billions of year including the present
the Hubble law. time

Radiation Era Radiation Era

Planck Epoch Grand Unification Epoch

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Radiation Era Radiation Era

Inflationary Epoch Electroweak Epoch
The Universe at this time is extremely hot and composed of electrons,
quarks and antiquarks.

Radiation Era Radiation Era

Quark Epoch Hadron Epoch

Radiation Era Matter Era

Lepton and Nuclear Epoch Atomic Epoch

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Matter Era Matter Era

Galactic Epoch Epoch Stellar Epoch

Evidence of the Big Bang Theory Evidence 1: The Expanding Universe

When astronomers look beyond our own solar system, they

observe that everywhere in the universe galaxies are moving
First, the universe is expanding ( red shift), and away from each other at tremendous speeds. Edwin Hubble first
recognized this phenomenon in 1929. By measuring the optical
spectra of distant galaxies, Hubble noted that the velocity at
which a galaxy moves away from Earth increases proportionally
second, it is permeated by background to its distance from Earth. He observed that the spectral lines
(wavelengths of light) of the galaxies are shifted toward the red
radiation end of the spectrum; that is, the lines are shifted toward longer
wavelengths. Galaxies receding from each other at tremendous
speeds would produce such a red shift . This is an example of the
Doppler effect, which is a change in the frequency of a sound,
light, or other wave caused by movement of the wave’s source
relative to the observer

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Evidence 2: Pervasive Background Radiation /

Cosmic Microwave Background Radiation

Arno Penzias and Robert Wilson of Bell Telephone

Laboratories made the second important observation
that provided evidence of the Big Bang in 1965. They
discovered that there is a pervasive background
radiation of 2.7 Kelvin (K) above absolute zero
(absolute zero equals –273oC; 2.7 K = –270.3oC)
everywhere in the universe. This background
radiation is thought to be the fading afterglow of
the Big Bang.

The Big Crunch Theory

One such theory, concerning the future of the universe, is
playfully known as the "big crunch." According to this theory,
the universe will one day stop expanding. Then, as gravity pulls
on the matter, the universe will begin to contract, falling inward
until it has collapsed back into a super-hot, super-dense
singularity. If the theory holds true, the universe is like a giant
soufflé. It starts out small, then expands as it heats up.
Eventually, however, the soufflé cools and begins to collapse.

The most common theory of the aftermath of the Big Crunch

describe in expanding, a new big bang. Some even say that there
is a continuous Big Bang Crunch Cycle.

What do Cosmologists believe?

during the first second following the Big Bang, the four basic
forces (Universe temp. >10 billion K) :
1. GRAVITY (the attraction of one body toward another)
2. ELECTROMAGNETIC FORCE (the combination of
electricity and magnetism into one force and binds atoms into
molecules)
3. STRONG NUCLEAR FORCE (the binding of protons and
neutrons together), and
4. WEAK NUCLEAR FORCE (the force responsible for the
breakdown of an atom’s nucleus, producing radioactive decay)—
separated, and the universe experienced enormous cosmic
inflation.

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Creationism (Divine Creation)
Creationism is the religious belief that
the universe and life originated "from specific
acts of divine creation", as opposed to
the scientific conclusion that they came about
through natural processes. The first use of the
term "creationist" to describe a proponent of
creationism is found in an 1856 letter
of Charles Darwin describing those who
objected on religious grounds to the then
emerging science of evolution.
Formation of the Solar System
states that the bodies of our solar system evolved from an
enormous rotating cloud called the solar nebula.
the condensation and collapse of interstellar material in a spiral
arm of the Milky Way Galaxy
The collapse of this cloud of gases and small grains into a
counterclockwise-rotating disk concentrated about 90% of the
material in the central part of the disk and formed an
embryonic Sun, around which swirled a rotating cloud of
material called a solar nebula.
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Creationism (Divine Creation)
 The basis for many creationists' beliefs is a literal or
quasi-literal interpretation of the Old Testament,
especially from stories from the book of Genesis:
 The Genesis creation narrative (Genesis 1–2) describes
how God brings the Universe into being in a series of
creative acts over six days and places the first man and
woman (Adam and Eve) in a divine garden (the Garden of
Eden). This story is the basis of Creationist cosmology
and biology.
 The Genesis flood narrative (Genesis 6–9) tells how God
destroys the world and all life through a great flood,
saving representatives of each form of life by means
of Noah's ark. This forms the basis of Creationist geology,
better known as flood geology.
Is there a BANG! in the Big Bang?
The universe – including all space, time, energy, etc. – was
condense into an extremely hot zero-volume entity of
infinite density called the singularity. The universe as we
know it is the result of this singularity expanding and
cooling. (Source: brittanica.com)
According to www.Exploratorium.edu, the Big Bang did not
expand through anything. That’s because there was no
space to expand through in the beginning. Rather,
physicists believe the Big Bang created and stretched
space itself, expanding the universe.
Besides the hydrogen and helium atoms
generated during the Big Bang, the solar
nebula consisted of microscopic dust grains
and the ejected matter of long-dead stars.
(Nuclear fusion in stars converts hydrogen and
helium into the other elements found in the
universe.)
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The Solar System

-part of the Milky Way Galaxy,

-consists of the :
 Sun

 eight planets

 one dwarf planet (Pluto)

 153 known moons or satellites (although this number keeps changing

with the discovery of new moons and satellites surrounding the outer
planets)
 a tremendous number of asteroids—most of which orbit the Sun in a
zone between Mars and Jupiter (The Asteroid Belt)
 and millions of comets and meteorites, as well as interplanetary dust
and gases.

The Sun The Sun

 The largest object in the solar system
(99.8%)
 The surface of the Sun, called the
Perihelion- the point where the planet is
photosphere, is at a temperature of about
5800 K. Sunspots are "cool" regions, only
closest to the Sun
3800 K (they look dark only by comparison
with the surrounding regions). Sunspots can
be very large, as much as 50,000 km in
diameter. Sunspots are caused by Aphelion- the point where the planet is
complicated and not very well understood
interactions with the Sun's magnetic field. furthest away from the Sun
 A small region known as the chromosphere
lies above the photosphere.
 The highly rarefied region above the
chromosphere, called the corona, extends
millions of kilometers into space but is
visible only during a total solar eclipse
(left). Temperatures in the corona are over
1,000,000 K.
 Yellow Dwarf star

The Sun The Solar System

Eclipse - An eclipse is an astronomical An eclipse is the result of either

event that occurs when an astronomical an occultation (completely hidden) or
object is temporarily obscured, either by a transit (partially hidden).
passing into the shadow of another body or
by having another body pass between it and
2 types of Eclipse:
the viewer.
1. Solar Eclipse
2. Lunar Eclipse
Syzygy - This alignment of three celestial
objects.

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The Solar System

Asteroids - Are rocky, airless worlds
that orbit our sun, but are too small to
be called planets. Tens of thousands of
these minor planets are gathered in
the main asteroid belt, a vast
doughnut-shaped ring between the
orbits of Mars and Jupiter.

Stars - A luminous sphere of plasma

held together by its own gravity.

Super Nova - an astronomical

event that occurs during the last
stellar evolutionary stages of a
massive star's life, whose dramatic
and catastrophic destruction is
marked by one final titanic explosion.

The Solar System The Solar System

What is the Brightest star you see in the sky? Planets - a celestial body moving in an elliptical orbit around a
Sirius, “Dog Star” star.
1) Terrestrial planets – relatively small, dense, rocky planets closest to
What is The largest star? the Sun (Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars) – and their satellites, and a belt
of asteroids, which are small, planet-like bodies in orbit beyond
VY Canis Majoris
mars.
2) Jovian planets – large, low density planets farthest from the Sun
A blue supergiant that is the brightest star in the
(Jupiter, Saturn, Neptune, Uranus and their satellites) whose outer
constellation Orion.
layers are composed mainly of frozen or liquid hydrogen, helium,
Rigel Star ammonia and methane.

Bright red star in the Orion which is nearing to its

end. Comets – Jan Oort, a Dutch astronomer, showed in 1950 that
Betelgeuse comets form a diffuse spherical cloud located in the far reaches
of the Solar System. Some comets periodically swoop toward the
Sun and retreat again.

Rotation of Planets With Their Respective Axis

All six are Prograde , Venus and Uranus are Retrograde

Venus spins on its axis from east to west, while
Uranus is tilted so far over, it's virtually spinning on
its side.
Venus is the only planet that spins in clockwise
direction.

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Planets According to Size Planets According to Density

Earth Statistics

Age: 4.546 BY
Shape: oblate spheroid
Equatorial Diameter:12,756 km
Polar Diameter:12,714 km
Mass: 5.97 x 10^24 kg
Density: 5.51 g/cm³
Tallest mountain: ??
Lowest point on land: Dead sea shore, Israel, 395m
below sea level.
Deepest point in the sea: Challenger Deep, Pacific,
11 032 m

The Right Planet

Earth : The Right Planet, In 1. If Earth were considerably larger (more massive)
The Right Location, At The its force of gravity would be proportionately
greater. Like the giant planets, Earth would have
Right Time (Goldilocks retained a thick, hostile atmosphere consisting of
ammonia and methane, and possibly hydrogen
scenario/zone) and helium.
2. If Earth were much smaller, oxygen, water vapor,
and other volatiles would escape into space and
be lost forever. Thus, like the Moon and Mercury,
both of which lack an atmosphere, Earth would
be void of life.

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The Right Planet
3. If Earth did not have a rigid lithosphere overlaying a weak
asthenosphere, plate tectonics would not operate. The
continental crust (Earth’s “highlands”) would not have
formed without the recycling of plates. Consequently, the
entire planet would likely be covered by an ocean a few
kilometers deep. As the author Bill Bryson so aptly stated,
“There might be life in that lonesome ocean, but there
certainly wouldn’t be baseball.”*
4. Most surprisingly, perhaps, is the fact that if our planet did
not have a molten metallic core, most of the life forms on
Earth would not exist. Fundamentally, without the flow of
iron in the core, Earth could not support a magnetic field. It
is the magnetic field which prevents lethal cosmic rays (the
solar wind) from showering Earth’s surface.
The Right Location
3. Earth is near a star of modest size. Stars like the
Sun have a life span of roughly 10 billion years.
During most of this time, radiant energy is emitted
at a fairly constant level. Giant stars, on the other
hand, consume their nuclear fuel at very high rates
and “burn out” in a few hundred million years.
Therefore, Earth’s proximity to a modest-sized star
allowed enough time for the evolution of humans,
who first appeared on this planet only a few
million years ago.
The Right Time
2. About 65 million years ago our planet was struck by an
asteroid 10 kilometers in diameter. This impact caused a
mass extinction during which nearly three-quarters of all
plant and animal species were obliterated—including
dinosaurs. Although this may not seem fortuitous, the
extinction of dinosaurs opened new habitats for small
mammals that survived the impact. These habitats, along
with evolutionary forces, led to the development of many
large mammals that occupy our modern world. Without this
event, mammals may not have evolved beyond the small
rodent like creatures that live in burrows.
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The Right Location
1. If Earth were about 10 percent closer to the Sun,
like Venus, our atmosphere would consist mainly
of the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide. As a result,
Earth’s surface temperature would be too hot to
support higher life-forms.
2. If Earth were about 10 percent farther from the
Sun, the problem would be reversed—it would be
too cold. The oceans would freeze over and
Earth’s active water cycle would not exist.
Without liquid water all life would perish.
The Right Time
Two of many timely, Earth-altering events include:
1. The development of our modern atmosphere. Earth’s
primitive atmosphere is thought to have been composed
mostly of water vapor and carbon dioxide, with small
amounts of other gases, but no free oxygen. Fortunately,
microorganisms evolved that released oxygen into the
atmosphere by the process of photosynthesis. About 2.2
billion years ago an atmosphere with free oxygen came into
existence. The result was the evolution of the fore bearers of
the vast array of organisms that occupy Earth today.
The Moon
1. The surface of the Moon can be divided into two
major regions: (a) the relatively low, smooth, dark
areas called maria (Basaltic Composition) (seas) and
(b) the densely cratered, rugged highlands, originally
called terrae (which are composed of Anorthosites)
(land).
2. Most of the craters of the Moon resulted from the
impact of meteorites, a process fundamental in
planetary development.
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The Moon
3. The lunar maria are vast plains of basaltic lava,
extruded about 4.0 to 2.5 billion years ago. Other
volcanic features on the Moon include sinuous rilles
and low shield volcanoes. (Lunar Basalts)
4. The major tectonic features on the Moon, mare
ridges and linear rilles, are products of minor vertical
movements.
5. Lunar rocks are of igneous and impact origin. The
major types include: (a) anorthosite, (b) basalt, (c)
breccia, and (d) glass.
Formation of the Moon
Any theory which explains the existence of the Moon
must naturally explain the following facts:
 The Moon's low density (3.3 g/cc) shows that it
does not have a substantial iron core like the Earth
does.
 Moon rocks contain few volatile substances (e.g.
water), which implies extra baking of the lunar
surface relative to that of Earth.
 The relative abundance of oxygen isotopes on
Earth and on the Moon are identical, which
suggests that the Earth and Moon formed at the
same distance from the Sun.
Formation of the Moon
The Capture Theory: This theory proposes
that the Moon was formed somewhere else in the
solar system, and was later captured by
the gravitational field of the Earth. The Moon's
different chemical composition could be explained if
it formed elsewhere in the solar system, however,
capture into the Moon's present orbit is very
improbable. Something would have to slow it down by
just the right amount at just the right time, and
scientists are reluctant to believe in such "fine
tuning". Also, this hypothesis does not have a natural
explanation for the extra baking the lunar material
has received.
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The Moon
6. The Moon is a differentiated planetary body with a crust
about 70 km thick. The lithosphere is approximately 1000 km
thick. The deeper interior may consist of a partially molten
asthenosphere and a small metallic core.
7. The tectonic and thermal evolution of the Moon was very
rapid and terminated more than two billion years ago. The Moon
has no surface fluids, so that little surface modification has
occurred since the termination of its tectonic activity.
Formation of the Moon
Theories:
 Various theories had been proposed for the formation of the
Moon. Below these theories are listed along with the reasons
they have since been discounted.
 The Fission Theory: This theory proposes that the Moon was
once part of the Earth and somehow separated from the
Earth early in the history of the solar system. The present
Pacific Ocean basin is the most popular site for the part of
the Earth from which the Moon came. This theory was
thought possible since the Moon's composition resembles that
of the Earth's mantle and a rapidly spinning Earth could have
cast off the Moon from its outer layers. However, the present-
day Earth-Moon system should contain "fossil evidence" of this
rapid spin and it does not. Also, this hypothesis does not have
a natural explanation for the extra baking the lunar material
has received.
Formation of the Moon
The Condensation Theory: This theory
proposes that the Moon and the Earth
condensed individually from the nebula that
formed the solar system, with the Moon
formed in orbit around the Earth. However, if
the Moon formed in the vicinity of the Earth it
should have nearly the same composition.
Specifically, it should possess a significant
iron core, and it does not. Also, this
hypothesis does not have a natural
explanation for the extra baking the lunar
material has received.
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Formation of the Moon Moon Events

The widely accepted Theory: popularly known as
The Theia Hypothesis The Moon's orbit around Earth is elliptical. The point of the orbit closest
about 4.45 billion years ago, a young planet Earth, Geia-- a perigee, while the point farthest from Earth is
to Earth is called
mere 50 million years old at the time and not the solid object
we know today-- experienced the largest impact event of its
known as apogee.
history. Another planetary body, Theia with roughly the mass of
Mars had formed nearby with an orbit that placed it on a
collision course with Earth. When young Earth and this rogue
body collided, the energy involved was 100 million times larger
than the much later event believed to have wiped out the
dinosaurs. The early giant collision destroyed the rogue body,
likely vaporized the upper layers of Earth's mantle, and
ejected large amounts of debris into Earth orbit. Our Moon
formed from this debris.

The Proto Earth

As material accumulated to form Earth (and for a
short period afterward), the high-velocity impact of
nebular debris and the decay of radioactive elements
caused the temperature of our planet to steadily
increase. During this time of intense heating, Earth
became hot enough that iron and nickel began to
melt. Melting produced liquid blobs of heavy metal
that sank toward the center of the planet. This
process occurred rapidly on the scale of geologic
time and produced Earth’s dense iron-rich core.

Formation of Earth’s Crust

The early period of heating resulted in another process of
chemical differentiation, whereby melting formed buoyant
masses of molten rock that rose toward the surface, where
they solidified to produce a primitive crust. In addition,
some heavy metals such as gold, lead, and uranium, which
have low melting points or were highly soluble in the
ascending molten masses, were scavenged from Earth’s Earth’s Evolution
interior and concentrated in the developing crust. This
early period of chemical segregation established the three
basic divisions of Earth’s interior — the iron-rich core; the
thin primitive crust; and Earth’s largest layer, called the
mantle, which is located between the core and crust.

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Earth’s Early Atmosphere

Evolution of the Oceans
Earth’s first enduring atmosphere was generated by a process
called outgassing , through which gases trapped in the planet’s
interior are released. Early in Earth’s formation, its atmosphere As Earth cooled, water vapor condensed to
likely consisted of gases most common in the early solar form clouds, and torrential rains began to fill
system—hydrogen, helium, methane, ammonia, carbon dioxide,
and water vapor. The lightest of these gases, hydrogen and
low-lying areas, which became the oceans.
helium, apparently escaped into space because Earth’s gravity
was too weak to hold them.

Earth’s primitive atmosphere probably consisted of mostly water

vapor, carbon dioxide, and sulfur dioxide with minor amounts of
other gases, and minimal nitrogen. Most important, free oxygen
was not present.

Evolution of the Oceans

Evolution of the Oceans
Earth’s rocky surface weathered at an accelerated
rate. The products released by chemical weathering
included atoms and molecules of various substances,
including sodium, calcium, potassium, and silica, that
were carried into the newly formed oceans. Some of
these dissolved substances precipitated to become
chemical sediment that mantled the ocean floor.
Other substances formed soluble salts, which
increased the salinity of seawater. Research suggests
that the salinity of the oceans increased rapidly at
first but has remained constant over the last two
billion years.
In those oceans, nearly 3.5 billion years ago,
photosynthesizing bacteria began to release oxygen
into the water. During photosynthesis, the Sun’s
energy is used by organisms to produce organic
material (energetic molecules of sugar containing
hydrogen and carbon) from carbon dioxide (CO2) and
water (H2O). The first bacteria probably used
hydrogen sulfide (H2S) as the source of hydrogen
rather than water. One of the earliest bacteria,
cyanobacteria (once called blue-green algae),
began to produce oxygen as a by-product of
photosynthesis.

Earth’s oceans also serve as a depository for Oxygen in the Atmosphere

tremendous volumes of carbon dioxide, a major
constituent in the primitive atmosphere. This is
significant because carbon dioxide is a greenhouse
gas that strongly influences the heating of the
atmosphere.
Carbon dioxide is readily soluble in seawater where
it often joins other atoms or molecules to produce
various chemical precipitates. The most common
compound generated by this process is calcium
carbonate (CaCO3), which makes up limestone, the
most abundant chemical sedimentary rock. Marine
organisms began to extract calcium carbonate from
seawater to make their shells and other hard parts.
Initially, the newly released oxygen was readily
consumed by chemical reactions with other
atoms and molecules (particularly iron) in the
ocean. It seems that large quantities of iron
were released into the early ocean through
submarine volcanism and associated
hydrothermal vents. Iron has tremendous affinity
for oxygen. When these two elements join, they
become iron oxide (rust). As it accumulated on
the seafloor, these early iron oxide deposits
created alternating layers of iron-rich rocks and
chert, called banded iron formations. Which
represent the world’s most important reservoir
of iron ore.

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Chemical analyses of rocks suggest that
a significant amount of oxygen
appeared in the atmosphere as early as
2.2 billion years ago and increased
steadily until it reached stable levels
about 1.5 billion years ago. Obviously,
the availability of free oxygen had a
positive impact on the development of
life.
LAYERS (SPHERES) OF THE
EARTH
1. Atmosphere
2. Hydrosphere
3. Biosphere
4. Geosphere
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Another significant benefit of the “oxygen explosion”
is that oxygen (O2) molecules readily absorb
ultraviolet radiation and rearrange themselves to
form ozone (O3).
For the first time, Earth’s surface was protected from
this type of solar radiation, which is particularly
harmful to DNA. Marine organisms had always been
shielded from ultraviolet radiation by the oceans, but
the development of the atmosphere’s protective
ozone layer made the continents more hospitable.
Layers of the Atmosphere
Layers of the Atmosphere
Troposphere – The bottom layer in which we live,
where temperature decreases with an increase in
altitude.
The term literally means “turns over”, a reference to
the appreciable vertical mixing of air in this lowermost
zone.
All weather phenomena occur in this layer.
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Troposphere Layers of the Atmosphere

Stratosphere - the temperatures increase ,
because it is in this layer that the atmosphere’s
The temperature decrease in the troposphere
ozone is concentrated.
is called the environmental lapse rate. Its
average value is 6.5 degrees celsius per
kilometer (3.5°F per 1,000 feet), a figure Mesosphere - the temperatures again decrease
known as the normal lapse rate. with height.
-Coldest region in the atmosphere occur in the
mesopause

Layers of the Atmosphere The Hydrosphere

The hydrosphere is the liquid water com ponent of the Earth. It includes the oceans,
seas, lakes, ponds, rivers and streams. The hydrosphere covers about 70% of
the surface of the Earth and is the home for many plants and animals.
Thermosphere - a layer that contains only a tiny
fraction of the atmosphere’s mass. In the extremely
Cryosphere- those
rarefied air of this outer most layer, temperatures portions of Earth's
again increase, owing to the absorption of very short- surface where water is
wave, high-energy solar radiation by atoms of oxygen in solid form,
including sea ice, lake
and nitrogen. ice,
river ice, snow cover, gl
Temperatures rise to extremely high values of more aciers, ice caps, ice
than lOO0°C in the thermosphere sheets and frozen
ground (which
includes permafrost).

The Biosphere The Geosphere

The biosphere also known as
the ecosphere, is the This sphere includes all the stuff
worldwide sum of that make up the crust and the
all ecosystems. It can also be
core of the earth. It includes
termed the zone of life
on Earth, a closed system everything natural and lifeless
(apart from solar and cosmic that make up the surface of the
radiation and heat from the earth.
interior of the Earth), and
largely self-regulating. By the Examples are all the rocks and
most general biophysiological sand particles from dry land to
definition, the biosphere is those found at the bottom of the
the global ecological system oceans. They also include the
integrating all living mountains, minerals, lava and
beings and their relationships. molten magma from beneath the
earth’s crust.

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The Face of Earth The Face of Earth

The two principal divisions of Earth’s surface are the

More than 95 percent of Earth’s human population
continents and the ocean basins. lives on the continents—the other 5 percent are
people living on volcanic islands such as the Hawaiian
A significant difference between these two areas is their relative Islands and Iceland.
levels. The continents are remarkably flat features that have the
appearance of plateaus protruding above sea level. With an average
elevation of about 0.8 kilometer (0.5 mile), continents lie close to sea
level, except for limited areas of mountainous terrain. By contrast, the
average depth of the ocean floor is about 3.8 kilometers (2.4 miles)
below sea level.

Earth’s Continent

Continent: From the geologic perspective, a

continent is not defined by its size, location, who
discovered it, or whether it is surrounded by oceans.
Rather, it is defined by the rocks it's made of and how
it came to be that matter.
-composed of various rock types, but has a granitic to
granodioritic composition

Major Features of the Continents

The largest features of the continents can be

grouped into two distinct categories:

(1) Stable Interiors- extensive, flat stable areas

that have been eroded nearly to sea level and;

(2) Mountain Belts- uplifted regions of deformed

rocks

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Major Features of the Continents

STABLE INTERIORS (relatively stable or

undisturbed for the last 600 million years or even
longer)
a. Shields - expansive, flat regions composed
of deformed crystalline rock (metamorphic
rocks).
ex. Canadian Shield

mountain belts tend to be long, narrow features at the margins of

continents, and the flat, stable areas are typically located in the interior
of the continents.

Major Features of the Continents

b. Stable Platforms - Other flat areas of the

stable interior in which highly deformed rocks, like
those found in the shields, are covered by a relatively
thin veneer of sedimentary rocks.
ex. Arabian Platform

Major Features of the Continents

large crustal provinces that, in turn, accreted with

others to form even larger crustal blocks called
cratons (which we can think of as a continent’s
ancient nucleus ). The cratons are the foundations of
the continents, and along their margins more
continental crust was added by accretion as they
evolved to their present sizes and shapes

The portion of a modern craton that is exposed at the

surface is referred to as a “shield”.

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Major Features of the Continents

 In North America, for example, the Superior, Hearne,
Rae, and Slave cratons, all within the Canadian shield,
amalgamated along deformation belts to form a larger
cratonic unit during the Proterozoic Eon.

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