Introducing Geology and an Overview of Important Concepts

Physical Geology: Earth Revealed 6/e, Chapter 1

Geology in Todays World

Geology - The scientific study of the Earth
Physical Geology is the study of Earths materials, changes of the surface and interior of the Earth, and the forces that cause those changes The study of Geology includes these subsystems of Earth: Atmosphere Biosphere Hydrosphere Lithosphere Mantle Core

Specialties of Geology related to the subsystems of Earth include:

Geochronology Paleontology Geochemistry Mineralogy Planetary Geology Environmental Geology Hydrogeology Geophysics Petroleum Geology Structural Geology Stratigraphy Seismology Oceanography

Practical Aspects of Geology

Natural Resources
All manufactured objects depend on Earths resources Localized concentrations of useful geological resources are mined or extracted If it cant be grown, it must be mined Most resources are limited in quantity and non-renewable

Resource Extraction and Environmental Protection

Coal Mining
Careless mining can release acids into groundwater

Petroleum Resources
Removal, transportation and waste disposal can damage the environment

Dwindling resources can encourage disregard for ecological damage caused by extraction activities

Alaska pipeline

Geologic Hazards
Earthquakes
Shaking can damage buildings and break utility lines (electric, gas, water, sewer)

Volcanoes
Ash flows and mudflows can overwhelm populated areas

Landslides, floods, and wave erosion

Physical Geology Concepts

Earths Heat Engines
External (energy from the Sun)
Primary driver of atmospheric (weather) and hydrospheric circulation Controls weathering of rocks at Earths surface

Internal (heat moving from hot interior to cooler exterior)

Primary driver of most geospheric phenomena (volcanism, magmatism, tectonism)

Earths Interior
Compositional Layers
Crust (~3-70 km thick)
Very thin outer rocky shell of Earth
Continental crust - thicker and less dense Oceanic crust - thinner and more dense

Mantle (~2900 km thick)

Hot solid that flows slowly over time; Fe-, Mg-, Si-rich minerals

Core (~3400 km radius)

Outer core - metallic liquid; mostly iron Inner core - metallic solid; mostly iron

Earths Interior
Mechanical Layers
Lithosphere (~100 km thick)
Rigid/brittle outer shell of Earth Composed of both crust and uppermost mantle Makes up Earths tectonic plates

Asthenosphere
Plastic (capable of flow) zone on which the lithosphere floats

Theory of Plate Tectonics

Continental Drift Hypothesis
Originally proposed in early 20th century to explain the fit of continents, common rock types and fossils across ocean basins, etc. Insufficient evidence found for driving mechanism; hypothesis initially rejected

Plate Tectonics Theory

Originally proposed in the late 1960s Included new understanding of the seafloor and explanation of driving force Describes lithosphere as being broken into plates that are in motion Explains origin and locations of such things as volcanoes, fault zones and mountain belts

Distribution of Major Ring of Fire Volcanoes

Tectonic Plate Boundaries

Divergent boundaries
Plates move apart Magma rises, cools and forms new lithosphere Typically expressed as mid-oceanic ridges

Transform boundaries
Plates slide past one another Fault zones and earthquakes mark boundary San Andreas fault in California

Convergent boundaries
Plates move toward each other Mountain belts and volcanoes common Oceanic plates may sink into mantle along a subduction zone, typically marked by a deep ocean trench

THE BIG 3 GROUPS OF ROCKS

IGNEOUS

form from the cooling, crystallization & solidification of magma

form as a result of increases in P & T and the interaction of fluids resulting in mineralogical changes

METAMORPHIC

SEDIMENTARY

form from the breakdown of pre-existing rocks or as chemical precipitates from a fluid

ROCK CYCLE - Relates Igneous, Metamorphic, and

Sedimentary rocks to one another and to the processes which recycle earth materials.
Internal processes magmatism & metamorphism External processes weathering, transportation, deposition

THE ROCK CYCLE

Igneous rocks basalt, granite

Metamorphic rocks Sedimentary rocks limestone, conglomerate gneiss, quartzite

PLATE TECTONICS AND THE ROCK CYCLE

How are the Rock Cycle and Plate Tectonics related?
Plate Tectonic processes result in the formation of certain rock types in particular areas. These rocks can be recycled in both continental and oceanic areas

Geologic Time
The perspective of geologic time requires a shift in our usual way of thinking. Deep Time
Most geologic processes occur gradually over millions of years Changes typically imperceptible over the span of a human lifetime Current best estimate for age of Earth is ~4.55 billion years

The geologic time scale is the result of the collaboration of many earth scientists working together to construct a chronology of events on Earth.

Uniformitarianism
James Huttons Principle of Uniformitarianism holds that present day processes have operated throughout Earths history. Therefore, we can better understand past events by studying modern processes.
"The present is the key to the past"

Earths Interior and Geophysical Properties

Chapter 2

Earth's Internal Structure

Compositional Differences:
1.Crust oceanic (basalt) & continental (~granite) 2. Mantle (peridotite) 3. Core - inner & outer (Fe-Ni)

Differences in physical properties-behavior:

1. Lithosphere crust & upper mantle (brittle) 2. Asthenosphere upper mantle (plastic)

Introduction
Deep parts of Earth must be studied indirectly
Direct access is only available to crustal rocks and small upper mantle fragments brought up by volcanic eruptions or slapped onto continents from subducting oceanic plates Deepest hole ever drilled is 12 km deep and did not reach the mantle

Geophysics is the branch of geology that studies the interior of the Earth

Evidence from Seismic Waves

Seismic waves or vibrations from a large earthquake (or nuclear bomb blast) will pass through the entire Earth Seismic reflection is the return of some waves to the surface after bouncing off a rock boundary
Two materials of different densities separated by a sharp boundary will lead to reflection of seismic waves off the boundary

Seismic refraction is the bending of seismic waves as they pass from one material to another with different seismic wave velocities

Earths Internal Structure

Seismic waves have been used to determine the three main zones within the Earth: the crust, mantle and core The crust is the outer layer of rock that forms a thin skin on Earths surface The mantle is a thick shell of dense rock that separates the crust above from the core below The core is the metallic central zone of the Earth

The Crust
Seismic wave studies have indicated that the crust is thinner and denser beneath the oceans than on the continents Different seismic wave velocities in oceanic (7 km/sec) vs. continental (~6 km/sec) crustal rocks are indicative of different compositions Oceanic crust is mafic, composed primarily of basalt and gabbro Continental crust is felsic, with an average composition similar to granite

Table 2.1

The Mantle
Seismic wave studies have indicated that the mantle, like the crust is made of solid rock with only isolated pockets of magma Higher seismic wave velocity (8 km/sec) of mantle vs. crustal rocks indicative of denser, ultramafic composition
Crust and upper mantle together form the lithosphere, the brittle outer shell of the Earth that makes up the tectonic plates Lithosphere averages about 70 km thick beneath oceans and 125-250 km thick beneath continents Just beneath the lithosphere, seismic wave speeds abruptly decrease in a plastic low-velocity zone called the asthenosphere

The Core
Seismic wave studies have provided primary evidence for existence and nature of Earths core Specific areas on the opposite side of the Earth from large earthquakes do not receive seismic waves, resulting in seismic shadow zones

 P-wave shadow zone (103-142 from epicenter) explained by refraction of waves encountering core-mantle boundary S-wave shadow zone (103 from epicenter) suggests outer core is a liquid Careful observations of P-wave refraction patterns indicate inner core is solid

The Core

The Core
Core composition is inferred from the calculated density, physical and electromagnetic properties, and composition of meteorites
Iron metal (liquid in outer core and solid in inner core) best fits observed properties Iron is the only metal common in meteorites

Core-mantle boundary (D layer) is marked by great changes in seismic velocity, density and temperature
Hot core may melt lowermost mantle or react chemically to form iron silicates in this seismic ultralow-velocity zone (ULVZ)

 Isostasy is a balance (equilibrium) of adjacent blocks of brittle crust floating on the upper mantle
Thick blocks of lower density crust have deep roots and float higher (e.g., mountains)

Isostasy

Isostatic adjustment involves the rising or sinking of crustal blocks until they are in isostatic balance
Crust will rise when large mass is removed from the surface, as in erosion of mountains or removal of ice sheets at the end of ice ages Rise of crust after ice sheet removal is known as crustal rebound, and is still occurring in northern Canada and northern Europe

Gravity Measurements
Gravitational force between two objects varies with the masses of the objects and the distance between them Gravity meters are extremely sensitive instruments that detect changes in gravity at the Earths surface related to total mass beneath any given point
Gravity is slightly higher (positive gravity anomaly) over dense materials (metallic ore bodies, mafic rocks) and slightly lower (negative gravity anomaly) over less dense materials (caves, water, magma, sediments, felsic rocks)

Earths Magnetic Field

A region of magnetic force - a magnetic field surrounds Earth
Field has north and south magnetic poles Earths magnetic field is what a compass detects Recorded by magnetic minerals (e.g., magnetite) in igneous rocks as they cool below their Curie point

Magnetic reversals are times when the poles of Earths magnetic field switch
Switches in the magnetism recorded in magnetic minerals Have occurred many times in the past; timing appears chaotic After the next reversal, a compass needle will point towards the south magnetic pole

Paleomagnetism, the study of ancient magnetic fields in rocks, allows reconstruction of plate motions over time

Magnetic Anomalies
Local increases or decreases in the Earths magnetic field strength are known as magnetic anomalies
Positive and negative magnetic anomalies represent larger and smaller than average local magnetic field strengths, respectively

Magnetometers are used to measure local magnetic field strength

Used as metal detectors in airports Can detect metallic ore deposits, igneous rocks (positive anomalies), and thick layers of nonmagnetic sediments (negative anomaly) beneath
Earths surface

Heat Within the Earth

The temperature increase with depth into the Earth is called the geothermal gradient Tapers off sharply beneath lithosphere Due to steady pressure increase with depth, increased temperatures produce little melt (mostly within Asthenosphere) other than in the outer core Heat flow is the gradual loss of heat through Earths surface Heat sources include original heat (from accretion and compression as Earth formed) and radioactive decay within the Earth Locally higher where magma is near surface Same magnitude, but with different sources, in the oceanic (from mantle) and continental crust (radioactive decay within the crust)

End of Chapter 2

The Sea Floor

Physical Geology: Earth Revealed Chapter 3

The Water Planet

Over 70% of the surface of the Earth is covered by the oceans Until the second half of the 20th century, very little was known about the floor of the open ocean Oceans originated primarily from volcanic degassing of water vapor from the interior of the primordial Earth
Small additional amount of water may have come from comets impacting Earth

Studying the Sea Floor

Although sea floor rocks are widespread, they are difficult to study Sea floor rocks and sediments can be sampled using rock dredges, seafloor drilling, or submersibles Indirect observations of the sea floor are also made with sonar and similar systems

 Passive continental margins have a continental shelf, continental slope, and continental rise descending to the extremely flat deep ocean floor of the abyssal plain Active continental margins, which are associated with numerous earthquakes and active volcanoes, have continental shelves and slopes, but the slope extends down into a deep oceanic trench A mid-oceanic ridge system encircles the globe, typically running down the center of an ocean, and numerous conical seamounts rise from the ocean floor

Features of the Sea Floor

Continental Shelves and Slopes

Continental shelves are gently seawardsloping (0.1) shallow submarine platforms at the edges of continents
Range in width from a few km to > 500 km Typically covered with young sediments
25x vertical exaggeration

Continental slopes are relatively steep slopes (typically 4-5, but locally may be much steeper) that extend down from the edge of the continental shelf to the deep sea floor Submarine canyons are V-shaped valleys that run across continental shelves and down continental slopes
Deliver continental sediments to abyssal fans on deep sea floor, sometimes by turbidity currents

No vertical exaggeration

Continental Rises and Abyssal Plains

Continental rises are gently seawardsloping (0.5) wedges of sediments extending from the base of the continental slope to the deep sea floor
Sediment deposited by turbidity and contour currents Typically end in abyssal plains at depth of about 5 km Lie upon oceanic crust

Abyssal plains are extremely flat layers of sediment burying more rugged oceanic crust
Flattest features on Earth, some with slopes <0.01 Form only where sufficient turbidity currents exist to completely bury rugged topography

Oceanic Trenches
An oceanic trench is a narrow, deep trough parallel to the edge of a continent or an island arc
Deepest parts of the oceans Benioff zone earthquake foci begin at trenches and dip landward under continents or island arcs Volcanoes found above upper part of Benioff zone are arranged in long belts parallel to trenches Marked by very low heat flow and large negative gravity anomalies

Mid-Oceanic Ridges
The mid-oceanic ridge is a giant undersea mountain range that extends around the world like the seams on a baseball
Made mostly of young basalt flows More than 80,000 km long, 1,500-2,500 km wide, and rises 2-3 km above ocean floor A rift valley, 1-2 km deep, runs down the crest of the ridge Shallow focus earthquakes common Extremely high heat flow Often marked by line of hot springs, supporting unique biological communities Offset along fracture zones

Seamounts, Guyots, and Reefs

Conical undersea mountains that rise 1000 m above the seafloor are called seamounts
Isolated basaltic volcanoes along midoceanic ridges and out in abyssal plains Chains of seamounts form aseismic ridges

Guyots are flat-topped seamounts, apparently cut by wave action, and commonly capped with coral reefs
Reefs are wave-resistant ridges of coral and other calcareous organisms that may encircle islands (fringing reefs), parallel coastlines (barrier reefs), or rim circular lagoons (atolls)

Reefs are wave-resistant ridges of coral and other calcareous organisms that may encircle islands

fringing reef

barrier reef

atoll

Sea Floor Sediments

Sea floor sediments may be either terrigenous or pelagic Terrigenous sediments are land-derived sediments that have found their way to the sea floor
Comprise continental rise and abyssal plains

Pelagic sediments settle slowly through the ocean water, and are derived from fine-grained clay (delivered primarily by wind) and skeletons of microscopic organisms
Nearly absent on mid-oceanic ridge crests

Composition of the Ocean Crust

Seismic surveys suggest oceanic crust is ~7 km thick and comprised of three layers
First layer is marine sediment of various composition and thickness Second layer is pillow basalt overlying basaltic dikes (extensively sampled) Third layer is thought to be composed of sill-like gabbro intrusions (not directly sampled)

Ophiolites are rock sequences in mountain chains on land that are thought to represent slivers of ocean crust and uppermost mantle
Composed of layers 1-3 overlying ultramafic rock

Oceanic crust

Ophiolite sequence

Age of the Sea Floor and the Theory of Plate Tectonics

All rocks and sediments of the deep sea floor are less than 200 million years old
In contrast, continents preserve rocks up to 4 billion years in age

Explanation of the young age and formation mechanisms of oceanic crust is a crucial part of the Theory of Plate Tectonics

End of Chapter 3

Plate Tectonics
Physical Geology: Earth Revealed 6/e, Chapter 4

Plate Tectonics
Basic idea of plate tectonics theory is that Earths surface is divided into a few large, plates that move slowly and change in size Intense geologic activity is concentrated at plate boundaries, where plates move away, toward or past each other Theory born in late 1960s by combining hypotheses of continental drift and seafloor spreading

Early Case for Continental Drift

Puzzle-piece fit of coastlines (Africa and South America) has long been noticed In the early 1900s, Alfred Wegener noted that South America, Africa, India, Antarctica, and Australia (Gondwanaland) have almost identical late Paleozoic rocks and fossils
Glossopteris (plant), Lystrosaurus and Cynognathus (animals) fossils found on all five continents Mesosaurus (reptile) fossils found in Brazil and South Africa only

Early Case for Continental Drift

Wegener reassembled continents into the supercontinent Pangea Pangea initially separated into Laurasia and Gondwanaland
Laurasia - northern supercontinent containing North America and Asia, minus India Gondwanaland - southern supercontinent containing South America, Africa, India, Antarctica, and Australia

Late Paleozoic glaciation patterns on southern continents best explained by their reconstruction into Gondwanaland

Early Case for Continental Drift

Coal beds of North America and Europe support reconstruction into Laurasia Reconstructed paleoclimate belts indicated polar wandering, potential evidence for continental drift over time Continental drift hypothesis initially rejected because Wegener could not come up with a viable driving force or mechanism for drift Could not plow continents through the sea floor rocks, as he proposed

Paleomagnetism and Continental Drift Revived

Studies of rock magnetism allowed determination of magnetic pole locations (close to geographic poles) through time Paleomagnetism uses mineral magnetic alignment direction and dip angle to determine the direction and distance to the magnetic pole
Steeper dip angles (inclination) indicate rocks formed closer to the north magnetic pole (90 at poles, 0 at equator) - indicates latitude

Paleomagnetism and Continental Drift Revived

Apparent polar wandering curves for different continents suggest different north pole positions for the same time relative to one another Reconstruction of super- continents using paleomagnetic information fits Africa and South America like puzzle pieces
Improved fit results in rock units (and glacial ice flow directions) precisely matching up across continent margins

Seafloor Spreading
In 1962, Harry Hess proposed seafloor spreading
Seafloor moves away from the mid-oceanic ridge (MOR) due to mantle convection Convection is circulation driven by rising hot material and/or sinking cooler material Evidence: thickness of sediments, seamounts, guyots, trenches

Hot mantle rock rises under MOR

Ridge elevation, high heat flow, and abundant basaltic volcanism are evidence for this

Seafloor Spreading
Seafloor rocks, and mantle rocks beneath them (lithosphere), cool and become more dense with distance from MOR When sufficiently cool and dense, these rocks sink back into the mantle at subduction zones Junction between subducting cold oceanic rocks and overlying less dense plate forms oceanic trenches (very low heat flow), earthquakes (Benioff zones) and generation of magmas associated with subduction zones Explains overall young age of sea floor ( <200 million years)

Plates and Plate Motion

Tectonic plates are composed of the relatively rigid lithosphere Lithospheric thickness and age of seafloor increase with distance from mid-oceanic ridge Plates float upon ductile or plastic asthenosphere Plates interact at their boundaries Classified by relative plate motion Plates move apart at divergent boundaries, together at convergent boundaries, and slide past one another at transform boundaries

 Marine magnetic anomalies - Evidence bands of stronger and weaker than average magnetic field strength
Parallel MOR Field strength related to basalts magnetized with same and opposite polarities of current (normal polarity) global magnetic field Symmetric bar-code anomaly pattern reflects plate motion away from ridge coupled with magnetic field reversals Seafloor age increases with distance from MOR Rate of plate motion - distance from ridge divided by age

of Plate Motion

Evidence of Plate Motion

Mid-oceanic ridges are offset along fracture zones
The segment of the fracture zone between the offset ridge crests is a seismically active transform fault Relative motion along fault is result of seafloor spreading from adjacent ridges

Plate motion can be directly measured using satellites, radar, lasers and global positioning systems
Measurements accurate to within 1 cm Motion rates closely match those predicted using seafloor magnetic anomalies

Divergent Plate Boundaries

At divergent plate boundaries, plates move away from each other
Can occur in the middle of the ocean or within a continent Divergent motion eventually creates a new ocean basin

Marked by rifting, basaltic volcanism, and uplift

During rifting, crust is stretched and thinned Graben valleys mark rift zones Volcanism common as magma rises through thinner crust along normal faults Uplift is due to thermal expansion of hot rock

Transform Plate Boundaries

At transform plate boundaries, plates slide horizontally past one another Marked by transform faults Transform offsets of the MOR allow a series of straight-line segments to approximate the curved boundaries required by a spheroidal Earth

Convergent Plate Boundaries

At convergent plate boundaries, plates move toward one another Nature of boundary depends on plates involved (oceanic vs. continental) Ocean-ocean plate convergence Marked by ocean trench, Benioff zone, and volcanic island arc Ocean-continent plate convergence Marked by ocean trench, Benioff zone, volcanic arc, and mountain belt Continent-Continent plate convergence Marked by mountain belts and thrust faults

Movement of Plate Boundaries

Plate boundaries move over time MOR crests can migrate toward or away from subduction zones or abruptly jump to new positions Convergent boundaries can migrate if subduction angle steepens or overlying plate has a trenchward motion Back-arc spreading may occur, but is poorly understood Transform boundaries can shift as slivers of plate shear off San Andreas fault shifted eastward about 5 m.y. ago and may do so again

What Causes Plate Motions?

Causes of plate motion not yet fully understood, but any proposed mechanism must explain why: MOR are hot and elevated, while trenches are cold and deep Ridge crests have tensional cracks The leading edges of some plates are subducting sea floor, while others are continents (which cannot subduct) Mantle convection may be the cause or an effect of circulation set up by ridge-push and/or slab-pull

Mantle Plumes and Hot Spots

Mantle plumes - narrow columns of hot mantle rock rise through the mantle
Thought to have large spherical or mushroomshaped heads above a narrow rising tail Stationary with respect to moving plates (at base of lithosphere)

Mantle Plumes and Hot Spots

Large mantle plumes may dome up and break or rift apart the overlying plate
3 rifts form at 120 angles, 2 continue to rift and 1 fails (the failed rift arm is called an aulacogen; ex. East African Rift Zone) Characterized by flood basalt eruptions If rifting continues, seas may form (ex: Red Sea and Gulf of Aden) Rifting apart of continental land masses can occur New divergent boundaries may form if several hot spots link up and break apart continents

Mantle Plumes and Hot Spots

Mantle plumes may form hot spots of active volcanism at Earths surface Approximately 40 known hotspots When hot spots occur in the interior of a plate, a volcanic chain will be produced Orientation of the volcanic chain shows direction of plate motion over time Age of volcanic rocks can help determine rate of plate movement Example: Hawaiian islands

Plate Tectonics and Ore Deposits

Metallic ore deposits are often located near plate boundaries Commonly associated with igneous activity Divergent plate boundaries often marked by lines of hot springs on sea floor Mineral-rich hot springs (black smokers) deposit metal ores on sea floor after hitting cold water Subducting plates at convergent boundaries may produce metal-rich magmatic fluids Different metallic ores originate at different depths along the subducting plate

End of Chapter 4

Mountain Belts and the Continental Crust

Chapter 5

Mountain Belts and Earths Subsystems

Mountain belts - chains of mountain ranges - 1000s of km long Commonly located at or near the edges of continental landmasses Composed of multiple mountain ranges Mountain belts are part of the geosphere Form and grow, by tectonic and volcanic processes, over tens of millions of years As mountains grow higher, erosion by running water and ice (hydrosphere) occur at higher rates Air (atmosphere) rising over mountain ranges directly results in precipitation and erosion

Characteristics of Mountain Belts

Mountain belts are very long compared to their width The North American Cordillera runs from southwestern Alaska down to Panama Older mountain ranges (Appalachians) tend to be lower than younger ones (Himalayas) due to erosion over time Young mountain belts are tens of millions of years old, whereas older ones may be hundreds of millions of years old Even older mountain belts (billions of years) have eroded nearly flat and form the ancient stable cores (cratons) of the continents Shields - areas of cratons laid bare by erosion

Satellite Image of Western Australia Craton

3.5 3 billion year old metamorphic rock (gray) surrounds oval shaped white domes of granite and gneiss (2.8 -3.3 billion years old). Younger volcanic and sedimentary rocks (tan and reddish) unconformably overlie basement craton rocks

Rock Patterns in Mountain Belts

Mountain belts typically contain thick sequences of folded and faulted sedimentary rocks, often of marine origin. May also contain great thicknesses of volcanic rock Fold and thrust belts are common, indicating large amounts of crustal shortening and thickening has taken place under compressional forces Mountain belts are common at convergent boundaries May contain large amounts of metamorphic rock Erosion-resistant batholiths may be left behind as mountain ranges after long periods of erosion Intensity of deformation, folding, faulting, metamorphism & plutonism increases as move across the mt belt to the craton

Rock Patterns in Mountain Belts

Erosion-resistant batholiths may be left behind as mountain ranges after long periods of erosion Localized tension in uplifting mountain belts can result in normal faulting Horsts and grabens can produce mountains and valleys, respectively

Earthquakes common along faults in mountain ranges

Evolution of Mountain Belts

Rocks (sedimentary and volcanic) that will later be uplifted into mountains are deposited during accumulation stage

Typically occurs in marine environment along continental margins, and convergent plate boundaries
Mountains are uplifted at convergent boundaries during the orogenic stage May be the result of ocean-continent, arc-continent, or continent-continent convergence

Evolution of Mountain Belts

After convergence stops, a long period of erosion, uplift and block-faulting occurs

As erosion removes overlying rock, the crustal root of a mountain range rises by isostatic adjustment
Tension in uplifting and spreading crust results in normal faulting and production of fault-block mountain ranges (Teton Mts, WY)

Growth of Continents
Continents grow larger as mountain belts evolve along their margins Accumulation and igneous activity (volcanic arcs added to continents during convergence) add new continental crust beyond old coastlines New accreted terranes can be added with each episode of convergence
Western North America (especially Alaska) comprised of many terranes

Numerous terranes, of gradually decreasing age, surround older cratons that form the cores of the continents

Evolution of Mountain Belts

Basin-and-Range province of western North America may be the result of delamination

Overthickened mantle lithosphere beneath old orogenic mountain belt may break off and sink (founder) into asthenosphere Resulting inflow of hot asthenosphere can stretch and thin overlying crust, producing normal faults under tension

End of Chapter 5

Geologic Structures
Physical Geology: Earth Revealed Chapter 6

Geologic Structures
Geologic structures are dynamically-produced patterns or arrangements of rock or sediment that result from forces within the Earth Rocks change shape and orientation (strain) in response to applied stress Structural geology is the study of the shapes, arrangement, and interrelationships of bedrock units and the forces that cause them

Stress and Strain

Stress is a force per unit area
The three basic types of stress are compressive, tensional and shear

Strain is a change in size or shape in response to stress

Structures produced are examples of strain that are indicative of the type of stress and its rate of application, as well the physical properties of the rock or sediment being stressed

Rock Responses to Stress and Strain

Rocks behave as elastic, ductile or brittle materials depending on: amount and rate of stress application type of rock temperature and pressure If deformed materials return to original shape after stress removal, they are behaving elastically However, once the stress exceeds the elastic limit of a rock, it deforms permanently ductile deformation involves bending plastically brittle deformation involves fracturing

Structures and Geologic Maps

Rock structures are determined on the ground by geologists observing rock outcrops
Outcrops are places where bedrock is exposed at the surface

Geologic maps use standardized symbols and patterns to represent rock types and geologic structures, such as tilted beds, joints, faults and folds

Orientation of Geologic Structures

Geologic structures are most obvious in sedimentary rocks when stresses have altered their originally horizontal orientation Tilted beds, joints, and faults are planar features whose orientation is described by their strike and dip
Strike is the compass direction of a line formed by the intersection of an inclined plane with a horizontal plane Dip is the direction and angle downward from a horizontal plane to an inclined plane

Types of Geologic Structures

Folds are bends in layered rock Represent rock strained in a ductile manner, under compression stress The axial plane divides a fold into its two limbs The surface trace of an axial plane is called the hinge line (or axis) of the fold Anticlines are upward-arching folds oldest rocks in the center of fold Synclines are downward-arching folds youngest rocks in the center of fold

Types of Folds
Plunging folds are folds in which the hinge line is not horizontal Where surfaces have been leveled by erosion, plunging folds form V- or horseshoe-shaped patterns of exposed rock layers (beds) Open folds have limbs that dip gently, whereas isoclinal folds have parallel limbs Overturned folds have limbs that dip in the same directions, and recumbent folds are overturned to the point of being horizontal

Structural Domes and Basins

Domes are structures in which the beds dip away from a central point. Oldest beds are in the center of the dome. Sometimes called doubly plunging anticlines Basins are structures in which the beds dip toward a central point. Youngest beds are in the center of a basin. Sometimes called doubly plunging synclines

Structural Dome

Dome near Casper, WY

Structural Basin

Fractures in Rock
Joints are fractures or cracks in bedrock along which essentially no movement has occurred
Multiple parallel joints are called joint sets

Faults are fractures in bedrock along which movement has occurred

Considered active if movement has occurred along them within the last 11,000 years (since the last ice age) Categorized by type of movement as dip-slip, strike-slip, or oblique-slip

Types of Faults
Most common types are normal and reverse
In normal faults, the hanging-wall block has moved down relative to the footwall block In reverse faults, the hanging-wall block has moved up relative to the footwall block

Dip-slip faults have movement parallel to the dip of the fault plane

Fault blocks, bounded by normal faults, that drop down or are uplifted are known as grabens and horsts, respectively
Grabens associated with divergent plate boundaries are called rifts

Types of Faults
Thrust faults are reverse faults with dip angles less than 30 from horizontal

Types of Faults
Strike-slip faults movement is horizontal and parallel to the strike of the fault plane
A viewer looking across the fault to the other side of a right-lateral strike-slip fault would observe it to be offset to their right A viewer looking across a left-lateral strike-slip fault would observe it to be offset to their left

Right-lateral San Andreas Fault

Oblique-slip faults - movement is parallel to both the strike and dip of the fault plane

End of Chapter 6

Earthquakes
Physical Geology: Earth Revealed, 6/e Chapter 7

Earthquakes
An earthquake is a trembling or shaking of the ground caused by the sudden release of elastic energy stored in the rocks beneath Earths surface
Tectonic forces within the Earth produce stresses on rocks that eventually exceed their elastic limits, resulting in brittle failure Energy is released during earthquakes in the form of seismic waves Released from a position along a break between two rock masses (fault) Elastic rebound theory explains the occurrence of earthquakes as a sudden release of strain progressively stored in rocks that bend until they finally break and move along a fault releasing the stored elastic energy

Seismic Waves
The point within the Earth where seismic waves originate is called the focus (or hypocenter) of the earthquake, and is the point of initial breakage and movement along a fault The point on the Earths surface directly above the focus is known as the epicenter Two types of waves are produced during earthquakes: body waves and surface waves
Body waves are seismic waves that travel outward from the focus in all directions through Earths interior Surface waves are seismic waves that travel along Earths surface away from the epicenter

Body Waves
P waves are compressional (or longitudinal) body waves in which rock vibrates back and forth parallel to the direction of wave propagation
Fast (4 to 7 kilometers per second) wave that is the first or primary wave to arrive at a recording station following an earthquake Can pass through solids and fluids (liquids or gases)

S waves are shearing (or transverse) body waves in which rock vibrates back and forth perpendicular to the direction of wave propagation
Slower (2 to 5 kilometers per second) wave that is the secondary wave to arrive at a recording station following an earthquake Can pass only through solids

Surface Waves
Slowest type of seismic waves set off by earthquakes Love waves involve only side-toside motion of the ground surface
Cant travel through fluids

Rayleigh waves behave like ocean waves, and cause the ground to move in an elliptical path opposite the direction of wave motion
Extremely destructive to buildings

Measuring Earthquakes
Seismometers are used to measure seismic waves Seismographs are recording devices used to produce a permanent record of the motion detected by seismometers Seismograms are the permanent paper (or digital) records of the earthquake vibrations Used to measure the strength of earthquakes

Locating Earthquakes
P- and S-waves start out from the focus of an earthquake at same time but separate because they move with different velocities Faster P-waves get farther ahead of slower S-waves with distance and time from the earthquake Travel-time curves can be used to determine the distance to the focus based on the time gap between first P- and S-wave arrivals

Locating Earthquakes
Travel-time curve can be used to determine the distance to the focus based on the time gap between first P- and Swave arrivals Plotting distances from 3 stations on a map, as circles with radii equaling the distance from the quake, will show the location of the epicenter

Measuring the Size of Earthquakes

Size of earthquakes is measured in two ways, intensity and magnitude Intensity is a measure of the damage that an earthquake causes to people and buildings Modified Mercalli scale Magnitude is a measure of the amount of energy released by an earthquake Richter scale (log scale) Moment magnitude is a more objective way of measuring energy released by a major earthquake Uses rock strength, surface area of fault rupture, and amount of movement Smaller quakes more common than larger ones

Location and Size of Quakes in the United States

Earthquakes occur throughout the United States, but are much more common in the western states and Alaska Largest seismic risks or hazards exist near the plate boundary along the U.S. Pacific coast (e.g., San Andreas fault), and around New Madrid, Missouri Earthquake hazards are based on the assumption that large future earthquakes will occur in the places where they have occurred in the past

Earthquake locations since 1977

Effects of Earthquakes
Earthquakes produce several types of effects, all of which can cause loss of property and human life
Ground motion is the familiar trembling and shaking of the land during an earthquake
Can topple buildings and bridges

Fire is a problem just after earthquakes because of broken gas and water mains and fallen electrical wires Landslides can be triggered by ground shaking, particularly in larger quakes Liquefaction occurs when water-saturated soil or sediment sloshes like a liquid during a quake Permanent displacement of the land surface can also occur, leaving fractures and scarps

Tsunami
Very large sea waves, caused by sudden upward or downward movement of the sea floor during submarine earthquakes, are known as Tsunami (seismic sea waves)
Tsunami are generally produced by magnitude 8+ earthquakes (great earthquakes) May also be generated by large undersea landslides or volcanic explosions Travel across open ocean at speeds of >700 km/hr Reach great heights in coastal areas with gently sloping seafloor and funnel-shaped bays

World Earthquake Distribution

Most earthquakes are concentrated in narrow geographic belts which mark the tectonic plate boundaries Most important concentrations are in the circum-Pacific and MediterraneanHimalayan belts Shallow-focus earthquakes are also common along the crests of midoceanic ridges Nearly all intermediate- and deep-focus earthquakes occur in Benioff zones (zones of inclined seismic activity marking location of descending oceanic plate at subduction zones)

Earthquakes and Plate Tectonics

Earthquakes are caused by plate inter-actions along tectonic plate boundaries Plate boundaries are identified and defined by earthquakes Earthquakes occur at each of the three types of plate boundaries: divergent, transform, and convergent At divergent boundaries, tensional forces produce shallow-focus quakes on normal faults At transform boundaries, shear forces produce shallow-focus quakes along strike-slip faults At convergent boundaries, compressional forces produce shallow- to deep-focus quakes along reverse and thrust faults

Earthquake Prediction and Seismic Risk

Accurate and consistent short-term earthquake prediction is not yet possible, three methods assist in determining the probability that an earthquake will occur:
Measurement of changes in rock properties, such as magnetism, electrical resistivity, seismic velocity, and porosity, which may serve as precursors to earthquakes Studies of the slip rate along fault zones Paleoseismology studies that determine where and when earthquakes have occurred and their size
Average intervals between large earthquakes and the time since the last one occurred can also be used to assess the risk (over a given period of time) that a large quake will occur

End of Chapter 7