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    Stratification of Rocks and How It Is Used

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    Stratification of Rocks and How It Is Used

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    Stratification of Rocks and How It is Used

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    8 views16 pages

    Stratification of Rocks and How It Is Used

    Uploaded by

    hash

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PPTX, PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as pptx, pdf, or txt
    of 16

    I C AT I ON O F

    STRATIF S
    K S A N D H O W I T I
    R O C E
    O D E T E RM I N E T H
    US E D T
    T H E E ART H
    AGE OF
    HOW LAYERS OF ROCKS ARE
    FORMED
    •Most rocks are sedimentary rocks. They are formed
    from older rocks that have been broken down by
    water or wind.
    •The older rocks become sedimentary particles such
    as gravel, sand, and mud. These particles can also
    bury dead plants and animals.
    •As time goes by, the particles accumulate, and those
    that are at the bottom of the pile become rocks.
    Gravel becomes conglomerate; sand becomes
    sandstone; and mud becomes shale or mudstone.
    The animals or plants buried with them become
    fossils. These series of events form the different
    layers of rocks.
    METHODS TO DETERMINE THE AGE
    OF STRATIFIED ROCKS

    •RELATIVE DATING
    • ABSOLUTE DATING
    RELATIVE DATING

    Relative dating is a method of


    arranging geological events based on
    the rock sequence.
    RELATIVE DATING
    •Relative dating cannot provide actual numerical dates of rocks.
    It only tells that one rock is older than the other but does not tell
    how old each of the rock is.
    •In the early mid-1600’s, a Danish scientist, Nicholas Steno,
    studied the relative positions of sedimentary rocks. He discovered
    that they settle based on their relative weight or size in a fluid.
    The largest or heaviest particles settle first, and the smallest or
    the lightest particles settle last. Any slight changes in the particle
    size or composition may result in the formation of layers called
    beds.
    •Layering or bedding is a distinct quality of sedimentary rocks.
    The layered rocks are also called strata.
    PRINCIPLES OF
    RELATIVE
    DATING
    •The law of
    superposition states
    that, in any sequence of
    layered sedimentary
    rocks, the top layer is
    younger than the bottom
    layer. It is important in
    the interpretation of the
    Earth's history because
    it indicates the relative
    age of the rock layers
    and fossils.
    PRINCIPLES OF
    RELATIVE
    DATING
    •The law of original
    horizontality states that
    most sediments were
    originally laid down
    horizontally. However,
    many layered rocks are no
    longer horizontal. Based on
    the law of original
    horizontality, the rocks that
    were tilted may be due to
    later events such as tilting
    episodes of mountain
    building.
    PRINCIPLES OF
    RELATIVE
    DATING
    The law of lateral
    continuity states that
    rock layers extend
    laterally or out to the
    sides. These layers may
    cover broad surfaces.
    Erosion may have worn
    away some parts of the
    rock, but the layers on
    either side of the eroded
    areas still match.
    PRINCIPLES OF
    RELATIVE
    DATING

    The law of cross-


    cutting
    relationship states
    that fault lines and
    igneous rocks are
    younger features
    that cut through
    older features of
    rocks.
    PRINCIPLES OF
    RELATIVE DATING
    The key idea behind the Principle of
    Faunal Succession is that different
    species of organisms have evolved and
    become extinct at different times
    throughout Earth's history. As a result,
    the fossils found in sedimentary rocks
    can be used to establish a relative
    chronological order of the rock layers.
    Specifically:
    Younger rock layers typically contain
    fossils of more recent species that have
    evolved more recently.
    Older rock layers contain fossils of
    species that lived during earlier
    geological time periods.
    ABSOLUTE DATING
    ABSOLUTE DATING IS A METHOD THAT GIVES AN
    ACTUAL DATE OF THE ROCK OR PERIOD OF AN EVENT.
    •Absolute dating or radiometric dating is a
    method used to determine the age of rocks by
    measuring its radioactive decay. A radioactive
    isotope in the rock decays into a stable daughter
    isotope. The decay occurs at a predictable rate,
    so the age of the sample could be determined.
    •Radiocarbon dating for organic
    remains could date up to 60 000
    years.
    •K-Ar dating and U-Pb dating for
    volcanic rocks could date up to five
    billion years.

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