Geologic Processes

Geological Processes
Tectonics
Rocks bend and break (folding and faulting).

Volcanism
Materials melt, explode and freeze.

Erosion and surface processes

Surfaces flatten out: mountains crumble and holes
are filled in.

Mass wasting (gravity action)

Wind action
Water action

Impact Cratering (external)

Bodies from space hit the ground, making a hole.

Tectonics -Folding
When rocks are squashed they will compress
and bend away from the direction of maximum
pressure

Wrinkle Ridges
on the Moon
Cooling rocks contract,
the shrinkage causes
folding and ridges form

Tectonics -Faulting
1. Extension Faults -crust moves apart, makes a larger area.

1. Compression Faults -crust moves together, makes smaller area.

1. Strike-slip Faults
-crust moves sideways,
no gain or loss of area

What is true of convection that

stresses a planet's crust?
A. Mountains may form where the crust is
pushed together.
B. Cracks and valleys may form where the
crust is pulled apart.
C. Convection has no effect on a planet's
crust.
D. A and B
2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

Volcanism
Materials melt, erupt and explode,
then freeze and coat the surface

Generic Volcano Structure

Volcanic Processes
Rocks melt and explode.
2 components: lava, gasses
Lavas - variable viscosity,depending on chemistry
Low viscosity
(runny lava)

range of viscosity
(gooey, sticky lava)

Low gas content

Result:
Low broad shapes
Volcanic
Shield
Floods
Volcanoes

High viscosity

High gas
Result:
rangeofvolcanoes

Cinder
cones

Tall cone shapes

Stratovolcanoes

Volcanic Floods -VERY low Viscosity

Hawaiian Effusive eruption

Shield Volcano

Olympus Mons
Martian Shield Volcano

Note the broad shield

shape and the central
cauldera

Volcanic Processes
Rocks melt and explode.
2 components: lava, gasses
Lavas - variable viscosity,depending on chemistry
Low viscosity
(runny lava)

range of viscosity
(gooey, sticky lava)

Low gas content

Result:
Low broad shapes
Volcanic
Shield
Floods
Volcanoes

High viscosity

High gas
Result:
rangeofvolcanoes

Cinder
cones

Tall cone shapes

Stratovolcanoes

Explosive
Stratovolcanos
Occur only on Earth
a product of plate tectonics

Soufrire Hills, Monserrat 1995

Southern half of island
evacuated and capital city lost

Alternative Materials
carbonatites,
East Africa, Earth

Water eruption
plume, Enceladus

sulfur
volcanoes,
Io

Erosion and Surface Processes

Gravity pulls everything into a smooth sphere. Thus,
surfaces flatten out: mountains crumble and holes are
filled in.
The processes that carry out erosion each show
characteristic patterns that we can see on Earth and
on different worlds:

Mass wasting (gravity action)- land slides

Wind action- sand dunes, wind streaks

Liquid action- river channels, ocean shores, glacial erosion

Sand Dunes in the Sahara

(imaged by the Space Shuttle)

Ice/tar dunes on Titan

Water Channels on Mars

Ethane Channels on Titan

Impact Cratering
Bodies from space hit the ground, making a hole.
(the only external process -it comes to the planet
from the outside)

The size of the hole depends on the energy of

the impact.
A small, slow-moving, ice-ball makes a small hole.
A massive, fast moving, rock makes a large hole.

Imbrium Basin
Moon

Crater Dating
Solar System debris falls onto planets at a regular
rate, making craters.
The number of holes on a surface is a measure of
how long it has been exposed to impacts.
Impact craters can be destroyed by the three
internal processes (tectonics, volcanism, erosion)
Surfaces with few craters have active processes
destroying the craters. (called YOUNG surfaces)
Surfaces with lots of craters have no active
processes & are undisturbed. (OLD surfaces)

Which Surface is Older?

Which World is More Active?

(Be able to explain your choice)
Earth

Moon

Planetary Atmospheres

Atmospheric Basics
Our goals for learning
What is an atmosphere?
How do you obtain an atmosphere?

What is an atmosphere?

An atmosphere is a layer of gas that surrounds a world

How do you obtain an atmosphere?

Gain volatiles by comet impacts
outgassing during differentiation
Ongoing outgassing by volcanoes

Keeping an Atmosphere
Atmosphere is kept by the worlds gravity and
temperatures

Low mass (small) worlds = low gravity = little atm.

High mass(large) worlds = high gravity = thick atm.
Low temperatures = slow gases = more atm.
High temperatures =excited gases = atm.loss

Gravity and pressure

Air pressure depends on how much weight of
gas is there ie. The atmospheric thickness.

What have we learned?

What is an atmosphere?
A layer of gas that surrounds a world

How do you obtain an atmosphere?

comet impacts plus outgassing by differentiation,
or volcanoes.
How much atmosphere is retained depends on
the worlds gravity and temperatures

Atmospheric Processes 1
Our goals for learning
What are the key processes?
What creates wind and weather?
How does the greenhouse effect warm a
planet?

Atmospheric Processes
Atmospheric circulation (convection)
Convection cells move gas from equator to pole and
back.

Coriolis Effect
Gas dragged sideways by the rotation rate of the
world.

Greenhouse Effect
Infrared energy is re-reflected back to the ground by
CO2

Air Movement
Gas molecules move from high density to lower density

Atmospheric Pressure

Gas pressure
depends on both
density and
temperature.

Adding air
molecules
increases the
pressure in a
balloon.

Heating the air

also increases
the pressure.
(molecules more
energetic)

Atmospheric Circulation
(convection)
Heated air rises at
equator
Maximum
Sun
warming

Cooler air
descends at poles

Coriolis Effect

Coriolis Effect breaks up

Global Circulation
On Earth the large
circulation cell breaks
up into 3 smaller ones,
moving diagonally
Other worlds have
more or fewer
circulation cells
depending on their
rotation rate

Coriolis
Effect

Winds blow N or S
Venus

Winds are diagonal

Earth
Mars

Winds blow W or E
Jupiter, Saturn
Neptune, Uranus(?)

Greenhouse Effect

If there was no greenhouse

effect, Earth...
A. would be warmer than it is today.
B. would have a thicker atmosphere.
C. would be colder than freezing.
D. would have no protection from ultraviolet
radiation.

2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

What have we learned?

What creates wind and weather?
Atmospheric heating and Coriolis effect.
Solar warming creates convection cells.
The coriolis effect drags winds sideways and breaks up
the cells
The faster a planet spins, the more E-W gas movement
there is

How does the greenhouse effect warm a planet?

Atmospheric molecules allow visible sunlight to warm a
planets surface but absorb infrared photons, trapping
the heat.