ENV 311

Geology and Geomorphology

Mohammad Moshiur Rahman

mohammad.rahman@northsout.edu
 Goals for the Course
•Learning about geology will help you understand the
environment in which you live.
•To enable you to make realistic choices concerning the major
issues:
•natural hazards,
•the resources of energy,
•water and minerals,
•sustainable development

Your generation will be required to make very

difficult decisions. 2#
 During Lecture
• Take Notes- I hope that the lecture will
be helpful because it will be my own words
not a repetition of the text
• Make sketches- Geology is a very visual
science and any record of what you see will
be very valuable, no matter how crude it
may be
• Please ask questions- I want to know
when the lectures are not being effective so
I can try to work with you, at that time 3#
 Scientific Methods
• Science is a way of finding truth in the world
• Geology is a science. It requires…
– Measurements
– Observations
– Interpretations

4#
 What (or who) is a Geologist?

• A Geologist is one who studies the history of the

earth and its life.
• Rocks serve as the archives.
• Geologists are interested in learning
– How the earth was formed
– What the earth is made of
– How the earth changes

5#
 What (or who) is a Geologist?
• Geology is a science that must be studied outdoors
!
• “...geologists are like dermatologists: they study, for
the most part, the outermost 2per cent of the
earth. They crawl around like fleas on the world's
tough hide, exploring every wrinkle and crease,
and try to figure out what makes the animal
move."
• John McPhee, 1998, Annals of the Former World,
New York: Farrar, Strauss and Giroux, p. 451.
(Winner of the Pulitzer Prize)
6#
Geological Field Work

7#
 Geology
• Geology is a science: Greek "geo" = Earth,
"logos" = discourse. So geology is the science
of the Earth.
• Geology is named for the Greek goddess
Gaea, the daughter of Chaos.

8#
 What does Geology Entail?

History

Biology
Astronomy

Geology

Geography
Zoology

Political Science

A Venn Diagram Depiction of the Overlap of the various sciences

that are a part of the study of Geology
 Geology: an Eclectic Science
• The study of geology increases scientific
literacy in…
– Physics
– Chemistry
– Mathematics
– Geography
– Biology

10#
Why Study Geology? : Geohazards

11
Why Study Geology?: Natural resources

12
Why Study Geology?:Environmental Protection

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 The Science of Geology

• Geologists study rocks at the tops of mountains,

beneath the sea, deep in the earth's crust and at the
center of the earth.
• Geologists investigate earthquakes and volcanoes.
• Geologists study ground water, rivers and glaciers.
• Geologists unravel past tectonic plate motions.
• Geologists find gold, diamonds, coal, and oil.
• Geologists study ancient life (fossils).

14#
 What is Geology?

•Geology is often defined as the study of the Earth.

•Geology is the branch of science that seeks to describe and understand the
composition, behavior and history of the Earth, including the evolution of life
on Earth and the continuing interaction of life and the solid Earth.

15
 What is Geology ?
•The science that deals with the study of the planet Earth:
•the materials of which it is made the processes that act
to change these materials from one form to another, and
the history recorded by these materials;
•the forces acting to deform the outer layers of the earth
and create ocean basins and continents;
•the processes that modify the Earth’s surface;
•the application of geologic knowledge to the search for
useful materials and the understanding of the
relationship of geologic processes to people.

16
 Branches of Geology
Geology is composed of a myriad assortment of sub-
disciplines covering the various spheres

17
 Branches of Geology
• Physical Geology — studying Earth materials and processes
• Historical Geology — interpreting Earth history
• Mineralogy — studies of minerals, their chemistry, atomic
structure and conditions of formation. Utilizes principles of
chemistry and physics
• Petrology — studies of rocks, their chemistry, atomic structure
and conditions of formation. Utilizes principles of chemistry
and physics
• Geochemistry — detailed studies of the chemical aspects of
Earth materials. Utilizes principles of chemistry and physics
• Volcanology — studies of volcanic processes and deposits.
Utilizes principles of physics

18
 Branches of Geology
•Stratigraphy — studies of the deposition and evolution of sequences of
rock layers. Utilizes principles of physics and biology.
•Sedimentology — studies of weathering, mass wasting, transport, and
deposition of sediments. Utilizes principles of chemistry, physics and
biology.
•Palaeontology - studies of ancient plant and animal life forms (fossils).
Utilizes principles of biology.
•Geomorphology — studies of landforms, their development and impact
on surficial geology. Utilizes principles of physics.
•Hydrogeology — studies of groundwater resources, subsurface flow
behaviour and potential migration of pollutants. Utilizes principles of
chemistry and physics.
•Structural Geology — studies of rock mechanical characteristics and
processes that deform rocks. Utilizes principles of physics.

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 Branches of Geology
•Tectonics — studies of the development of ocean basins and
continents. Utilizes principles of physics.
• Geochronology — studies and determination of the age of Earth
materials. Utilizes principles of physics and chemistry.
• Geophysics — studies of the physics of the Earth (magnetism,
gravity, and seismicity) and geologic processes. Utilizes principles
of physics.
• Environmental Geology - dealing with problems involving the
environment and groundwater.
• Petroleum geology - oil and gas exploration and exploitation.
• Economic geology - metal and non-metal mineral exploration and
exploitation.

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Origin of the Universe

Georges Lemaître
1894-1966
 Six Kinds of Quarks
• Up
• Down
• Charm
• Strange
• Top
• Bottom
 Six Kinds of Quarks
• Up
• Down
§ Protons
§ Neutrons
Known mass + dark matter < critical mass:
universe expands forever
Known Matter + Dark Matter>
Critical Mass
• Universe expands
• Gravity takes over
• Universe collapse on itself
• Big crunch
• Crashes back into primeval atom
or singularity
• Repeats expansion and crash
cycle
Known mass + dark matter = critical mass:
Flat Universe
 Star Classification

• Flyweight
• Lightweight
• Middleweight
• Heavyweight
 Flyweigt
< 0.5 solar mass (SM)

Lightweigt
0.5 SM to 4 SM

Middleweigt
4 SM to 8 SM

Heavyweigt
> 8 SM
Flyweigt stars have a minimum
age of 50 billion years

Our sun is given a life expectancy of

about 10 billions of years
main sequence
Carbon and oxygen are created
during the red giant phase
Sugar Water Carbon
C6H12O6 H2O dioxide
CO2

Photosynthesis

6CO2 + 12H2O + sunlight 6O2 +

C6H12O6 + 6H2O
 Importance of Supernova

All of the other natural elements are

created during a supernova.

92 natural elements
# 1 Hydrogen
# 92 Uranium
 neutron star

The most abundant single metal in the

universe is iron

The temperature in the cosmos is two

degrees above absolute.
cosmic dust
 Solar system formation

• New star forms at center of rotating

cloud of cosmic dust
• Star’s magnetic field sweeps through
sphere of cosmic dust
• Magnetic items begin to rotate with
the star
Solar wind
 Solar system formation

• Solar wind picks up the light, frozen

materials and moves them to the
outer edge of the disc, leaving
behind, closer to the star, the heavy,
dense materials
 Solar system formation

• Eddy currents form

• Cosmic dust collapses toward the
center
Planetesimal formation
Satellites such as Moon (31+ of these)
Temperature on Venus: 485O C
day and night

Greenhouse effect

Temperature on Earth:
about 15O C
Galileo Galilei
1564-1642
canali: channel
Percival Lowell
1855-1916
meteor, meteoroid, meteorite
 Types of meteoroids

• Stone meteorite
• Iron meteorite
• Stony-iron meteorite
 Types of meteoroids

• Stone meteorite
• Most abundant
 What are the "laws" of geology?

Several principles and laws are fundamental to

the geologic interpretation of sequence of
events. These principles are:
Uniformitarianism: the present is the key to the
past. It is assumed that earth processes that
are working now have probably worked in
pretty much the same way throughout
geologic time. Hopefully, there aren't too
many exceptions to this one.
• Original Horizontality: sedimentary layers are
initially deposited in horizontal layers. The
forces of reality beat up on the earth and
break it into small pieces, which then wash
down rivers to the ocean and settle out on the
seafloor. In horizontal layers.
Original Horizontality
• Superposition: the layer on the bottom is the
oldest, and they get younger as they pile up.
This makes a lot of sense if you think about it,
especially if the sediments are settling down
from above. But what if they aren't? Definitely
some exceptions to this one.
• Cross-cutting relationships: the thing being
cut is older than the thing doing the cutting.
This is the zucchini concept - you can't cut it if
it isn't there. Works for things like faults and
dikes and veins.
 Superposition

Time

Layer 3

Layer 2 Layer 2

Layer 1 Layer 1 Layer 1

Basement Rock Basement Rock Basement Rock

Lateral Continuity-Materials forming any stratum were
continuous over the surface of the Earth unless some
other solid bodies stood in the way.
Law of Inclusions- this law states that rock fragments
(in another rock) must be older than the rock
containing the fragments.
Law of Faunal Succession- This law was developed by
William "Strata" Smith who recognized that fossil
groups were succeeded by other fossil groups
through time. This allowed geologists to develop a
fossil stratigraphy and provided a means to correlate
rocks throughout the world.
Law of Inclusions
Law of Faunal Succession