112- EARTH HISTORY LECTURE NOTES: GE i Geology is the science of the earth and all ert atmosphere and biosphere, All these interact ae has its roots in the natural sciences ~ physics, chemistry in it idy. The earth scie ad ets al integrates them in its study. The ee al nhc hut and why everything is the way they are or why some change: ks ear q a studying the earth, three x r. In studying rtly a historian, a physicist, a chemist and a geographer is partly prian, 7 osphere, ints; The lithosphere, hydr mphere th. Geology as an applied se on ‘and mathematics and therefore, ic vel how the ist ies to unrave pa his, he stromely int ‘approaches are distinguished helio it i nal + Direct study of rocks (The rocks contain a lot of information in the carth ‘ + Study of results of physical measurements on and in cat Fe ee + Study of natural processes occuring at or near the surface erosion) or deep within the earth (earthquakes, volcanism). Geology and its sub-diseiplines Stratigraphy, Palaeontology, Palynology 5 i ysies, Economic Structural geology, Enginecring geology, Hydrogeology, Geotechnics, Geophysi geology Petrology, Mineralogy, Sedimentology Geochemistry, Geochronology ‘THE EARTH AND THE UNIVERSE The solar system is centered round the sun and the nine orbits. The sun is one of the billion stars that together make ) There are billions of galaxies in the universe, The four Planets nearest the sun are: Mercury, Venus, Earth, and Mars. They are the terestrial planets while others: Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neplune are the major planets, Pluto is considered as one of the dwarf planets. The solar system ismade up of 146 moons, bunch of comets, asteroids, Space rocks, ice and several dwarf planets, "he orbit of the earth is elliptical with a current eccentricity of 0.0167, but varying throu Period of 96,000 years between 0.0 and 0.53, The average distance between the Sun a is slighily less than 1.5 107 km; one astronomie Unit, The planets and the earth spin around their Nes, The earth's axis is oriented at an angle of 23° 27" normal to the ecliptica. This angle varies "vera period of 41,000 years between 22" and 24°24", which irregularity is called obliquity, The Unive © his is all of space and ime and their content, includin Planets, stars, galaxies and a s ind their content, othe " . 2 id all otherdark matter and-dark energy: It contains ¢ between the stars and galaxies is of Everything exists within it, ‘The universe is thought to consist of normal matter, billions of galaxies. each containing billions of stars. The spac largely empty. The universe is the largest object we are aware from the air we breathe in to the most distant star. Galaxies : dd their solar systems. A galaxy is alaxy. It has a super massive black 1 bound together by mutual This is a huge collection of gas, dust and billions of stars an held together by gravity. Our galaxy is called the Milky way gi hole in the middle. It is made up of billions of stars, gas and dust, al gravitational attraction as well as a lot of dark matter. The diameter of our galaxy is about 100,000 Tight years (that is visible material at least) the dark matter hole goes beyond that. There are three types of galaxies: elliptical, spiral and irregular. The most familiar type is the spiral galaxy. They have a distinctive shape with.a spiral arms in a relatively flat disk and a ceniral bulge. 100 to-200 billions of galaxies exist in the observable universe. ORIGIN OF THE EARTH Several theories are proposed for the origin of the earth Creation science The creation science has no scientific merit but is a religious proposition, where a supreme being called God the Creator called into existence the entire universe with the word of mouth in the present form we find it. The creator is seen as the supreme and sovereign controller of the universe who has put in place forces, principles and laws that govern the entire universe. The facts about creation science cannot be proven scientifically, therefore the scientific world does not approve of creation science. Big Bang Theory Itis generally accepted that the solar system and the universe have a common origin. In the late 20s, the American astronomer Edwin Hubble observed that distant stars and galaxies were _ feceding from the earth in every direction and the velocities of the recession increased in Proportion with the distance. This he interpreted to mean that the universe is expanding. hypothesis of an expanding universe leads to certain deductions which are:17% of all matter is concentrated in the Sun. More than 70% of this mass In our solar system, 99.8 nN 7 hls ic Hh, Followed by helium (289%) which is thought to be formed within the interior of the Sun by nuclear fusion. After the formation of the planets, the primitive earth ‘Bingenvent is ail temperature changes which led to the formation of the core with a composition af i = ca and the molten mantle of peridotitic composition. The rigid outer crust developed ab i ‘s plastic mantle as a thin and unstable part, and in about 4 billion years the first granitic crus appeared after continuous re -absorption of the lithosphere into the mantle. Steady State origin ‘This is an early rival to the Big Bang theory. It posits a continuous creation of matter throughout the universe to explain its apparent expansion. This type of universe will be infinite with no beginning and no end. Cyclic model Paul Steinhardt and Neil Tarok 1999 postulated that the universe generates and regenerates itself in an endless cycle of creation. They proposed a multiverse — that is multitude of universe, each with its own laws of physics and life, Origin and chemical evolution of the atmosphere and hydrosphere. Although, the terrestrial planets posses atmosphere with extremely different properties, they may have initially possessed primordial atmosphere of solar composition whose dominant gasses hydrogen and helium were lost to space and replaced by outgassed water, carbon dioxide, nitrogen and small amount of other gasses during the final stage of accretion 4.5 billion years ago. This primary atmosphere strongly enriched by noble gasses has since been replaced by secondary atmosphere. The primordial atmosphere removal may have been due to the result of exceeding high temperature or by “forceful solar winds”. Therefore, it is assumed that the current atmosphere is secondary and formed by the gradual exhalation of gasses and clouds from the firm earth. The primordial atmosphere of the earth consisted of water vapour 74%, carbon dioxide 12%, sulfur oxides 9%, nitrogen 5%, hydrogen 0-4% and argon 0-2%. But today’s atmosphere consist of nitrogen 78%, Oxygen 21%, argon 0-9%, carbon dioxide 03%, other gasses 0-07%. At about 4.0 billion years ago, the earth became cool enough for most of the water vapour to condense as rain, This led to the formation of the primeval ocean. Carbon dioxide and sulphur are both soluble in rainfall so some of the ones in the atmosphere dissolved in the oceans. Earliest primitive lives, which were anaerobic soon formed in the oceans, they absorbed thecow When they died, they sank to the hottom e oct water as they gr i : sulphur from the ocean water as HH TTT “there was no. oxygen in the evolving carbon and st t the ocean sediment. of the ocean and became part of atmosphere. ed in the oceans. The early oxygen produced bY the photosynthesis zing algae evol : Sy ialon ds ated out to form sea floor sediments about reasted with iron dissolved in sea water and precipit 2.2 billion years ago. cosphere and was lost into space. By 2.0 Hydrogen being the lightest element rose into upper atm San ste \d-and so free oxygen billion years ago, the iron in the oceans had absorbed all the oxygen it coul appeared in the atmosphere for the first time. waters. and the water vapour More and more carbon and sulphur dissolved in the ocean evaporated to form more water condensed to form more rain and water in the ocean, which then ‘vapour to ereate the water cycle. Origin of life ‘The earliest form of life is assumed to have been formed in the absence of oxygen and in the presence of ammonia, methane and water clouds under the influence of ultraviolet radiation. Over time, some of these anaerobic primitive life developed cell membrane and photosynthesis became a viable process creating over a long period of time sufficient oxygen for other life forms to evolve. LIFE FORM MILLION OF YEARS SINCE FIRST | a KNOWN APPEARANCE APPROXIMATE) Microbial (prokaryotic cells) 3,500 ‘Complex (eukaryotic) 2,000 First multicellular animals 670 | Shell bearing animals 340 1 Vertebrates (simple fishes) 490 ‘Amphibians 350. | [ Reptiles ; 310 | Mammals 200 ‘Non human primates 60 | Earliest apes 25 | Australopithecine ancestors of humans 5 | Modern humans 0:15 (150,000 years) | Afier: National Academy of Science (2003)EVOLUTION origin to the present state. Evolution is a biologic dence of evolution comes from fossil which is he province of the biologist. Here the development of life is traced fram its process but itis also important to geology. The evi the province of geology and from living organism ~ which is ¢ Definition: Biological evolution is the continuing change in population o| occurring or has occurred in the geologic past. f organism that is now a logical system. He used two Carolus Linnacus 1737, attempted to classify all living things in y i ication indicates that there are for each kind of organism. The classifi tes anisms rather than random variations, names, genus and spe degrees of similarities and differences among or} that can interbreed to produce fertile ‘The first letter of the generic name is the cat belongs to the genus Felis: the ther terms in the system [A species is considered as a group of similar individuals offspring. A genus is a group of closely related species. capitalized but the specific name is in lower case. E.g common house cat is Felis catus and the ocelot is Felis paradalis. The o are family, order, class, phylum and kingdom. Linnaeum Classification Scheme Kingdom Animalia Phylum Chordata Class Mammalia Order Primate Family Hominidae Genus Homo Species sapiens Individual Tari Bokolo In 1809, Chevalier de Lamarck, described his theory of evolution. He believed all organisms evolved from a single ancestor but environmental variation created the need for change or evolution. His followers interpreted this to mean that offspring inherited the acquired characteristic of parents and in turn passed it to the next generation. E.g, a blacksmith who developed large biceps will pass this to his children. One critic to Larmarcks’ study of evolution was Dagobert Cuvier, who from his studies deduced that there was no evidence of gradual evolution in the fossils he studied there were no traces of intermediate steps necessary in evolution. For this reason, he believed in separate creation and that change in rock type from bed to bed was caused by the revolution that killed the organism and set the stage for the next creation. Charles Darwin in his book “The origin of Species” was written after his studies of flinches in the Galapagos Islands. He observed 13 species of flinches that are unknown elsewhere in the world. The flinches vary mainly in the size and shape of their beaks which is a reflection of differences in their food. He posited that species are not fixed, but changes in species will respond to population growth, food supply etc. leading to struggle for existence. He reasonedae ikely 1 survive and produce hat apecien with w slight advantage over others would be mare likely wa survive and’ Pe offapring. He ealled this “natural selection’ by survival of the fittest ‘The laws of inheritance Slee os it dea pao teen Davi documented the evidence of evolution but lacked the keine ae oe or mechanism to cause evolution 10 occur, Gregor J, Mendel an obs ad discovered it in 1865 ane published i 1866, He discovered thal in eres polmmante Tir ssrinkled peas, the first generation are all round (R) dominant but City rene inued characteristic The second generation produced 3 fours! peas and | wrinkled pes Aa his experiment using other characteristic such as colour and roundness ani the offspring occur in fixed ratios. He showed that traits are in herited as discrete units called genes, R Dominant characteristic (Roundn w Recessive characteristic (Wrinkles) Parent RR. ww (Pure round peas) (Wrinkled peas) ntti Rh irst generation: Al peas are round, but carry all ¢ Rw Rocky tes gen Al ae wens satey Second generation: Ratio 3 round peas to 1 Ro Rw Rw ww ‘wrinkled pea, % pure RR, % Rw and % pure All pure AU in round RR ‘wrinkle ‘with no w with 0 trait Rerit Successive generations : RR and ww breed trw. Rw producessame 3:1, Avroud and | wrinkle as in the second generation: “pure RR, "4 Row and Y%4 pure ww Mendet's inheritance law Punctuated Equilibrium and Gradualism Most theories of evolution assume that changes in species occur slowly, by small steps but that external changes, such as climatic change may cause more rapid evolutionary _ changes. Slow evolution by small step is called Gradualism. Geology record does not "support ihis method because of lack of intermediates stages. The other assumption is: that evolution is rapid, but most of the time very little changes ~ Scour, This is called Punctuated Equilibrium. In this case, evolution is assumed to. _ Occur in a little stressed population that may not survive, generally. at the fringes of the habitat. After, such a short burst of | evolutionary change: which may be due to.climatie or : Ninety factors, the new species is better adapted to the challenges and replaces thePatterns of Evolution Divergence (Radiation) 8 ‘eke ‘Thin is patbrnenta trend that occurs wher organisms: change OY th ae o advantage of new changing conditions. ‘These changes are generally divergence to different habitats like Darwin's flinches. ‘Convergence ae is ‘This isa striking feature of evolution where different organisms ee Oe develop similar characteristics. Example is seen in the similar oy pes ‘a fish; the dolphin, a mammal; and the ichthyosaur, an extinet reptile. : Diagram: Convergence is shown by the similar shapes of the shark, & fish; the dolphin, @ mammal; and the ichthyosaur, an extinct reptile. ehuhyosaur Deigin Extinction : ‘When there is climatic or environmental changes, species can do one of the following three things: migrate away, it can adapt or it can die out thus leading to mass extinction. FOSSILS Fossils are naturally preserved remains or traces of animals or plants that lived in the geologic past, In other words, Fossils aré the geological altered remains of a once living organism and/or Cet tere two types of fossils: Body fossil represents part or whole of the organism Trace fossils show evidence of the organism or its behavior. The branch of geology that deals with fonsil is Paleontology.FOR FOSSILIZATION REQUIREMENTS /NECESSARY CONDITIONS al undergo quick burial, it prevents 1) Quick burial: When remnants of plants and anim scavengers and quick decay. that have hard parts have a better chance of 2) Possession of hard parts; Organisms decay slowly and less likely to weather away, preservation. They are Jess eaten by predators. The high heat and pressure involved in the 3) Most fossils are found in sedimentary rocks. : fossil materials. formation of igneous and metamorphic rocks destroy CONSTRAINTS > Burial may also bring about physical and chemical changes that may cause destruction. > Later uplift will expose rocks containing fossils and weathering and erosion will destroy them. > Thus, fossilization is a very rare event; no wonder the record of fossil life is incomplete. METHODS OF FOSSILIZATION: Fossils form in the following ways > PRESERVATION OF PART OR WHOLE OF THE ORGANISM can occur: eg. shell as a clam shell, woolly mammoths found preserved in frozen ground. In 1991 completely intact body of aman who lived 530yrs ago was found frozen in glacial ice in the Southern Alps. > PETRIFIED REMAINS: These are hard and rocklike. Some or all of the original materials in the remains have been replaced by minerals, such as, calcite being replaced by quartz. (Calcite in bones dissolves and replaced by quartz). »CABONACEOUS FILMS: The tissues of most organisms are made of compounds that contain carbon. If the fossil is squeezed between bedding planes, (as in compaction and overburden), the gasses and fluids are removed, leaving a the thin carbon film forming an outline of the original organism. This process of chemically changing organic material is called carbonization. TRACE FOSSILS: Absence of the actual fossil but fossilized tracks and other evidence of ‘animal activity are called trace fossils. » MOLDS, CAST AND IMPRINTS > MOLDS: This forms if the fossil dissolves leaving an empty space, > CAST: This is formed if the i space or molds of the fossils are filled with minerals or ‘sediments 10 produce a cast of the original organism.> IMPRINT: This is formed when an organism is pressed into a soft sand and mud sediment and later removed. b> TRACKS, TRAILS AND BURROWS Tracks and trails are formed as organisms move along the surface of soft sediment >The holes or burrows of burrowing organisms are often preserved by filling of sediments of different composition. mals that are preserved in geologic > COPROLITHS: Solid excretory waste product of ani ‘ts diet may have been record. It is used by geologist to determine where an animal lived, what i and its relative size. USES OF FOSSILS » FOSSILS AS ENVIRONMENTAL INDICATOR They provide information about environment, climate and animal behavior. It can also be related to possible energy conditions that affected the depositional environment. > USE OF FOSSIL ASSEMBLAGE FOR AGE DETERMINATION IN ROCKS INDEX FOSSILS Organisms are consistently changing or evolving. Some species remain for long duration of time without changing. Some remain unchanged for only @ short time. In geologic reconstruction, vvrtain fossils are useful for age (time) determination, Such fossils are called INDEX FOSSILS. CRITERIA FOR INDEX FOSSILS > The organism should have been abundant during & relatively short period of time (usually an epoch or less). > The organism should have had a wide geographical distribution that was not strongly influenced by facies changes > The organism should have had a distinctive morphology or appearanceBASIC LAWS IN GEOLOGY mber of laws and principles have As geology evolved as a se these principles have to be fully been form ence in the last two centuries, a nu uted to guide the practice. In order to ‘read rocks’. understood and employed. ‘The principles are UNIFORMITARIANISM (ACTUALISM) This law was proposed by Hutton, 1795. Itunderlies most of geology and it simply means that the present processes going on today on earth have also occurred in the geologic past. Thus rocks can be interpreted in terms of processes going on in the present day. It simply ns tha ent is the key to the past”. An example is: flowing rainwater causing erosion way through geologic time. Uniformitarianism implies slow processes great length of times. med have acted in going ono ‘The theory of Catastrophism is that of sudden changes. Rapid processes, such as earthquakes, nl volcanic eruptions are examples but occur seldomly, in generally widely separated average time is slow. ORIGINAL HORIZONTALITY, ‘This law hat layers of sediment deposited in a basin are initially deposited in horizontal or near horizontal layers. If the beds are not horizontal, post depositional deformation is implied. SUPERPOSITION ‘The proponents were: Steno 17" century; Arduino 1759 and W. Smith 1799. This principles state thatzin an undisturbed sedimentary terrain, the oldest beds are at the bottom and the youngest are at the top. Simply put: “Young on top of the old” EVOLUTION Darwin 1859 in his book the “The origin of life reasoned that species with & slight advantage over others would be more likely to survive and produce offspring, while those not able to adapt may die. This he called “natural selection” by survival of the fittest. That is organisms that underwent a relatively fast evolution inherited characteristics which make them fitter to survive than organisms without such characteristics. Survival of the fittest and the extinction of the less fit species takes time. THE PRINCIPLE OF EQUILIBRIUM The earth is affected by two important “heat engines”. The first is the external heat engine powered by the sun and the second is the internal heat engine driven by forces from the earth’s interior. The earth crust is continuously in motion but motion is slow and perceptible, Part of the earth rises, other parts subsides or move towards or away from each other. Uplift brought most rocks that were initially deposited on ancient ocean bottom to the surface to form mountain tops and are now exposed to the vagaries of weathering and erosion. Movement of the earth crust demonstrates the presence of enormous forces within the earth (Internal or endogenic forces) that results in disequilibrium that is being compensated for by external (exogenic) forces or processes. Eg. Uplift is compensated for by erosion.GEOLOGICAL CYCLES iods of time. The: There are processes that occur regularly and take place over long oF Sarl aie tt may affect the earth over large or small areas, may be simple or comp’: “logic cycles. Important manufacture and re-processing of earth’s materials. These are the geo 8 ones are the hydrogeological cycle, the rock cycle and the tectonic cy Various rock types; Igneous, metamorphic and sedimentary rocks may be eroded to form sediments by weathering and erosion. > These sediments may become compacted to form sedimentary rocks > Sedimentary rocks and igneous rocks may become metamorphosed into metamorphic rocks by reason of effect of high temperature and pressure. > Eventually at subduction zones, these various rocks melt up into magma to form igneous rocks which may later be uplifted and exposed to the vagaries of weathering and erosion again to form new sediments. Diagram See page 13THE TECTONIC CYCLE The rock cycle is an expression of the tectonic cycle which is caused by endogenetic forces driven by the earth’s internal heat. Ultimately these forces form mountain ranges, earthquakes and voleanoes which reveal a restless interior whose activities tend to increase the size and elevation of the continents and is balanced by subduction or melting of part of the continents. PRINCIPLES OF STRATIGRAPHIC RELATIONSHIP. Law of original horizontality Law of superposition : Principle of cross cutting relationshiy Principle of included fragment (Xenoliths) Principle of lateral continuit Principle of faunal succession Unconformity Maye eYE Law of Original horizontality — As above Law of Superposition — As above Principle of cross cutting relationship This principle states that an intrusion through the body of a host rock is younger than the host rock. In the diagram below, the dyke that intruded the sedimentary layers A, B, and C is younger than the host rock. It did not intrude D because bed D is younger; it was laid after the intrusion. Diagram D +, c /, Dyke | —/ B Intrusion + A Principle of included fragments (Xenoliths) Fragment contained within a body of host rock is known as xenoliths. A rock fragment (xenoliths) contained within the body of a host rock implies that the rock from which it was hewn is older than the host rock. The limestone from which the limestone fragment came is older that the sandstone in the diagram below. Diagram ‘Xenolith—§» © A Rple of lateral conti This principle states that there is lateral continuity of the same type valley. ‘The same type of lithology on the left hand of the valley oce\ valley as is seen in the diagram. frock on the both sides ofa urs on the right hand of the Diagram DT 5 Cc c B B A A [ESS Principle of faunal succes ae : ‘The geologic record if filled with fauna and flora succession that are indicative of some specific geologic time based on their time of existence before they went into extinction. These fossils are called index fossils. E.g, the ammonite is indicative of the Cretaceous. ‘Unconformity sas anconformity is a surface of non-deposition, where there is an interruption oF break in deposition or an erosional surface. The layer below the unconformity surface is older than the layer above the unconformity layer. There are different types of unconformity. A Angular Unconformity: this is the type of unconformity existing between horizontal layer that overlies folded beds. The unconformity is an erosional surface. B _ Disconformity: An unconformity surface where beds above and below are essentially parallel and marked by visible, irregular or uneven erosional surface, C _ Paraconformity: This is an obscure unconformity characterized by parallel beds above and below the unconformity in which no erosional surface or other physical evidence of unconformity is discernible. D Nonconformity: This is the type of unconformity between a sedimentary rock and igneous or metamorphic rocks. The sedimentary layer ‘overlies the unconformity separating it from the igneous or metamorphic rock. The unconformity is usually an erosional surface,Schematic representation of the different types of unconformity, arrows represent the unconformity surface.Minerals and rock types What is a mineral? es ‘A mineral is a naturally occurring, inorganic solid with a definite structure and composition. Five Point to note about minerals, ea There are about 4000 different minerals found on earth and they all share five characteristics, which are: 1 Minerals are all formed by natural processes Eg Rock salt, diamond, graphite etc are naturally occurring and therefore are minerals ; 2 Minerals are inorganic; they are not alive, never were alive and are not made by life Processes. Coal is generated from carbon from living things, though, geologists don’t classify coal as mineral, miners and others do. Miners classify anything taken from the ground as mineral resources. 3 Minerals are erystalline solids and all solids have definite shape and volume. Gasses and liquids do not have definite shape and are therefore not minerals. : 4 Every mineral is an element or a compound with a chemical composition peculiar to that mineral. 5 The atoms in a mineral are arranged in a pattern that is repeated over and over again. Crystals The atoms of mineral are arranged in such a way that they form crystals and these erystals are repeated in a regular pattern in the crystal lattice of the mineral, A erystal is a solid in which the atoms are arranged in repeating pattems, Not all minerals have smooth surfaces and sharp edges. Most crystals need open space to develop freely and fully. Crystals arrange themselves in six different structures that are known as crystal systems Cubic System axes, three equal, a, a, a, at right angle example is Halite Aameonal system axes, a, a, ¢, tvo equal horizontal, one vertical, at right angle example is Wulfenite Hexagonal system axes, a, a, a, c, three equal horizontal, making angles of 120° with each other, ‘vertical axis at right angles to the plane containing the horizontal axes example is Corundum Orthorhombic system axes, a, b, c, three unequal, all at right angles example is Topaz Monoclinic system axes a, b, c, three unequal axes, one vertical, one at right angle to the vertical s, the third making an oblique angle with tt ini i nu que ang! he plane containing the other two example is THelithe. Ticlinie system, Axes a, b, ¢, three unequal axes, none at right angles example is Albite.orthorhombic afb FG (2 B=¥= 90° b 7 hexagonal Ic a=b#c «c= = 90° ys 120° Babee! monoclinic triclini CAB EY #90? my = 90° 490° ceFormation of minerals There are three ways that mineral fo 1 Cooling of magma: ae As magma cools, its atoms compounds, The molecul formed is determined by single magma. lose energy, the hae ae the atoms move closer together and combine to form the com dich themselves into repeated patterns. The type of minerals Position of the magma. Many different mineral can form from a 2 Formation of erystal from solution Crystals may also form from mi ‘om minerals dis i iqui isu bao inerals dissolved in liquids. When the liquid evaporates, the 3 Precipitation out of saturated solution If i r it bbe becomes saturated or filled with a substance, crystals of other minerals such as calcite, will begin to precipitate out of solution Physical Properties of Minerals They are: 1 Appearance Individual minerals have unique properties which distinguishes it from other minerals Colour and appearance are two ways of identifying minerals, though colour is not diagnostic enough. Gold and pyrite have gold colour and can appear the same. 2 ‘Hardness ‘This is a measure of how easily a mineral can be scratched. The mineral tale is very soft you can scratch it loose, while diamond is the hardest mineral. Mohs mineral hardness scale is used to compare the hardness of minerals. Mohs Hardness scale Tal Gypsum Calcite Fluorite Apatite Felspars Quartz, Topaz Corundum Diamond meweIrausun 0 Hardness of common objects Fingernails 2.5 Pieces of copper 3.3 Iron nail 4.5 Glass 5.5 \¢7 4 siee! file 6.5 streak plate 7 Luster describe how light i . ; ae — aa light is reflected from a mineral’s surface. Luster is either metallic eg. galen metallic. Terms used for non metallic can be dull, pearly and silky. Colour This can also be used for identification, but, could be misleading eg pyrite and gold. Colour alone is not enough guide. Streak This is the colour of the mineral when it is broken up and powdered. Streak differentiates gold from pyrite. Gold has yellow streak, while, pyrite is greeneish black or brown black streak. Uses of minerals 1) Minerals are used as gemstones, e.g diamond, ruby etc for jewelries 2) Mineral ores are useful and mined for profit. They are used in different industries, eg bauxite, heamatite, aluminum ete.file 6.5 | x plate 7 sieak aster a iaser deserie how light is reflected from a mineral’s surface. Luster is either metallic « Galena or non metallic. Terms used for non metallic can be dull, pearly and silky. ROCKS What is a rock: A rock is a mixture of minerals glass or organic matter. Common miner: include: quartz, feldspars, micas, clay minerals, pyroxene, amphiboiles, hornblend, etc The Rock Cycle Various rock types; Igneous, metamorphic and sedimentary rocks may be eroded to for sediments by weathering and erosion. ‘These sediments may become compacted to for sedimentary rocks. Sedimentary rocks and igneous rocks may become metamorphosed in metamorphic rocks by reason of high temperature and pressure. Eventually at subduction zone these various rocks melt up into magma and cool to form igneous rocks which may later | uplifted and exposed to the vagaries of weathering and erosion again to form new sediment Processes such as weathering, erosion, compaction, cementation, melting, cooling ar metamorphism (high heat and pressure) are involved. Igneous Rock felting Sediment [ Maem | and erosion Weathering and erosion Sedimentary Rock Heat and pressure Metamorphic Rock The Rock Cyclepootts ROC i have extures, The 1 sition of the magma from nical elements. As magma ¢ {ystallize first. The high temp erature minerals while th ols, the composition will determine which mineral will erature minerals will crystalliz (0 slow cooling and basalt with small crystals due te lowest temperature, micas, feldspars and quartz wi mantle, gabbro, with large crystal due 1 rapid cooling at the surface. At the | crystallize forming granite, There are two types of igneous rock Volcanic (Extrusive) These are magma that get extruded at the earth surface. Magma of granitic composition that reach the earth surface are extremely viscous and produce highly explosive voleanic eruptions while those of basaltic composition are not viscous. Examples are the Younger Granites of Jos Plateau. Plutonic (Intrusive) The second group of igneous rocks is formed when magma does not reach the earth surface before emplacement. Large crystals are characteristic of these rocks because of much slower cooling rate. Metamorphic Rocks These are formed by the alteration of pre ~ existing rocks due to effect of high temperature and Jor pressure. Metamorphic rocks are the result of metamorphic processes. Two groups are known: Those formed under processes that act mainly under the influence of temperature alone (thermo — metamorphism) and those formed under processes that act under the combined influence of temperature and pressure (These are commonly associated with ancient and present mountain ranges) and show a gradual transition from one rock type into another as a response to increase in temperature and pressure. The Nigerian Basement complex is an example of mountain ranges that erosion has exposed to the surface. Metamorphic rocks in the Basement complex are the migmatites, gneisses, chamokites, marbles and meta — igneous rocks, Sedimentary Rocks. These are rocks formed from three processes * Clastic sedimentary rocks formed from the weathering, erosion, transportation and deposition of fragments from pre ~ existing rocks, * They are also formed from the direct precipitati i 7 . ion of dissolved : evaporates. Ip! ved mineral out of solution, eg The third process is by or; sedimentary rock in Nigeria areSedimentary processes rocks and Igneous and metamorphic rocks are mainly formed at depth, but uplift brings thes’ Mere Te previously buried sedimentary rocks to the surface where they are exposed 10 entirely Te environments which affect their stability. The changes in the almosphere and effec make the minerals to become unstable in the new environment. Weathering Rocks exposed to the surface become unstable in the new environment and ar weathering. Weathering is the breakdown or disintegration of rocks by physica processes, Here are some examples of physical weathering. : & The repeated alternation of freezing and thawing of rain water in cr rock cause the rocks to disintegrate. ; ati Also, contraction and anna of various minerals in rocks occur due to daily insolation during the day and cooling and freezing in the night, cause disintegration of rocks. cee + Plant roots grow into cracks in rocks in search of water. As this occurs, the roots the rock apart. ¢ affected by 1 or chemical acks and fissures of i ances il i js in the Chemical weathering occurs when water, air and other substances react with minerals in rocks. ; Water is an important agent in chemical weathering. When hydrogen and oxygen in water reacts with some chemicals in some rocks, new minerals different from the original are formed. * ‘Acids: When water mixes with carbon dioxide in the air, a weak acid known as carbonic acid forms. This acid reacts and dissolves calcite to form new minerals that are carried away. # Oxygen causes chemical weathering by the process known as oxidation. Eg. When rocks containing iron are exposed to the atmosphere, the iron in the rock turns rusty and reddish. That is the iron has been oxidized. Erosion is the removal of weathered material by transportation media and the combined effect of weathering and erosion is known as denudation. Transportation: As soon as rocks are fragmented, they are moved by agents of transportation to various basins where they are deposited. Agents of transportation are: Water: This is a major transport means that can carry large amount of sediment. Wind: Wind is a very low density, low viscosity fluid that is capable lowing and cause: pable of flowi id Glacial: Glaci ini Gill airs at capable 7 entraining huge amount of sediments by scraping and pluckin; eine and valley walls. Glaciers are very viscous and their motions are usuall Gravity ‘ediment can be tra can be transported essentially by the influence of gravity down the slope.