Introduction to Geology – I

ERSC 2101

Department of Earth Sciences, SQU

 Introduction to Geology – I ERSC 2101
Week Topic Reading Assignment

W 01 Topic 01 : Introduction and Origin of Earth 2-11, 413-415

W 02 Topic 02 : Earth Internal Structure & Rock Cycle 12-15
W 03 Topic 03 : Minerals 23-39
W 04 Topic 04 : Igneous Rocks 46-57
W 05 Topic 05 : Volcanoes 68-90
W 06 Topic 06 : Sedimentary Rocks 121-135
W 07 Topic 07 : Metamorphic Rocks 146-156
W 08 Topic 08 : Earthquakes and Earth’s Interior 302-314, 321-326
W 09 Topic 09 : Plate Tectonics 331-348, 354,356
W 10 Topic 10 : Geological Structures 363-373
W 11 Topic 11 : Geological Time (Relative Dating) 388-398
W 12 Topic 12 : Geological Time (Absolute Dating) 398-407
W 13 Topic 13 : Geology of Oman handouts will be provided
W 14 Topic 14 : Earth History: Brief Summary 415-434
W 15 Topic 01 : Revision and Video (Oman Tract of Time Volcanoes etc.,)
Text Book: Essentials of Geology by Tarbuck & Lutgens (8 th Edition)
Supplements: Geode III CD-ROM
Assessment:
Lab/field reports 10%
Test 1 and 2 30%
Final Lab Exam 15%
Quizzes 5%
Final Exam 40%
Total 100%
 The Science of Geology
Geology is the science that pursues an
understanding of planet Earth
• Physical geology – examines the materials
composing Earth and seeks to understand
the many processes that operate beneath
and upon its surface
• Historical geology – seeks an
understanding of the origin of Earth and
its development through time
 The Science of Geology
Some historical notes about geology
• The nature of Earth has been a focus of
study for centuries
• Catastrophism
• Uniformitarianism and the birth of
modern geology
 The Science of Geology
 Catastrophism (James Ussher, mid 1600s) - He interpreted the Bible to
determine that the Earth was created at 4004 B.C.
 This was generally accepted by both the scientific and religious communities.
 Subsequent workers then developed the view on catastrophism, which held that
the Earth’s landforms were formed over very short periods of time.

 Uniformitarianism (James Hutton, late 1700s) - He proposed that the same

processes that are at work today were at work in the past. Summarized by
“The present is the key to the past.”
 Hutton, not constrained by the concept of a very young planet, recognized that
time is the critical element to the formation of common geologic structures.
 Uniformitarianism is a basic foundation of modern geology.
 Geologic Time
Geologists are now able to assign fairly
accurate dates to events in Earth history
Relative dating and the geologic time
scale
• Relative dating means that dates are
placed in their proper sequence or order
without knowing their age in years
 Geologic Time
The magnitude of geologic time
• Involves vast times – millions or billions of
years
• An appreciation for the magnitude of
geologic time is important because many
processes are very gradual
Hajar Super-group (Carbonate)
 Terrace 1

Terrace 2

Terrace 3

Terrace 4

Noc Terrace 5
B h2 Terrace 6
Noc Terrace 7
h1

A
The Geologic
Time Scale
 Earth as a System
Earth is a dynamic planet with many
interacting parts or spheres
Parts of the Earth system are linked
It is characterized by processes that
• Vary on spatial scales from fractions of a
millimeter to thousands of kilometers
• Have time scales that range from
milliseconds to billions of years
The intersection of four spheres
The atmosphere, hydrosphere, biosphere and the
Lithosphere
 Earth as a system
Hydrosphere: the global ocean is the
most prominent feature of our (blue)
planet. The oceans cover ~71% of our
planet and represent 97% of all the
water on our planet.

Atmosphere: the swirling clouds of the

atmosphere represent the very thin
blanket of air that covers our planet. It
is not only the air we breathe, but
protects us from harmful radiation from
the sun.
 Earth as a system
Biosphere: includes all life on Earth -
concentrated at the surface. Plants and
animals don't only respond the their
environment but also exercise a very strong
control over the other parts of the planet.
Solid Earth: represents the majority of the
Earth system. Most of the Earth lies at
inaccessible depths. However, the solid
Earth exerts a strong influence on all other
parts (ex. magnetic field).
Geosphere
• Based on compositional differences, it consists of the crust, mantle, and core.
- Crust—the thin, rocky outer layer of Earth.
- Mantle—the 2890-kilometer-thick layer of Earth located below the crust.
- Core—the innermost layer of Earth, located beneath the mantle.
 Earth as a system
This figure shows the dynamic
interaction between the major
spheres.

As humans, we desire to divide the

natural world into artificial
portions to make it easier. It
should be stressed that these
divisions are artificial.

What are some of the interactions

between these spheres?
Earth's Major Spheres

1cm-30km
Earth's Major Spheres 96cm-2890km
Geosphere 116cm-3481km
• Based on compositional differences, it
consists of the crust, mantle, and core.
- Crust—the thin, rocky outer layer of Earth.
- Mantle—the 2890-kilometer-thick layer of
Earth located below the crust.
- Core—the innermost layer of Earth, located
beneath the mantle.
 Earth as a system
The Earth system is also powered from
Earth’s interior
• Heat remaining from the Earth’s
formation and heat that is continuously
generated by radioactive decay powers
the internal processes that produce
volcanoes, earthquakes, and mountains
Formation of Earth

Formation of Earth
 Most researchers conclude that Earth
and the other planets formed at
essentially the same time.
 Nebular Hypothesis
• The solar system evolved from an enormous
rotating cloud called the solar nebula.
Formation of Earth

Formation of Earth
 Nebular Hypothesis
• The nebula was composed mostly of
hydrogen and helium.
• About 5 billion years ago, the nebula began
to contract.
• It assumed a flat, disk shape with the
protosun (pre-Sun) at the center.
Nebular hypothesis
Emanuel Swedenborg -(1734)
a Swedish scientist and philosopher
Formation of Earth

Formation of Earth
 Nebular Hypothesis
• Inner planets begin to form from metallic and
rocky clumps.
• Larger outer planets began forming from
fragments with a high percentage of ices.
The Nebular Hypothesis
A

E
Our Solar System

Venus Earth

Mercury Mars
Ouranos Neptune

Saturn
Jupiter
Origin of Solar System
Evolution of the Earth
AU: astronomical Unit ~150 million km
Layered Structure of The Earth

Melting of the original materials occurred due to heat

generated by.
Impact of falling meteorites
Compression of rocks due to gravity
Decay of radioactive elements
Heavy metals (e.g. iron & nickel) sank deeper whereas
lighter elements (e.g. oxygen & silicon) accumulated in the
outer parts .
This process is known as differentiation (fractionation)
which led to the formation of a layered structure.
Artist’s View of Comets hitting the Planet
 1_7
Planetesimals
strike growing
Earth

Iron melts and

begins to sink
Lighter materials
DIFFERENTIATION
concentrate
closer to surface
Interior of Earth is
Crust and hotter than surface
mantle
Liquid
core
The moon formed
Atmosphere after a Mars-sized
Crust planet hit earth,
Mantle about 4.6 bya
Outer core We use that event
as Earth’s origin
Inner core date
 Process of differentiation

Z Symbol Lithosphere abundance ppm

8 O 46%

14 Si 27.7%

13 Al 8,1%

26 Fe 5%

20 Ca 3,6%

11 Na 2.8%

19 K 2.5%

While it was still in the molten state, separation of elements occurred within the earth.
Light Inert Gases like Helium (He) and Krypton (Kr) were lost to outer space Heavy
elements like Nickel (Ni) and Iron (Fe) sink to the center.
 Earth’s Internal Structure

Earth’s internal layers defined by

Chemical composition
Physical properties
Deduced from Seismographs of Earthquakes
Meteorites lend support

Layers defined by composition

Crust
Mantle
Core

Iron-Nickel Meteorite
 Summary
• Physical and Historical geology
• Catastrophism vs Uniformitarianism
• Cycles and spheres…interfaces
• Time (some processes take seconds and some
processes take million years) Relative time ..law
of superposition
• Crust, Mantle, Core
• Lithosphere oceanic crust and continental crust
• Nebular theory
End of Topic:1