Geology Exam 2
Unique features of Carlsbad National Park
-Bat population -Permian Reef -Natural entrance
How did Carlsbad form?
-Bottum Up -Sulferic Acid
Unique characteristics of Wind Cave
-Boxwork -Paleofills -Blackhills
What can threaten coral reefs?
-Oceanic Acidification -Acid water dissolves calcite and organisms use calcite to form their skeletons
Glacial features of Cascade
-Snow -Fog -mist
How did Mammoth Cave form?
-Top Down -Carbonic Acid -Groundwater seeping down into crevices
How did wind cave form?
-Top down -Carbonic Acid -Groundwater seeping down to crevices
Famous geologic features of the Virgin Islands
-White Sand Beaches - Many Bays and Cays -Sea-turtles and other reef animals
Unique features of Mammoth National Park
-large caverns -spelothems -pits formed by vertical joints
What is Carlsbad known for?
1. Bat population 2. Natural entrance to the cave
How did Mammoth Cave Form?
1. CO2 in soils dissolve water to make it acidic 2. Acidic water dissolves limestone as it moves through cracks 3. Most caves are formed just below the water table
Geologic history of the Rocky Mountains
1. Formation of granite and metemorphic rocks during the late precambrian period 2. Rockys started to erode and inland seas rose in the region and these seas deposited sedimentary rocks in the region
What can you see on a topographic map?
1. Hills, Mountains, Plains 2. Oceans, Lakes, Ponds, Rivers, Canals 3. Roads, Railroads, Land Boundaries
Sea level rising and falling in the Everglades
1. Increasing water temperatures create conditions for hazardous algal blooms to form in the ocean. 2. Increase in sea level endanger the freshwater plants and animals in the region. 3. Rising sea levels will threaten to contaminate freshwater wells.
How are reefs formed?
1. Reefs form around volcanic islands or continents 2. As the volcanic island subsides, the barrier reef begins to form 3. And atoll remains after the volcanic island submerges
Features of Karst Topography
1. Sinking Stream 2. Sinkhole 3. Cave 4. Springs
Major features of Carlsbad Caverns
1. Stalagmites 2. Stalactites 3. Columns 4. Draperies and Cave Bacon 5. Cave Popcorn 6. Cave Pearls 7. Big Room 8. Hall of Giants 9. Witches Finger
Major Features of Mammoth Cave
1. Stalagmites 2. Stalactites 3. Columns 4. Flowstone 5. Cave Pearls
Examples of speleothems
1. Stalagmites, Stalactites, Columns 2. Flowstones, Draperies 3. Boxwork 4. Cave Bacon 5. Cave Pearls 6. Cave Popcorn
What percentage of the earth is covered by glaciers?
10%
What is a topographic Map?
An image/map representation of the three dimensional shape of Earth's surface
What depositional features are associated with glaciers?
Aretes horns cirque moraines kettles and outwash plains.
How are reefs related to oil reserves?
At the basin of the reef, there are deposits of plant and animal matter. Over millions of years, heat and pressure change this organic matter to oil and gas.
What is the Wind Cave known for?
Boxwork
Famous feature of the Guadalupe Mountains
Capitan Reef
How does acid rain form caves?
Carbonic acid dissolves limestone which leads to the formation of caves
Geologic features of the Virgin Islands
Coral Reef
How was the Karst Topography formed?
Dissolution of limestone
What is Yosemite famous for?
El Capitan
Type of rock found in Mammoth Cave
Firkin Formation Limestone
Cave Pearls
Form when water drips into cave pools and creates rounded calcite deposits.
Column
Forms when a stalagmite and stalactite meet meet to form to create a continuous pillar that goes from the floor to the ceiling.
Geologic features of the Guadalupe Mountains
Fossilized Permian Reef (Back Reef, Fore Reef, Reef Crest, Slope, Basin), Petroleum
What is Glacier Calving
Glacier ice breaks from the edge of the glacier into the ocean.
How do glaciers form?
Glaciers begin to form when snow remains in the same area year-round, where enough snow accumulates to transform into ice. Each year, new layers of snow bury and compress the previous layers. This compression forces the snow to re-crystallize, forming grains similar in size and shape to grains of sugar.
How do glaciers move?
Glaciers move by the the more snow accumulating on them. They will then move down by gravity and push the ground lower there.
What is the connection between groundwater and cave formation?
Groundwater flowing through permeable rocks or natural openings in the earth's surface can form caves
How are groundwater and permeability related?
If a rock is permeable, groundwater can easily pass through but if a rock is porous, the rock will hold a lot of groundwater
What type of rock is present in Carlsbad Caverns?
Interbedded limestone
Where is Mammoth Cave located?
Kentucky
Contour Lines
Lines on a topographic map that connect points of equal elevation
What type of rock is present in the Wind Cave?
Madison limestone formation
Porous Rock
Means a rock can hold a lot of water
How old are the rocks in Mammoth Cave (Period)
Mississippian Period
Where is Carlsbad located?
New Mexico
Age of reef formations in Guadalupe mountains
Permian Age
How old are the rocks in Carlsbad Caverns (Time Period)?
Permian Period
Where is Wind Cave located?
South Dakota
Where are the Everglades located?
Southern Florida
Where are the Virgin Island located?
St. John Island; Caribbean Sea
How did the Virgin Islands form? (ESSAY QUESTION)
Subduction of oceanic crust under oceanic crusts creates magma that erupts to form ocean islands.
How were Carlsbad Caverns formed?
Sulfuric acid dissolved the limestone along fractures and folds in the rock surface to form Carlsbad Cavern. This process left behind massive gypsum deposits, clay, and silt as evidence of how the cave was formed. Formed from the Bottom up
Where are the Guadalupe Mountains located?
Texas (Delaware Basin)
Isotasy
The rising and falling of the earth's crust based on the weight above it. The glaciers apply much more weight to the earth's crust and when they are melted the land is able to rise back up.
What are Milankovitch Cycles? What impacts these cycles as well as ice ages and interglacials?
The variation in the earth's orbit of the sun.
What erosional features are associated with glaciers? How do they differ from river erosional features?
U shaped valleys are made by glaciers as they carve out the rocks beneath them. They are much wider than river valleys.
Boxwork
Very uncommon and only found in Wind Cave National Park
Where is North Cascade National Park located?
Washington
How is acid rain formed?
Water + Carbon Dioxide= Carbonic Acid
How did the Wind Cave get its name?
Whistling noise the cave made
Outwash Plains
a plain formed of glacial sediments deposited by meltwater outwash at the terminus of a glacier
Hanging Valleys
a valley that is cut across by a deeper valley or a cliff.
Back Reef
an area between the reef and the ancient shoreline
Fore reef
an area between the reef and the ancient shoreline
Speleothems
are formed from the flowing, dripping, condensing, or seeping of water in a cave.
Hetch Hetchy Falls was created....
by water that was released from the dams reservoir
Kettle Lakes
formed by retreating glaciers or draining floodwaters
Sea Caves
formed by the constant action of waves which attacks the weaker portions of rocks lining the shores of oceans and large lakes.
Lava Caves
formed by tunnels or tubes in lava formed when the outer surface of a lava flow cools and hardens while the molten lava within continues to flow.
Solution Caves
formed from dissolution of rocks such as limestone, dolomite, marble, and gypsum. Groundwater dissolves rocks to form tunnels and passages as well as speleothems.
Draperies
formed from the flow of water from the ceiling. Similar to how stalactites
Stalactite
forms from the dripping water on the ceiling of a cave. "Stalactites hang or grab tightly to the caves ceiling"
Stalagmite
forms from the ground up from the dripping water from a stalactite. "You might trip over a stalagmite"
Alpine Glaciers
found in high altitudes on mountains. Formed like a pancake mix where snow is in the middle and goes out to all sides
Ice Sheets
found in very cold areas forms from snow accumulation.
Reef Basin
in front of the reef sloped downward to depths of nearly half a mile.
Karst Topography
is a landscape formed from the dissolution of soluble rocks such as limestone, dolomite, and gypsum. It is characterized by underground drainage systems with sinkholes and caves.
Arete
sharp mountain ridge
Reef
submerged resistant mound or ridge formed by accumulation of plant and animal skeletons
Porosity
the % of space or voids between the grains, is important when measuring how much water a rock can hold.
Permeability
the ability for fluids or water to travel through a rock, is important in determining the ease in which the water or fluid can move through the rock.
Moraines
two glaciers are meeting up the lateral moraines are the edge of each glacier where the debris is deposited on the sides whereas the medial moraine is where the debris goes down the middle and continues to be pushed away by the glacier.
Groundwater
water held underground in the soil or in pores and crevices in rock.