the grand canyon
The Grand Canyon Formation
A literature research report for
Earth Science 1/Mon-Wed
Fall 2013 by Guadalupe Andrade, Eduardo Osorio
Maria Romero, and Yesenia Terriquez
Abstract The Grand Canyon is a sided mountain carved by the Colorado River. The origin of the Grand Canyon is tied down to the tectonic erosion of the Colorado Plateau. The formation of the Grand Canyon is a big mystery. What we can say, is that its rock layers give us clues of how tectonic erosion occurred in the Grand Canyon. Some of those rocks can be age determined, but some can’t. Some of the rocks that can be age determined are the igneous rocks, and those rocks that can’t be age determined are the metamorphic rocks. The igneous rocks are one of the three main rocks. The metamorphic rocks arise from the transformation of existing rock types, which make changes due to heat and pressure. Different dating techniques are still being used to determine the age of the rocks, although the techniques don’t work for all the rocks. The rocks in the Grand Canyon are classified by different geologic periods such as; Pre-Cambrian, Cambrian, Devonian, Mississippian, Pennsylvanian, and Permian. The rocks, after having their age determined if possible, they are placed in the Geologic Period table so that us scholars can have an idea of how old the rocks are. There are many theories surrounding the formation of the Grand Canyon, but none really have been one hundred percent accepted as the main one. Some theories surrounding the Grand Canyon’s formation include those such as, tectonic erosion of the Colorado Plateau, continental drift caused the Grand Canyon to rise because it was under sea, and many others that will be discussed later on this report.
Introduction
The Grand Canyon is a sided mountain carved by the Colorado River. The origin of the Grand Canyon is tied down to the tectonic erosion of the Colorado Plateau. Unfortunately, the exact formation of the
A literature research report for
Earth Science 1/Mon-Wed
Fall 2013 by Guadalupe Andrade, Eduardo Osorio
Maria Romero, and Yesenia Terriquez
Abstract The Grand Canyon is a sided mountain carved by the Colorado River. The origin of the Grand Canyon is tied down to the tectonic erosion of the Colorado Plateau. The formation of the Grand Canyon is a big mystery. What we can say, is that its rock layers give us clues of how tectonic erosion occurred in the Grand Canyon. Some of those rocks can be age determined, but some can’t. Some of the rocks that can be age determined are the igneous rocks, and those rocks that can’t be age determined are the metamorphic rocks. The igneous rocks are one of the three main rocks. The metamorphic rocks arise from the transformation of existing rock types, which make changes due to heat and pressure. Different dating techniques are still being used to determine the age of the rocks, although the techniques don’t work for all the rocks. The rocks in the Grand Canyon are classified by different geologic periods such as; Pre-Cambrian, Cambrian, Devonian, Mississippian, Pennsylvanian, and Permian. The rocks, after having their age determined if possible, they are placed in the Geologic Period table so that us scholars can have an idea of how old the rocks are. There are many theories surrounding the formation of the Grand Canyon, but none really have been one hundred percent accepted as the main one. Some theories surrounding the Grand Canyon’s formation include those such as, tectonic erosion of the Colorado Plateau, continental drift caused the Grand Canyon to rise because it was under sea, and many others that will be discussed later on this report.
Introduction
The Grand Canyon is a sided mountain carved by the Colorado River. The origin of the Grand Canyon is tied down to the tectonic erosion of the Colorado Plateau. Unfortunately, the exact formation of the