Grand Canyon Essay

Weathering, geologic processes such as erosion, and climatic shifts allow for this immense desert ecosystem to continually evolve and change which has taken place for millions of years. This geologically wealthy environment is composed of alternating flat-lying layers of soft and hard deposits of mostly sedimentary rocks. Interchanging slopes and cliffs along the landscape helped form these layers of rock which can be seen fully exposed in areas of the mesa. Deposition of this landscape mainly occurred during the Permian, Pennsylvanian, Triassic and Jurassic time periods. The assortment of warm hues of sandstone were produced by varying levels of iron oxide minerals during formation.

Despite a family history of geophysicists and rock enthusiasts, I’ve never found the subject of rocks particularly fascinating. However, an exploration of Earth Science has lead me to the discovery that rocks are actually hidden gems (often literally), and that there’s more to the topic than one would think.

Our hike will start here, at the north rim of the Grand Canyon. We will go all the way to the bottom of the canyon. But first, a description of this area. The Grand Canyon is one on the most visited and studies sites for geologists on Earth. There are almost forty major sedimentary rock layers exposed in the Grand Canyon. Some of these rocks layers are two hundred million years old or two billion years old. Most of the sediment that makes up the rocks was deposited by oceans and seas, which now, are long gone. We know this because there are many fossils and and other records on large bodies of water in the Grand Canyon. The Grand Canyon is found in the Colorado Plateau. The Colorado Plateau is lifted almost two miles, or four and a fifth kilometers. It started to lift up seventy-five million years ago. This started a mountain-building period of time called the Laramide orogeny. During this period, the Rocky Mountains were created. The main types of rocks found in the Grand Canyon are limestone, siltstone, shale, and sandstone. Many of the layers are made up of limestone. Some examples of these are the Kaibab Limestone, the Redwall Limestone the Temple Butte Limestone, and the Muav

A description of the grand canyon rock layers would include the Colorado River running at the bottom of the inner gorge with flats on both sides which consist of tapeat sandstone layers. There is also the Vishnu Complex, consisting of rocks that have been changed by heat and are buried at the lowest layers. These are tilted and are called the “Grand Canyon Supergroup” the Grand Canyon supergroups are at least 12,000 ft in thickness. These rocks or (the “Inner Gorge”) are usally steep and narrow with hard deep cuts in the lower tilted layers which raise above sea level.

The rich “pancakes” of layers the Grand Canyon presents, allows relative dating to occur. Even though there are many deposits of sandstone and other similar deposits throughout the layers, the groupings of fossils assist the geologist in determining the age. Due to the work of William “Strata” Smith, the different layers or strata is determined by the fossil within the rocks, and the geologic map created. This application of dating was not the only source used.

A period of volcanism resulted in igneous intrusions within the Raton Basin-Sierra Grande Uplift Province that was sourced from the upper mantle about 26. 6 billion years ago and is associated with parallel dikes and sills (Higley, 2007). Igneous rocks are common within the Raton Basin and include Tertiary dikes and sills that range in age from 6.7 to 29 5 million years ago (Flores and Bader, 1999). One of the main differences between dikes and sills is that dikes are longer lived magma conduits and sills are features that form when magma is in neutral buoyancy with the surrounding rock (Rooper et al., 2006). These volcanic events are associated with hydrothermal alteration of coal within the basin (Higley, 2007).

The collection of the rocks was based on just picking up the most amount of difference looking rocks that was possible and bringing them home to analyze. This was done for about two months from many difference locations including campgrounds, beaches, rivers, highways as well as construction sites. After about two months there were many rocks so I started to analyze and take out the rocks that were of the same kind. I found many granite, basalt and conglomerate rocks.

The sedimentary layers of rock and soil are used by the evolutionists to argue that the layers of rock would have gradually built up over millions of years. Paul D. Ackerman in his book, It’s a Young World After All: Exciting Evidences for Recent Creation, argues that if it took millions of years to build the rock layers found in the Grand Canyon, then scientists should be able to encounter countless numbers of meteors. “With the passage of vast amounts of evolutionary time, these accumulating meteorites would be incorporated into the geologic column, and there should be many of them contained in the rock layers today.” Geologists should be coming across chunks or at least pieces of meteors when digging or observing the layers. However, they do not; which means that there must have been a catastrophic event that laid down the geologic column quickly. This would explain why there are not any indications of meteors in the geological column. Ackerman ends the chapter with a clear cut conclusion: “What do the data show? A clear result in favor of a recent creation. One survey of the literature a few years ago failed to turn up a single case of a meteorite being found in the geologic column. The meteorite clock reads clearly to the effect that the earth is not very old.”

Have you ever wondered how landmarks like the “The Tepees” in the Painted Desert of Arizona came to be? Erosion and weathering are the main culprits behind the creation of these unique and beautiful attractions. The mechanical and chemical procedure that modify objects on Earth’s surface over time are called weathering. Erosion is the method of taking weathered material from one region to another. Weathering is the breaking down of rock, soil, and minerals. Erosion is the development of being eroded by wind, water, or other natural causes. Weathering is grinding out of man-made or natural landforms. Erosion is the weathering out of surface soil and rock worn way through natural causes like water and wind for example.

Mesa Verde National Park on the Colorado Plateau contains many geological aspects of interest, including its sedimentary rock layers, its canyons, its alcoves utilized by ancient people and how these alcoves were formed. Mesa Verde National Park is located in the southwest corner of Colorado, close to the Four Corners area, on top of a high mesa overlooking the Mancos River (Harris et al. 2004). The park, covering 81 square miles, consists of several main sedimentary formations that are characteristic to the park (Encyclopedia Britannica 2015). Canyons are carved into the sedimentary rock, with the cave dwellings found high on their steep walls. These dwellings are an especially unique aspect to the Mesa Verde National Park, and are built out of large alcoves. The alcoves were produced by weathering and erosion of the sedimentary rock type. To better understand how these alcoves formed, we must understand the geology of Mesa Verde National Park and how it has developed over history.

The Grand Canyon, an immense monument of pure beauty, the distinct feature of an American desert, the timeline of the Earth’s history, and the Pormosa for García López de Cárdenas. Percy spoke of a Bostonian man that travelled to the canyon, but was never truly there. He didn’t have the same experience of the Spaniard centuries ago, (Percy 462-463). The Grand Canyon may have changed in form from the erosion and corrosion, yet he didn’t take the same actions of Cárdenas. The man knew about the canyon before even seeing it for the first time, due to previously seen postcards and pictures, he couldn’t have the full feeling of awe at the tremendous depth and vibrant colors in something that is just more than a big, long rock. The author continued on by stating, “At the

The Grand Canyon is carved by the Colorado River in the state of Arizona. The Grand Canyon is 277 miles long, about 18 miles wide and a depth of more than a mile. Any clues that scientis usually rely on have been sweap away by the rivers water or barried by landslides or destroyed by volcanos. Rocks give geologiest complete geological rocords of earth; as if each rocks told a story that was billions of years old. One clue is the "Black rocks" located at the end of this river.

The Grand Canyon has plenty of volcanic rocks near the bottom and the top. ICR, Institute for Creative Research, has been involved in a project for years to date these volcanic rocks. this study has come a long way to show that many of the Grand Canyon strata could have formed rapidly, and that the erosion of the Canyon by the Colorado River has not been going on for millions of years.

The Grand Canyon is famous in the world with its geological structures. It is 446

Evidence in the Mosaic Canyon; however, do suggest that the area was covered by a warm