Earth Materials
The Rock Cycle
• Surface and Internal Processes Interact to Transform Earth Materials
over time
• 3 major rock types and the processes that produce them
– Igneous - internal
– Sedimentary - surface
– Metamorphic - internal
• Composition
• Texture
Earth Materials
• Rock = aggregate of one or more minerals.
• Minerals = the building blocks of Rocks
• Properties and stability
• clues concerning processes
• resources, etc.
Sedimentary Rocks
• Rocks derived from the weathering of older rocks
• Earth’s recycled rocks
– The result of surface processes….
– weathering, erosion, transport, deposition
Sediments and Sedimentary Rocks
• History of Earth
• Changing sea level, climate, life, etc.
Weathering
• breaking older rocks down into particle & solutions
• response of earth material to changes in the environment
• Two types.....1) mechanical, and 2) chemical
2 types of sediment
• Clastic - particles
• Chemical - ions
Erosion & Transport
what moves sediment?
4 agents = 1. Gravity, 2. Wind, 3. Water, and 4. Ice
Deposition
• occurs when transport ends
• Sediments deposited within broad regional topographic low areas =>
Basins
Lithification
• converting loose sediment into solid rock
=> burial leads to
a) compaction b) cementation