Geologic Processes on Earth’s Surface

 The Earth is constantly changing through the

years.
 According to the Continental Drift Theory
proposed by Alfred Wegener, the Earth was
once a giant landmass called Pangaea.
 This giant landmass was broken down into
several continents because of the movement
beneath the Earth’s surface.
 Geologic Processes on Earth’s
Surface
 Shaping the Earth’s surface involves a geological
process called weathering. Weathering is the process
of breaking down rocks into smaller pieces
called sediments.
 Different Types of Weathering
 All
rocks undergo weathering, and it takes a long
period. There are three different types of rock
weathering: mechanical weathering, chemical
weathering, and biological weathering.
Mechanical weathering
 Mechanical weathering is a process wherein rocks are broken
down into smaller pieces without changing its chemical
composition due to different temperatures and water.
 Rocks in the highway develop cracks and small fractures
because of too much exposure to heat.
 This activity is an example of mechanical weathering.
Chemical weathering
 Chemical weathering is a process wherein rock materials are changed
into other substances that have different physical and chemical
compositions.
 Some agents of chemical weathering include water, strong acids, and
oxygen.
 Water hydrates and breaks the minerals in the rocks through the process
of hydrolysis. Oxygen combines with metals to produce oxides while
acids from vents and volcanoes increase the speed of weathering
process.
 One example of chemical weathering in rocks is when rainwater
hydrolyzed the feldspar minerals to form clay minerals.
Biological weathering
 Biologicalweathering is a process when living things,
such as insects and roots of the trees, contribute to the
disintegration of rock materials.
 For
example, mosses and fungi that grow on rocks
produce weak acids that can destroy or dissolve the
rocks.
Erosion
 Erosion is the transportation of weathered
rocks.
 Agents like running water or rivers, wind,
gravity, groundwater, wave currents, and
glaciers contribute to erosion.
Types of Erosion
 Water erosion is a type of erosion where the water carries the
sediments to different parts of the bodies of water such as
rivers.
 Wind erosion happens when light materials, such as small
rocks and pebbles, are carried by wind to different places.
 Glacial erosion happens when the ice moves downhill and
plucks out chunks of rocks and causes scraping between the
ice and the rock. Plucking and scraping can lead to the
development of other landforms if, for example, the glaciers
hit a mountain and erode it.
 Soil erosion happens when the top soil is removed and leaves
the soil infertile. This is caused by wind or flood in an area.
Deposition

 Deposition is the laying down of sediments to its

depositional environment or final destination. The
depositional environment can be continental,
coastal, or marine.
 Continental includes streams, swamps, caves,
and deserts.
 Coastal includes lagoons, estuaries, and deltas.
 Marine includes slopes and bottom of the ocean
or abyssal zone.
Key Points
 Weathering is the process of breaking down rocks into
smaller pieces called sediments.
 Erosionis the removal of weathered rocks
downslope from the original place of
weathering.
 Deposition is the laying down of sediments to its
depositional environment or final destination.
Geologic Processes
Inside the Earth
 Internal Heat of the Earth
 The Earth has three main layers: the crust or the outermost layer,
the mantle or the middle layer, and the core or the innermost
layer.
 The crust is composed of solid rocks and minerals. It holds all
known life forms on Earth.
 The mantle is made up of mostly solid rocks and minerals but
have areas of semi-solid magma.
 The core is made up of dense metal, specifically, nickel and
iron. It is also considered as the center and the hottest part of
the Earth.
 Mantle convection
 Mantle convection is the movement of the
mantle as heat is transferred from the core to the
crust. The temperature of the mantle varies
depending whether it is near the crust or near the
boundary of the core. The principal contributors
to the heat of the core come from the decay of
radioactive elements and from the heat of the
molten outer core which solidifies near the inner
core.
 Earth’s heat budget
Earth’s heat budget drives most of the
geological processes on Earth. This measures
the flow of thermal energy coming from the
core, passing through the mantle, and up to
the atmosphere, which is mainly due to the
mantle convection. This, however, is
counteracted by the solar radiation.
Magmatism
 Magmatism is the activity or the motion of the magma.
 Rocks that are subjected to high temperature and pressure
melt and become the magma.
 Magma is a semi-liquid molten rock mixture that can be found
in the lower portion of the crust and the upper part of the
mantle.
 Depending on the temperature, pressure, and formations in
the crust and the mantle, the magma can be formed in
different ways.
Plutonism
 On 1788, James Hutton developed the idea about plutonism.
 He stated that the formation of intrusive igneous rocks or
plutonic rocks came from the solidification of magma
beneath the Earth’s surface.
 These rocks will reach the Earth’s surface through the process
of uplifting - a force that pulls the crust apart and lets the rocks
from the underground to be brought up.
 When the hot molten magma does not solidify, it will be
brought up to the Earth’s surface through uplifting.
 When the magma reaches the surface, it becomes lava -
streams of molten rocks that cool and solidify to form extrusive
igneous rocks.
Volcanism
 Magma is being brought up to the surface through a
volcano.
 Volcano
is any opening in the Earth’s crust that allows
magma and gases to be released in the upper crust.
 Thisprocess of bringing up the magma is
called volcanism.
 Key Points
 The three layers of the Earth are the crust, the mantle, and the core.
 The principal contributors to the heat of the Earth's core are the decay of radioactive
elements and the heat of the molten outer core near the inner core.
 Mantle convection is the movement of the mantle as heat is transferred from the core to
the crust.
 Earth’s heat budget drives most of the geologic processes on Earth.
 Magma are rocks that melted when subjected to high temperature and pressure.
 Magmatism is the activity or the motion of magma.
 Plutonism is the formation of intrusive igneous rocks through the solidification of magma
beneath the Earth’s surface.
 Volcanism is the phenomenon of an eruption of magma onto the surface of the Earth.
 Volcano is the opening on the Earth’s crust where magma, gases, and hot vapor are
being ejected or released.
 Lava is the cooled and solidified magma upon reaching the Earth’s surface.
Metamorphism and
Its Effects in Rock
Formation
 Igneous Rock

 Igneous come from the Latin word ignis which means

heat or fire.
 Igneous rocks are formed when the magma or lava
cools and solidifies.
 It may happen below (plutonic) or above (volcanic)
the Earth’s surface.
 Igneous Rock
 The types of igneous rocks depend on where they solidified and hardened.
Some igneous rocks solidified before they were ejected and some igneous
rocks are formed after they reach the ground.
 Two Types of Igneous Rocks
 Intrusive igneous rocks are formed when the magma hardens before an
eruption occurs. Different rock materials allow the formation of intrusive
igneous rocks. The most common example is granite. Granite is used in floor
tiles and monuments.
 Extrusive igneous rocks are formed when the lava cools and solidifies on the
Earth’s surface. The texture of these rocks is finer as compared to the intrusive
igneous rocks. Due to slow cooling of the lava, large crystals are formed on
the rocks. The most common example is basalt. Basalt is used for
construction purposes such as pavements, railroads, and road base.
Metamorphism of Rocks
 When you expose igneous rocks to intense heat and
pressure, they could undergo metamorphism.
 Metamorphism is the process of change in the form and
structure of rocks due to intense heat and pressure.
 It comes from the Greek word metamorphoun meaning
transform or change shape.
 The rocks that undergo metamorphism are converted
to metamorphic rocks.
Types of Metamorphism
 1. Contact metamorphism is the process where the country
rock adjacent to the igneous intrusions is altered by the high
heat coming from the intrusions.
 Country rocks are rocks surrounding the igneous intrusions.
 Igneous intrusions form when molten magma moves and
seeps through fractures and in between crystals of rocks.
 The zone of metamorphosis that surrounds the intrusions is
called halo or aureole. Some examples of rocks that
undergo contact metamorphism include marble and emery
rock.
Types of Metamorphism
 2. Dynamic metamorphism is the process where rocks along
the fault zones are altered due to high pressure. The rocks
that are formed with this type of metamorphism are called
mylonites. Mylonites are compact, fine-grained rocks with
thin laminations or layers.
 3. Regional metamorphism is the most common form of
metamorphism that occurs in broad areas. It is caused by
high temperature and pressure that resulted from the
thickening of the crust and plate tectonics.