Lesson 6.

Deformation
of the Crust
Sourced from: Jerome A. Bigael (with some
modifications)
Deformatio
n
Is the process by which
the crust is deformed
along tectonic plate
margins.
Deformation produces a
variety of geologic
structures such as folds,
faults, joints, and foliation.
▪ In general, you can say that a rock has
been deformed if it has been:
▪ Translated (move) from its original position
▪ Changed in orientation (folding, rotation or
tilting)
▪ Changed in shape(distortion)
CONTINENTAL DRIFT - the movement of the Earth’s
continents relative to its other appearing to drift
across the ocean bed.
Alfred Wegener – German meteorologist who said that
continents were once joined together in one large
mass called supercontinent.
PANGAEA – meaning “all land”.
Wegener’s Evidence
• Topographic Evidence
• Fossil Correlation
• Rock Formation
• Paleoclimatic Evidence
Fol
d
Fold can be defined as a
bend in rock that is a
response to compressional
force.
It can be likened to the
waves in the ocean.
Earth has a crest or uphold
And a trough or down fold.
Folds are most visible in
rocks that contained
layering.
 3 types of
Folds
▪ The common types of
folds are the,
anticline, syncline
and monocline.
▪ Anticline = is a
convex up fold in
rock that resembles
an “arch like”
▪ Syncline = a type of fold
where the rock layers
are warped downward.

▪ Monocline = the simplest

type of fold which
involves a slight bend in
otherwise parallel layers
of rock.
▪ More complex fold types
can develop in
situations where lateral
pressures become
greater. Greater
pressure results in
anticline and synclines
that are inclined and
Fault
sFaults form in rocks
when the stresses
overcome the
internal strength of
the rock resulting in
a fracture.
It is defined as the
displacement of
once connected
blocks of rocks
along a fault plane.
▪ There are several kinds of faults, which are
named according with the type of stress
that acts on the rock and by the nature of
the movement of the rock blocks or either
side of the fault plane.
 Type of
▪ Dip-slip-fault
Faults
are faults in which the movement is primarily
parallel to the inclination or dip of the
fault surface.
2 major types of dip slip fault
Normal fault = occurs when
tensional
forces act in opposite directions. This
is sometimes called “gravity fault”.

Reverse fault = reverse fault

develops when
compression forces exist. Compression cause
Graben Fault
Produced when tensional stresses result in
the subsidence of a block of rock. On a
large scale these features are known as
rift valleys.
Horst
Fault
▪ The development of
two reverse fault
causing a block of
rock to be pushed
up.
Strike-slip fault
Are vertical in nature and are
produced where the stresses
are exerted parallel to each
other.
A transform fault is a special
kind of strike-slip fault that cuts
through the lithosphere and
accommodates motion
between two large crustal
Oblique-slip
fault
Happens when many faults
are mixed in slip type.
SEA FLOOR SPREADING.
Harry Hess – American geophysicist theorized that the sea floor is a hundred million
years younger than the continents. Hess’s explanation of sea floor spreading was
mantle convection(plasticity).
PALEOMAGNETISM - proof that supports sea floor spreading it tells us how far from
the poles rocks were when they were formed by looking at the angle of the magnetic
field. ( through the use of magnetometers)
ABYSSAL PLAIN – another raised feature found within ocean basin as small elevated
land form that rises from the great depths of the ocean. “abyss” means very deep
ABYSSAL HILL – edges but it is relatively small generally not higher than 500 ft and a
few miles wide.
OCEAN BASINS – result of tectonic forces and processes and its due to plate
tectonics.
 
STRATIGRAPHY -science of rock strata or layers.
STRATIGRAPHIC LAWS – basic principles that all geologists use in deciphering the
age and characteristics of rock layers. Developed in the 17th to 19th centuries based
upon the work of Steno, James Hutton and William Smith
FUNDAMENTAL PRINCIPLES OF STRATIGRAHY
•PRINCIPLE OF ORIGINAL HORIZONTALITY – most sediments when deposited
form a horizontal or nearly horizontal layers.
•PRINCIPLE OF LATERAL CONTINUITY – rock layers are bounded by the edge of
the basin of deposition.
•PRINCIPLE OF SUPERPOSITION - rock fragments must be older than the rock
containing the fragments.
•PRINCIPLE OF FAUNAL SUCCESSION – principle developed by William Smith were
he noticed the succession of rock layers that the same vertical changes in fossils that
are embedded in rocks occurred in different places.  
GRAND CANYON – a very good example of principles of stratigraphy. It can be found
in Arizona and is close to the borders of Utah and Nevada
 Radio-Carbon Dating – technique measures the decay of C-14 in organic material and
can be best applied to specimens younger than 60000 years.

Uranium Dating – uses very important isotope which is U-238 which is used in dating
very old rocks that do not contain fossils.

5. RADIOACTIVE DATING - method is independent of all physical and chemical

conditions such as temperature, pressure, and chemical agents.

RADIOMETRIC TECHNOLOGY has recently unlocked the clue that reveals the
ancient age of our planet evidence from radiometric dating indicates that the Earth is
about 4.54 Billion years old.
MARKER FOSSILS – or guide fossils or indexed fossils are fossils of animals or plants
that are preserved in the rock record of the Earth that identify a particular span of
geologic time or environment.
GEOLOGIC TIME – chronology of the Earth’s formation, changes, development, and
existence.
-System of chronological measurement that relates stratigraphy to time.

GEOLOGIC TIME SCALE - the history of the Earth is broken into hierarchical set of
divisions for describing geologic time.

MODERN GEOLOGIC TIME SCALE – documents intervals of geologic time relative to

one another and has been continuously developed and updated over the last two
centuries.
 FOUR-LEVEL HIERARVHY OF TIME INTERVALS

EON – very large division of Geologic time equal to a billion years or a very long
period of time.
ERA - smaller time interval that divides an eon. The Phanerozoic is divided into three
eras: Cenozoic, Mesozoic, and Paleozoic.
PERIOD – eras are subdivided into periods and each era has at least two periods
EPOCH – subdivision of epoch can be done for the most recent portion of the geologic
time scale.