Grand Canyon Rock Strata and Vulcan's Throne

          The Grand Canyon is one of the most beautiful National Parks in the United States. It is about 277 miles long and about a mile in depth. I am really fasinated by the different types of colorful rock strata that makes up the Grand Canyon.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/fe/USA_09855_Grand_Canyon_Luca_Galuzzi_2007.jpg

          There are many layers of rocks that form the Grand Canyon. These layers are called Strata, which are sedimentary rocks that are deposited in layers.  The canyon is composed of different kinds of sedimentary rocks such as: shale, sandstone, limestone, and granite. All of these rocks have lithified over time. Geologist use these rock layers to research and learn more about Geological Time Scale, which describes event that occured millions of years ago.

Geological Time Scale
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Geologic_Clock_with_events_and_periods.svg

          The Time scale above describes the history of the universe. The top layers of the Grand Cayon was formed during the Paleozoic Period, over 250 million years ago. As you go down the cayon, the sedimentary rocks get older.


Diagram shows the different layers of sedimentary rocks
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/14/Stratigraphy_of_the_Grand_Canyon.png

               The reason for this formation is due geological processes like uplift of land, breaking down of surrouding land, faulting,weather, and water erosion. Scientist have stated that these processes have been going on for millions of years. These processes also form horst and grobins, mountians, and hills.

          Along with the Grand Canyon, Arizona is also home to another geological site, the Vulcan Volcano. The Vulcan Volcano is cinder cone volcano located on the north rim of the Grand Canyon. When pieces of rock, tephra, are ejected out of the volcano, the tephra falls back down creating a plyroclastic volcano and also forming very small crystals..

Images of Vulcan Volcano

Formation of Cinder Cone Volcano (used from Dr. Casey's ppt)
http://fast.ucdenver.edu/case/1202/Battle/Build/VolcanicEx/tephra_diagrams.gif

Works Cited:
http://fast.ucdenver.edu/case/1202/Battle/Build/VolcanicEx/tephra_diagrams.gif
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/14/Stratigraphy_of_the_Grand_Canyon.png
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Geologic_Clock_with_events_and_periods.svg
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/fe/USA_09855_Grand_Canyon_Luca_Galuzzi_2007.jpg
http://www.und.edu/instruct/mineral/101intro/grandcanyon/grandcan.htm
http://www.obsidianlab.com/pan_toroweap/vulcans_throne_pan.html
http://www.extremescience.com/zoom/index.php/volcanoes/31-cinder-cone-volcanoes
http://www.bobspixels.com/kaibab.org/geology/gc_layer.htm#kl
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grand_Canyon#Geology