Geology of the National Parks

week 1

Tuesday, September 25
Introduction to course
Igneous, Metamorphic, Sedimentary rocks
--link here for photographs of different rock types

Reading for Tuesday. Review course syllabus and details. Then read p. 2-11 in Miller. Skim through the book by Rhodes to familiarize yourself with the breadth of geology.

Thursday, September 27.
Rock Cycle
Volcanic Rocks and volcanoes
Intro to Cascade Volcanoes, Intro to Plate Tectonics

Reading for Thursday. Miller, p. 12-20; Rhodes, p. 83-85 (volcanic rocks) and 144-145 (Plate Tectonics). Another excellent source for material is the USGS website for the Cascade Volcano Observatory (http://vulcan.wr.usgs.gov). Make sure you see the connection between different volcanic landforms and the underlying rock type: typically, the more silica-rich a magma is, the more viscous (sticky) it is, which results in steeper and more explosive volcanoes.

On to Week 2

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