4.1 Geology And UK

Question 1

Give a definition, approximate age, 3 examples and location in UK of igneous rocks.

Answer 1

• Igneous rock- created by volcanic activity when magma or lava cools forming rocks made of crystals that are usually hard.
• Age- 300 million years up.
• EG- Granite, basalt and obsidian.
• Location- NW of the UK.

Question 2

Give a definition, approximate age, 3 examples and location in UK of sedimentary rocks.

Answer 2

• Sedimentary rock- formed of small particles that have been eroded, transported and deposited in layers, or from the remains of plants and animals.
• Age- 200 million years to 0.
• EG- Siltstone, shale and sandstone.
• Location- SE of the UK.

Question 3

Compare metamorphic and igneous rock.

Answer 3

Igneous rocks-
•Formed by cooling.
•Can be found on the surface or beneath the surface.
•Contain crystals of different sizes depending on the cooling speed or the composition of the magma that cooled to create it.
Metamorphic rocks-
•Formed by high pressure or heat
•Start off as any type of rock
•Pressure changes the chemical composition of the rock causing it to become a different rock.

Question 4

Compare the formation and characteristics of granite and carboniferous limestone.

Answer 4

C.Limestone-
•From decomposed plants and animals.
•Cemented and compacted over time.
•Formed during the carboniferous period.
•Horizontal layers and vertical joints.
•Quite permeable.
Granite-
•Formed underground by magma cooling.
•Formed over a fairly long period.
•Crystals formed while cooling.
•Not permeable.

Question 5

Compare the formation and characteristics of chalk and slate.

Answer 5

Chalk-
•Younger version of limestone.
•Very porous.
•Marine organisms that died and were cemented and compressed.
Slate-
•Formed underground.
•Formed by high pressure and heat from muds or shale.
•Very resistant

Question 6

Explain when and how active volcanoes shaped the uplands of the UK.

Answer 6

• 520 million years ago.
• Stretch of volcanoes to the NW of where the UK is now.
• Lots of volcanoes means lots of igneous rock.

Question 7

Explain how glacial erosion and deposition shaped the UK uplands.

Answer 7

• Covered in ice sheets and glaciers.
• Glaciers moved causing them to erode on all sides.
• Huge U-shaped valleys were created and high peaks as well.
• Corries were created.
• Morraines were created.

Question 8

Explain when and how sedimentary rock was formed across the UK Lowlands.

Answer 8

• 200 million years ago to 0.
• The UK was largely under a tropical ocean teeming with life.
• Dead marine organisms were compressed and cemented over time under the sea.
• Tectonic movement caused them to rise above the sea.

Question 9

Explain how glacial deposition shaped the UK Lowlands.

Answer 9

• 200 million years ago to 0.
• Glaciers from the NW picked up sediment they eroded.
• The glaciers flowed SE while carrying all the sediment.
• In the SE, they melted leaving deposition mounds and morraines.
• They also flowed right through parts of it creating scarp and vale topography.

Question 10

Explain how scarp and vale topography forms in the UK Lowlands.

Answer 10

• Anticline created by tectonic processes.
• Glacier flowed through it cutting a U-shape right through it.
• Escarpments and dip slopes on either side were created.
• The bottom part is called a vale/weald.