How Layers of Rocks (Stratified Rocks) Are Formed

Question 1

They are formed on or near the Earth’s surface from the compression of ocean sediments or other processes.

Answer 1

Sedimentary Rocks

Question 2

Plural of Stratum

Answer 2

Strata

Question 3

Sedimentary rocks are those rocks formed from sediment- material like __

Answer 3

sand, gravel, mud, and ions in solution

Question 4

layers of sediment were originally deposited horizontally under the action of gravity. It suggests that all rock layers are originally laid down (deposited) horizontally and can later be deformed. This allows us to infer that something must have happened to the rocks to make them tilted.

Answer 4

Law of Original Horizontality

Question 5

Are formed from particles of older rocks that have been broken apart by water or wind.

Answer 5

Sedimentary Rocks

Question 6

The rock layers are formed by _______ and _________ of mountains and the particles are transported and deposited in the sedimentary basin, then the sediment particles are cemented over hundreds of years to form layers. These sediments are deposited horizontally by gravity.

Answer 6

Erosion and Weathering

Question 7

Mud becomes __________ or __________

Answer 7

Mudstone or Shale

Question 8

Sand becomes _________

Answer 8

Sandstone

Question 9

A basic law of geochronology, stating that in any undisturbed sequence of rocks deposited in layers, the youngest layer is on top and the oldest on bottom, each layer being younger than the one beneath it and older than the one above it.

Answer 9

Law of Superposition

Question 10

The layers range from ________________________________ in thickness and vary greatly in shape.

Answer 10

several millimeters to many meters

Question 11

The horizontal layers, or beds, present in most sedimentary rocks.

Answer 11

Stratum

Question 12

a buried erosional or non-depositional surface that separates two different-age rock masses or strata, indicating that the deposition of sediments was not continuous.

Answer 12

Law of Unconformities

Question 13

Gravel becomes ______________

Answer 13

Conglomerate

Question 14

With the passage of time and the accumulation of more particles, and often with chemical changes, the ____________ at the bottom of the pile become rock.

Answer 14

Sediments

Question 15

The geologic feature which cuts another is the younger of the two features.

Answer 15

Law of Crosscutting Relationship

Question 16

May range from thin sheets that cover many square kilometers to thick lens like bodies that extend only a few meters lateral.

Answer 16

Strata

Question 17

the layering that occurs in most sedimentary rocks and in those igneous rocks formed at the Earth’s surface, as from lava flows and volcanic fragmental deposits.

Answer 17

Stratification

Question 18

General rules, or laws, that we use to determine how rocks were created and how they changed through time

Answer 18

Geological Principles

Question 19

the layers of rock are continuous until they encounter other solid bodies that block their deposition or until they are acted upon by agents that appear after deposition takes place such as erosion and fault movements.

Answer 19

Law of Lateral Continuity