geol final

Basin & Range Province

• Tufa is a type of rock formed by mineral deposits from hot springs.
• The super volcano near Mammoth Lakes, California, is a large volcano.
• When it last erupted, the eruptive column of ash reached a high altitude and deposited ash far east from California.
• Evidence suggests the volcano still has magma below the surface.
• A major die-off of trees near Horseshoe Lake was likely due to a specific event.
• Hot springs at Hot Creek are no longer accessible to the public for some reason.

California Deserts

• A desert is an area with low precipitation and arid conditions.
• The three California deserts are the Mojave, Colorado, and Sonoran deserts.
• Orthographic effect influences desert formation via changes in air pressure and precipitation.
• Rain shadows form when moisture-laden air is forced upward over a mountain range, leading to precipitation on one side and aridity on the other.
• The Sierra Nevada's eastern side is drier and less forested than its western side due to rain shadow effect.
• Alluvial fans form from the deposition of sediments carried by streams as they emerge from a mountainous area.
• Bajadas are large, sloping deposits of sediments at the base of mountains, formed by the merging of multiple alluvial fans.
• Desert pavement is a layer of rocks and gravel found on the surface of some deserts; it forms from the constant action of wind and water to sort out the surface materials.
• Inselbergs are isolated rocky hills or mountains that protrude from a flatter surrounding area. They resemble icebergs, as they rise above the surrounding desert landscape.
• Flash floods are common in deserts.
• Borax has a history of usage in different fields.

Earthquakes

• Faults are fractures in the Earth's crust along which rocks slide past.
• Normal faults, reverse faults, thrust faults, and strike-slip faults are different types based on the movement along the fault.
• Normal faults show the hanging wall moving downward relative to the footwall.
• Reverse faults show the hanging wall moving upward relative to the footwall.
• Thrust faults are low-angle reverse faults.
• Strike-slip faults involve horizontal movement.
• Right-lateral strike-slip faults exhibit movement to the right side, and left ones exhibit movement to the left.
• The hanging wall is the block of rock above the fault plane, the footwall is below. The fault plane is the surface that separates them.
• Dip-slip faults involve vertical movement.
• Richter and Mercalli scales are used to measure magnitude in earthquakes.
• Local and moment magnitudes relate to specific measurements, whereas the moment magnitude is usually more reliable and more accurate.
• Seismic waves, like P-waves, S-waves, Raleigh waves and Love waves, are different in that P and S waves are body waves that travel through the earth, while Raleigh and Love waves are surface waves that travel along the Earth's surface.
• Body waves are more destructive than surface waves.

Transverse Ranges, L.A. Basin and Offshore Islands

• The Transverse Ranges are related to the Big Bend in the San Andreas Fault.
• Anticlines and synclines are folds in rock layers.
• Many thrust faults are located at the base of the Transverse Ranges.
• A basin is a low area in the Earth's crust.
• Volcanic rocks in the Santa Monica Mountains originated from volcanic activity.
• The basement rocks in the San Gabriel and San Bernardino Mountains are very old.
• The San Gabriel Mountains are composed of different types of rock.

Channel Islands

• The Channel Islands are part of a chain offshore California.
• They are an extension of the Transverse Ranges.
• Pygmy mammoths lived on some Channel Islands.
• Fossil remains of various organisms are found on these islands.
• One of the islands is an important military base of the US.
• The Channel Islands are destinations for tourists.
• Catalina schist composes one island.

Peninsular Ranges

• The Peninsular Ranges extend from Southern California.
• During the Paleozoic Era, Peninsular Ranges area was different than today.

Mesozoic Peninsular Ranges

• The Peninsular Ranges were formed during a specific time period.
• Composition of the Peninsular Ranges.
• Resemblance to the Sierra Nevada.
• Formation time and geologic era of the Peninsular Ranges Batholith (PRB).
• Subduction processes of the batholith formation.
• PRB's relationship to other western North American batholiths.
• Three regions of the PRB and their differences.
• Pre-batholith rocks: their age relative to the PRB and rock types.
• Pegmatites, their formation, common minerals, host rock type.
• Southern California gemstone mining location and pegmatites variety.
• Gemstone name from Peninsular Ranges pegmatites.