GEO 120 Lecture Notes - Lecture 8: Continental Crust, Bighorn Sheep, Superheated Water
3 Oct 2016
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Geo 120 - lectue 8 - yellowstone national park - elizabeth laliberte. Much further inland than traditional volcanic arc location. Runs diagonally across the sw part of the park. Yellowstone river goes to atlantic ocean via gulf of mexico. Snake river flows to the pacific ocean. Formed by 3 major caldera- creating volcanic eruptions. Average elevation 8,000 feet above sea level. Located around the margins of the volcanic field. Basalt- higher in iron and magnesium, less viscous (flows) Rhyolite- higher silica, more viscous (does not flow), explosive eruptions. Igneous rock formed from explosive volcanic eruptions. Large explosive eruptions spread enormous volumes of hot, fragmented volcanic rocks as pyroclastic flows. Hot ash, pumice and other rock fragments welded together from their heat and weight to form extensive sheets. Some sections more than 400 m thick. Native americans lived there for at least 11,000 years. For the benefit and enjoyment of the people. No magmatic eruptions since the late pleistocene.
