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Chapter 2: Journey to the Center of the Earth

Geotours

Download Geotours.

Getting Started :

If you haven’t done it already, download Google Earth™ and install it on your computer.
If you haven’t done it already, download the Geotours.kmz file and save a copy to your desktop. (The Geotours.kmz file contains the Geotours for all chapters, so you only need to download this once!)
By downloading Geotours.kmz you acknowledge that it was created solely to accompany Steve Marshak's Earth: Portrait of a Planet and Essentials of Geology and is limited to use with only Steve Marshak's Earth: Portrait of a Planet and Essentials of Geology and may not be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form by any means for any other purpose without the written permission of the publisher.
Double-click the Geotours.kmz file and Google Earth™ will open automatically.
In the left-hand sidebar you will see a Places menu, and in the Temporary Places folder you will see an EARTH_3e.kmz file. Double-click the file and you will see a list of Geotours for each chapter.
Then open the Geotour folder you want to explore! If you’d like to read more about the features of Geotours see Using Geotours, or go to our Helpful Resources section.

STOPS ON GEOTOUR 2: The Variety of Earth's Surface

Distant View of the Earth

See also Worksheet Problems 1-3

Eastern Greenland

See also Worksheet Problem 4
"What a Geologist Sees" Geofeatures: Ice Sheet, Tidewater Glacier, Medial Moraine, Lateral Moraine, Valley Glacier, U-Shaped Valley, and Terminal Moraine
Greenland Coastal Tour

Southern Alps, New Zealand
Pacific Ocean

See also Worksheet Problem 5
"What a Geologist Sees" Geofeatures: Juan de Fuca Mid-Ocean Ridge, Aleutian Trench, and Emperor Seamount Chain

Midwestern United States

See also Worksheet Problems 6-7

A Sand Sea in Saudi Arabia

GEOTOUR 2 WORKSHEET

Google Earth^TM and NASA World Wind allow you to sense what a space traveler orbiting the Earth would see if there were no clouds, almost no sea ice, and if features of the sea floor were visible. Let's orbit the Earth, and then look more closely at examples of its surface.

Distant View of the Earth

1. Turn on the menu View --> Grid to show latitude and longitude grid lines. The placemarks labeled Problem 1a and b are centered in two different 10°×10° latitude-longitude boxes (double-click on the placemarks to fly to them):
- Placemark 1a = Box 1a = 0-10°N, 20-30°W
- Placemark 1b = Box 1b = 40-50°N, 20-30°W
Use the Measuring Tool to measure the distance between the sides of the boxes (i.e., measure the bottom and the right side of each box [in km] and record the values).

(a) How many km constitute a degree of latitude?

(b) How many km constitute a degree of longitude?

Which of these values changes as you go from the equator to the pole, and how does it change? Explain why the change happens. (Hint: You can measure other latitude and longitude boxes (e.g., 1°×1°, 5°×5°, etc.) to test your concept.)

The transition from continental crust to oceanic crust produces distinctive features on the Earth's surface. This transition is visible on Google EarthTM imagery.

(a) Match the placemarks labeled Problem 3a, b, and c to the corresponding landform (double-click on one of the placemarks to fly to the appropriate area):
1) continental shelf (the submerged edge of a continent)

2) continental slope (the relatively steep seaward edge of the shelf)

3) abyssal plain (the deep, broad, low-relief area of the ocean floor)

(b) Look at the image of the Bahamas (Image G2.2). Is the shallow-water region adjacent to the Bahamas on the continental shelf or the abyssal plain?

Eastern Greenland

Double-click on the placemark for Problem 4. You will zoom to an elevation of 350 km above the southern horn of Greenland. Erosion, the grinding away of the land due to the flow of glaciers, has produced deep valleys. Parts of the valleys have filled with water; these water-filled valleys are called fjords. Look at the orientation of the valleys and fjords in this region. Note that these features are not randomly oriented—many share the same compass orientation or “trend.”

(a) What are the dominant trends of valleys and fjords at the southern horn of Greenland? (Express your answer as a compass orientation, such as: N–S, NE–SW, WNW–SSE)

(b) Researchers using the scientific method try to come up with multiple working hypotheses to explain geologic phenomena. Propose at least one working hypothesis that can explain why fjords and valleys of Eastern Greenland follow distinct trends.

Pacific Ocean

Image G2.9 shows the broad expanse of the Pacific Ocean. Along the edges of the Pacific Ocean, in general, you do not find broad continental shelves but instead see deep ocean trenches. In Chapters 3 and 4, you will learn that a chain of active volcanoes, called a volcanic arc, borders a trench. Thus, the edge of the Pacific is commonly known as the Ring of Fire. Double-click and check the box next to the placemarks labeled Problem 5a and b in Google Earth^TM. Fly to Problem 5a and zoom to an elevation of 700 km. You will be looking at the SW end of the Kuril Trench, near its intersection with the Japan Trench.

(a) Which of the following "visual features" makes the trench stand out as a deep trough on Google Earth^TM imagery (check all that apply)?

1) reflections from the water

2) dark shadows on the NW wall of the trench

3) dark shadows on the SE wall of the trench

4) lighter water color

(b) NW of the placemark you can see the Kuril Islands, just NE of Japan. There are several volcanoes on these islands. Turn on the layer “Geographic Features” in the Layers panel. What is the name of the closest volcano to Placemark 5a?

(c) How far is this volcano from the deepest part of the trench, as measured in a direction perpendicular to the trench axis (km)? This distance is called the arc-trench gap.

(d) Using the “Geographic Features,” find the volcano named Berutarube and the one named Lvinaya Past in the nearby Kuril Islands. Zoom down to about 60 km, tilt your view, and fly around the two volcanoes. You will learn about volcanic landforms in Chapter 7, but even without this knowledge you should be able to see that these two volcanoes are very different in shape. Describe this difference and suggest a hypothesis for why the difference occurs.

(e) Fly to the second placemark (Problem 5b), along the coast of South America. You will be looking down on the South American Trench. Is the width of the arc-trench gap at Placemark 5b larger or smaller than the one at Placemark 5a?

(f) Based on your answer to Problem5e, is the arc-trench gap constant? (You will learn about factors that control the arc-trench gap in Chapter 4.)

Midwestern United States

Double-click and check the box next to the placemarks labeled Problem 6a and b in Google Earth^TM, and fly to each one in turn. This trip takes you south, along the Wabash River Valley in Indiana.

(a) Placemark 6a puts you 2.5 km above a circular pattern on the ground. What is this feature? (Hint: You might want zoom out to 20 km to see its context.)

(b) Where is the nearest wooded area (forest), relative to Placemark 6a? Give both direction and distance. Why was this forested area left uncut (i.e., not used for agriculture)? (Hint: Which area is hillier?)

(c) Placemark 6b puts you above a landscape that looks quite different from its surroundings. Zoom out to 15 km and compare the area directly around Placemark 6b to the areas 5 km away in any direction. Suggest an explanation for the landscape around Placemark 6b. (Hint: Some of the bedrock layers of western Indiana contain coal).

Further south, at Placemark 7, humans utilized the landscape much as they did at Placemark 6b, and then tried to restore (“reclaim”) the land surface, by using bulldozers to smooth out irregularities. On this image the restored land is the unforested, light green area. Zoom in on Placemark 7. Note the orange color of the water in nearby streams near the reclaimed area. This color comes from iron that has precipitated from seeps from the reclaimed area and from bacteria that grow in water enriched in chemicals that seep out of disturbed land (as you will learn in Chapter 14). Has reclamation been completely successful? Explain.

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StudySpace: Chemistry 2e.

Organize

Learn

Connect

Chapter 2: Journey to the Center of the Earth

Geotours

Getting Started :

STOPS ON GEOTOUR 2: The Variety of Earth's Surface

GEOTOUR 2 WORKSHEET

Distant View of the Earth

Eastern Greenland

Pacific Ocean

Midwestern United States