Click on the links below to view animations created specifically for Earth: Portrait of a Planet.
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Geologic History

A cross-section through the earth reveals the variety of geologic features. View 1 of this animation identifies a variety of geologic features; View 2 animates the sequence of events that produced these features, and demonstrates how geologists apply established principles to deduce geologic history.

Unconformity

The photo shows the Siccar Point unconformity in Scotland, on the coast about 60 km east of Edinburgh; the sketch shows a geologist’s interpretation of the unconformity.

Types of Unconformity

This animation shows the stages in the development of three main types of unconformity in cross-section, and explains how an incomplete succession of strata provides a record of Earth history. View 1 shows a disconformity, View 2 shows a nonconformity and View 3 shows an angular unconformity.

Grand Canyon Stratigraphic Column

The succession of rocks in the Grand Canyon can be divided into formations based on notable changes in rock type and changes in fossil assemblages

Additional Resources

The abundance of geology-related websites speaks to the active and exciting nature of this field. In the space below we link to external websites that explore topics covered in this chapter.

These links are selected carefully and updated regularly; however, their contents may change over time. Please click here to report a bad or missing link.

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	Visualizing Geology in 3-D 10/14/2004 Stephen J. Reynolds, Arizona State University
		This rich collection of resources created by Steve Reynolds illustrates how subsurface geology interacts with land surfaces, and demonstrates how geologic maps work.

	The Hadean Eon 5/23/2005 Palaeos
		Discusses the principal geological events that happened during the Hadean, the earliest interval of geologic time.