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Q: How can you tell what layer of rock is oldest or youngest?
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Is metamorphic rock the oldest type of rock?

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What information can index fossils give geologists?

Index fossils can tell scientists if an animal or plant was alive in a certain period of time. They may also tell scientists what time period a certain rock layer formed.


How can you tell that the sandstone was not deposited on top of basalt layers?

The sandstone layer is older than the basalt. The older rock cannot be on top of the younger rock. The sandstone and the basalt (or basalt dike) are both deposited at the same depth.


A rock's position within rock layers can tell its?

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How geologists tell time?

RocksRocks have many mysteries to them. Many geologists study the rocks to find out the history of earth. What happened in the past? How was it back then? Have you ever wanted to know what the history of your ancestors? Well the same for geologists, they study it to see what was the weather conditions in the past, how old was the rock, was it eroded, and many other things. To determine that, geologists use their tools to find out all these things. One main tool they use is relative dating, or the sequence in which an event took place. For example, if a geologist fined a rock that was cracked almost half way, he/she will predict that an earthquake took place then wind came and eroded it. Basically, relative dating is saying first, second, third etc.However, when geologists bring the exact time something happens it is called absolute dating. Another thing about rocks is, most of the rocks are layered. The bottom layer of the rock is the oldest and the top is the youngest. When a piece of the rock is missing it is called unconformity. Some of the layers in the rock is larger or smaller than the other layer. This is due to compression for sun light or heat. Some layers may be exposed to the sun and some not. Another tool that is used is relative age. Relative age is when geologists bring two rocks from different places but they are the same age. They examine it to see the differences in these two rocks to see the effects on each environment.This is a figure of layers of a rock. This layer is made of many different types of rocks. As shown in the picture some of the layers are large and some are small. Some are dark and some are light. The top is the youngest and the bottom is the oldest. The layers show you the ages of the rocks.Erosion is when weather conditions happen and it moves materials from one place to another using snow, hail, rain, waves, wind etc. Geologists try to discover what happened in the past that made the rocks go from one place to another. Did an earthquake occur? A volcano eruption? A storm? This is one way how rocks travel around the world. This is how sometimes unconformity happens.

Related questions

What can you tell from undisturbed rock layers?

You can tell the age of the layers. The bottom layer is the oldest and the top is the youngest. When the layers are disturbed they tend to get bent and messed up and you cannot tell the age


What is the methods that tells you which layer of rock is oldest but does not tell you exactly how old?

Relative dating


What does the law of superposition tell us about rock layers?

youngest on top


How can scientists understand what the relevant age of a fossil is?

There are layers of earth that are deposited over time and based on where a fossil is in the layers a scientist can understand what the age of the fossil is relevant to another fossil in a different layer of earth. The law of superposition says that new sediment is deposited on top of old sediment so, the sediment in the bottom layer is the oldest and the sediment at the top is the youngest. Because of this the fossils in the bottom layer are the oldest and the fossils near the top are the youngest. Say you have 10 layers of rock, and the top layer is number 1 (the youngest) and the bottom layer is number 10 (the oldest). Even if a scientist can't tell exactly how old a fossil is if they know it is in a layer deeper than another fossil they know it is older than that fossil so, a fossil from layer 9 is older than a fossil from layer 5 which is also older than a fossil from layer 3. This is relative age. If we take it a step further... If a scientist knows that the fossil in layer 4 is 65 million years old than we not only know the fossils in layer 5-10 are older than the one in layer 4, but that they are all older than 65 million years old. So, the fossils in layer 1-3 would be less than 65 million years old. Scientists can know how old a specific fossil is sometimes based on whether or not it is an index fossil (a fossil that only occurred during a very small, specific interval of time), or if it is possible to carbon date it or something in the same layer.


How do you tell how old a fossil is by the rock layer?

by relative dating or radiometric dating


What is an unconformity what can it tell you?

Type your answer an unconformity indicates where a layer is missing in the strata sequence, so it tells you that there is a missing rock layerhere...


Could you tell me something about realative ages of rocks for a project please?

When you look at a rock that has undisturbed layers, the bottom layers are older and the upper layers are younger. Anytime a rock layer crosses another (ie. an intrusion), the crossing layer is younger.


How can you tell if a mesa or butte was formed by lava?

Mesas and buttes are formed by differential erosion where a tough layer of rock protects weaker ones below it. If the top layer of rock is a volcanic rock such as basalt, then it was formed as an indirect result of volcanic activity. The whole rock formation may not by volcanic, as lava may flow over sediment.


Is metamorphic rock the oldest type of rock?

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Who is the youngest member of the Saturdays?

Vanessa is the youngest saturday. It may not look like it , but she even said it herself. Go to youtube and type in vanessa what goes on tour stays on tour. She will tell you that she is the youngest


How old are the stars in spiral galaxies?

A spiral galaxy is just a type of galaxy but I can tell you that the stars in the middle are the oldest and the ones on the outside are the youngest.


What information can index fossils give geologists?

Index fossils can tell scientists if an animal or plant was alive in a certain period of time. They may also tell scientists what time period a certain rock layer formed.