Given the law of superposition and assuming an undisturbed "pancake" stratigraphy each successive layer is younger than the the underlying one. Therefore, the fault is the 'youngest' feature in the system because the rocks need to form first in order for a fault to truncate them.
100 year old
The Law of Cross-Cutting Relationships would be used here. If a fault cuts across a rock unit, it is younger than that rock unit. If a fault cuts across a series of rocks, but suddenly stops at a rock unit, then that rock unit which the fault stops at is younger than the fault. So let's say the order of rocks (from top to bottom), is A B C D. If the fault cuts across B C and D, but not A, then the age of the fault is sometime between A and B. If you know the absolute ages of A and B (let's say, rock A is 100 million years old and rock B is 200 million years old), then the age of the faulting is between 100 and 200 million years ago.
Young, older, and oldest rock
If a fault or intrusion cuts through an unconformity, the fault or intrusion is younger than all the rocks it cuts through above and below the unconformity.
If a fault or intrusion cuts through an unconformity, the fault or intrusion is younger than all the rocks it cuts through above and below the unconformity.
100 year old
100 year old
How could the rock be faulted if it came after the faulting? It wouldn't be there to fault. So therefore, what ever the fault cuts through, it must be younger than it in order for it to be able to cut the rock in the first place.
100 year old
100 year old
100 year old
100 year old
Younger than all three sediments.
What is the relative age of a fault that cuts across three horizontal sedimentary rock layers?A. The fault is older than the middle layer. B.The fault is younger than all the layers it cuts across.C. The fault is the same age as the top layer. D. The fault is older than all the layers it cuts across == ==
The Law of Cross-Cutting Relationships would be used here. If a fault cuts across a rock unit, it is younger than that rock unit. If a fault cuts across a series of rocks, but suddenly stops at a rock unit, then that rock unit which the fault stops at is younger than the fault. So let's say the order of rocks (from top to bottom), is A B C D. If the fault cuts across B C and D, but not A, then the age of the fault is sometime between A and B. If you know the absolute ages of A and B (let's say, rock A is 100 million years old and rock B is 200 million years old), then the age of the faulting is between 100 and 200 million years ago.
The fault will be younger than the rocks it faulted (cross-cutting relationships).
"The fossils found in this rock layer are older than the fossils found in the layer above it." "The granite intrusion is younger than the surrounding sedimentary rocks." "The volcanic ash layer is slightly older than the layer of soil above it." "The erosion pattern on the hillside indicates that the granite rocks are older than the layers of sediment deposited on top of them." "The cross-cutting relationship between the fault and the layers of rock indicate that the fault is younger than the rock layers it cuts through."