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Marine fossils form when creatures die and sink to the bottom where there is little oxygen, and are covered with sediment. If sediment continues to accumulate, after many years its weight will crush the deposit, and in combination with well known chemical processes, can cement it into sandstone. Later, if the sea floor it lifted by any of a number of (again, well understood) geological processes, what was once the sea floor can become part of a mountain. Such a mountain can form in a few million years, where fossils have been forming for 3 BILLION years.

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How did marine fossils end up on top of the Guadalupe mountains?

because they were covered by oceans millions of years ago.


Why do geologists look for fossilized creatures and plants on mountaintops far from water?

The geologists look for fossils on mountaintops because the wind blows sand and small fossilized creatures on the tops of mountains. They also look up there because sealevel used to be much higher so creatures could still end up on the top.


Scientist have found fossils on the tops of mountain?

The discovery of fossils on mountain tops supports the theory of plate tectonics, as it indicates that these areas were once at lower elevations where fossils could form. Over time, the movement of tectonic plates pushed these areas upwards to form mountains, carrying the fossils with them. This provides evidence of the dynamic nature of the Earth's crust and the processes that shape the planet's surface.


What is one reason why fossils are found in the Ural Mountains?

Some scientists believed that a great flood left the fossils on Ural mountains. Other scientists believed that there were subcontinents that collide with each other creating the mountains by pushing the tectonic plates up.


How can rocks on high mountains have fossils?

The material on the mountains was not always up there. Mountains are generally created by what is called uplift. And places that were under water and then had remains laid down and fossilized can be uplifted through long periods of time to create mountains. The fossils are then found up there in the mountains. The geologic process is fairly well understood and modeled by geologists.


What are fossil animals?

Animals that end up being fossils in a rock.


A poem from the falling up book?

Falling Up I tripped on my shoelaceAnd I fell up--Up to the roof tops,Up over the town,Up past the tree tops,Up over the mountains,Up where the colorsBlend into the sounds.But it got me so dizzyWhen I looked around,I got sick to my stomachAnd I threw down.


How could jagged mountain peaks become rounder?

Through harsh winds constantly battering the mountain tops possibly earthquakes which could end up grinding two mountains together,the friction of which could cause the peaks to round off.


Do mountains build up near the centre of plates?

No. Mountains are formed when the end of tectonic plates collide pushing one side up or both.


Who dig up fossils?

paleontologist


How can fossils found high in mountains be explained?

The Himalayan Mountains were gradually "pushed up" by plate tectonic shifts over several eons, but their peaks had at one time been below sea level - and covered by a shallow sea. That is where the fossils came from.


Why are ocean fossils found on top of Rocky Mountains?

Obviously the soil and rocks that are now on top of the mountain were once underneath the ocean. This occurs when the ground is raised up from beneath the sea by plates colliding and raising mountains.