Geosphere

Origins
Gross structure
Chemistry
Age

Geosphere
Planetary formation
Solar nebula
Gravitational contraction
Condensation & Accretion
Self-compression

Geosphere
Planetary formation - Earth
Planet-planet collision?

Geosphere
Planetary formation - Earth
Differentiation & zoning
Fe sinks to core
Lighter materials float

Press et al, 2000.

Geosphere
Compositional structure
Crust
Continental
mostly silicate minerals, Si, Al, Na, K, &
Ca rich
Oceanic
Silicate minerals, Si, Al, Fe & Mg rich

Mantle
Silicate minerals, Si, Fe & Mg rich

Core
Metallic, Fe, Ni + ?S ?O ?Si
Image courtesy of USGS - http://pubs.usgs.gov/gip/dynamic/inside.html

Geosphere
Mechanical structure
Lithosphere
Crust + uppermost Mantle
Rock
Rigid and brittle
Asthenosphere
Ductile - plastic
Extremely viscous fluid lithosphere floats
in it
Mesosphere
Stronger due to higher pressure

Core
Outer liquid

Image courtesy of USGS - http://pubs.usgs.gov/gip/dynamic/inside.html

Geosphere

Geosphere
T&P
increase with
depth
Increase T
rocks melt
Increase P
rocks more
solid

Geosphere
Continental crust ~ 2.7 g/cm3 ~35+km thick
Oceanic crust ~ 3 g/cm3 ~10km thick

Geosphere
Where did all the matter come from?
Accretionary disk
Light elements
Heavy elements

Planetary accretion
Initial formation
Bombardments

Image courtesy of USGS - http://pubs.usgs.gov/gip/dynamic/inside.html

Geosphere
Where does the heat come from?
Early Earth
Accretion
Self-compression
Differentiation
Radiogenic isotopes
Short lived
Long lived

Earth today
Radiogenic isotopes
Long lived

Solar radiation
Residual heat of accretion?

Open or closed system?

Geosphere
Earths chemistry set
Elemental abundance
Crust
Oxygen
- 45.2 % by weight
Silicon - 27.2
Aluminium - 8.00
Iron
- 5.80
Calcium
- 5.06
Magnesium - 2.77
Sodium - 2.32
Potassium - 1.68
Titanium
- 0.86
Hydrogen - 0.10
Phosphorus - 0.10
0.77 everything else

Does this reflect the early Earth?

Geosphere
Earths chemistry set
Elemental abundance
Because Oxygen is the most abundant
element
Oxygen + Si + Al + Fe + Ca + Na + K + Mg
minerals
Silicates
Aluminosilicates

Weight % oxides
Eg: SiO2

Why?
Historical wet chemistry
The nature of the beast

Geosphere
Earths chemistry set
Weight % oxides
Eg: SiO2

Historical wet chemistry

gravimetric analysis
precipitating oxides of elements from solution
weighing the precipitate

The nature of the modern beast x-rays

Each element responds @ specific
wavelengths
Not so good for light elements
Oxygen often the only anion present
Get % cations & convert to weight % oxide

Geosphere
Bulk Silicate Earth (BSE)
SiO2 45.4
MgO 36.8
FeO 8.1
Al2O3 4.5
CaO 3.7
Na2O 0.35
TiO2 0.21
Cr2O3 0.37
H20
CO2
K2O

0.11
0.04
0.03

Geosphere
Earths chemistry set

Geosphere
Earths chemistry set

Geosphere
Earths chemistry set
Also contains both STABLE and RADIOACTIVE isotopes
STABLE isotopes provide us with a variety of proxies
H, C, O, N & S

Isotope ratios
Fractionation processes
Tracing origins of fluids / magmas / contamination
Temperatures of mineral formation
Climate change
Diet
Origin of solar system materials

Geosphere
Earths chemistry set
RADIOACTIVE isotopes provide us with clocks in rocks
Parent isotope -> stable daughter isotope + nuclear
particles + heat
Rate of decay is constant and is known
Half-life t
Time for half of parent to decay to daughter

t = ln (D/P + 1) /

We know and t
Sample Parent / Daughter ratio
Calculate age of material

Geosphere
Earths clocks
ALPHA decay
+
+
BETA decay
+
+
Positron decay +

Geosphere
Earths clocks
Sm - 143Nd
87
Rb - 87Sr
232
Th - 208Pb
238
U - 206Pb
236
U - 207Pb
40
K - 40Ar
40
Ar - 39Ar
14
C
. and many others
147

Geosphere
t of elements used in rock clocks
147

Sm -

143

Nd

Rb - 87Sr
232
Th - 208Pb
238
U - 206Pb
236
U - 207Pb
234
U 230Th
87

40

K-

14

40

Ar

- 106 billion years

minerals, meteorites
48 billion years minerals
- 14 billion years
4.5 billion years zircons crystals
0.7 billion years
245,000 years
speleothems up to 500,000 yrs
- 1.248 billion years
igneous rocks

- 5730 years material must contain carbon

even with the most sensitive analysis technique

14
C cannot be used to date anything older than

Geosphere
Closure temperature in minerals
Daughter products may escape until
closure
Radioactive ages/dates tell us
ONLY when the rock was last heated

Look for rocks never heated since they

formed
Minerals with high closure temperatures too!
Rb-Sr in muscovite 500oC
K-Ar in biotite 350 oC
U-Pb in zircon 900oC

Geosphere
So how old is the Earth?
Solar system age: ~4.56 billion years (Ga)
Pb isotopes in meteorites
Formed prior to accretion
Accretion materials older again

Oldest material of terrestrial origin

Zircon of 4.404 0.008 Ga
In a metamorphosed sandstone conglomerate
Jack Hills, Narryer Gneiss Terrane, Western
Australia

Oldest rocks?
Tricky cratons in Australia, South Africa,

Geosphere
Geological time scale
Absolute dates radiometric dates
Relative dates use relationships
Stratigraphic position
Cross cutting relationships
Inclusions
Causality

Geosphere
Geological time scale

Geosphere
Relative dating

Geosphere
Relative dating
The Law of Superposition
Oldest on the bottom
Youngest on the top
Cross-cutting relationships
Teredo worm holes, tar filling
holes
Cannon ball holes, shattered
mast
Iceberg holes, broken hull

Geosphere

Mediterranean

Correlation
Steamshippian

Atlantic

Cannonaceous

Longboatian

Trireamocene

Geosphere

102 05
450 35

1000 55
2500 90

Geosphere

Mediterranean

Correlation
Atlantic

Steamshippian
200

Cannonaceous

614

Longboatian
?

1264
2100

Trireamocene
4000

Geosphere

You are
here

Geosphere

You are
here

Geosphere

Geosphere

Questions?