Tuesday, November 30, 2010

Badlands Geology

In science, it is our duty to ask "Why?" and "How?" questions about things that are around us (like rocks). Then it is our duty to blog about it. I have a couple of those questions for you, Crazy 8s:

This is a picture taken in the Badlands of South Dakota (there are other "badlands", too). The rocks that you see are sedimentary rocks, and they have NOT always been there. Use your knowledge of the rock cycle to answer these questions: (If you need a refresher, view the rock cycle prezi in the blog post below this one.)

  1. How did these sedimentary rocks get here? (What are some of the events that could lead to the formation of sedimentary rocks?) Be specific.
  2. Some of the layers of sedimentary rock have a dark, reddish color. This is due to the oxidation (rusting) of the iron present in those rocks. Oxidation/Weathering happens the fastest when the air is hot and humid. However, the current climate of the Badlands is often cold and dry. How can this be explained? What can scientists conclude about the history of this region?

55 comments:

taryn c said...

the sedimentary rocks there today were probably eroded, weathered and deposited there by a river or something.

Water, moisture, and heat speed up the process

Katie T. said...

1. I think they got there by When Magma cooled and deposition took place in moving the rocks to this location.
2. I think this takes place when water be comes acid and touchs the badlands; which would change the color.

MartinL said...

1. The dirt probably built up & the water from a rainfall built up & the a rock formed, their was either salt in the rain or something like that & then a sedimeteary rock was formed.

2. Yes, it is part of chemical weathering because of the oxidation, & because that it breaks down the rock & leaves it with a funky color?

Kevin M said...

Erosion could have worn down at the sides to make it tall, weathering makes it bumpy and sharp on the sides, the deposition of rock made it look taller also.
The color can change because of oxygen, water, and other impurities that add to the speed. It may be like that but there are other possible solutions.

corey brewers said...

1. It should be humid to form the rocks up and make them break off.

2. the rocks have been formed by wind and water. there was a water line at the top and it evaporated and went down and it started to make lines on the rock. Also they have been broken down from chemical wethering of acid rain.

Nevada R said...

1.) I believe the sedimentary rocks got there by erosion and weathering at some point water had carved the rocks for the way they are now. Also Weathering may have happened by the snow fall and the acid rain. also by how humid it is and how hot it is.
2.)Some examples that make the rustion happen faster is the down fall of water or acid rain. And my thought on the commeical weathering being what condusive the bad lands I would have to say yes because the humid and air and the water helps create a chemical weathering that can not be reversed.

Olivia thompson said...

1. the sedimetry rocks that are in the bad lands where probaly ounce bigger rocks that were weathered down by wind rain and water.The weathering made the rocks smaller so that the water could carry it down river. Or the rocks could have been carryed by a glarier a long time ago , htat formed the bad lands and left the rocks there.

2.Oxgen in the air causes rust . this process can be speed up by hot and humid. Both of these the badlands have making the rock red.

connor h said...

the sedimentary rock could have got their by deposition and erosion wind could have picked it up.

if its humid it cold lead to faster oxidation no because its hot and there would be no water for it to oxidize or commit chemical weathering.

hayley. h. said...

1. The sedimentary rock got there by weathering to many rocks and then cementation put all the rocks together. Much of the rock has been eroded. It is possible that some of the badlands have been formed by a riving that weathered away at the rock.

2.The oxidation/rusting process is sped up by a very warm and humid climate. usually it does but south dakota is always very humid and in the summers it gets very very hot.

Mercedes D. said...

1) Sedimentary rocks were broken down with weathering and erosion and traveled into a body of water with deposition. They settled in the bottom and built up layers. The river then dried up leaving Sedimentary rocks.
2) Conditions that speed the process of oxidation are humidity and moisture in the air. It should be hot and humid. No, because it is very dry without much water and it doesnt get very hot.

riley olson said...

1. rain could have formed sedimentary rocks over a very long period of time.

2. In the badlands it must be very hot and humid, or a long time ago when the rocks were starting to form it was wet and hot. somwhere along the line these conditions in the badlands caused the rock to be this color

Adam A. said...

1. Sedimentary rocks contain pieces broken off of other rocks by weathering. When there is enough water, the pieces broken off the rock (sediment) may flow into a river and be deposited somewhere. After time, a river may have deposited the rocks of the Badlands to where they are now.

2. Oxidation occurs after some time. When the climate is hot and humid, it will speed up the process of oxidation. The Badlands are colored red because they oxidate quickly because the climate of its location is hot and humid.

Josh B. said...

1.Sedimentary rocks form when wind and water break down the earths layers.
2.It will be hot and humid to form chemical weathering.

Austin Eastman said...

1. Wind and water break down the earth. Bits of earth settle in lakes and rivers. Layers are formed and build up. Presure and time turn the layers to rock.
2. In SouthDakota it gets hot and humid.

Jordan D. said...

1: the sedimentery rock got could have gotten there from many different ways. such as, it could have been carried by snow, melted or falling, by wind, or by water. over millions of years, all differnt types of outside forces have been moving different types of sediment from all over, especially windstorms, rivers overflowing, and blizards. The different layers represent different times that the sediment arrived.
2:the rock that is rusting does not get rust over night. it takes thousands of years for miss coloring such as this. EX. the statue of liberty took hundereds of years to become oxidized and green. the Badlands are no exeption to nature. and, due to the hot, humid weather, the Badlands are a choice place to make rust.

ntemple said...

1. Sedimentary rock came here by particles of sand and clay get weathered down hills and mountains and then it gets eroded through rivers and deposited into oceans to make sediment.
2. Ways of increasing oxidation are heat and weathering. In the badlands it is very warm and there are storms that have rain that weathers down rock.

Kristie M. said...

1) they were moved by an outside force in nature and also weathered by wind and water.
2)I think that at one point, it was hot and dry, it just isn't there now.

Kolby S said...

1. Pieces of sediment were move by wind and other things in nature and were slowly weathered. They all came together and were at rest and made the badlands.

2. At one point it was probably hot and humid there and it made the different colors in rocks from oxidatoin and weathering.

Jordan peterson said...

I think those rocks got there from wind or along time ago from water.

Maybe in the history of the badlands it used to be very wet and hot. But mabey there is just that amount of rain each year and amount of sunlight that it makes it do that.

Breanna T said...

1) When megma gets hot then cools and turns into ingeous rocks then the rock wathers, erods and it is deposited then turns into sedimentary rocks.
2) it gets that reddish color because it is a dry place and the sun beats down on it.

Kelsey R. said...

1. sedimentary rock can be formed in many different ways, including water and wind breaking apart the rock and carrying it someplace else.

2. There could be iron in the rock and the iron is rusting, causing the side of the bandlands to turn red

Emily Wagner said...

1. one way the sedimentary rocks couldve gotten there is that over a very long period of time, water washed the rock into a big pile, and then when the water went away, the rocks stayed there.
2. possibly, a very long time ago, the badlands used to be a very hot and humid region, but after many many years, the climate changed to how it is now. Scientists can conclued that the bad lands used to be a very hot a humid place.

Adam K Derick N said...

1.I think the rocks could of once been igneous rocks and it eroded and weathered into a sedimentary rock. Some events include raining, ice freezing, acid rain, and gravity


2.They can conclude that maybe there is iron in the rock and when it rains just a little bit it will still rust.

Sam Denevan said...

1. There are many way the rocks could have gotten there. Wind could have blown the rocks into it. Water could have carried rocks to it or landslides could have pushed the rocks into it.

2. Scientist could conclude that in some point and time in history the badlands must have been a very hot and humid place causing the sedimentary rocks with iron in them to rust.

Unknown said...

1. They moved from the igneous rock. They moved got into magma and they cooled down as they cooled down they got weather, erode, and moved to that place by magma.

2. They had heat in the rock as it has some iron. It rusted and they had been with heat. Even though they dont have humidity they have been left out and left to rust for lots of time.

Murad I said...

1. these rocks probably came from a mountain that eroded long long ago. The redness came from the rusted iorn.the mountain or rock thing could of come from underneath an ocean.
2. they can conclude that long ago the weather their is hot and humid. and now it changed to be cold and dry

tyler hofer said...

1. sedimentary rocks form by weathing and erosion they break it down to sedimentary when they act up and some farmations to getting this rock is the rock cycle, ex. weathering, erosion, deposition, compaction and cementation,metamorphism, melting, cooling, solidification.
2.probably a 1,000 years ago the bad lands started to rust slowly because of air and 1,000 years later the bad lands look like what they are now.

LuKaS NeLsOn said...

There could have been some sediment that cemented together and formed the badlands.

There could have been some iron that rusted when it was hot and humid

Imrann G. said...

1.Well sedimentry rock is formed erosion and weathering plus deposition where it hardens and becomes a semdiment rock.

2. Because that back then like maybe when there was water in that reigon it must have been hot and humud and made that reddish color to the rock.

Alise! said...

1) Different occurences could have happend. Weathering could have taken effect and brought new rocks to this area. Or Erosion, which is kindof the same thing. With erosion different sand and sement is brought to a new place; in the situation, the bad lands.


2) They can conclude that either this rock took many many years to develop.. or back in history the climate was different.

Tyler U said...

1. They couldve been sent there by wind or continuous water in the reigon

2. It once couldve been a humid place but the climate is more different then it once was

Bethany said...

1. The water could have rubbed the stone away over time. (weathering) Ice could have also created glaciers to rub against the rock (erosion)

2. In the past it was probably hot and humid, creating those color differences.

Page W. said...

They couldve been through the rock cycle a few times, & once while they were igneous rocks, they were weathered, eroded, & deposited, & turned into sedimentary rocks.

It could mean that the rock has been through many different climates, other than the one it is in right now.

Austin C said...

1. You can tell that the rocks have been through the rock cycle a couple of times. It could have once been a igenous rock and then went through weathering, erosion and deposition and turned into a sedimentary rock. There are many other ways this could of happened.
2. Scientists could figure out that this region was once very hot and humid way back when because of the color of the rock.

Kyle H said...

1. The sedimentary rocks got there because along time ago there was a river ocean or lake there and sediment like sand or clay built up there and had pressure applied to them to form the rock.

2. This could be because the badlands were a body of water before and that is where the humidity came from or it could have been in a different region before and was moved because of techtonic plates.

Carson Sitter said...

1. Deposition

2. The oxidation of the Badlands happened before its climate of today.

Alex B said...

1. The sedimentary got there by water bringing small rocks. The small rocks get push together by gravity and they make sedimentary rocks.
2. This region at one point could have been a hot and humid place where it could have weathered the rocks. To become what they are now.

B kortan said...

1 they could have been either a igneous rock or metiphoric rock that had went through erosion, deposion, and cementation. the could have then been formed by a river that has long ago dryed, winds howling through them, and glacires back when it was all below sea level.

2 the bad landes wee once under water so that meens that it all had dryed out which takes heat so if heat evaporated all the water then it could eroid the rock to and then with the earth crust shift and climate change prevented it from changing any further.

Madison J said...

1.)Magma cools into Igneous rocks. After and Igneous rock is formed, the rock can either get heated again by extreme heat or it can weather, erode, and get deposited to form a Sedimentry rock.
2.)From the history of the region in the Badlands you can tell that it's very hard to form Sedimentary rocks with cold and dry land. To form a Sedimentary rock you need to have air that is hot and humid. Somehow, the Igneous rocks weather, erode and get deposited to form Sedimentary rocks.

Matthew C. said...

1.The sedimentary rocks got there from when a river flew through it and swept up either igneous rocks or metamorphic rocks after it was eroded away and deposited there. When the rocks were deposited they had some pressure and time to compact them together forming layers.
2. Although the air is cold and dry the rocks had a long time of waiting out in the open so the oxidation could rust the iron. So scientist can conclude that the badlands got its rust from a long time of waiting in the open and the iron turned to rust. Or mabye it was hot and humid a long time ago when the badlands were first made.

Elite Ty said...

1. Ways that the badlands could've been formed are that Metamorphic rocks weather and erode, and then are deposited as Sedimentary rocks (or the badlands). Igneous rocks can also go through this process to become sedimentary rocks like this.
2. Since the badlands aren't humid and don't get very much rain, scientist can predict that the area of the badlands must've been once a hot and humid area in order to rust the rocks into their now multiple-colors.

Brita C. said...

1.Sedimentary rocks are formed when small pieces of sediment break off other rocks. For example, small pebbles, grains of sand etc. These pieces of sediment break off through mechanical and chemical weathering, and erosion. Some example of these types of weathering and erosion would be when ice freezes and thaws over and over again between rocks, or when gravity moves rocks in landslides or mudslides. They are then depostited into oceans, and rivers were other pieces of sediment pile on top of each other to form thick layers of sediment that are then cemented together to form a rock.

2. Scientist might conclude that earlier in the history of the Badland area that it was at one time hot and humid. Causing the oxidation of the rock formation to speed up and then turn a redish color or tint.

Chris J said...

1. The water could have washed the stone away over time(weathering).
Ice could have frozen over and over again and pushed the rocks into the formation(erosion).
2. Those rocks could have been there for a very long time and just have not been eroded or weathered a lot. Scientists can conclude that the area has been there for a long time.

Hailee D. said...

1. these rocks got there by weathering and erosion such as wind. when the wind blows it carries sediment to different places. over time that sediment piles up.
2.in past times the weather wasnt the same way and over time it changed.

Kody Obermeyer said...

1. i think that the water was once above the picture on the home page and i think that the sun and water did the most likely thing to help out on makeing the great badlands. of South Dakota.
2. That once when a million or so years ago they were probarly just a couple of hills but then that is how it is happend.

lukep said...

the rocks would or could be the bottom of the ocean and now the water broke the rocks into peices or some off.

there could be iron or minerlas of iron in that rock

Hannah A said...

1. Eroison, and weathering. Maybe there was a much larger piece of rock and it was worn down into even smaller pieces.

2. There might have been a time where the climate WAS hot and humid, and over time things have changed in nature and it's become more cold and dry.

Johnny C said...

1. The sedimenterie rocks most likely got their from a long time ago all of that was sediment at the bottom of a lake and the bild up made the rock formation
2.This tells your that their was once a hot and humid climat in the bad lands

Alexis I. said...

1. They were shaped into there formations by erosion and the breakdown of rocks. Also, deposition caused these rocks to be moved from place to place.

2.when there is humid hot weather the rocks can have a easier time breaking down because of the wetness in the humidity. Scientists can conclude that the Badlands are located in an area of hot and humid space.

Madison T!!! said...

1. These sedimentary rocks could have gotten there by getting broken apart when they got weathered, then they got eroded and then depostited on this site.

2. They can probably conclude that before they were weathered,eroded and deposited at this site, they were probably in a very hot and humid climate. Also another reason could be that along time ago,this region could have been closer to the sun, as in the equator could have moved.

katlynn said...

1. The sedimentary rocks got there by being little grands of sand packing together. They were onetime underwater... in the ocean.

2. That one time the badlands were hot and humid. So the badlands would have had to be in a tropical area.

Tyler S said...

1.Sediment could have been carried by wind, water, gravity, or ice. If carried by water the sediment would have been carried to were that rock was formed. Maybe wind carried the sediment and landed in the area of that rock.

2.Maybe the rock was under water long ago and some rusted iron minerals could have been transported to the rocks area.

jSchneider said...

1.sediment is carried by wind,water,ice,gravity.if carried by water the sediment is dropped off in a new location by rivers into oceans.

2.it used to be underwater a very long time ago,and some rusted iron minerals could have been transported to the rocks location

Kelli S. said...

1. To get a sedimentary rock, rock is weathered and eroded. Then it is deposited into water and pushed down and compacted together to form the rock.
2. Since the climate isn't right, the oxidation takes longer which concludes that Badlands are really old.

Austin L. Nelson said...

1. Some of the ways that the sedimentary rocks formed there is because mabye the wind and water broke down the earth, or bits of the earth settled in lakes and rivers that dried up over time.

2. what the scientist can conclued is that one time the bad lands were a very hot or humid and that is why it was staind that color.the tempiture now can effect the way it looks now.if you look at older pictures you could probably tell it is more red than it is now.

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