Instructor:
Susan Schwartz
E&MS Bldg. Room A133
x3133

sschwartz@earthsci.ucsc.edu
http://wwwcatsic.ucsc.edu/~eart3

Course Content:

Geologic concepts and processes responsible for shaping our National Parks including mountain building, volcanic and earthquake activity, sedimentation, weathering, erosion, and glaciation. An understanding of how geology impacts our lives will be emphasized. Appropriate for both science and non-science majors who wish to enhance their knowledge, enjoyment and appreciation of our National Parks.

M,W, F, 9:30-10:40 AM, Classroom Unit 1

M 11-12:30, T 6-8 PM, W 11-12:30, 4-5:30 Th 10-11:30

Rooms to be announced

Ann G. Harris and Esther Tuttle, Geology of National Parks, 5th edition, Kendall/Hunt Publishers, 1996 (available at the bookstore).

Midterm, final and 3 homework assignments that can be nearly completed during the weekly sections. One optional Saturday field trip.

Date HW Topic

1/7 Introduction to the Geology of National Parks

Grand Canyon National Park

1/9 A Trip Through 1.8 Billion Years of Earth History

1/12 1 Sedimentary Rocks and Environments of the Canyon

1/14 Geologic History of the Grand Canyon

Other Parks of the Colorado Plateau Province

1/16 Mesozoic History-Bryce and Zion Canyons

1/19 Martin Luther King's Birthday- Holiday No Class

1/21 Weathering and Mass Wasting as Agents of Landform Creation

1/23 Running the Colorado River in the Grand Canyon

National Parks Formed by Volcanic Activity

1/26 Volcanic Activity, the Earth's Interior and Plate Tectonics

1/28 Igneous Rocks and Their Building Blocks

1/30 The Cascade Volcanoes

2/2 2 The Eruption of Mt. St. Helens

2/4 Hawaiian Island Volcanoes

2/6 Yellowstone- A Thermal Wonderland

National Parks in Regions of Complex Mountain Building

2/9 Development of the Rocky Mtns.- Rocky Mtn. and Glacier

2/11 Rocky Mtn. History Continued- Grand Teton Natl. Park

2/13 The Appalachian Mtns. -Great Smoky, Shenandoah, and Acadia

2/17 MIDTERM

National Parks Shaped by Alpine Glaciation

2/18 Ice Ages, Past Climates, How Glaciers Form and Move

2/20 Glacial Features of Yosemite and Other Natl. Parks

Caves and Reefs in National Parks

2/23 3 The Hydrologic Cycle and Groundwater

2/25 Erosion by Groundwater- Mammoth and Carlsbad Caves

2/27 Fossil and Modern Reefs-Guadalupe Mtns, and Biscayne

National Seashores and Marine Sanctuaries

3/2 Coastal Processes- Our National Seashores

3/4 Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary

Geologic Evolution of Western North America

3/6 The Basin and Range -Great Basin, Joshua Tree, Death Valley

3/9 Parks of the Alaskan Frontier

3/11 Geology of Your Favorite National Parks

3/13 Conservation Policy in the National Park Service

3/16 Wrap Up and Review

web page located at http://wwwcatsic.ucsc.edu/~eart3.

Revised 7/12/04.