A Textbook of Geology

Description

Geologists use a number of field, laboratory, and numerical modelling methods to decipher Earth history and understand the processes that occur on and in the Earth. In typical geological investigation, geologists use primary information related to petrology (the study of rocks), stratigraphy (the study of sedimentary layers), and structural geology (the study of the positions of rock units and their deformation). In many cases, geologists also study modern soils, rivers, landscapes, and glaciers, investigate past and current life and biogeochemical pathways, and use geophysical methods to investigate the subsurface. 

The geology of an area changes through time as rock units are deposited and inserted and deformational processes change their shapes and locations. Rock units are first emplaced either by deposition onto the surface or intrusion into the overlying rock. Deposition can occur when sedimentary rock or when volcanic materials such as volcanic ash or lava flows blanket the surface. After the initial sequence of rocks has been deposited, the rock units can be deformed and/or metamorphosed. These structural regimes broadly relate to convergent boundaries, divergent boundaries, and transform boundaries, respectively, between tectonic plates. 

The present book has been planned in such a way to give an overall view of this subject and would be beneficial for students, professors as well as general readers.