Name: _________________
Date: ________
Per: _____
1. A 65.5-million-year-old impact crater in Mexico provides evidence for the cause of the
A) breakup of Pangaea
C) Alleghenian orogeny
B) evolution of the earliest corals
D) extinction of ammonoids
2. The diagram below represents a geologic cross section of a portion of Earth's crust.
Folding and erosion occurred after the formation of the
A)
B)
C)
D)
Gayle shale
Freeport sandstone
Erie coal, but before formation of Freeport sandstone
Dunbar limestone, but before formation of Erie coal
3. Base your answer to the following question on the geologic cross section below in which overturning has
not occurred. Letters A through H represent rock layers.
Which sequence of events most likely caused the unconformity shown at the bottom of rock layer B?
A)
B)
C)
D)
folding ® uplift ® erosion ® deposition
intrusion ® erosion ® folding ® uplift
erosion ® folding ® deposition ® intrusion
deposition ® uplift ® erosion ® folding
Earth's History
Ahearn
Date: ________
4. The geologic cross section below shows an unconformity in New York State bedrock layers that have not
been overturned. Index fossils found throughout some rock layers are shown.
Which New York State index fossil may have been present in a rock layer that is missing due to the
unconformity?
A)
B)
C)
D)
5. Which feature in the geologic cross section below was formed by erosion?
A) unconformity
C) brachiopod fossil
B) fault
D) coarse-grained igneous rock
Earth's History
Ahearn
Date: ________
6. The geologic cross section below shows the geologic age of two rock layers separated by an unconformity.
The unconformity at the bottom of the Silurian rock layer indicates a gap in the geologic time record. What
is the minimum time, in millions of years, shown by the gap?
A) 13
B) 47
C) 101
D) 126
7. An unconformity between two sedimentary layers is most likely produced by
A)
B)
C)
D)
the deposition of gravel followed by the deposition of sand and silt
continuous sedimentation in a deep basin over a long period
uplift followed by extensive erosion, submergence, and deposition
a period of extrusive vulcanism followed by another period of extrusive vulcanism
8. The diagrams below show geologic cross sections of the same part of the Earth's crust at different times in
the geologic past.
Which sequence shows the order in which this part of the crust probably formed?
A) A
C) C
B
A
C
D
D
B
B) C
D) A
D
C
A
B
Earth's History
B
D
Ahearn
Date: ________
9. Base your answer to the following question on the diagrams below which represent two rock outcrops found
several miles apart in New York State. Individual rock layers are lettered, and fossils and rock types are
indicated.
An unconformity (buried erosional surface) is represented by the interface between which two layers?
A) A and B
B) B and C
C) D and E
D) E and F
10. Base your answer to the following question on the diagram below which represents a cross section of an
eroded fold that has not been overturned.
The fossils found in rock layer G will most closely resemble those found in rock layer
A) A
B) I
C) C
D) E
Earth's History
Ahearn
Date: ________
11. Base your answer to the following question on the geologic cross section of bedrock shown below. A
through G identify rock layers and Q represents a fault. Lines W, X, Y, and Z are locations of
unconformities. The rocks have not been overturned.
Which rock most likely formed in the zone of contact between rock E and rock F?
A) obsidian
C) metaconglomerate
B) slate
D) sandstone
Earth's History
Ahearn
Date: ________
Base your answers to questions 12 and 13 on the block diagrams below, which represent three widely
separated outcrops. All rock layers are sedimentary. No overturning has occurred. Layers labeled with the
same letter are the same age.
12. Layer I is of Permian age. Which fossil could be found in layer H?
A) early flowering plant
C) early reptile
B) early human
D) early dinosaur
13. Which geologic process that affected layer F happened first?
A) deposition of the sediments in layer F
C) folding of layer F
B) erosion of the surface of layer F
D) faulting of layer F
Earth's History
Ahearn
Date: ________
14. Base your answer to the following question on
the cross section below and on your knowledge of Earth science. The cross section represents rock units
that have not been overturned. Lines CC' and GG' represent unconformities. The geologic ages of some of
the lettered rock units are shown below the cross section.
Which inference about rock units D, E, and H can best be supported by evidence in the cross section?
A)
B)
C)
D)
They contain mostly sand-sized sediment.
They contain both land and marine fossils.
They were altered by contact metamorphism.
They were deposited as horizontal layers and were later tilted.
Earth's History
Ahearn
Date: ________
15. Base your answer to the following question on the diagram below, which shows a cross section of Earth’s
crust.
The most apparent buried erosional surface is found between rock units
A) A and B
B) C and D
C) D and F
D) E and H
16. The presence of coal in Antarctica indicates that
A)
B)
C)
D)
forests can grow on continental glaciers
coal can form in cold climates
Antarctica’s climate was once warmer
Antarctica currently has areas of tropical climate
Earth's History
Ahearn
Date: ________
17. The diagram at the right represents a core drilling in a region consisting of only four sedimentary rock
layers, A, B, C, and D. Which geologic event could explain the order of the rock layers in the core
drilling?
A)
B)
C)
D)
Volcanic activity caused rapid deposition of the sedimentary layers.
Large-scale erosion caused a gap in the time record.
Extensive folding caused the rock layers to overturn.
Intrusion of igneous material occurred sometime between the deposition of layer A and layer D.
18. The geologic cross section below represents an area where faulting has occurred. Rock layers have not
been overturned.
Within which circled area does older rock directly overlie younger rock?
A) A
B) B
C) C
D) D
Earth's History
Ahearn
Date: ________
19. The geologic cross section below shows sedimentary rock layers A, B, C, and D, which have not been
overturned. E is an igneous intrusion. Line XY represents a fault.
Which geologic event occurred most recently?
A) deposition of sediments for rock layer A
C) intrusion of the igneous material E
B) formation of the fault
D) cementation of sediments for rock layer D
Base your answers to questions 20 through 22 on the cross sections below, which show widely separated
outcrops at locations W, X, Y, and Z. The rock layers have not been overturned. Line AB in the cross
section at location W represents an unconformity. Fossils are shown in some of the layers.
20. Identify two of the processes involved in the formation of the unconformity represented by line AB in the
cross section at location W.
21. What evidence shown in the outcrop at location W suggests that the igneous intrusion occurred after both
fossils were deposited at location W?
Earth's History
Ahearn
Date: ________
22. Determine the relative geologic age of the four fossils by correlating the rock layers between these
outcrops. Number the fossils from 1 to 4 in order of relative age, with 1 as the oldest and 4 as the youngest.
Base your answers to questions 23 through 25 on The geologic cross section below. Radioactive dating
indicates that the granite intrusion is 279 million years old and the vesicular basalt is 260 million years old.
The rock layers have not been overturned.
23. The granite intrusion caused part of the limestone layer to undergo metamorphism. What metamorphic
rock would most likely be found in this zone of contact metamorphism?
24. List the six rock units in the order from the oldest to the youngest.
25. During which geologic time period did the shale layer form?
Earth's History
Ahearn