Existing comment:
Erosion: Nature's Tool: 70 million years ago to now:
70 million years or more have passed since the Muddy Mountain Thrust Fault built the huge range across from the visitor center. In that time, approximately 10,000 feet (3km) of deposits have eroded away.
Aztec Upwarp:
During the same event that formed the Muddy Mountain Thrust, the Aztec Sandstone in front of the visitor center warped upward, then gradually wore away. The soft shales of the Mesozoic bed were exposed and eroded, creating the broad valley in front of you.
Only a Remnant:
The column on your right shows all of the geological deposits laid down by the ancient seas which created the Valley of Fire, after they were acted upon by the Muddy Mountain Thrust. To your left, the deposits are shown in sequence before this thrust forced the older materials on top of the younger ones. Nearly two miles of rock already have worn away.
Erosion:
Imagine this landscape completely covered by another 10,000 feet of rock. Such a layer is nearly as thick as the distance between the Visitor Center and the top of the mountains across the valley. After 70 million years of erosion nature is still not finished here,. What do you think the final picture will look like?
Erosion is the process of breaking own the removing materials. Agents of erosion may be mechanical (water, freezing, and thawing as snow and ice; wind; pressure from plant roots, animal burrows) or chemical (breakdown of rocks by changes in their chemistry, such as the oxidizing or "rusting" of iron in rocks). |