Geology of China - Essay Example

Instruction’s Geology of my Home Geology is an extremely importantpart of our lives. We may completely ignore it but the fact remains that geology affects us all since it is intimately associated with natural disasters, land using and also to the economy. In fact, the geology of an areas also plays an important role in shaping the culture and the history of an area. I am from China. Which has an extremely rich history. China is a really important part of the world. In this paper, I shall explore the geology of China and establish the association between the geology of China and its aesthetic, cultural and economic values today. The plate tectonic of China Global geologic mechanisms control the movement of the lithosphere plates and these also affected the geologic evolution of China and influenced is formation. Paleogene collision occurred between the Indiana and Eurasian plates giving rise to the Himalayas and the Tibetan region. Most of the fault regions of China was formed during this collision. Most slices and blocks suffered from faults and exists even today. China Present and Past A survey of the Chinese lower crust shows that most of the rocks that are present were formed either during the Archean times or the Paleoproterozoic era. The outcrops of these rocks is somewhere between 5%-7%. In fact geologists believed that almost 5 tectonic periods were responsible for formation of the Chinese continent and in the formation of its various geological formations. All of the collision took place between the Meso-Neoproterozoic and the Early Cambrian time periods. Also one of the main forces were tectonic collisions that also helped in shaping the geology of the area. Most of the collision zones were formed during this period. Almost 75% of the Chinese continent was attached to the Pangean super continent owing to such collisions. On the other hand in the Indosinian Tectonic System, large amounts of folding and faulting occurred which subsequently affected the sedimentary layer of the Chinese continent as well. The Himalayas were also formed during this time as a result of a large collision. Geologically, China is divided into sevreal parts all of which have emerged as a result of various geological collision and other processes.The central part of China lies on the loess plateau. This area is the largest deposit of loess. The east part of China is rich in alluvial deposition. Theregion spreads over a large arae and there exists some igneopus Shandong highlands in the region as well. The karst landscapes of China have extremely high aesthetical value and lie in the Guangxi and Yunnan provinces in China. Much of China is dominated by alluvial plains. In the west lies the Tibetan plateau and Yunnan-Guizhou plateau. There exists numerous sedimentary basins in China which came into existence in the geologic past especially in the Mesozoic-Cenozoic era. These basins provide for almsot 95% of the crude oil that is in China. Presently, China is located on one of the most important and complication tectonic region of the world. Primarily the country is a part of the Eurasian plate however some parts of the Indian and Philippines sea plate are also part of China’s geology. The tectonic base of China is formed by three Precambrain Cratons-Sino-Korean, Tarim, Yangtze-Cathysian and folded belts from the Paleozoic area. Geological studies have shown the presence of ophioloites in most of the tectonic regions which help to acquire an understanding of the age and history of the rocks present. China being a large country has a different geology in its eastern and western parts. The western parts of China have been highly influenced by the Cenozoic collision of the Eurasian and Indian plates. But the Eastern parts of China is a result of Mesozoic-Tertiary evolution making the eastern parts similar in geology to that of western areas of the United States (Zhang et al, 1984). One of the most notable features of the Chinese geology is the presence of blueschists in the sutures of the region. That is an evidence of subduction and tectonic exhumation in the region. The geology of China also had an impact on the present mineral resources that we find even to this day. In fact, China is blessed with several world-class metallic mineral deposits. In fact it is one of the leading producers of important minerals such as copper, aluminum, tin, nickel and zinc. It also produces large amounts of coal which is essential to meet the high energy demands of the advanced country (Franco, 2013). There exists numerous coal mining sites in China. Almost 70% of China’s energy demand is made by burning of coal. The formation of all these metallic and non-metallic minerals is a result of long term geological processes. In the loess of China, ferromagnetic materials was found in very high quantity. Scientific studies have established that small pieces of magnetite was partially weathered to form maghemite while other pedogenic processes degraded chlorite particles. The weathering of the two minerals lead to formation of superparamagneticc particles. One of the main exports of China is the China clay which is also a result of long term geological processes. In fact from an economic point of view, the formation of China of clay is extremely important especially for the clay and pottery industry. China’s vases and pots with very good designs are famous on a global level. From an aesthetical point of view the geological processes have also lead to formation of fabulous structures. One of the most wonderful geologic structures that has gained both historical and tourist attention is the Zahngye Danxia Landform Geological garden (But I never went to this garden.) It is basically a mountain range which is densely packed with minerals and from a distance appears to have rainbow like color. The mountain looks like a layer of cake since its appearance is stratified with layers of minerals embedded between the rocky layers. This mountain site has been upgraded to a status of a World heritage Site. The formation of the mountain range was a result of several geologic processes that layered one rock on top of another and helped in the formation of a stratified layered look. This deposition carried on for a long time until the collision with the Eurasian plates. Which was a catastrophic impact that took place in an extremely slow manner. In China, the result of the catastrophic disruption was that the formation of the different layers of rocks and minerals was disrupted and gave it the rainbow look that we see today. Another structure of great geological and aesthetical value in China are the South China Karst. The karst landscape consists of various types of karst landforms such as towers, pinnacles and cone karsts. The south china karst have also been considered as a World Heritage Site. The Shilin Stone forest and Tianlong Bridge are extremely important parts of the karst landforms in China. The karst was mainly a result of the collisions that took place. After the collisions degradation and erosion of the place sculpted the magnificent structures. Conclusion The Chinese continent was formed as a result of geological processes and each and every landform that exists today is a result of the various collisions and other modifications to the basic geological makeup of the region. The geology of china is very rich and holds great economical as well as aesthetical value. It is the geology of china which has made it a growing economy, a tourist spot and has placed several of its geological sites on the world heritage maps. While writing an researching the topic I explored a whole new China- something that I had never known before. It felt really good to know that I hail from such a rich country. It was wonderful to know how the past geology of the country has helped China to be where it is today. References Franco,P. (2013). The Geology and Tectonic Settings of Chinas Mineral Deposits. Springer. ISBN 978-94-007-4443-1 Zhang,Z.M. et al (1984). An outline of the plate tectonics of China. Geological society of America Bulletin, 95 (3), 295-312. Read More