Features of Geological Maps

Features of Geological Maps

Options that come with Geological Maps


Geology is the study of earth’s composition, rocks as well as the process through which they change or obtain other kinds. Geology comes with the research of the organism that inhibits the earth. Unlike the other normal maps which exhibit physical location of places and features, geological maps on the other hand are maps made to show exactly where these characteristics are, that's the distribution of these geological features just like the rocks and their faults. Geological maps will almost always be placed towards the top regular part of the map.

There are various types of geological maps, the most typical to be the surficial map. This kind of map is a graphic illustration that is representative of the surficial rocks and sedimentary as being a scale representation of the real rocks and sediments.

Geological maps include extra features that aren't included in the basic map, therefore resulting in elaborate and more details inside the entire study map. The details within the map will always be restricted to scale, that, the representation of the actual distance or diameter of the physical features on the ground. This scale is usually based on the base map. A typical example of such scales is 1:50,000 (1cm on paper symbolizes 50,000m on the ground).

The geological map has many features that distinguish it from other maps. One of the noticeable options that come with geological maps may be the different colors used. Different colors represent the different geological units, that's, the level of a given type of rock within a given range of time. For example a single type of stone may have different colors to distinguish the difference within their ages. The geological units are usually provided names based on where their characteristics are displayed or in which the study first took place. For example, the Briones sandstone was studied and identified from Briones Valley, in California.

Apart from the colors which are allotted to the geological units within the geological maps, each of the geological unit can also be assigned letters to represent it on the map. The combination of those letters is usually a mixture of a capital letter followed by a single or smaller letters. The capital letter always signify the age of the geological unit. The small letters on the contrary either indicate the unit’s name or even the kind of rock in case the unit has no name.

An additional striking feature of geological maps is the elevation of the contour lines. The elevation of the geological features is definitely essential as their horizontal positions. The elevation resolution is always limited by the contour intervals represented on the map. The contour intervals may vary from 10 to 40 feet depending on the terrain characteristics.

You will find various kinds of lines shown on the geological maps; these lines contain contact that distinguishes two distinct geological units. The two main contacts are depositional contacts and faults. company web site Fold axis can also be a type of line based in the geological map. This is a line that follows the crest or trough of fold formed by bending and warping of the geological units.