A stratigraphic unit is a volume of
rock
Rock most often refers to:
* Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids
* Rock music, a genre of popular music
Rock or Rocks may also refer to:
Places United Kingdom
* Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...
of identifiable origin and relative age range that is defined by the distinctive and dominant, easily mapped and recognizable
petrographic
Petrography is a branch of petrology that focuses on detailed descriptions of rocks. Someone who studies petrography is called a petrographer. The mineral content and the textural relationships within the rock are described in detail. The class ...
,
lithologic or
paleontologic
Paleontology (), also spelled palaeontology or palæontology, is the scientific study of life that existed prior to, and sometimes including, the start of the Holocene epoch (roughly 11,700 years before present). It includes the study of fossi ...
features (
facies) that characterize it.
Units must be ''mappable'' and ''distinct'' from one another, but the contact need not be particularly distinct. For instance, a unit may be defined by terms such as "when the sandstone component exceeds 75%".
Lithostratigraphic units
Sequences of
sedimentary
Sedimentary rocks are types of rock that are formed by the accumulation or deposition of mineral or organic particles at Earth's surface, followed by cementation. Sedimentation is the collective name for processes that cause these particles ...
and
volcanic rock
Volcanic rock (often shortened to volcanics in scientific contexts) is a rock formed from lava erupted from a volcano. In other words, it differs from other igneous rock by being of volcanic origin. Like all rock types, the concept of volcanic ...
s are subdivided the basis of their shared or associated
lithology. Formally identified lithostratigraphic units are structured in a hierarchy of lithostratigraphic rank, higher rank units generally comprising two or more units of lower rank. Going from smaller to larger in rank, the main lithostratigraphic ranks are Bed, Member, Formation, Group and Supergroup.
Formal names of lithostratigraphic units are assigned by
geological survey
A geological survey is the systematic investigation of the geology beneath a given piece of ground for the purpose of creating a geological map or model. Geological surveying employs techniques from the traditional walk-over survey, studying outc ...
s. Units of formation or higher rank are usually named for the unit's
type location, and the formal name usually also states the unit's rank or lithology. A lithostratigraphic unit may have a change in rank over a some distance; a group may thin to a formation in another region and a formation may reduce in rank for member or bed as it "pinches out".
Bed
A
bed
A bed is an item of furniture that is used as a place to sleep, rest, and relax.
Most modern beds consist of a soft, cushioned mattress on a bed frame. The mattress rests either on a solid base, often wood slats, or a sprung base. Many beds ...
is a lithologically distinct layer within a member or formation and is the smallest recognisable stratigraphic unit. These are not normally named, but may be in the case of a
marker horizon
Marker horizons (also referred to as chronohorizons, key beds or marker beds) are stratigraphic units of the same age and of such distinctive composition and appearance, that, despite their presence in separate geographic locations, there is no do ...
.
Member
A member is a named lithologically distinct part of a formation. Not all formations are subdivided in this way and even where they are recognized, they may only form part of the formation.
A member need not be mappable at the same scale as a formation.
[North American Stratigraphic Code, p. 1569]
Formation
Formations are the primary units used in the subdivision of a sequence and may vary in scale from tens of centimetres to kilometres. They should be distinct lithologically from other formations, although the boundaries do not need to be sharp. To be formally recognised, a formation must have sufficient extent to be useful in mapping an area.
Group
A group is a set of two or more formations that share certain lithological characteristics. A group may be made up of different formations in different geographical areas and individual formations may appear in more than one group.
Groups are occasionally divided into subgroups, but subgroups are not mentioned in the North American Stratigraphic Code,
and are permitted under International Commission on Stratigraphy guidelines only in exceptional circumstances.
Supergroup
A supergroup is a set of two or more associated groups and/or formations that share certain lithological characteristics. A supergroup may be made up of different groups in different geographical areas.
Biostratigraphic units
A sequence of
fossil
A fossil (from Classical Latin , ) is any preserved remains, impression, or trace of any once-living thing from a past geological age. Examples include bones, shells, exoskeletons, stone imprints of animals or microbes, objects preserved ...
-bearing sedimentary rocks can be subdivided on the basis of the occurrence of particular fossil
taxa
In biology, a taxon (back-formation from ''taxonomy''; plural taxa) is a group of one or more populations of an organism or organisms seen by taxonomists to form a unit. Although neither is required, a taxon is usually known by a particular nam ...
. A unit defined in this way is known as a biostratigraphic unit, generally shortened to
biozone
In biostratigraphy, biostratigraphic units or biozones are intervals of geological strata that are defined on the basis of their characteristic fossil taxa, as opposed to a lithostratigraphic unit which is defined by the lithological properties ...
.
The five commonly used types of biozone are assemblage, range, abundance, interval and lineage zones.
* An ''assemblage zone'' is a stratigraphic interval characterised by an assemblage of three or more coexisting fossil taxa that distinguish it from surrounding strata.
* A ''range zone'' is a stratigraphic interval that represents the occurrence range of a specific fossil taxon, based on the localities where it has been recognised.
* An ''abundance zone'' is a stratigraphic interval in which the abundance of a particular taxon (or group of taxa) is significantly greater than seen in neighbouring parts of the succession.
* An ''interval zone'' is a stratigraphic interval whose top and base are defined by horizons that mark the first or last occurrence of two different taxa.
* A ''lineage zone'' is a stratigraphic interval that contains fossils that represent parts of the evolutionary lineage of a particular fossil group. This is a special case of a range zone.
See also
*
Chronostratigraphy
Chronostratigraphy is the branch of stratigraphy that studies the ages of rock strata in relation to time.
The ultimate aim of chronostratigraphy is to arrange the sequence of deposition and the time of deposition of all rocks within a geologic ...
*
Glaciology
Glaciology (; ) is the scientific study of glaciers, or more generally ice and natural phenomena that involve ice.
Glaciology is an interdisciplinary Earth science that integrates geophysics, geology, physical geography, geomorphology, c ...
*
Magnetostratigraphy
Magnetostratigraphy is a geophysical correlation technique used to date sedimentary and volcanic sequences. The method works by collecting oriented samples at measured intervals throughout the section. The samples are analyzed to determine their '' ...
*
Sedimentology
*
Sequence stratigraphy
Sequence stratigraphy is a branch of geology, specifically a branch of stratigraphy, that attempts to discern and understand historic geology through time by subdividing and linking sedimentary deposits into unconformity bounded units on a variety ...
*
Stratigraphy
References
External links
International Commission on Stratigraphy Stratigraphic Guide
{{DEFAULTSORT:Geological Unit
Stratigraphy
*
Geology terminology