Gulf of MexicoMarginal sea of the Atlantic OceanThe Gulf of Mexico (Spanish: Golfo de México) is an oceanic basin and a marginal sea of the Atlantic Ocean, mostly surrounded by the North American continent. It is bounded on the northeast, north, and northwest by the Gulf Coast of the United States; on the southwest and south by the Mexican states of Tamaulipas, Veracruz, Tabasco, Campeche, Yucatán, and Quintana Roo; and on the southeast by Cuba.
Mississippi River DeltaThe Mississippi River Delta is the confluence of the Mississippi River with the Gulf of Mexico in Louisiana, southeastern United States. The river delta is a three-million-acre (4,700 mi2; 12,000 km2) area of land that stretches from Vermilion Bay on the west, to the Chandeleur Islands in the east, on Louisiana's southeastern coast. It is part of the Gulf of Mexico and the Louisiana coastal plain, one of the largest areas of coastal wetlands in the United States.PaleozoicThe Paleozoic ( PAL-ee-ə-ZOH-ik, -ee-oh-, PAY-; or Palaeozoic) Era is the first of three geological eras of the Phanerozoic Eon. Beginning 538.8 million years ago (Ma), it succeeds the Neoproterozoic (the last era of the Proterozoic Eon) and ends 251.902 Ma at the start of the Mesozoic Era. The Paleozoic is subdivided into six geologic periods, (from oldest to youngest) Cambrian, Ordovician, Silurian, Devonian, Carboniferous and Permian.
Ohio RiverMajor river in the Eastern United StatesThe Ohio River (Seneca: Ohi:yo') is a 981-mile-long (1,579 km) river in the United States. It begins in the Northeast and serves as the boundary between the Midwestern and Southern United States, flowing in a southwesterly direction from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, to its mouth on the Mississippi River at Cairo, Illinois.
Mississippi Alluvial PlainThe Mississippi River Alluvial Plain is an alluvial plain created by the Mississippi River on which lie parts of seven U.S. states, from southern Louisiana to southern Illinois (Illinois, Missouri, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Mississippi, Louisiana). The plain is divided into (a) the Mississippi River Delta in the southern half of Louisiana and (b) the upper Mississippi Embayment running from central Louisiana to Illinois.
Hotspot (geology)In geology, hotspots (or hot spots) are volcanic locales thought to be fed by underlying mantle that is anomalously hot compared with the surrounding mantle. Examples include the Hawaii, Iceland, and Yellowstone hotspots. A hotspot's position on the Earth's surface is independent of tectonic plate boundaries, and so hotspots may create a chain of volcanoes as the plates move above them. There are two hypotheses that attempt to explain their origins.
River deltaA river delta is a landform, typically triangular, created by the deposition of the sediments that are carried by the waters of a river, where the river merges with a body of slow-moving water or with a body of stagnant water. The creation of a river delta occurs at the river mouth, where the river merges into an ocean, a sea, or an estuary, into a lake, a reservoir, or (more rarely) into another river that cannot carry away the sediment supplied by the feeding river.
CenozoicEtymologyName formalityFormalNickname(s)Age of MammalsUsage informationCelestial bodyEarthRegional usageGlobal (ICS)Time scale(s) usedICS Time ScaleDefinitionChronological unitEraStratigraphic unitErathemTime span formalityFormalLower boundary definitionIridium enriched layer associated with a major meteorite impact and subsequent K-Pg extinction event.Lower boundary GSSPEl Kef Section, El Kef, Tunisia36°09′13″N8°38′55″E / 36.1537°N 8.6486°E / 36.1537; 8.6486Lower GSSP ratified1991Upper boundary definitionN/AUpper boundary GSSPN/AUpper GSSP ratifiedN/AThe Cenozoic Era (also known as the Caenozoic, Kainozoic, or Neozoic Era; ; ; lit.'new life') is Earth's current geological era, representing the last 66million years of Earth's history.
CretaceousThird and last period of the Mesozoic EraSubdivision of the Cretaceous according to the ICS, as of 2024.Vertical axis scale: Millions of years agoEtymologyName formalityFormalUsage informationCelestial bodyEarthRegional usageGlobal (ICS)Time scale(s) usedICS Time ScaleDefinitionChronological unitPeriodStratigraphic unitSystemTime span formalityFormalLower boundary definitionNot formally definedLower boundary definition candidatesMagnetic—base of Chron M18rBase of Calpionellid zone BFAD of AmmoniteBerriasella jacobiLower boundary GSSP candidate section(s)NoneUpper boundary definitionIridium-enriched layer associated with a major meteorite impact and subsequent K-Pg extinction eventUpper boundary GSSPEl Kef Section, El Kef, Tunisia36°09′13″N8°38′55″E / 36.1537°N 8.6486°E / 36.1537; 8.6486Upper GSSP ratified1991The Cretaceous (IPA: ) is a geological period that lasted from about 143.1 to 66 Ma (million years ago).
Cairo, IllinoisCairo (, KAIR-oh, sometimes , KAY-roh) is the southernmost city in the U.S. state of Illinois and the county seat of Alexander County. A river city, Cairo has the lowest elevation of any location in Illinois and is the state's only city to be surrounded by levees. The city is named after Egypt's capital on the Nile and is located in the river-crossed area of Southern Illinois. It is coterminous with Cairo Precinct.
MagmaMagma (from Ancient Greek (mágma)'thick unguent') is the molten or semi-molten natural material from which all igneous rocks are formed. Magma (sometimes colloquially but incorrectly referred to as lava) is found beneath the surface of the Earth, and evidence of magmatism has also been discovered on other terrestrial planets and some natural satellites. Besides molten rock, magma may also contain suspended crystals and gas bubbles.Mantle (geology)A mantle is a layer inside a planetary body bounded below by a core and above by a crust. Mantles are made of rock or ices, and are generally the largest and most massive layer of the planetary body. Mantles are characteristic of planetary bodies that have undergone differentiation by density. All terrestrial planets (including Earth), half of the giant planets, specifically ice giants, a number of asteroids, and some planetary moons have mantles.*As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.