The Appalachian Orogeny, a result of three separate continental collisions. USGS

The Alleghenian orogeny or Appalachian orogeny is the geological mountain-forming event (orogeny) that formed the Appalachian Mountains and Allegheny Mountains. Image File history File links Appalachian_orogeny. ... Image File history File links Appalachian_orogeny. ... Geology (from Greek γη- (ge-, the earth) and λογος (logos, word, reason)) is the science and study of the Earth, its composition, structure, physical properties, history and the processes that shape it. ... Mount McKinley in Alaska has one of the largest visible base-to-summit elevation differences anywhere A mountain is a landform that extends above the surrounding terrain in a limited area. ... Orogeny is the process of mountain building, and as such is both a tectonic structural event, a geographical event and a chronological event, in that orogenic events happen within a time frame, affect certain regions of rocks and crust, and cause distinctive structural phenomena and related tectonic activity. ... A rainy day in the Great Smoky Mountains, Western North Carolina The Appalachian Mountains (French: les Appalaches) are a vast system of North American mountains, partly in Canada, but mostly in the United States, extending as a zone, from 100 to 300 miles wide, running from Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada... The Allegheny Mountains are a part of the Appalachian mountain range located in the eastern United States. ...

Major fault at the dividing line between the Allegheny Plateau and the true Appalachian Mountains Williamsport, Pennsylvania The rock layers on the left are metamorphic, while the rock layers on the right are sedimentary

Approximately 350 million to 300 million years ago, in the Carboniferous period, the combined continents of Europe and Africa (Gondwana) collided with North America to form the supercontinent of Pangaea. This collision exerted massive pressure on what is today the Eastern Seaboard of North America, resulting in an enormous uplift of the entire region, called the Appalachian orogeny. Pressure and heat over millions of years "cooked" the rock, folding, twisting and faulting it. Farther west the collision was gentler and resulted in less faulting and more wrinkling, creating ridges and valleys which became the Appalachian mountains. Download high resolution version (2560x1920, 3973 KB)Dividing fault between Appalachian Mountains and Allegheny Plateau A major geologic fault (directly behind small trees) can be seen in a new roadcut about 10 miles north of Williamsport, Pennsylvania on new Route 15. ... Download high resolution version (2560x1920, 3973 KB)Dividing fault between Appalachian Mountains and Allegheny Plateau A major geologic fault (directly behind small trees) can be seen in a new roadcut about 10 miles north of Williamsport, Pennsylvania on new Route 15. ... A rainy day in the Great Smoky Mountains, Western North Carolina The Appalachian Mountains (French: les Appalaches) are a vast system of North American mountains, partly in Canada, but mostly in the United States, extending as a zone, from 100 to 300 miles wide, running from Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada... Map of Lycoming County, Pennsylvania highlighting Williamsport Williamsport is a city located in Lycoming County, Pennsylvania. ... The term Metamorphic can be associated with a number of meanings:- Metamorphic rock The term for rocks that have been transformed by extreme heat and pressure. ... Two types of sedimentary rock: limey shale overlaid by limestone. ... The Carboniferous is a major division of the geologic timescale that extends from the end of the Devonian period, about 359. ... In geology, a period or age is a time span of many millions of years that are assumed to have had similar characteristics. ... World map showing Europe A satellite composite image of Europe Europe is conventionally considered one of the seven continents which, in this case, is more a cultural and political distinction than a physiogeographic one. ... A satellite composite image of Africa Africa is the worlds second-largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. ... Pangea broke into the two supercontinents, Laurasia and Gondwana The southern supercontinent Gondwana (originally Gondwanaland) included most of the landmasses which make up todays continents of the southern hemisphere, including Antarctica, South America, Africa, Madagascar, India, Arabia, Australia-New Guinea and New Zealand. ... World map showing North America A satellite composite image of North America. ... In geology, a supercontinent is a land mass comprising more than one continental core, or craton. ... Map of Pangaea Pangaea separation animation Pangaea or Pangea (derived from Παγγαία, Greek for all earth) is the name given to the supercontinent that existed during the Paleozoic and Mesozoic eras, before the process of plate tectonics separated each of the component continents into their current configuration. ... Categories: US geography stubs ...

Closer to the point of impact, the immense pressure turned igneous and sedimentary rock into metamorphic rock and broke it in numerous places, creating faults which were very susceptible to being worn away by wind and water. Over time these erosive forces wore the landscape down to nearly sea level. This worn-down landscape is now the Piedmont. Volcanic rock on North America Plutonic rock on North America Igneous rocks are formed when molten rock (magma) cools and solidifies, with or without crystallization, either below the surface as intrusive (plutonic) rocks or on the surface as extrusive (volcanic) rocks. ... Two types of sedimentary rock: limey shale overlaid by limestone. ... Metamorphic rock is the result of the transformation of a pre-existing rock type, the protolith, in a process called metamorphism, which means change in form (from the Greek words meta, change, and morphe, form). The protolith is subjected to extreme heat (greater than 150 degrees Celsius) and pressure causing... The James River winds its way among piedmont hills in central Virginia. ...

Evidence for the Appalachian orogeny stretches for many hundreds of miles on the surface from Alabama to New Jersey and can be traced further subsurface to the southwest. In the north it enters a region of confused topography associated with earlier orogenies, but clearly the Applachian deformation extends northeast to Newfoundland. Official language(s) English Capital Montgomery Largest city Birmingham Area  - Total  - Width  - Length  - % water  - Latitude  - Longitude Ranked 30th 52,423 mi²/135,775 km² 190 mi/306 km 330 mi/531 km 3. ... Official language(s) None defined, English de facto Capital Trenton Largest city Newark Area  - Total  - Width  - Length  - % water  - Latitude  - Longitude Ranked 47th 22,608 km² 110 km 240 km 14. ... Orogeny is the process of mountain building, and as such is both a tectonic structural event, a geographical event and a chronological event, in that orogenic events happen within a time frame, affect certain regions of rocks and crust, and cause distinctive structural phenomena and related tectonic activity. ... Map of Newfoundland Newfoundland (French: Terre-Neuve; Irish: Talamh an Éisc; Latin: Terra Nova) is a large island off the northeast coast of North America, and the most populous part of the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador. ...

The mountains were once rugged and high, but in our time are now eroded into only a small remnant. Sediments that were carried eastward form part of the continental shelf. Sediments that were carried westward form the Allegheny and Cumberland Plateau, which in some areas are popularly called mountains, but are actually simply uplifted and eroded. Carbonates and fine sediments from these mountains were carried farther to form limey rocks in a shallow sea that was later uplifted and forms the bulk of Tennessee, Kentucky, Ohio, and Indiana. Sediment is any particulate matter that can be transported by fluid flow and which eventually is deposited as a layer of solid particles on the bed or bottom of a body of water or other liquid. ... The continental shelf is the extended perimeter of each continent, which is covered during interglacial periods such as the current epoch by relatively shallow seas (known as shelf seas) and gulfs. ... The Allegheny Plateau is a large, dissected plateau area in southern New York, western Pennsylvania, West Virginia, and eastern Ohio. ... The Cumberland Plateau includes much of eastern Kentucky and western West Virginia in the United States. ... Shaded relief map of Cumberland Plateau and Ridge and Valley Appalachians on the Virginia/West Virginia border A dissected plateau is an area that has been uplifted, then severely eroded so that the relief is sharp. ... Carbonate is an anion with a charge of -2 and an empirical formula of CO32-. For an aqueous solution, carbonate exists in three forms. ... Limey shale overlaid by limestone. ... Official language(s) English Capital Nashville Largest city Memphis Area  - Total  - Width  - Length  - % water  - Latitude  - Longitude Ranked 36th 109,247 km² 195 km 710 km 2. ... Official language(s) English Capital Frankfort Largest city Louisville Area  - Total  - Width  - Length  - % water  - Latitude  - Longitude Ranked 37th 104,749 km² 225 km 610 km 1. ... Official language(s) None Capital Columbus Largest city Columbus (largest metropolitan area is Cleveland) Area  - Total  - Width  - Length  - % water  - Latitude  - Longitude Ranked 34th 116,096 km² 355 km 355 km 8. ... Official language(s) English Capital Indianapolis Largest city Indianapolis Area  - Total  - Width  - Length  - % water  - Latitude  - Longitude Ranked 38th 94,321 km² 225 km 435 km 1. ...

See also: Geology of the Appalachians The geology of the Appalachians dates back to more than 480 million years ago. ...

External links

• Geology of Manassas National Battlefield Park (public domain source)