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Overview of Virginia's Geophysical Regions and Their Geological Features

Explore the diverse physiography of Virginia, including the Coastal Plain, Piedmont, Blue Ridge Mountains, Valley and Ridge, and Appalachian Plateau. This comprehensive overview highlights the sedimentary and metamorphic rock formations, key minerals, and prominent geological features found in these regions. Learn about the area's flat coastal plains, mountainous terrains, and unique landforms shaped by millions of years of geological processes, including karst features and valuable mineral resources like coal and gold. Visit the Virginia Physicography website for more information.

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Overview of Virginia's Geophysical Regions and Their Geological Features

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  1. VIRGINIA PHYSIOGRAPHY MATHEMATICS & SCIENCE CENTER

  2. Go to website http://arcims.mathsciencecenter.info Then click on Virginia Physiography

  3. 1998 Geology Summer Field School – Radford University

  4. Courtesy of Virginia Division of Mineral Resources

  5. Courtesy of USGS

  6. THE COASTAL PLAIN • A region of sedimentary strata consisting of sands, muds, and gravels • Tidal waters occupy not only the Chesapeake Bay, but also lower portions of the James, York, Rappahannock and Potomac rivers • Extends inland for more than 100 miles and is monotonously flat

  7. Courtesy of Virginia Division of Mineral Resources

  8. 1998 Geology Summer Field School – Radford University

  9. Courtesy of Carroll Ellis, Physical Geology, 2003

  10. Courtesy of Carroll Ellis, Physical Geology, 2003

  11. 1998 Geology Summer Field School – Radford University

  12. 1998 Geology Summer Field School – Radford University

  13. 1998 Geology Summer Field School – Radford University

  14. 1998 Geology Summer Field School – Radford University

  15. 1998 Geology Summer Field School – Radford University

  16. THE PIEDMONT • Largest province extending from the Fall Line westward to the Blue Ridge Mountains • Comprised of a complex of metamorphic and igneous rocks, overlain in a few places by Triassic-age sedimentary beds • Important rocks and minerals include pegmatites, slate, kyanite, gold and pyrite

  17. Courtesy of Virginia Division of Mineral Resources

  18. 1998 Geology Summer Field School – Radford University

  19. 1998 Geology Summer Field School – Radford University

  20. 1998 Geology Summer Field School – Radford University

  21. The Blue Ridge Mountain • A long narrow, northeast-southwest trending mountain chain • Consists of old Precambrian-age sedimentary and volcanic rocks • Old Rag Granite is the oldest rock unit dated in Virginia at 1.2 billion years • The two highest mountains in the state, Mt Rogers (elevation 5,719 ft.) and White Top (elevation 5,520 ft.) are both in the southern Blue Ridge

  22. Courtesy of Virginia Division of Mineral Resources

  23. http://www.goodearthgraphics.com

  24. The Valley and Ridge • Composed of folded and faulted 550 to 300 million-year-old sedimentary rocks • Most ridges are held up by resistant sandstone, and most valleys are underlain by less resistant shale, limestone, and dolostone • Karst features, such as caves and sinkholes are common throughout this province

  25. Courtesy of Virginia Division of Mineral Resources

  26. Courtesy of Virginia Division of Mineral Resources

  27. The Appalachian Plateau • Contains deep narrow valleys and steep, rugged mountain sides caused by downcutting by streams • Consists of 320 to 280 million-year-old sandstone and shale with coalbeds • Most of the rock layers are relatively flat-lying • Coal is Virginia’s most important mineral resource

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