Geol 2111: Igneous and Metamorphic Petrology

Geology is best done in the field, so there will be at least two required field trips that accompany this class. Because of weather-related factors, both trips will most likely occur in April, and each is a full-day trip.

St. Cloud field trip
The first trip will be to the St. Cloud area to look at exposures of the ca. 1.8 Ga (Giga annum, or billion years old) East-Central Minnesota batholith. We will see a variety of different granitoids, and we will examine cross-cutting relationships between the igneous bodies to determine the intrusive history of the batholith. We will also examine the compositional and textural aspects of the different granitoids in thinking about the petrogenesis and tectonic setting of this voluminous suite of igneous rocks.

St. Cloud field trip guide - Spring 2006

St. Cloud field trip photos - Spring 2006

Minnesota River Valley field trip
The second field trip will be to exposures of Precambrian igneous and metamorphic rocks exposed along the Minnesota River Valley between Ortonville and Morton, MN. These rocks are some of the oldest in North America as they all formed during the Archean Eon (>2.5 Ga), and some (Morton and Montevideo gneisses) first formed nearly 3.6 billion years ago!

Minnesota River Valley field trip guide - Spring 2006

Minnesota River Valley field trip photos - Spring 2006