Disciplines
Stratigraphy
struh-TIG-ruh-fee
Branch of Geology
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The branch of geology concerned with rock layers and layering, read chiefly in sedimentary and layered volcanic rocks. Its three subfields, lithostratigraphy, biostratigraphy and chronostratigraphy, sort strata by rock type, by fossil content and by age, and its working principles include original horizontality, superposition, cross-cutting relationships and faunal succession.
Facts
Central QuestionWhat order do rock layers hold, and what sequence of events does their layering record? 1 ScopeStratigraphy studies the layering, sequence and correlation of rock strata, establishing the relative order of geological events recorded in the rock record. 1 SignificanceStratigraphy's principles, including superposition and faunal succession, are the foundation of the geologic time scale and of oil and gas exploration. 1 Cross-Tradition Connections
Associated With
The law of superposition is among the principles stratigraphy works by.
Has Scientist
With Cuvier, the 1811 survey of the Paris basin applied faunal succession to build one of the first detailed stratigraphic and paleontological cross-sections, a founding work of biostratigraphy.
His documentation of faunal succession is a founding stone of biostratigraphy.
Includes
Its refined practice, dating rocks by their fossils, is biostratigraphy.
Widely applicable in the study of sedimentology, stratigraphy and structural geology.
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