Week 6 - Geologic Interpretations - Great (Central) Valley

    The Central Valley in California is literally a flat central valley in the middle of California.  While it doesn't seem like the most active areas for seismic activity, it does seem to carry great importance in other areas for California, and it does seem to be greatly affected by surrounding geologic formations.

Image courtesy of State of California Department of Conservation http://www.conservation.ca.gov/CGS/information/Pages/EdResCenter.aspx

I found it interesting that it has some of the youngest rocks in the state.  One of the three questions I would ask is where did all of these rocks originate?  This would help me research why this area of California seems especially good for agriculture. 

Vineyard.  Image Courtesy of http://www.discovercaliforniawines.com/discover-california/inland-valleys/ 

The next question I would ask is what plate tectonics are leading to the many faults that are found in the valley.  This would help in researching why there is this valley below sea level in the middle of the state.

Some Faults, Image Courtesy of http://www.conservation.ca.gov/CGS/information/Pages/EdResCenter.aspx

The final piece of information I would request is how the Sierra Nevadas to the East and the Coast Ranges to the west shaped the geography of the valley.  This would help answer a lot of the previous questions as well.