Geology Sites

Alaska Volcano Observatory
http://www.avo.alaska.edu/index.php
The Alaska Volcano Observatory assigns the volcanoes color codes that tell you what their amount of volcanic activity is. You can find more about color codes in the Activity section under the Reports link. The site is broken into the following sections: Home, About AVO, Activity, Library and Volcanoes. You can check out images of the volcano from the main page.

Dynamic Earth
http://www.mnh.si.edu/earth/
"Earth's history is written on pages of stone. Since our planet's birth 4.6 billion years ago, rocks have been continually forming and, over itme, changing from one kind to another. Every rock preserves part of this ancient and ongoing story."

Dynamic Earth Interactives
http://www.learner.org/interactives/dynamicearth/
A popular television sit-com once referred to Earth as "Third Rock From the Sun," but this site's homepage warns us that our Earth is not exactly rock solid, and invites users to explore the earth's inner structure, plate tectonics, plates and boundaries, and geologic processes, such as earthquakes and volcanoes. The site takes a multidimensional approach to coverage of basic geologic principles using colorful graphics, animated diagrams, easy-to-read explanations, and integrated critical-thinking activities.

Exploratorium: Faultline
http://www.exploratorium.edu/faultline/index.html  
Designed to provide some basic information about the nature of earthquakes, the site contains five primary sections. Under the Quake Basics heading, visitors can expect to learn about the basics of earthquakes, including some nice sections on plate tectonics, faults, and how scientists measure such phenomena. As the Exploratorium is based on San Francisco, visitors should not be surprised to find that the section titled Great Shakes includes information on the 1906 earthquake and the devastating quake of 1989 as well. There are some nice video clips here, including a video taken during the 1989 World Series and shots of the damage wrought by the quake in Santa Cruz.

Fast FAQs About Rocks and Fossils
http://www.childrensmuseum.org/geomysteries/faq3.html
Find an illustrated explanation of the Mohs' hardness scale, which is used to compare the hardness of minerals. The scale explains the differences in hardness among a range of minerals, beginning with the softest (talc) and ending with the hardest (diamond).

Franklin Institute Online: Earthforce
http://www.fi.edu/earth/earth.html
One of the most primitive motions is the motion that springs from deep within the Earth. This site explores Earthforce, which it defines as "the pushing and pulling in the core, crust, or water of the Earth that causes motion like eruptions, quakes, or floods."

Geological Time: The Story of a Changing Earth
http://www.nmnh.si.edu/paleo/geotime/main/index.html
This site is an excellent source of information on the different time periods of the earth. The time line at the top of the page has the controls Zoom In, Zoom Out, and a drag bar that can move the time line, or you can use the drop down box at the top of the page. The Earth's time periods are: Hadean, Archean, Proterozoic, Cambrian, Ordovician, Silurian, Devonian, Mississippian, Pennsylvanian, Permian, Triassic, Jurassic, Cretaceous, Paleocene, Eocene, Oligocene, Miocene, Pliocene, Pleistocene, and Holocene. There are lots of things to explore in each time period.

Geology and Geologic Time
http://www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/exhibits/geologictime.php
This is a great interactive exhibit by UC Berkeley which includes some historical perspective on the development of geological/scientific thinking, detail on the various geological time periods, and a Geological Time Machine which explores each topic with more detail. This site references its sources, a feature that is not found on many Web sites.

Geology.com
http://geology.com/teacher/
This site has tons of resources for teaching geology all in one place!

Geo Mysteries
http://www.childrensmuseum.org/geomysteries/mysteries.html
Help Rex the Dino Detective solve these mysteries about rocks, fossils and minerals!

How Earthquakes Happen
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/4126809.stm
Hurricanes! Earthquakes! Tsunamis! Volcanoes! Sometimes it seems as if Mother Nature has it in for Planet Earth. But how do these natural disasters happen? This excellent site from the United Kingdom's BBC-News includes well-done interactive tutorials on each of these scary phenomena.

How Glaciers Work
http://www.educapoles.org/loader.swf?path=docs/projects/flash_animations/educanim2.6.swf&lg=en
This easy-to-understand site, with cartoon-like animation and large text, explains why glaciers move and allows users to navigate a glacier with the mouse to see different glacial features. Since scientists tell us that global warming is having a terrible impact on glaciers, this site can help even younger children to visualize what is happening.

How Volcanoes Work
http://www.geology.sdsu.edu/how_volcanoes_work/
The San Diego State University Geology Department has created an online resource that combines print information, movies, and interactive quizzes. Quicktime is required for viewing movies/animations.

Interactives Rock Cycle
http://www.learner.org/interactives/rockcycle/  
Rock Cycle is an interactive Web site loosely based on National Committee on Science Education Standards and Assessment and the National Research Council grades 5-8. Students can learn all about rocks and geology, the science of rocks. They will learn how rocks can be identified, how they are formed, and how they change over time. Students will identify the three major kinds of rocks and learn how to tell them apart. They will also discover how the different types of rocks are formed. Students will learn what kind of changes can happen to rocks, and about the processes that cause these changes. Putting all this knowledge together, students will understand that the rock cycle is a continuous pattern of change and helps explain what happens over and over again to the rocks in our earth. Divided into the following sections: Introduction, Types of Rocks, How Rocks Change, The Rock Cycle Diagram, and Test Your Skills. There are many other Interactives on this site.

Learning Web
http://education.usgs.gov/
Students and teachers both will enjoy this Web site by the United Stated Geological Survey Department. For the student there are creative project ideas in geology, biology, geography, and hydrology. For teachers there are lesson plans and activities about Our Changing World, Working with Maps, and Earth Hazards. There are great research tools and resources on earth hazards, plants and animals, ecosystems, natural resources, water. Besides the maps and images there's downlaodable fun scientific clipart.

Meteorite Fragments
http://www.nhm.ac.uk/nature-online/virtual-wonders/index3.html
Part of the Virtual Wonders exhibit at London's Natural History Museum, this site examines six meteorite fragments in a 3-D format. Users may click on and drag on an image to make the meteorite rotate laterally. The site also provides information on the meteorites.

Minerals
http://hyperphysics.phy-astr.gsu.edu/hbase/geophys/mineral.html#c1
Here's a wonderful site for students to use in their study of minerals. The site begins with a good general description that includes the list of essential characteristics of a "mineral." Minerals are then grouped alphabetically. Selecting a name provides large colorful pictures from the Smithsonian and a description. There are also special sections for Carbonates, Oxides, Sulfides and Sulfates, and Phosphates.

Mount St. Helens VolcanoCam
http://www.fs.fed.us/gpnf/volcanocams/msh/
On October 1st, Mount St. Helens erupted. This Web Cam is updated every five minutes with a static image (meaning there isn't live feed, just a picture.) But don't try to view at night or you'll get a black screen—this is for daylight viewing only. "This is an image of Mount St. Helens, taken from the Johnston Ridge Observatory. The Observatory and VolcanoCam are located at an elevation of approximately 4,500 feet, about five miles from the volcano. You are looking approximately south-southeast across the North Fork Toutle River Valley."

New Bay Bridge: Bridge to Classroom
http://www.newbaybridge.com/classroom/index.html
This site provides extensive information about earthquakes -- their causes and their impact. Once you've learned enough about the sorts of preventative measures that architects must take, build your own bridge and see if it can withstand the pressures of a catastrophic earthquake. One section allows users to learn about new technologies used to combat these forces.

Paleontology Portal
http://www.paleoportal.org/
This site is a resource for anyone interested in paleontology, from the professional in the lab to the interested amateur scouting for fossils to the student in any classroom. They have gathered many different resources into this single entry "portal" to paleontological information on the Internet.

Rock Cycle Interactive
http://www.learner.org/interactives/rockcycle/  
Rock Cycle is an interactive, standards-based site where students can learn all about rocks and geology. They will learn how rocks can be identified, how they formed, and how they change over time. Students will identify the three major kinds of rocks and learn how to tell them apart. Includes an interactive quiz.

Spotlight: A Century of Quake Research
http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/spotlights/200604-earthquake.cfm
2006 marks the 100th anniversary of the infamous San Francisco Earthquake. This site, from NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, links to a flash feature presenting an in-depth look at earthquakes and the topic of Plate Tectonics. The slide show identifies plate boundaries, outlines the effects of this natural disaster, and offers some very dramatic photos of the damage caused by the 1906 quake.

This Dynamic Earth: The Story of Plate Tectonics
http://pubs.usgs.gov/gip/dynamic/dynamic.html
This Dynamic Earth: The Story of Plate Tectonics is an online book with interesting topics that introduce the theory of plate tectonics. It includes topics such as understanding plate motions, historical perspective, and more.

USGS Earthquake Hazards Program
http://earthquake.usgs.gov/
Time to shake up your class. This United States Geological Survey website puts together materials about the past, present and future of earthquakes. Under Education, check out Earthquake ABCs, Today in Earthquake History and Cool Earthquake Facts. Students can learn more about Seismic Networks, How to Become a Geophysicist, and Current Earthquakes that may rattle their classroom.

USGS Educational Sites
http://www.usgs.gov/education.html
This is the U.S. Geological Survey site," a federal source for science about the earth, its natural and living resources, natural hazards, and the environment." The categories include Biology, Geography, Geology, and Water. The Learning Web has lesson plans and project ideas.

Volcano Live
http://www.volcanolive.com/
This site maintained by Australian volcanologist John Seach lets you view live images of volcano eruptions. It features a breaking news page with all the latest information on volcano erruptions.

Web Geological Time Machine
http://www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/help/timeform.html
Explore a specific geologic period of time that interests you from 4.5 billion years ago to today. Many links within the descriptions that take you to more information about the period.