EOSC_V 116 C.8.4. Formation of the Rocky Mountains and the Cretaceous
Seaway: Mesozoic Earth: Time of the Dinosaurs
C.8.4. Formation of the Rocky Mountains
and the Cretaceous Seaway
Now that you have an understanding of how westernmost North America (known as the North
American Cordillera) is underlain by many exotic terranes, it is time to consider some of the more
recent geological history of the area in a bit more detail. The focus moving forward in this course is
mainly on the Coast Mountains, the Rocky Mountains, and by extension, the development of the
Cretaceous Seaway. Particularly the latter two features had a major impact on Mesozoic Life. You'll
get to closely examine the affect of these features on various forms of life in the Module C
Assignment and the Module D Capstone Project!
Mountain Building Processes that were affecting
Western North America during the Cretaceous
The geological history of Westernmost North America is very complex. Actually that is an
understatement! Its evolution is the subject of so many research projects it would be impossible to
count, and we are still working on fully understanding this subject today. For a glimpse of some of the
information we have uncovered, you can click here
(https://www.burkemuseum.org/geo_history _wa/index.htm) to examine some of the pages on this
website if you want. This is just for anyone who is curious to delve in to more detail. The content of
these pages will not be examined.
For this course, we are going to simplify things and concentrate on the events that were most
influential during Cretaceous time, as this is the main focus of this section of the course. During this
time there were two main mountain belts to consider, the Coast Mountains and the Rocky Mountains.
These two mountain ranges formed in very different ways! First though, a little general information
about mountain belts and then you'll look at how these two mountain belts formed (by very different
processes). After that you'll learn about how the formation of the Rocky Mountains led to the
formation of the Cretaceous Seaway!
Mountain belts exert a major influence on landscapes, climate, and migration patterns of surface-
dwelling species. The formation, extent, and nature of mountain belts is entirely controlled by plate
tectonics! 24% of the Earth's land mass is mountainous. And, as shown below in the map of the
topography of both land and ocean surfaces, areas of high relief (mountainous regions) dominate our
, entire region in western North America.
Seaway: Mesozoic Earth: Time of the Dinosaurs
C.8.4. Formation of the Rocky Mountains
and the Cretaceous Seaway
Now that you have an understanding of how westernmost North America (known as the North
American Cordillera) is underlain by many exotic terranes, it is time to consider some of the more
recent geological history of the area in a bit more detail. The focus moving forward in this course is
mainly on the Coast Mountains, the Rocky Mountains, and by extension, the development of the
Cretaceous Seaway. Particularly the latter two features had a major impact on Mesozoic Life. You'll
get to closely examine the affect of these features on various forms of life in the Module C
Assignment and the Module D Capstone Project!
Mountain Building Processes that were affecting
Western North America during the Cretaceous
The geological history of Westernmost North America is very complex. Actually that is an
understatement! Its evolution is the subject of so many research projects it would be impossible to
count, and we are still working on fully understanding this subject today. For a glimpse of some of the
information we have uncovered, you can click here
(https://www.burkemuseum.org/geo_history _wa/index.htm) to examine some of the pages on this
website if you want. This is just for anyone who is curious to delve in to more detail. The content of
these pages will not be examined.
For this course, we are going to simplify things and concentrate on the events that were most
influential during Cretaceous time, as this is the main focus of this section of the course. During this
time there were two main mountain belts to consider, the Coast Mountains and the Rocky Mountains.
These two mountain ranges formed in very different ways! First though, a little general information
about mountain belts and then you'll look at how these two mountain belts formed (by very different
processes). After that you'll learn about how the formation of the Rocky Mountains led to the
formation of the Cretaceous Seaway!
Mountain belts exert a major influence on landscapes, climate, and migration patterns of surface-
dwelling species. The formation, extent, and nature of mountain belts is entirely controlled by plate
tectonics! 24% of the Earth's land mass is mountainous. And, as shown below in the map of the
topography of both land and ocean surfaces, areas of high relief (mountainous regions) dominate our
, entire region in western North America.
