Mr. Longoria's Earth Science

Dear Students,  This coming year, you will take many steps as you continue to prepare for college and your future. I am looking forward to taking part of this journey with you as we pursue a happy, productive and successful school year.

Metamorphic rocks make up the third member in the family of rocks. These rocks are not formed from magma or sediments. However, in many ways, they are very similar to the first two members. Marble resembles limestone and slate looks a lot like shale. These resemblances are not coincidental. One is actually formed from the other through changes produced by natural forces. Metamorphic rocks are formed from existing rock when they undergo extreme heat, pressure and chemical changes over time. 

Tilted Gneiss Outcrop near Namib desert Metamorphosis means a profound change in form, structure or  substance from one stage to the   next in the life history   of an object or living organism.  Therefore, metamorphic rocks originate from a change in form and structure from pre-existing igneous, sedimentary or metamorphic rocks.  The key is understanding that a  significant change has undergone in the rock's structure.  This change is caused by intense heat and pressure to the rock material.  The change sometimes takes place deep within the Earth.  However, unlike igneous rocks, metamorphic rocks do not undergo melting.  During metamorphism, structures, such as layering, may become distorted and new minerals may form, or crystals may grow.  If enough heat and pressure is applied to the rock, metamorphism often results in the alignment of crystals called foliation .     Alignmen...

Shortly after being elected, President John F. Kennedy had challenged the nation to put a man on the moon. This mission came to realization, during the summer of 1969. It was the mission of Apollo 11 to land two men on the moon, then return them safely to Earth. It was one of the most historic events. It demonstrated what man can do with determination , effort, imagination and ingenuity.   I was a child on the warm evening of July 20, 1969. I was playing with friends just outside my home in New York. We were all waiting in anticipation for the televised broadcast of the first lunar landing in human history. It was also the first time that man was able to go beyond the gravitational pull of Earth. We had finally reached a moment in history, where we could travel and conduct exploration beyond the surface of our own planet. As the time for the moon walk approached, our parents called out to us that the broadcast was only minutes ...

Well, for those of us who live within the northern hemisphere, summer is long last here. This past weekend, on June 21, 2014, marked the official start of summer.  This day is also known as the Summer Solstice. I am from New York but my wife and I had the most fortunate opportunity of spending this Summer Solstice in Huntington Beach and Newport Beach in Southern California .  During the day we spent our time under the Sun along the pier in Huntington Beach.  O ne of the main landmarks of Huntington Beach, also known as "Surf City, USA", the pier is the center of the city's prominent beach culture.   I  had breakfast at Ruby's Dinner at the pier's end. All the surfers were out on the water and there was volleyball competitions and live music along the beach.   In the evening, we enjoyed our sunset along the waterfront of Newport Beach at the Rusty Pelican. It was truly a delightful Summer Solstice. However, besides spending great moments at the beach, and ...

The South American arc extends over 7,000 km, from the Chilean margin triple junction offshore of southern Chile to its intersection with the Panama fracture zone, offshore of the southern coast of Panama in Central America. It marks the plate boundary between the subducting Nazca plate and the South America plate, where the oceanic crust and lithosphere of the Nazca plate begin their descent into the mantle beneath South America. The convergence associated with this subduction process is responsible for the uplift of the Andes Mountains, and for the active volcanic chain present along much of this deformation front. Relative to a fixed South America plate, the Nazca plate moves slightly north of eastwards at a rate varying from approximately 80 mm/yr in the south to approximately 65 mm/yr in the north. Although the rate of subduction varies little along the entire arc, there are complex changes in the geologic processes along the subduction zone that dramatically influence volcanic ac...