JPL Logo
Image

Chile Altiplano Unconformity

Oct. 22, 2001
This image acquired by NASA's Terra satellite of northern Chile was acquired by ASTER on April 7, 2000. Dramatically displayed is a geological angular unconformity: a contact between layers of rock at different angles.

This 10.5 by 11 km sub-area in northern Chile was acquired by ASTER on April 7, 2000. Dramatically displayed is a geological angular unconformity: a contact between layers of rock at different angles. On the right side of the image, Cretaceous sediments were tilted upward to an angle of about 50 degrees, then eroded. On this surface volcanic pyroclastic deposits were deposited as a flat sheet. The section of rocks has been eroding from the east, exposing the tilted and flat rock layers. The image is located at 24.8 degrees south latitude and 69.1 degrees west longitude.

The U.S. science team is located at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif. The Terra mission is part of NASA's Science Mission Directorate.

Keep Exploring