This exercise simulates how Charles Lyell tried to work out the time involved in the formation of Mount Etna in order to solve the problem of how long it had taken for all the rock layers in Earth’s history to be formed. Suitable for teachers, school (GCSE) and college (A Level) students.
Click on the image to download a pdf of ‘The length of geological time – Charles Lyell and Mount Etna’.
It is very difficult to grasp the extent of geological time and this is an exercise that encourages you to look at the ways in which geologists began to understand time. The exercise simulates how Charles Lyell tried to work out the time involved in the formation of Mount Etna. It allows you to use simple mathematics whilst solving a geological problem.