Geology
As the mountains are very old, the landscape is very much formed by the ice ages. Most mountains are rounded and there are deep valleys. The big glaciers have moved stones around, so especially in the bottom of the valleys there is a mix of minerals that might have come from far away.
The Scandinavian Caledonides consist of a pile of nappes (continental plates). There is a section from the Precambrian basement of the Baltic Shield; sediments and igneous rocks of the ancient passive continental margin; oceanic elements from the Lapetus Ocean; units with a Laurentian affinity. Baltica's passive margin is encountered in the variously deformed and metamorphosed Seve Nappe Complex in the Laponia area. The nappe probably represents a very distal portion of Baltica's passive margin and can thus be said to be a geological snapshot of the transition from rift to drift.
Published 792 days ago by lennart.pittja
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