Striation (geology)

Have you ever looked at a rock, and notice that it looks like it has lines or stripes on it? Those lines are called striations!

Think of them like the lines on a piece of paper. Just like how you can draw lines on a paper, forces in the earth can cause lines to form on rocks.

Striations are usually formed when a rock is scraped or rubbed against another surface, like when a glacier moves rocks along the ground. As the rocks move, they can scratch or create lines in other rocks.

Geologists can use striations to figure out different things about the Earth's past, like how glaciers moved or how tectonic plates shifted. So next time you see a rock with stripes or lines on it, know that it's not just a pretty design, it's also telling us a story about the Earth's history!