The course is addressed to undergraduate students who know and understand the basic principles of Geology. The aim of the course is for students to acquire advanced knowledges and skills on themes related with the tectonic structures as well as with the processes, movements and forces that produce the structures.

By the end of this course the student will be able to:

• Know the most common deformation structures in rocks
• Recognize and describe the most common deformation structures in natural rock outcrops
• Understand and discriminate deformation structures which have been developed under different stress regimes
• Understand and discriminate deformation structures which have been developed in different crustal levels
• Classify the deformation structures in terms of their geometry and kinematics
• Combine various orientation data of deformation structures and calculate various geometric elements of them
• Present the 3D geometry of deformation structures using simple azimuthal projections

Generally, by the end of this course the student will, furthermore, have develop the following general abilities (from the list above):

• Search for, analysis and synthesis of data and information, with the use of the necessary technology
• Working independently
• Team work
• Production of free, creative and inductive thinking

The course content includes the following chapters:

Basic concepts; Mechanical properties of rocks; Stress and rocks; Deformation mechanisms; Introduction to tectonic faults; Normal faults; Thrust faults; Strike-slip faults; Joints; Shear zones; Folds-basic concepts; Fold generation mechanisms; Cleavage2D and 3D graphical representations

1. Xypolias P. 2009. Azimuthal projections in Structural Geology. Symmetria Publ., Athens.
2. Koukouvelas I. 1998. Structural Geology. Leader Books Publ., Athens.
3. Fossen H. 2010. Structural Geology. Cambridge University Press.
4. Davis G., Reynolds S. 1996. Structural Geology of rock and regions. John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
5. van der Pluijm B., Marshak S. 2004. Earth Structure. W. W. Norton & Company, Inc.

- Related academic journals:

1. Journal of Structural Geology
2. Tectonics
3. Tectonophysics