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Rock Identificication charts

Identification of Igneous Rocks


Grain Size fine fine fine fine or mixed fine or mixed fine or mixed mixed coarse coarse coarse coarse coarse coarse coarse coarse very coarse any color light light light to medium medium to dark medium to dark dark dark green any color
No quartz; may have olivine Dense; always has olivine

Usual Color dark light dark light medium dark

Other glassy appearance many small bubbles many large bubbles


Contains quartz

Composition lava glass lava froth from sticky lava lava froth from fluid lava high-silica lava medium-silica lava low-silica lava large grains of feldspar, quartz, pyroxene or olovine feldspar and quartz with minor mica, amphibole or pyroxene feldspar with minor mica, amphibole or pyroxene
Plagioclase and quartz with dark minerals

Rock Type
Obsidian Pumice Scoria Felsite Andesite Basalt Porphyry Granite Syenite Tonalite Diorite Gabbro Peridotite Pyroxenite Dunite Pegmatite

between felsite and basalt has no quartz large grains in finegrained matrix wide range of color and grain size like granite but without quartz
Little or no alkali feldspar

little or no quartz

low-calcium plagioclase and dark minerals high-calcium plagioclase and dark minerals olivine with amphibole and/or pyroxene mostly pyroxene with olivine and amphibole at least 90% olivine typically granitic

dense dense usually in small intrusive bodies

Identification of Metamorphic Rocks


Foliation foliated foliated nonfoliated foliated foliated Grain Size fine fine fine fine coarse Usual Color light dark dark dark mixed dark and light foliated foliated foliated foliated nonfoliated nonfoliated nonfoliated nonfoliated nonfoliated coarse coarse coarse coarse fine fine or coarse coarse coarse coarse red and green light light mixed dark and light mixed mixed dark greenish dark Other very soft; greasy feel soft; strong cleavage soft; massive structure shiny; crinkly foliation crushed and stretched fabric; deformed large crystals wrinkled foliation; often has large crystals banded distorted "melted" layers mostly hornblende soft; shiny, mottled surface dull and opaque colors, found near intrusions dense; garnet and pyroxene soft; calcite or dolomite by the acid test
quartz (no fizzing with acid) Quartzite Eclogite Marble Gneiss Migmatite Amphibolite Serpentinite Hornfels Schist

Rock Type
Soapstone Slate Argillite Phyllite Mylonite

Identification of Sedimentary Rocks


Hardness hard hard hard or soft hard or soft mixed Grain Size coarse coarse mixed Composition
Clean quartz Quartz and feldspar

Other white to brown usually very coarse gray or dark and "dirty"

Rock Type
Sandstone Arkose

mixed sediment with rock grains and clay mixed rocks and sediment

Wacke /Graywacke

round rocks in finer sediment matrix

Conglomerate

hard or soft soft hard hard soft soft soft soft soft very soft very soft

mixed

mixed rocks and sediment

sharp pieces in finer sediment matrix feels gritty on teeth no fizzing with acid splits in layers black; burns with tarry smoke
Fizzes with acid No fizzing with acid unless powder

Breccia

fine fine fine fine fine coarse or fine coarse coarse coarse

very fine sand; no clay


chalcedony

Siltstone Chert Shale Coal Limestone Dolomite rock Coquina Rock Salt Rock Gypsum

clay minerals carbon


Calcite Dolomite

fossil shells
halite gypsum

mostly pieces salt taste white, tan or pink

These three tables will help you identify almost any rock type you're likely to find. Read How to Look at a Rock for help with your observations. First, decide whether your rock is igneous, sedimentary or metamorphic. This is not that hard!

Igneous rocks are tough, frozen melts with little texture or layering; mostly black, white and/or gray minerals; may look like granite or like lava. Sedimentary rocks are hardened sediment with sandy or clayey layers (strata); mostly brown to gray; may have fossils and water or wind marks. Metamorphic rocks are tough, with straight or curved layers (foliation) of light and dark minerals; various colors; often glittery with mica.

Next, check the rock's grain size and hardness.

Grain Size: "Coarse" grains are visible to the naked eye, and the minerals can usually be identified using a magnifier; "fine" grains are smaller and usually cannot be identified with a magnifier.

Hardness: Hardness (as measured with the( Mohs scale)) actually refers to minerals rather than rocks, so a rock may be crumbly yet consist of hard minerals. But in simple terms, "hard" rock scratches glass and steel, usually signifying the minerals quartz or feldspar (Mohs hardness 6-7 and up); "soft" rock does not scratch a steel knife but scratches fingernails (Mohs 3-5.5); "very soft" rock does not scratch fingernails (Mohs 1-2). Igneous rocks are always hard. Metamorphic rocks are generally hard.

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