IGNEOUS ROCKS

ROCKS DESCRIPTIONS
Andesite is the name used for a family of fine-grained,
extrusive igneous rocks that are usually light to dark gray
in color. They often weather to various shades of brown,
and these specimens must be broken for proper
examination. Andesite is rich
in plagioclase feldsparminerals and may
contain biotite, pyroxene, or amphibole. Andesite usually
does not contain quartz or olivine.
EXTRUSIVE IGNEOUS ROCK
Basalt is a dark-colored, fine-grained, igneous rock
composed mainly of plagioclase and pyroxene minerals.
It most commonly forms as an extrusive rock, such as a
lava flow, but can also form in small intrusive bodies,
such as an igneous dike or a thin sill. It has a
composition similar to gabbro. The difference between
basalt and gabbro is that basalt is a fine-grained rock
while gabbro is a coarse-grained rock.
EXTRUSIVE IGNEOUS ROCK
Diorite is the name used for a group of coarse-
grained igneous rocks with a composition between that
of granite and basalt. It usually occurs as large
intrusions, dikes, and sills within continental crust. These
often form above a convergent plate boundary where an
oceanic plate subducts beneath a continental plate

INTRUSIVE IGNEOUS ROCK

Gabbro is a coarse-grained, dark-colored,
intrusive igneous rock. It is usually black or dark green in
color and composed mainly of the minerals plagioclase
and augite. It is the most abundant rock in the deep
oceanic crust. Gabbro has a variety of uses in the
construction industry. It is used for everything from
crushed stone base materials at construction sites to
polished stone counter tops and floor tiles.

INTRUSIVE IGNEOUS ROCK

Granite is a light-colored igneous rock with grains large
enough to be visible with the unaided eye. It forms from
the slow crystallization of magma below Earth's surface.
Granite is composed mainly of quartz and feldspar with
minor amounts of mica, amphiboles, and other minerals.
This mineral composition usually gives granite a red,
pink, gray, or white color with dark mineral grains visible
throughout the rock.

INTRUSIVE IGNEOUS ROCK

 SEDIMENTARY ROCKS
ROCKS DESCRIPTIONS
Breccia is a term most often used for
clastic sedimentary rocks that are composed of large
angular fragments (over two millimeters in diameter).
The spaces between the large angular fragments can be
filled with a matrix of smaller particles or a mineral
cement that binds the rock together.

CLASTIC SEDIMENTARY ROCK

Conglomerate is a clastic sedimentary rock that
contains large (greater than two millimeters in diameter)
rounded clasts. The space between the clasts is
generally filled with smaller particles and/or a chemical
cement that binds the rock together.

CLASTIC SEDIMENTARY ROCK

Dolomite, also known as "dolostone" and "dolomite
rock," is a sedimentary rock composed primarily of the
mineral dolomite, CaMg(CO3)2. Dolomite is found in
sedimentary basins worldwide. It is thought to form by
the postdepositional alteration of lime mud
and limestone by magnesium-rich groundwater.

CHEMICAL SEDIMENTARY ROCK

Earth's most important iron ore deposits are found
in sedimentary rocks. They formed from chemical
reactions that combined iron and oxygen in marine and
fresh waters. The two most important minerals in these
deposits are iron oxides: hematite (Fe2O3)
and magnetite (Fe3O4). These iron ores have been
mined to produce almost every iron and steel object that
we use today - from paper clips to automobiles to the
steel beams in skyscrapers.
CHEMICAL SEDIMENTARY ROCK
Coal is an organic sedimentary rock that forms from the
accumulation and preservation of plant materials, usually
in a swamp environment. Coal is a combustible rock and,
along with oil and natural gas, it is one of the three most
important fossil fuels. Coal has a wide range of uses; the
most important use is for the generation of electricity.

ORGANIC SEDIMENTARY ROCK

 METAMORPHIC ROCKS
ROCKS DESCRIPTIONS
Gneiss is a foliated metamorphic rock identified by its
bands and lenses of varying composition, while other
bands contain granular minerals with an interlocking
texture. Other bands contain platy or elongate minerals
with evidence of preferred orientation. It is this banded
appearance and texture - rather than composition - that
define a gneiss.

FOLIATED METAMORPHIC ROCKS

Phyllite is a foliate metamorphic rock that is made up
mainly of very fine-grained mica. The surface of phyllite
is typically lustrous and sometimes wrinkled. It is
intermediate in grade between slate and schist.

FOLIATED METAMORPHIC ROCKS

Schist is a foliated metamorphic rock made up of plate-
shaped mineral grains that are large enough to see with
an unaided eye. This metamorphic environment is
intense enough to convert the clay minerals of the
sedimentary rocks into platy metamorphic minerals

FOLIATED METAMORPHIC ROCKS

Quartzite is a nonfoliated metamorphic rock composed
almost entirely of quartz. It forms when a quartz-
rich sandstone is altered by the heat, pressure, and
chemical activity of metamorphism. These conditions
recrystallize the sand grains and the silica cement that
binds them together. The result is a network of
interlocking quartz grains of incredible strength.

NON-FOLIATED METAMORPHIC ROCKS

Novaculite is a dense, hard, fine-grained siliceous rock
that breaks with a conchoidal fracture. It forms from
sediments deposited in marine environments where
organisms such as diatoms (single-celled algae that
secrete a hard shell composed of silicon dioxide) are
abundant in the water. When the diatoms die, their
silicon dioxide shells fall to the seafloor. In some areas
these diatom shells are the primary ingredient of the
NON-FOLIATED METAMORPHIC ROCKS seafloor sediments.