Geosciences
Inorganic Limestones Limestones having an inorganic origin form when chemical changes or high water temperatures increase the water’s concentration of calcium carbonate to the point that it precipitates. Travertine, the … Read More
Parent Material The source of the weathered mineral matter from which soils develop is called the parent material and is a major factor influencing newly forming soil. Gradually this weathered … Read More
From Magma to Crystalline Rock (Igneous rock) To better understand how magma crystallizes, let us consider how a simple crystalline solid melts. Recall that, in any crystalline solid, the ions … Read More
Salt diapirism, salt geometry and the flow of salt Salt structures Salt volumes in the crust have for a long time been known to take on a variety of geometric … Read More
The Devils Marbles Northern Territory, Australia An early Australian explorer trekking into central Australia found large, round boulders scattered across the surface, sometimes in huge stacks, and sometimes precariously balanced … Read More
What Is Granite Rock And How Is It Formed? What is Granite? Granite is a common type of granular and phaneritic felsic intrusive igneous rock. Granites, depending on their mineralogy, … Read More
Interpreting Metamorphic Environments Describe the temperature and pressure conditions associated with the following metamorphic facies: blueschist facies, hornfels facies, and zeolite facies. Geologists realized that groups of associated minerals could … Read More
Sedimentary rocks are those formed at or near the Earth’s surface by the deposition (by water, wind or ice), accumulation and lithification of sediment (detrital rock) or by the precipitation … Read More
A body of mostly molten (heated until liquefied) rock below Earth’s surface is called magma. In addition to its liquid molten rock portion, or melt, magma contains dissolved gases (e.g., … Read More
