Lesson 3: Rock Cycle Words

rock

naturally formed solid usually containing one or more minerals, a combination of one or more minerals or organic matter

intrusive igneous rock

is one that forms when magma cools; ex. diorite

extrusive igneous rock

is one forms when lava cools; ex. basalt or obsidian

Foliated metamorphic rock

mineral grains are arranged in planes or bands; occurs when pressure causes the mineral grains to realign to form parallel bands; ex. slate, phyllite, gneiss

Nonfoliated metamorphic rock

The mineral grains have not aligned in planes or bands, commonly made of one or only a few minerals; ex. quartzite or marble

coarse - grained

large grains you can see with your eyes; ex. breccia

medium - grained

a little smaller than large grain, but you can still see the grains; ex. sandstone

Fine- grained

small grains that can only be seen using a hand-held lens; ex. mudstone

composition

the minerals and organic matter a rock contains; the make-up of the rock

texture

the size, shape, and positions of the grains that make up a rock. This depends on how and where it is formed.

clastic sedimentary rock

sediments are buried, compacted, and cemented together by calcite or quartz; texture can be all different; ex. conglomerate; sandstone, shale, breccia

chemical sedimentary rock

Forms when water, usually seawater, evaporates, the minerals become concentrated in one area to the point that they precipitate and crystallize; ex. rock salt

organic sedimentary rock

forms from the remains of fossils, once living plants and animals; ex. limestone, coquina, coal

rock cycle

the set of the natural process where rocks form, change, break down and reform.

igneous rock

forms when molten rock cools and becomes solid.

sedimentary rock

forms when pieces of older rocks, plants or other loose material get pressed or cemented together.

metamorphic rock

forms when heat or pressure causes older rocks to change into new types of rock.

erosion

The process of which weathered particles are picked up and moved from one place to another.

deposition

The part of the erosion process in which sediment is placed in a new location, or deposited.

weathering

the process by which rock is broken down into smaller pieces, by wind, water and change in temperature.

uplift

the rising of regions of the Earth's crust to higher elevations

subsidence

the sinking of regions of the Earth's crust to lower elevations