Geology and Soil Science Fundamentals

Vocabulary flashcards covering soil formation factors, mineralogy, igneous processes, sedimentary classifications, and metamorphic types from introductory soil science lectures.

Climate (in Soil Formation)

The most important factor in soil formation, defined by temperature and precipitation.

Parent Material

The horizon or zone of weathered rock or deposited material from which soil forms, classified by its mode of deposition.

Minerals

Homogeneous solids with a definite chemical composition and ordered atomic arrangement that serve as the source of parent material in most soils.

Rocks

Aggregates composed of two or more minerals.

Igneous Rocks

Rocks formed from melted material deep inside the Earth's core.

Texture (Igneous Rock)

The visual overall aspect imparted by the sizes, shapes, and arrangement of the rock-forming minerals.

Composition (Igneous Rock)

The relative amounts of minerals present in an igneous rock sample, determined by silicon dioxide combined with other elements in magma or lava.

Bowen's Reaction Series

The process where gradual underground magma cooling allows high-temperature minerals (olivine and calcium-rich plagioclase feldspar) to crystallize and separate, altering magma composition to progressively form lower-temperature minerals (quartz and potassium feldspar).

Sedimentary Rocks

Rocks formed by the transport, consolidation, or cementation of weathered rocks.

Clastic Sedimentary Rocks

Sedimentary rocks formed from the compaction and cementation of rock minerals and/or organic matter.

Non-Clastic Sedimentary Rocks

Sedimentary rocks produced by chemical processes, typically the precipitation of salts dissolved in groundwater.

Detrital Rock

Sedimentary rock made up of solid particles derived from parent material by mechanical and chemical weathering.

Chemical Rock

Sedimentary rock derived from material carried in solution that precipitates to form chemical sediments rather than remaining dissolved in water.

Metamorphic Rocks

Igneous or sedimentary rocks that have undergone mineralogical and chemical changes.

Geological Metamorphism

The process of a rock changing composition and texture by heat and pressure without melting.

Foliation

A metamorphic texture formed when new minerals develop, mineral grains are sheared, and platy minerals develop a parallel orientation.

Dynamic Metamorphism

A type of metamorphism where an increase in pressure is the dominant cause.

Thermal or Contact Metamorphism

A type of metamorphism where an increase in temperature is the dominant cause, most likely due to heat created by magma intrusions.

Regional Metamorphism

A type of metamorphism characterized by increases in both temperature and pressure generated on a regional scale, typically due to magma intrusions and high stresses developed during mountain building or tectonic plate movement.