Geology Exam 2
Aphanitic means
Fine grained crystal texture and Rapid cooling
Basaltic lava flows may be erupted from
shield volcanos
basaltic lava flows are associated with
shield volcanos (low silica level)
Crystallization of mafic minerals from mafic magma makes magma
more silica rich
more high silica material minerals
more stable in weathering
A fine grained black rock came from
near the surface as an organic rock
Volcanic Precipitation
occurs when melts solidify or freeze
what kind of crystal habit do diamonds have
octahedral
Diamond and graphite are
polymorphs (of carbon): two minerals with the same composition, but with different chemical structures.
Geological settings of volcanism
-Mid-ocean ridges: spreading axes -Convergent boundaries: subduction zones -Continental rifts: incipient ocean basins -Oceanic hot spots Continental hot spots and flood basalts
What are the six major silicate rock forming minerals?
1. Olivine(least silica/highest temperature) 2. Pyroxene 3. Amphibole 4. Mica 5. Feldspar 6. Quartz (most silica/lowest temperature)
3 different types of melting in the magma chamber
1. Partial melting in the interior 2. fractional crystallization 3. assimilation
what are two important things to note about igneous rock
1. grain size 2. composition
Pillow lavas in basalts are evidence of
1. rapid cooling or lava on the ocean floor 2. volcanism along mid-ocean ridges
how do we classify sedimentary rocks
1.Grain Size (very from coarse to very fine gravel, sand, slir , clay) 2.Composition
Diamonds originate at
150 km in depth below the earths surface They are formed in old, deep, lithospheric cratonic roots
columnar jointing (basaltic lava flows)
A type of fracturing that yields a roughly hexagonal cross section. Pillow basalts; columnar joints form when a dike, sill, or lava flow cools.
graded bedding
Bedding in which the particle sizes become progressively heavier and coarser toward the bottom layers
Non-Classic Sedimentary Rock
Biochemical: cemented shells of organisms Organic: carbon-rich remains of once-living organisms Chemical: minerals that crystallize directly from water Made of biotic particles or chemical precipitates
physical weathering
Breaking down rocks through physical processes like freezing and thawing
Goldich Stability Series
Chart that describes the order/rate in which silicate minerals weather quartz on top olivine bottom
Phaneritic means
Coarse Grained crystal texture and Slow cooling
What is the term used to describe how rocks melt over a range of temperatures?
Composition
high viscosity
Cooler More SiO2 (Felsic) More volatiles
Deposition
Deposition is the process of moved particles being deposited
What is the term used to describe how different minerals crystallize at different temperatures?
Fractional Crystallization - bowen's reaction series indicates the succession of crystallization in cooling magmas
Andesitic Lava Flows
Higher SiO2 content makes andesitic lavas viscous. Unlike basalt, they do not flow rapidly. Instead, andesitic flows mound around the vent and flow slowly. The cooled external crust fractures into rubble, called blocky lava.
low viscosity
Hotter Less SiO2 (Mafic) Less volatiles
What is the difference between Intrusive and Extrusive:
Intrusive: Intrusive rocks are formed from magma that cools and solidifies within the crust of the planet. (realm is below ground.) Extrusive: Extrusive rocks are formed on the surface of the Earth from lava, which is magma that has emerged from underground (realm is above ground)
is the volcanic rock type that transports diamonds and mantle xenoliths to the surface. Diamonds are not precipitated from these rocks. (funnel shaped structures)
Kimberlites (Breccia)
What is the difference between magma and lava
Magma is intrusive and lava is extrusive
volcanic glass (obsidian)
Magma rapidly cooled to below its normal crystallization temperature becomes a supercooled liquid, and, with further rapid cooling, this becomes an amorphous solid.
What is magma?
Molten rock beneath the earth's surface It may contain solid crystals that float or sink
Ancient Mud Cracks
Mud cracks are present only in fine-grained rocks with enough clay content to cause shrinking
Mt. St. Helens
On May 18, 1980, 8:32 a.m., an earthquake triggered a massive landslide that sheared off the entire north side. This released pressure that resulted in a giant lateral blast that flattened 600 km2 of forest. Around 440 m of elevation was blasted away. The blast killed 61 people. Lahars plugged the Toutle River and closed the Columbia. Ash fell in North Dakota. Highways and rail lines were shut down. The blast destroyed several hundred million dollars worth of timber.
sedimentary rock
Particles, grains, clasts that were deposited in layers and cemented together made of other rocks
Rhyolitic Lava Flows
Rhyolite has the highest SiO2 and is the most viscous lava. Rhyolitic lava rarely flows. Rather, lava plugs the vent as a lava dome. Sometimes, rhyolitic lava domes are blown to smithereens during eruption.
chemical weathering
The process in which rock is broken down by changes in its chemical makeup
cross bedding
are created by ripple and dune migration. Sand moves up the gentle side and piles up at the crest. Then, it slips down the steep face. The slip face moves down-current and is buried by the next avalanche of sand. The slip faces are preserved as cross beds.
Depositional Environments
are locations where sediment accumulates. Different environments vary in energy regime, sediment transport, and depositional processes and chemical, physical, and biological characteristics, all of which conspire to create unique sedimentary rocks.
Stratigraphic Formations
are named for places where they are best exposed. Geologic maps display the distribution of formations.
intermediate melts
are so named because their composition lies partway between those of mafic and felsic melts.
Diamonds are not rare, but they are often smuggled in certain countries or the subject of civil wars. Diamond from these countries are technically called ___________ diamonds, or more informally, ___________ diamonds
blood diamonds/conflict diamonds
Limestone is made of
calcite skeletons of organisms, like those in a coral reef.
a course grained rock white and pink rock
came from deep in the earth
Andestic Lava Flow may be erupted from
cinder cone volcanos
Porphyritic means
coarse and fine crystal texture and slow then fast cooling
Breccia (classic sedimentary rock)
coarse sedimentary rock consisting of angular fragments; Angularity indicates the absence of rounding by transport, hence, deposited relatively close to clast source.
what is a rock
coherent, naturally occurring solid, consisting of aggregate minerals 3 major types (ignous, sedimentary, metamorphic)
mafic melts (igneous rock)
contain a relatively high proportion of magnesium oxide and iron oxide relative to silica.
Shallow flows
cool quickly
Crystal size tells us
cooling rate
Felsic
high silica magma, light colored
plume hot spots
cut through continental crust create large volumes of felsic magma. Three eruptions of Yellowstone deposited vast ignimbrite sheets across the western United States. The latest eruption created a caldera 72 km (45 miles) across. Magma beneath the caldera continues to fuel geysers.
As transport distance increases, grain size _______
decreases
A sea-level rise or transgression shifts
depositional beds landward.
A sea-level fall or regression shifts
environments toward the basin.
Viscosity characteristics
exceeds that of molasses, but not all molten rock has the same viscosity. The viscosity of molten rock depends primarily on its temperature, volatile content, and silica content. Hotter melt tends to be less viscous than cooler melt A melt containing more volatiles has lower viscosity than does a dry (volatile-free) melt. mafic melt is less viscous than felsic melt because relatively more silicon-oxygen tetrahedra occur in felsic melt.
Diamonds not found in the old cratons have been transported, often by glaciers, and are called
extra-terrestrial (carbonados)
Aphanitic
fine grained
diamonds are formed at
high temperatures and high pressures
Felsic melts (igneous rock)
have a relatively high proportion of silica relative to magnesium oxide and iron oxide.
ultramafic melts (igneous rock)
have an even higher proportion of magnesium oxide and iron oxide relative to silica.
What was Norm Bowen's major contribution to science?
his phase-equilibrium studies of silicate systems as they relate to the origin of igneous rocks
classic sedimentary rock
loose rock fragments (clasts) cemented together
mafic
low silica magma, dark colored
Geologic environments where decompression melting occurs:
mantle plumes, continental rifts, and divergent-plate boundaries.
decompression melting
melting involves the upward movement of Earth's mostly-solid mantle. This hot material rises to an area of lower pressure through the process of convection this melting occurs at mantle plumes, continental rifts, and divergent plate boundaries P decreases but T remains constant
Diamonds are NOT forever. They are
metastable (unstable, but so long-lived as to be stable for practical purposes)
sedimentary rocks are all formed by
physical or chemical weathering
fractional crystallization
process in which different minerals crystallize from magma at different temperatures, removing elements from magma with decreasing temperatures, the magma becomes more felsic
Weathering
process of natural forces breaking down rocks (in situ) into smaller pieces.
Erosion
process which the broken pieces are transported, or moved,
pyroclastic
relating to or consisting of fragments of rock erupted by a volcano "fragmental texture"
Viscosity
resistance to flow
Conglomerate
rounded rock clasts. Clasts are rounded as flowing water wears off corners and edges; deposited farther from the source than breccia.
Sediment deposition is strongly linked to
sea level
What feature of an igneous rock can give us an indication of cooling rate?
slow cooling allows large crystals to form, fast cooling yields small crystals.
Rhyolitic Lava Flow may be erupted from
stratovolcanoes
The carbon from diamonds likely originated from a deeply______oceanic slab in the Archean (>2.5 Ga ago
subducted
Assimilation
the process whereby solid or fluid foreign material is incorporated into magma.
Bowen's Reaction Series
the simplified pattern that illustrates the order in which minerals crystallize from cooling magma according to their chemical composition and melting point Rocks at the top are mafic rocks at the bottom are felsic olivene is is the first to melt and crytalize
basaltic (mafic) lava flow
very hot, low silica, and low viscosity
flux melting
volatiles help break chemical bonds, creating a melt Water, CO2, driven off the subducting slab into mantle above
Pillow basalts form
when the basalt flow is erupted into water on the ocean floor