Rocks

Minjun Kim
 Introduction
Rock is the hard mineral substance that forms the solid
part of Earth's crust. Mountains and canyons expose
many different types of rock on their surfaces. Great
cliffs of rock line the seashore in such places as Maine,
California, and southern England. In many desert
regions, rock formations rise above sandy plains. In
most fairly flat areas, a layer of soil covers the
underlying rock. Soil consists of tiny fragments of rock
and grains of minerals mixed with decaying remains of
plants and animals.
Most rocks are aggregates. Aggregates contain crystals
or grains of two or more different minerals. Much
granite, for example, contains grains of clear quartz,
pinkish potassium feldspar, white plagioclase, and black
biotite or hornblende. Some rocks have grains so small
that they can be seen only when a thin slice of the rock
is examined under a microscope. A few kinds of rock
consist almost entirely of only one mineral. Quartzite,
for example, is rock composed of the mineral quartz,
and limestone is rock composed of the mineral calcite.
People use rocks in many ways. Builders use granite,
marble, and other rocks as construction materials.
Cement is made from finely crushed and heated
limestone. Sand and gravel or crushed stone mixed with
wet cement makes strong, durable concrete, an artificial
rock, for use in buildings, highways, and dams.
Such metals as aluminum, copper, iron, lead, tin, and
zinc come from rocks called ores. Ores also supply
radioactive metals, such as uranium, and nonmetallic
minerals, such as borax, graphite, and trona. In
Minnesota and western Australia, deposits of iron ore
make up entire mountains. In tropical climates,
weathering (the breaking down of rock) creates thick
soils rich in the aluminum-bearing ore bauxite.
Some rocks hold valuable crystals. In Africa and
Australia, workers mine diamonds from a rock called
kimberlite. Beautiful green emeralds come from rocks
in Colombia, India, Russia, and South Africa. Most blue
aquamarine comes from Brazil and Madagascar.
Emerald and aquamarine are gem forms of the mineral
beryl.
Geologists study rocks to trace Earth's history.
Petroleum geologists analyze the age, structure, and
composition of rock layers to find petroleum deposits.
Paleontologists study fossils found in rock to learn
about living things that existed millions of years ago.
Thousands of young people and adults collect rocks and
minerals as a hobby. They trade rocks just as stamp
collectors trade stamps. There are thousands of rock and
mineral clubs throughout the world. These clubs hold
regular meetings, sponsor study groups and museum
exhibits, and organize field trips to collecting areas.
Geologists divide rock into three different classes:
(1) igneous rock,
(2) sedimentary rock, and
(3) metamorphic rock.

Igneous rock forms when molten rock cools.

Sedimentary rock forms from loose deposits of rocky
material. Metamorphic rock is created when other rocks
are changed by heat and pressure.
Igneous Rock
Igneous rock forms from magma (molten rock). Most
magma lies deep below Earth's surface. Sometimes,
magma rises to the surface through fissures (deep
cracks) in Earth's crust. Other times, magma travels up
conduits (pipe-like channels in the rock) and erupts at
the surface, forming a volcano. Magma cools and
hardens into igneous rock. Geologists divide igneous
rock into two types: extrusive rock, which forms when
magma flows onto the surface, and intrusive rock,
which forms when magma hardens beneath the ground.
Extrusive Igneous Rock
Extrusive rock (also known as volcanic rock) forms
from magma that reaches Earth's surface. The magma
emerges as streams of hot lava or as fine cinders and
ash. Volcanoes are piles of lava, cinder, and ash that
have accumulated over tens, hundreds, or even millions
of years.
Magma hardens quickly when exposed to the cooler
temperatures on the surface, leaving little time for minerals
to crystallize (develop crystals). As a result, most extrusive
rocks have small grains. In some cases, magma cools so
quickly that it forms obsidian, a smooth, shiny volcanic glass
with few crystals. Often, gas dissolved in the magma bubbles
out as the magma cools. The gas bubbles leave cavities in the
rock. Geologists call volcanic rock with many round or oval-
shaped cavities cinder. Magmas rich in dissolved gases can
form pumice, a rock filled with so many tiny cavities that
some pieces can float on water. Lava that hardens more
slowly forms rocks composed entirely of crystals.
Dark-colored igneous rocks called basalts result from
magmas that contain little dissolved gas and erupt rather
slowly. Light-colored igneous rocks called andesites
commonly form from magmas that contain large
amounts of dissolved gas and erupt with explosive
violence. Explosive eruptions produce rock fragments
ranging from tiny particles of volcanic dust to lumps
called volcanic bombs that measure 3 feet (1 meter) or
more in diameter. Rocks called volcanic breccias consist
of fragments of cooling magma that become welded
together.
Intrusive Igneous Rock
Intrusive rocks (also known as plutonic rocks) form
from magma that does not rise all the way to Earth's
surface. Instead, it pushes into older rock formations
and hardens into structures called intrusions. Intrusions
that cut across older rock layers are called dikes. Sills
are intrusions that spread out between older rock layers,
forming a parallel layer. Some sills, called laccoliths,
push the rock layers above them into a domelike
formation. Magma can melt older rocks and pass
through them, creating huge intrusions called batholiths
and smaller intrusions called stocks.