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Rhyolite is an extrusive igneous rock, formed from magma rich in silica that is extruded from a volcanic vent to cool quickly on the surface rather than slowly in the subsurface. It is generally light in color due to its low content of mafic minerals, and it is typically very fine-grained ( aphanitic ) or glassy .
Resurgent calderas can refill with an eruption of rhyolitic magma to form the extrusive rock rhyolite like the Yellowstone Caldera. [2] Submarine volcanoes erupt on the ocean floor and produce the extrusive rock pumice. [2] Pumice is a light-weight glass with a vesicular texture that differs from scoria in its silicic composition and therefore ...
Extrusive igneous rock, also known as volcanic rock, is formed by the cooling of molten magma on the earth's surface. The magma, which is brought to the surface through fissures or volcanic eruptions, rapidly solidifies. Hence such rocks are fine-grained or even glassy. Basalt is the most common extrusive igneous rock [9] and forms lava flows ...
Also called Indianite. A mineral from the lime-rich end of the plagioclase group of minerals. Anorthites are usually silicates of calcium and aluminium occurring in some basic igneous rocks, typically those produced by the contact metamorphism of impure calcareous sediments. anticline An arched fold in which the layers usually dip away from the fold axis. Contrast syncline. aphanic Having the ...
The following is a list of rock types recognized by geologists.There is no agreed number of specific types of rock. Any unique combination of chemical composition, mineralogy, grain size, texture, or other distinguishing characteristics can describe a rock type.
Obsidian was valued in Stone Age cultures because, like flint, it could be fractured to produce sharp blades or arrowheads in a process called knapping. Like all glass and some other naturally occurring rocks, obsidian breaks with a characteristic conchoidal fracture. It was also polished to create early mirrors.
Vesicular texture is a volcanic rock texture characterized by a rock being pitted with many cavities (known as vesicles) at its surface and inside. [1] This texture is common in aphanitic, or glassy, igneous rocks that have come to the surface of the Earth, a process known as extrusion. As magma rises to the surface the pressure on it decreases ...
The term rock formation can also refer to specific sedimentary strata or other rock unit in stratigraphic and petrologic studies. A rock structure can be created in any rock type or combination: Igneous rocks are created when molten rock cools and solidifies, with or without crystallisation. They may be either plutonic bodies or volcanic ...