Ch 4: Magma, Igneous Rocks & Intrusive Activity Flashcards
Andesite
A gray, fine-grained igneous rock, primarily of volcanic origin and commonly exhibiting a porphyritic texture.
Assimilation
In igneous activity, the process of incorporating country rock into a magma body.
Asthenosphere
A subdivision of the mantle situated below the lithosphere. This zone of weak material exists below a depth of about 100 kilometers (60 miles) and in some regions extends as deep as 700 kilometers (430 miles). The rock within this zone is easily deformed.
Basalt
A fine-grained igneous rock of mafic composition.
Batholith
A large mass of igneous rock that formed when magma was emplaced at depth, crystallized, and subsequently exposed by erosion.
Bed
See Strata
Biotite
A dark, iron-rich mineral and a member of the mica family with excellent cleavage.
Bowen’s reaction series
A concept proposed by N. L. Bowen that illustrates the relationships between magma and the minerals crystallizing from it during the formation of igneous rocks.
Breccia
A sedimentary rock composed of angular fragments that were lithified.
Caldera
A large depression typically caused by collapse or ejection of the summit area of a volcano.
Chemical bond
A strong attractive force that exists between atoms in a substance. It involves the transfer or sharing of electrons that allows each atom to attain a full valence shell.
Coarse-grained
See Phaneritic texture.
Coast
A strip of land that extends inland from the coastline as far as ocean-related features can be found.
Color
A phenomenon of light by which otherwise identical objects may be differentiated.
Columnar joints
A pattern of cracks that forms during cooling of molten rock to generate columns.
Concordant
A term used to describe intrusive igneous masses that form parallel to the bedding of the surrounding rock.
Confining pressure
Stress that is applied uniformly in all directions.
Convection
The transfer of heat by the mass movement or circulation of a substance.
Convergent plate boundary
A boundary in which two plates move together, resulting in oceanic lithosphere being thrust beneath an overriding plate, eventually to be reabsorbed into the mantle. It can also involve the collision of two continental plates to create a mountain system.
Country rock
See Host rock.
Crust
The very thin, outermost layer of Earth.
Crystal
Any natural solid with an ordered, repetitive atomic structure.
Crystal settling
A process that occurs during the crystallization of magma, in which the earlier-formed minerals are denser than the liquid portion and settle to the bottom of the magma chamber.
Crystalline
See Crystal.
Dark silicate
A silicate mineral that contains ions of iron and/or magnesium in its structure. Dark silicates are dark in color and have a higher specific gravity than nonferromagnesian silicates.
Decompression melting
Melting that occurs as rock ascends due to a drop in confining pressure.
Dike
A tabular-shaped intrusive igneous feature that cuts through the surrounding rock.
Diorite
A coarse-grained, intrusive igneous rock primarily composed of plagioclase feldspar and amphibole minerals.
Discordant
A coarse-grained, intrusive igneous rock primarily composed of plagioclase feldspar and amphibole minerals.
Divergent plate boundary
A boundary in which two plates move apart, resulting in upwelling of material from the mantle to create new seafloor.
Element
A substance that cannot be decomposed into simpler substances by ordinary chemical or physical means.
Extrusive
Igneous activity that occurs at Earth’s surface.
Extrusive igneous rock
Igneous rock formed when magma solidifies at Earth’s surface.
Felsic composition
See Granitic composition.
Fine-grained
See Aphanitic texture.
Fissure
A crack in rock along which there is a distinct separation.
Fissure eruption
An eruption in which lava is extruded from narrow fractures or cracks in the crust.
Fracture
Any break or rupture in rock along which no appreciable movement has taken place.
Fragmental texture
See Pyroclastic texture.
Gabbro
A dark-green to black intrusive igneous rock composed of dark silicate minerals. Gabbro makes up a significant percentage of oceanic crust.
Geothermal gradient
The gradual increase in temperature with depth in the crust. The average is 30°C per kilometer in the upper crust.