Definitions Flashcards
Mineral
Minerals are a natural resource found in rocks.
Lithosphere
The outer layer of the Earth, it includes the crust and the upper mantle.
Magma
An extremely hot mixture of molten rock and gasses composed in the mantle.
Sediments
Material broken down by erosion that is moved around by wind and water. It can collect in layers.
Native elements
Elements found uncombined in the Earth’s crust.
Crystals
A substance that can be shaped in 7 different ways. The atoms that make it up and the conditions around the crystal during growth determine what shape it is.
Lustre
The appearance of a mineral caused by the way it reflects light.
Streak
The colour of a mineral once turned into a fine powder.
Hardness
The measure of how difficult it is to scratch the surface of a mineral.
Igneous rocks
Rocks that are formed by cooled down lava.
Extrusive rocks
A form of igneous rock that exited the crust in a molten form.
Viscosity
The measure of how thick a fluid is.
Lava
Magma that has reached the atmosphere.
Molten
Another word for melt.
Pumice
A rock that forms from lava that cools down midair.
Scoria
A rock found in lava that cools down quickly.
Abrasive
A property of a material or substance that easily scratches another.
Basalt
A hard rock with crystals in it, it is formed by lava quickly cooling.
Obsidian
A glassy rock that is formed by cooling lava with extreme speed
Intrusive rocks
A rock that is formed when magma cools under the surface.
Batholith
A rock mass that can measure over 100 kilometres across.
Granite
A hard rock with crystals big enough to see in it, it has a slow formation process.
Sedimentary Rocks
Rocks that are formed by sediments.
Erosion
The gradual destruction of a natural agent.
Floodplain
An area beside a river where sediments are disposed during a flood.
Glaciers
Large amounts of ice that move down slopes, pushing rocks and gravel in their path.
Moraine
The aftermath of a glacier.
Sandstone
A sedimentary rock made up of sand.
Mudstone
Sedimentary rock without layering.
Shale
Sedimentary rock that is made up of clay.
Siltstone
A sedimentary rock with a particle size between sandstone and mudstone.
Conglomerate
Sedimentary rock made up of large particles with varying sizes.
Limestone
Sedimentary rock formed by the remains of sea organisms.
Coal
Sedimentary rock made of dead plants and animals that were buried before completely rotting.
Rock salt
A sedimentary deposit formed when a salt lake dried.
Metamorphism
The process that changes rocks with high pressure, heat or both.
Metamorphic rocks
A rock formed from another rock that has been under extreme heat, pressure or both.
Slate
Shale that has been under extreme heat and pressure.
Marble
Limestone that has be under extreme pressure.
Gneiss
Granite that has been exposed to extreme pressure.
Mineral ores
Rocks mined to obtain metal.
Mining
Extracting minerals from the Earth
Environmental impact statement
Study of the possible effects of a project on the environment.
Rehabilitated
An item restored to its previous condition.
Overburden
Waste rock removed from the bottom of the topsoil.
Open-cut mining
Mining that is done in an open area.
Underground mining
Mining that is done in shafts deep underground
Mineral ores
Rocks mined to obtain metal.
Mining
Extracting minerals from the Earth
Environmental impact statement
Study of the possible effects of a project on the environment.
Rehabilitated
An item restored to its previous condition.
Overburden
Waste rock removed from the bottom of the topsoil.
Open-cut mining
Mining that is done in an open area.
Underground mining
Mining that is done in shafts deep underground
Stone Age
The time about 2 million years ago where humans used stone for most of their tools.
Alloy
The mixture of a metal and another metal or non-metal material.
Flint
A sedimentary rock that leaves a sharp edge when broken.
Percussion flaking
The process in which stones are struck with harder stones to make tools.
Fossil
Any remains of plants or animals from another period of time.
Palaeontologist
A scientist that studies fossils.
Folding
The buckling of rocks caused by pressure.
Relative age
The age of a rock compared to another rock.
Carnivores
Organisms that eat meat.
Scavengers
Organisms that eat both plant and meat matter.
Mould
The cavity in a rock that shows the hard parts of an organism.
Trace fossils
Fossils that give evidence that an organism was present when a rock was formed.
Extinct
Volcanos that are no longer active.
