Publications and Resources
Publications and Resources

Minerals and Rocks – Geological Building Blocks

Minerals and rocks are the essential building blocks of the geosphere. Although there are over 3,000 species of minerals, only a few of them, such as quartz, feldspar, mica, amphibole, pyroxene, olivine and calcite, occur commonly as rock-forming minerals. Rocks are classified into three main types, igneous, sedimentary, and metamorphic, depending upon their mode of formation. Over geological time, rocks gradually are transformed from one type to another in what is termed the Rock Cycle. The origin of any particular rock can be determined by careful examination of its texture, composition, and internal structure, features that form the basis of rock identification and classification.

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