Mineral Characteristics
A mineral must be this state of matter under normal Earth conditions.
What is a solid?
This property describes how light reflects off a mineral.
What is luster
Rock texture refers to the size, shape, and arrangement of mineral grains within a rock while mineral texture is the crystalline structure or overall feeling.
What must happen to sediment before it becomes sedimentary rock?
What is compaction and cementation?
This extrusive igneous rock forms from rapidly cooled lava and has very small crystals.
What is basalt?
This means a mineral has a specific chemical makeup.
What is a definite chemical composition?
This test involves rubbing a mineral on a plate to see its powder color.
What is streak
What are the three main rock types and how are they formed?
Igneous: Cooled magma/lava
Sedimentary: Compaction & Cementation (Lithification) of sediments
Metamorphic: Heat & Pressure underground
A rock is buried deep underground and exposed to heat and pressure. What process is occurring?
What is metamorphism?
This metamorphic rock forms from limestone under heat and pressure.
What is marble?
Minerals must have this type of internal structure.
What is an orderly crystalline structure?
This property measures resistance to scratching.
What is hardness
Explain why all rocks are made of minerals, but not all minerals are rocks.
What is rocks are aggregates of minerals, but minerals are single substances?
Describe the sequence from igneous rock to sedimentary rock.
What is weathering → erosion → deposition → compaction/cementation?
This sedimentary rock is composed of loosely cemented shell fragments, sand, and fossils, primarily from ancient mollusks
What is coquina?
A substance is solid and crystalline but formed in a lab. Why is it NOT a mineral?
What is it is not naturally occurring?
Why can hardness alone NOT identify a mineral?
What is multiple minerals can share the same hardness value?
Compare intrusive vs extrusive igneous rocks in terms of cooling rate and crystal size.
What is intrusive = slow cooling, large crystals; extrusive = fast cooling, small crystals?
Can any rock type become any other rock type? Explain.
What is yes, through the rock cycle processes?
Describe fine grained vs. course grained vs. glassy. How are rocks with these textures formed?
Coarse-grained rocks have large, visible crystals from slow, underground cooling. Fine-grained rocks have tiny crystals, often invisible to the naked eye, from fast surface cooling. Glassy textures occur when lava cools almost instantly, preventing crystal formation
Why are coal and pearls NOT considered minerals?
What is they are organic (formed from living things)?
Why is color NOT always reliable for identifying minerals?
What is it can change due to impurities/traces of other elements
Describe how texture differs between sedimentary and metamorphic rocks.
What is sedimentary = layered/compacted; metamorphic = foliated or recrystallized?
Why is the rock cycle considered a cycle rather than a linear process?
What is rocks can change into multiple types through different pathways?
Describe clastic vs chemical/biochemical sedimentary rocks.
Clastic sedimentary rocks are formed from cemented fragments of pre-existing, weathered rock (sand, mud, gravel), classified by grain size. Chemical and biochemical rocks form from mineral precipitation out of solution (evaporites) or biological activity (skeletons/shells), classified by mineral content and fossils.