Rocks and minerals - Study guides, Class notes & Summaries
Lithosphere - ans -the solid, outer layer of the earth that consists of the crust and
the rigid upper part of the mantle
Rock - ans -A naturally occurring solid mixture of one or more minerals or organic
matter
Luster - ans -the way a mineral reflects light from its surface
Streak - ans -The color of the powder left when a mineral is rubbed against a hard
rough surface
Weathering - ans -The process by which natural forces break down rocks and
minerals.
Erosion - ans -The process by which wind, water, ice, or gravity transports soil and
sediment from one location to another
Sediment - ans -Solid materials such as rock fragments, plant and animal remains,
or minerals that are carried by water, wind, ice, gravity, or some other natural
force and settle in a new location (bottom of a body of water or at the foot of hills
and mountains)
Deposition - ans -process in which sediment is laid down in new locations
Magma - ans -Molten rock beneath the planet's surface.
Lava - ans -Molten rock that reaches a planet's surface through a volcano or other
opening in the crust
Cleavage - ans -physical property of some minerals that causes them to break
along smooth, flat surfaces
Lithosphere - ans -the solid, outer layer of the earth that consists of the crust and
the rigid upper part of the mantle
Rock - ans -A naturally occurring solid mixture of one or more minerals or organic
matter
Luster - ans -the way a mineral reflects light from its surface
Streak - ans -The color of the powder left when a mineral is rubbed against a hard
rough surface
Weathering - ans -The process by which natural forces break down rocks and
minerals.
Erosion - ans -The process by which wind, water, ice, or gravity transports soil and
sediment from one location to another
Sediment - ans -Solid materials such as rock fragments, plant and animal remains,
or minerals that are carried by water, wind, ice, gravity, or some other natural
force and settle in a new location (bottom of a body of water or at the foot of hills
and mountains)
Deposition - ans -process in which sediment is laid down in new locations
Magma - ans -Molten rock beneath the planet's surface.
Lava - ans -Molten rock that reaches a planet's surface through a volcano or other
opening in the crust
Cleavage - ans -physical property of some minerals that causes them to break
along smooth, flat surfaces
