Igneous rocks form from the cooling and solidification of magma, either underground as intrusive rocks like granite and gabbro, or above ground through volcanic eruptions as extrusive rocks like basalt, obsidian, and pumice. Molten rock material deep underground is subjected to high temperatures and pressures, and sometimes erupts to the surface as lava, where it cools faster to form extrusive igneous rocks. If the molten rock cools slowly underground, it forms intrusive igneous rocks. The two main types are intrusive and extrusive igneous rocks.
Igneous rocks form from the cooling and solidification of magma, either underground as intrusive rocks like granite and gabbro, or above ground through volcanic eruptions as extrusive rocks like basalt, obsidian, and pumice. Molten rock material deep underground is subjected to high temperatures and pressures, and sometimes erupts to the surface as lava, where it cools faster to form extrusive igneous rocks. If the molten rock cools slowly underground, it forms intrusive igneous rocks. The two main types are intrusive and extrusive igneous rocks.
Igneous rocks form from the cooling and solidification of magma, either underground as intrusive rocks like granite and gabbro, or above ground through volcanic eruptions as extrusive rocks like basalt, obsidian, and pumice. Molten rock material deep underground is subjected to high temperatures and pressures, and sometimes erupts to the surface as lava, where it cools faster to form extrusive igneous rocks. If the molten rock cools slowly underground, it forms intrusive igneous rocks. The two main types are intrusive and extrusive igneous rocks.
Igneous rocks form from the cooling and solidification of magma, either underground as intrusive rocks like granite and gabbro, or above ground through volcanic eruptions as extrusive rocks like basalt, obsidian, and pumice. Molten rock material deep underground is subjected to high temperatures and pressures, and sometimes erupts to the surface as lava, where it cools faster to form extrusive igneous rocks. If the molten rock cools slowly underground, it forms intrusive igneous rocks. The two main types are intrusive and extrusive igneous rocks.
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Igneous Rocks
What are Igneous Rocks?
Igneous rocks form from the cooling of magma – molten materials in the earth’s crust. The terminology Igneous means fire or heat. In this sense, igneous rocks are formed when molten rock (magma) solidifies either underneath the earth crust to form plutonic (intrusive) igneous rocks or on the surface of the earth to form volcanic (extrusive) igneous rocks.
They are simply the rocks formed through heating then followed by cooling. The heated material is the molten rock which is made up of partial or complete melting of previously existent rocks in the earth’s crust that are consistently subjected to intense heat, high pressure changes, and alterations in composition.
As per Wikipedia,
“Igneous rock (derived from the Latin word ignis meaning fire) is one of the three main rock types, the others being sedimentary and metamorphic. Igneous rock is formed through the cooling and solidification of magma or lava. Igneous rock may form with or without crystallization, either below the surface as intrusive (plutonic) rocks or on the surface as extrusive (volcanic) rocks.”
Formation of Igneous Rocks
Molten materials are found below the earth crust and are normally subjected to extreme pressure and temperatures – up to 1200° Celsius. Because of the high temperatures and pressure changes, the molten materials sometimes shoot up to the surface in the form of volcanic eruption and they cool down to form volcanic or extrusive igneous rocks.
Alternatively, some of the molten materials may cool underneath the earth surface very slowly to form plutonic or intrusive igneous rocks. It is because of the extreme heat levels and changes in pressure that igneous rocks do not contain organic matter or fossils. The molten minerals interlock and crystallize as the melt cools and form solid materials. Types of Igneous Rocks Igneous rocks are of two types:
※intrusive (plutonic rocks)
※extrusive (volcanic rocks).
Intrusive Igneous Rocks
Intrusive igneous rocks are formed when the magma cools off slowly under the earth’s crust and hardens into rocks. Gabbro and granite are examples of intrusive igneous rocks. Intrusive rocks are very hard in nature and are often coarse-grained.
Examples:
※Gabbro ※Granite
Extrusive Igneous Rocks
Extrusive igneous rocks are formed when molten magma spill over to the surface as a result of volcanic eruption. The magma on the surface (lava) cools faster on the surface to form igneous rocks that are fine grained. Examples of such kind of rocks include pumice, basalt, or obsidian.
