Is Granite The Oldest Igneous Rock

Granite is the main component that makes up the earth s continental crust.

Is granite the oldest igneous rock.

Granite is a grained igneous rock that is formed when magma cools and deep within the earth s crust therefore it is an structure. It is the most common plutonic rock of the earth s crust forming by the cooling of magma silicate melt at depth. The stone is cut from rock beneath the earth s surface. This evidence suggests that some granite is not igneous in origin but metamorphic.

For those who ve forgotten your high school science classes igneous rocks are formed from cooling lava or magma. Some granite is the oldest known rock on earth. Other types of rocks include sedimentary rocks limestone travertine etc and metamorphic rocks marble quartzite etc. Granite coarse or medium grained intrusive igneous rock that is rich in quartz and feldspar.

The schist is a metamorphic rock that formed as a result of heat and or pressure applied to a sedimentary or igneous rock. Learn more about the properties and uses of granite in this article. Granite is also what s called a plutonic rock meaning that it forms deep underground. Granite is the oldest igneous rock in the world believed to have been formed as long as 300 million years ago.

Many people recognize granite because it is the most common igneous rock found at earth s surface and because granite is used to make many objects that we encounter in daily life. The granite cut through the schist. The granite is an igneous rock that is formed by magma underground that moves and cuts across existing rock layers. Granite is the best known igneous rock.

Granite is one of the oldest rocks in the world. Crystallized at depth granite masses are exposed at the earth s surface by crustal movement or by the erosion of overlying rocks. Granite does not simply appear naturally as a slab. Tonalite mafic rocks metasedimentary rocks banded iron formations granite and granodiorite photo source.