The Rock Cycle is Earth's great recycling process where igneous, metamorphic, and sedimentary rocks can all be derived from and form one another. Analogous to recycling a Coke can, where an old can ...

Researchers have discovered microdiamonds in the Nishisonogi metamorphic rock formation in Nagasaki Prefecture, Japan. Microdiamonds in metamorphic rocks are important minerals because they form in ...

If you’ve ever studied geography, looked at fossils in a museum, or even looked up at a craggy cliffside or a steep mountain, you’ll know that rocks usually take millions of years to form. However, ...

High-pressure metamorphic rocks form during subduction of Earth’s crust to mantle depths at convergent plate margins. Their exposure at the surface of Earth today provides a record of the subduction ...

Sedimentary rocks are made up of pieces of older rocks (igneous, metamorphic, and sedimentary) and organic remains (shells, bone, etc.). When rocks break apart from erosion they are transported by ...

Collectors of all ages have always been interested in rocks and the minerals that make them up. They come in countless shapes, sizes and colors. There are three main types of rocks: sedimentary, ...

Researchers have produced a new estimate for the origin of Earth's plate tectonics—the movement of large chunks of the planet's outer layer, or crust. Although there is broad consensus that plate ...

Boulder, Colo., USA - An astonishing new rock formation has been revealed in the Colorado Rockies, and it exists in a deeply perplexing relationship with older rocks. Named the Tava sandstone, this ...

A rock is intriguing scientists on Mars. The Perseverance rover has discovered a unique striped formation in the Jezero crater. This 8-inch (20 cm) block, named "Freya Castle," is raising questions ...

We often talk about climate change, melting glaciers, or strange landforms. But we rarely think about something that’s always around us– rocks. They don’t make the news, but they’re everywhere. We ...

a: Geological zone in western Japan. The blue-green part is the Sanbagawa belt that crosses mainland Japan. The Nishisonogi metamorphic rock was thought to belong to the same geological formation as ...