Basalt grey fine grained volcanic rock

Basalt

Dark grey fine grained volcanic rock composed of plagioclase, pyroxene and olivine, with relatively low silica (45-52 wt %). The composition reflects an upper mantle origin. Basalt is the most common type of volcanic rock on Earth, and it erupts from mid-ocean spreading ridges and hot spots (e.g., Hawaii and Iceland). The intrusive coarsely crystalline igneous rock equivalent is called gabbro.

Geothermal Glossary

Word of the Week – Vadose Zone

Word of the Week – Vadose Zone

Vadose Zone A hydrogeological term that represents the volume of rock and unconsolidated materials between the ground surface and the underlying water table, in which pores and cracks are filled or partially filled with air.

Word of the Week – Vapor-Dominated Reservoir

Word of the Week – Vapor-Dominated Reservoir

Vapor-Dominated Reservoir he highest grade of geothermal resource in which self-flowing wells produce dry steam from a reservoir containing a mixture of hot water and steam. Larderello, Italy and The Geysers, California, USA are examples, and they are extremely...

Word of the Week – Wairakite

Word of the Week – Wairakite

Wairakite A zeolite mineral of hydrothermal origin that was first identified in the Wairakei geothermal field in New Zealand by Alfred Steiner. It forms clear to white prismatic crystals, which have a distinctive cross hatched twinning, and it is commonly associated...

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