Mineralogy and Petrology

Catalog description

Class Hours: 3 Lab/Discussion: 3 Credits: 4 Prerequisite: Grade of “C” or better in GEOS 200 Corequisite: none Restriction: none Description: Introduces crystallography, crystal chemistry, optical properties and phase equilibria of minerals pertinent to geology, Earth resources and technology. Introduces the origins of igneous and metamorphic rocks based on a plate tectonic framework emphasizing melting and crystallization processes as well as metamorphic reactions. Laboratory exercises will focus on mineral and rock identification and interpretation as well as quantitative techniques such as x-ray diffractometry and optical microscopy.