This page gathers the 2,830 dictionary entries belonging to the domain “Geology”, as labelled by Wiktionary. Each word leads to its full entry: definitions, etymology, pronunciation, examples. Page 23 of 29: from “satimolite” to “silt”.
- satimolite noun An orthorhombic chalky white mineral containing aluminum, boron, chlorine, hydrogen, oxygen, potassium, and sodium.
- satterlyite noun A trigonal-ditrigonal pyramidal mineral containing hydrogen, iron, magnesium, oxygen, and phosphorus.
- saussurite noun A tough, compact mineral aggregate, of a white, greenish, or greyish colour. It is an aggregate of albite, zoisite, prehnite and other…
- saxonite noun Harzburgite, a peridotite consisting mostly of olivine and low-calcium pyroxene.
- scale cube noun A reference cube of standard, unitary size, normally one centimetre long, or one inch long for older American versions, placed beside a…
- scalenohedron noun A polyhedron having twelve sides, each in the form of a scalene triangle, that is topologically equivalent to a hexagonal bipyramid and…
- scandian adj Containing scandium.
- scandiobabingtonite noun A triclinic-pinacoidal gray mineral containing calcium, hydrogen, iron, manganese, oxygen, scandium, and silicon.
- scarp noun A cliff at the edge of a plateau or ridge caused by erosion or faulting; the steeper side of an escarpment.
- schairerite noun A trigonal-ditrigonal pyramidal colorless mineral containing chlorine, fluorine, oxygen, sodium, and sulfur.
- schallerite noun A trigonal-ditrigonal pyramidal mineral containing arsenic, hydrogen, manganese, oxygen, and silicon.
- schaurteite noun A hexagonal-ditrigonal dipyramidal silky white mineral containing calcium, germanium, hydrogen, oxygen, and sulfur.
- scheelite noun A mineral composed of calcium tungstate, with the chemical formula CaWO₄; one of the principal ores for tungsten.
- schertelite noun An orthorhombic-dipyramidal colorless mineral containing hydrogen, magnesium, nitrogen, oxygen, and phosphorus.
- scheuchzerite noun A mineral containing sodium, manganese, magnesium, zinc, vanadium, silicon, oxygen and hydrogen, found in Italy and Switzerland.
- schiavinatoite noun A tetragonal-ditetragonal dipyramidal grayish pink mineral containing boron, niobium, oxygen, and tantalum.
- schiller noun A lustre, similar to sheen, observed in certain minerals, such as hypersthene or labradorite, due to the presence of minute parallel…
- schistose adj Of or relating to schist.
- schlegelite noun An orthorhombic-dipyramidal yellow mineral containing arsenic, bismuth, calcium, lead, molybdenum, oxygen, phosphorus, and vanadium.
- schlieren noun Irregular streaks of different composition in some igneous rocks.
- schlossmacherite noun A trigonal-hexagonal scalenohedral mineral containing aluminum, arsenic, calcium, hydrogen, oxygen, and sulfur.
- schneebergite noun A monoclinic-prismatic mineral containing arsenic, bismuth, calcium, cobalt, hydrogen, iron, nickel, and oxygen.
- schoenite noun An evaporite, consisting of a mixed potassium and magnesium sulphate, of the chemical formula K₂Mg(SO₄)₂·6(H₂O).
- schoonerite noun An orthorhombic-dipyramidal mineral containing hydrogen, iron, manganese, oxygen, phosphorus, and zinc.
- schumacherite noun A triclinic-pinacoidal mineral containing arsenic, bismuth, hydrogen, oxygen, phosphorus, and vanadium.
- sclarite noun A monoclinic-prismatic colorless mineral containing carbon, hydrogen, magnesium, manganese, oxygen, and zinc.
- scoria noun Rough masses of rock formed by solidified lava, and which can be found around a volcano's crater.
- sea surface noun The top layer of the ocean, where it meets the atmosphere.
- seafloor spreading noun The outward movement of the seafloor from central underwater ridges as a result of plate tectonics; the major cause of continental drift.
- seam noun A thin stratum, especially of an economically viable material such as coal or mineral.
- seamount chain noun A series of underwater volcanoes, or seamounts, that are arranged in a line with a relatively flat seafloor between their bases.
- seawave noun A large wave resulting from an underwater seismic event.
- secondary adj Produced by alteration or deposition subsequent to the formation of the original rock mass.
- sectile adj Capable of being cut smoothly with a knife.
- section noun A sequence of rock layers.
- secular adj Relating to long-term non-periodic irregularities, especially in planetary motion or magnetic field.
- sedimentary adj Made by the deposition and compression of small particles.
- sedimentary basin noun A geologic structure, a basin (“bowl, depression, hole”) in harder rock that is filled-in with sediments.
- sedimentary rock noun One of the major groups of rock that makes up the crust of the Earth; formed by the deposition of either the weathered remains of other…
- sedimented adj Of a stratum, deposited from sediment.
- seelite noun A mineral containing magnesium, uranium, oxygen, arsenic and hydrogen, found in Germany, France and Iran.
- segelerite noun An orthorhombic-dipyramidal mineral containing calcium, hydrogen, iron, magnesium, oxygen, and phosphorus.
- segregate adj Separate from a mass and collected together along lines of fraction.
- segregation noun Separation from a mass, and gathering about centers or into cavities at hand through cohesive or adhesive attraction or the crystallizing…
- seidozerite noun A monoclinic-prismatic mineral containing aluminum, calcium, fluorine, iron, magnesium, manganese, oxygen, silicon, sodium, titanium, and…
- seismic damper noun A mechanical device to dissipate the kinetic energy of seismic waves penetrating a building structure.
- seismic lithosphere noun the region between the surface of the Earth and the asthenosphere characterized by the efficient propagation of seismic waves
- seismic moment noun A quantity used to determine the size of an earthquake. Calculated either from a seismogram, or from the measurement of the area affected…
- seismometer noun A device used by seismologists to detect and measure seismic waves and therefore locate earthquakes etc; a seismograph.
- selenian adj Containing selenium (especially when this replaces another element).
- selenite noun A soft, glassy form of gypsum (chemical formula CaSO₄·2H₂O).
- selvage noun A distinct border of a mass of igneous rock. It is usually fine-grained or glassy due to rapid cooling.
- selwynite noun A tetragonal-ditetragonal dipyramidal deep purplish blue mineral containing aluminum, beryllium, hydrogen, oxygen, phosphorus, potassium…
- Senonian noun The final part of the Cretaceous epoch, comprising the Coniacian, Santonian, Campanian and possibly the Maastrichtian ages
- sepiolite noun A hydrated magnesium silicate, clay mineral used for carving into decorative articles and smoking pipes.
- septarium noun A flattened concretionary nodule, usually of limestone, intersected within by cracks which are often filled with calcite, barite, or other…
- septulum noun A small partition or division within a rock or mineral structure, especially within the fossil of a foraminifera or similar microorganism.
- Sequanian adj Relating to the upper Oxfordian stage.
- sericitization noun The hydrothermal or metamorphic alteration of a mineral, often plagioclase, into sericite (a white mica).
- serpentine noun Any of several green/brown minerals consisting of magnesium and iron silicates that have similar layered crystal structure, whose…
- serpierite noun A monoclinic-prismatic sky blue mineral containing calcium, copper, hydrogen, oxygen, sulfur, and zinc.
- shadow zone noun An area of the Earth's surface where seismographs cannot detect direct P-waves or S-waves from an earthquake.
- shafranovskite noun A trigonal-ditrigonal pyramidal mineral containing aluminum, calcium, hydrogen, iron, magnesium, manganese, oxygen, potassium, silicon, and…
- shale noun A fine-grained sedimentary rock of a thin, laminated, and often friable, structure.
- shatter cone noun A type of geologic feature consisting of a branching network of multiple stacked conical or spoon-shaped striated fractures produced by…
- shear noun The response of a rock to deformation usually by compressive stress, resulting in particular textures.
- sheen obsidian noun A rare type of volcanic glass that forms when gas bubbles or mineral inclusions become trapped in layers of rapidly cooling lava.
- sheet noun An extensive bed of an eruptive rock intruded between, or overlying, other strata.
- sheeting noun A weathering process in which rock breaks into sheets after compressional stress on it is removed.
- shelfy adj Abounding in shelves; containing crossbedded hard and soft layers that result in rocky shelves at varying angles.
- shell noun The accreted mineral formed around a hollow geode.
- sherwoodite noun A tetragonal-ditetragonal dipyramidal mineral containing aluminum, calcium, hydrogen, oxygen, and vanadium.
- shibkovite noun A hexagonal-dihexagonal dipyramidal mineral containing calcium, manganese, oxygen, potassium, silicon, sodium, and zinc.
- shield noun A large expanse of exposed stable Precambrian rock.
- shield volcano noun A large volcano, with shallow-sloping sides and a flattened dome, formed of successive eruptions of free-flowing lava from fissure vents.
- shirokshinite noun A monoclinic-prismatic mineral containing fluorine, magnesium, oxygen, potassium, silicon, and sodium.
- shirozulite noun A monoclinic-prismatic dark reddish brown mineral containing aluminum, barium, fluorine, hydrogen, iron, magnesium, manganese, oxygen…
- shiver noun A variety of blue slate.
- shkatulkalite noun A monoclinic mineral containing calcium, fluorine, hydrogen, manganese, niobium, oxygen, silicon, and sodium.
- shock verb To deform the crystal structure of a stone by the application of extremely high pressure at moderate temperature, as produced only by…
- shocked quartz noun A form of quartz with an unusual microscopic structure that has been deformed along planes inside the crystal by the application of…
- shoreface noun A narrow, steeply sloping zone between a seaward limit of the shore at low water and a nearly horizontal offshore zone.
- shortite noun An evaporite, consisting of a mixed sodium and calcium carbonate, with the chemical formula Na₂Ca₂(CO₃)₃.
- shubnikovite noun An orthorhombic light blue mineral containing arsenic, calcium, chlorine, copper, hydrogen, and oxygen.
- shuiskite noun A monoclinic-prismatic dark brown mineral containing aluminum, calcium, chromium, hydrogen, iron, magnesium, oxygen, and silicon.
- shungite noun A black, lustrous, non-crystalline mineraloid consisting mostly of carbon, used as a pigment in art and an antibacterial water treatment.
- sial noun The rocks rich in silicon and aluminum that form the upper layer of the earth's crust, which lies beneath all continental landmasses.
- sialic adj Composed predominantly of silica- and alumina-bearing minerals such as quartz and feldspar.
- sicherite noun An orthorhombic-dipyramidal dark gray mineral containing antimony, arsenic, silver, sulfur, and thallium.
- siderite noun A widespread brown mineral, FeCO₃, having the structure of calcite.
- siderophile noun In the Goldschmidt classification, an element that forms alloys easily with iron and is concentrated in the Earth's core.
- sidorenkite noun A monoclinic-prismatic light pink mineral containing carbon, manganese, oxygen, phosphorus, and sodium.
- sigismundite noun A mineral containing barium, iron, calcium, sodium, aluminum, phosphorus, oxygen and hydrogen, first found in Italy.
- silica group noun A large group of silicate minerals having a silicon to oxygen ratio of 1:2. This group includes many silicates of sodium, potassium…
- siliceous adj Comprised of biogenic silicate minerals. Contrasted with the inorganic term siliciclastic.
- siliciclastic adj Describing clastic rocks that bear quartz or similar silicate minerals
- sill noun A stratum of rock, especially an intrusive layer of igneous rock lying parallel to surrounding strata.
- sillenite noun A cubic mineral with the chemical formula Bi₁₂SiO₂₀, typically found in association with bismuthite.
- sillimanite noun A fibrous neosilicate mineral, polymorphic with andalusite and kyanite, with the chemical formula Al₂SiO₅.
- silt noun A particle from 3.9 to 62.5 microns in diameter, following the Wentworth scale.