Leucogranite in the context of "Basement (geology)"

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⭐ Core Definition: Leucogranite

Leucogranite is a light-colored, granitic, igneous rock containing almost no dark minerals.

Leucogranites have been reported from a variety of orogenies involving continental collisions. Examples include the Black Hills (Trans-Hudson orogeny of Proterozoic age), the Blue Ridge basement complex (Grenville orogeny of Proterozoic age), the Paleozoic Appalachian orogeny in Maine, and the currently active Himalayan orogeny. The leucogranite magmas are interpreted to have been derived by partial melting of pelitic rocks in the upper portions of thickened crust. These melts result following deformation and metamorphism, but the heat source is uncertain. Shear-heating associated with large shear zones in the crust has been proposed as the mechanism.

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Leucogranite in the context of Granite

Granite (/ˈɡræ.nɪt/, GRAN-it) is a coarse-grained (phaneritic) intrusive igneous rock composed mostly of quartz, alkali feldspar, and plagioclase. It forms from magma with a high content of silica and alkali metal oxides that slowly cools and solidifies underground. It is common in the continental crust of Earth, where it is found in igneous intrusions. These range in size from dikes only a few centimeters across to batholiths exposed over hundreds of square kilometers.

Granite is typical of a larger family of granitic rocks, or granitoids, that are composed mostly of coarse-grained quartz and feldspars in varying proportions. These rocks are classified by the relative percentages of quartz, alkali feldspar, and plagioclase (the QAPF classification), with true granite representing granitic rocks rich in quartz and alkali feldspar. Most granitic rocks also contain mica or amphibole minerals, though a few (known as leucogranites) contain almost no dark minerals.

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LINKED FROM (PARENTS)
← Granite ← Microgranite ← Pink granite
LINKS TO (CHILDREN)
Lozère → Boscobel complex → Granite → Igneous rock → Mineral → Orogeny → Convergent boundary → Black Hills → Trans-Hudson orogeny → Proterozoic → Blue Ridge Mountains → Basement (geology) → Grenville orogeny → Paleozoic → Appalachian orogeny → Maine → Geology of the Himalaya → Magma → Pelite → Continental crust → Metamorphism → Shear zone →