
eclogite
Sign in to savethumb|300px|right|Eclogite from Norway with a garnet (red) and [[omphacite (greyish-green) groundmass. The sky-blue crystals are kyanite. Minor white quartz is present, presumably from the recrystallization of coesite. A few gold-white phengite patches can be seen at the top. A coin added for scale.]]
~5 min read
Encyclopedic overview
9 sectionsContents
- Origins
- Classification
- Surface versus mantle origin
- Eclogite facies
- Importance
- Formation of igneous rocks from eclogite
- Distribution
- References
- External links
thumb|300px|right|Eclogite from Norway with a garnet (red) and [[omphacite (greyish-green) groundmass. The sky-blue crystals are kyanite. Minor white quartz is present, presumably from the recrystallization of coesite. A few gold-white phengite patches can be seen at the top. A coin added for scale.]]
Eclogite () is a metamorphic rock containing garnet (almandine-pyrope) hosted in a matrix of sodium-rich pyroxene (omphacite). Accessory minerals include kyanite, rutile, quartz, lawsonite, coesite, amphibole, phengite, paragonite, zoisite, dolomite, corundum and, rarely, diamond. The chemistry of primary and accessory minerals is used to classify three types of eclogite (A, B, and C). The broad range of eclogitic compositions has led to a longstanding debate on the origin of eclogite xenoliths as subducted, altered oceanic crust.
Excerpted from Wikipedia’s “eclogite” article, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.