Sedimentary rock is a type of rock that is formed by the deposition and subsequent cementation of that material at the Earth's surface and within bodies of water. Sedimentation is the collective name for processes that cause mineral and/or organic particles (detritus) to settle in place. The particles that form a sedimentary rock by accumulating are called sediment. Before being deposited, the sediment was formed by weathering and erosion from the source area, and then transported to the place of deposition by water, wind, ice, mass movement or glaciers, which are called agents of denudation. Sedimentation may also occur as minerals precipitate from water solution or shells of aquatic creatures settle out of suspension.
The sedimentary rock cover of the continents of the Earth's crust is extensive (73% of the Earth's current land surface), but the total contribution of sedimentary rocks is estimated to be only 8% of the total volume of the crust. Sedimentary rocks are only a thin veneer over a crust consisting mainly of igneous and metamorphic rocks. Sedimentary rocks are deposited in layers as strata, forming a structure called bedding. The study of sedimentary rocks and rock strata provides information about the subsurface that is useful for civil engineering, for example in the construction of roads, houses, tunnels, canals or other structures. Sedimentary rocks are also important sources of natural resources like coal, fossil fuels, drinking water or ores
Did you know? Sedimentary rocks can turn into metamorphic rocks!
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The study of the sequence of sedimentary rock strata is the main source for an understanding of the Earth's history, including palaeogeography, paleoclimatology and the history of life. The scientific discipline that studies the properties and origin of sedimentary rocks is called sedimentology. Sedimentology is part of both geology and physical geography and overlaps partly with other disciplines in the Earth sciences, such as pedology, geomorphology, geochemistry and structural geology. Sedimentary rocks have also been found on Mars.
Fossils are mostly found in sedimentary rocks because these kinds of rocks form layer after layer of soil and other particles that harden over time, preserving remains of organisms. Fossils are destroyed in metamorphic and igneous rocks because of heat and pressure that act on the formation of these two kinds of rocks.
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Fossils are mostly found in sedimentary rocks because these kinds of rocks form layer after layer of soil and other particles that harden over time, preserving remains of organisms. Fossils are destroyed in metamorphic and igneous rocks because of heat and pressure that act on the formation of these two kinds of rocks.
Text content copied from:
Wikipedia article Sedimentary rock
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sedimentary_rock
Some changes were made.
See that page's history for attribution.
Text content made available for this website through http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/
Next article - - - Sinkhole