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Igneous rocks are so called because they were created in hot conditions. From the Latin word ignis for fire. They may be Extrusive, such as those that explode or flow on the land surface; or Plutonic, indicating that they formed below the land surface.

When the rock cools below the surface, it may make large pseudo crystals, such as those in the Giant's Causeway in Northern Ireland. These prismatic basalts are quite common and derive from extrusive melts below the surface. The prisms may be up to metre dimensions.

When the molten rock cools very slowly and at depth, then the rock will be coarsely crystalline, where each of the component minerals is able to form larger crystals. This is your typical granite.

For each separate style of magma extrusive rock, there is a corresponding type of granite or plutonic. Their gross chemical make-ups are identical.

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11y ago

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