Yosemite National Park

My family and I visited Yosemite National Park over the summer. We went there looking for the different types of rocks. While we were there, we saw an abundance of igneous rocks. I explained to my family that igneous rocks are formed when magma crystallizes and solidifies. Magma originates deep within the earth, and when it rises to the surface it is called lava. Depending on where the lava solidifies the igneous rock can be considered intrusive or extrusive. Extrusive igneous rock is formed when the magma cools at the Earth's surface. Intrusive igneous rocks forms when the magma remains inside the Earth's crust. I did a decent job of explaining this to my family, however, I did have to go home and research a little more about it.

The main type of rock that we saw was Granite. Granite is considered an intrusive igneous rock, which means that it crystallized from molten rock or magma. The magma is insulated by the rocks around it and cools very slowing, growing large interlocking crystals. I could tell that is was Granite because it had a grayish/white color to it. The color allowed me to narrow it down and recall some of the previous rocks I had learned about. For example, depending on the color there could be some quartz, feldspar, biotite, and hornblende minerals on it as well. I found it very interesting that I could find and identify the types of rocks at this National Park. There were many examples of Granite throughout the entire Yosemite National Park. My family and I enjoyed our trip and would recommend it to others.