DescriptionGarnetiferous blueschist (Ward Creek, Sonoma County, California, USA) 4.jpg
English: Garnetiferous blueschist from the Mesozoic of California, USA.
Blueschist (a.k.a. glaucophane schist; a.k.a. glaucophanite) is a scarce, glaucophane-rich rock. It's a classic example of a low-temperature, high-pressure metamorphic rock. The bluish material is the mineral glaucophane (Na2Mg3Al2Si8O22(OH)2 - sodium magnesium hydroxy-aluminosilicate). Calling this lithology a “schist” is misleading, because many samples lack a schistose texture. Blueschist forms by burial metamorphism of basaltic oceanic crust in subduction zones.
This is a crack surface of a gravel clast from a stream in California. It is likely derived from an outcrop in the Mesozoic-aged Franciscan Complex, which is principally a serpentinitic melange. Blueschist "knockers" occur in the complex.
Locality: Ward Creek, western Sonoma County, western California, USA
to share – to copy, distribute and transmit the work
to remix – to adapt the work
Under the following conditions:
attribution – You must give appropriate credit, provide a link to the license, and indicate if changes were made. You may do so in any reasonable manner, but not in any way that suggests the licensor endorses you or your use.
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0CC BY 2.0 Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 truetrue