Contact (geology)

A geological contact is a boundary which separates one rock body from another.[1] A contact can be formed during deposition, by the intrusion of magma,[2] or through faulting or other deformation of rock beds that brings distinct rock bodies into contact.[3]

The geologic subdiscipline of stratigraphy is primarily concerned with depositional contacts,[4] while faults and shear zones are of particular interest in structural geology. Faults and shear zones can be regarded as a form of secondary structure in the rock beds.[5]

  1. ^ Plummer, C.C.; Carlson, D.H.; Hammersley, L. (2015). Physical Geology, 15th ed. New York, USA: McGraw-Hill Education. ISBN 978-0-07-809610-5.
  2. ^ Boggs, Sam (2006). Principles of sedimentology and stratigraphy (4th ed.). Upper Saddle River, N.J.: Pearson Prentice Hall. pp. 400–406. ISBN 0131547283.
  3. ^ Davis, G.H.; Reynolds, S.J.; Kluth, C.F. (2011). Structural Geology of Rocks and Regions, 3rd ed. New Jersey, USA: John Wiley & Sons, Inc. pp. 21–29. ISBN 9780471152316. Retrieved 7 October 2020.
  4. ^ Boggs 2006, p. 401
  5. ^ Davis and Kluth 2011, p.21