Shock metamorphism is induced by the impact of high-speed meteorites onto the Earth’s surface. It is characterized by a short duration, high pressure and high temperature. Shock metamorphic rocks are located in meteorite craters. The impact mainly causes: (1) the mineral crystals to deform and break; (2) the formation of new high-pressure metamorphic minerals at the surface, such as coesite, stishovite, diamond and ‘impact glass’ (tektite, which was initially believed to be composed of a ‘glass meteorite’ but has been shown to be a type of impact glass); and (3) melting of minerals (such as magnetite) that are difficult to melt at normal temperatures. These three characteristics are the main markers for distinguishing shock metamorphism.
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(2020). Shock Metamorphism. In: Chen, A., Ng, Y., Zhang, E., Tian, M. (eds) Dictionary of Geotourism. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-13-2538-0_2232
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-13-2538-0_2232
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