Publisher's Synopsis
Much rarer on Earth than crystalline rocks, this volume considers natural glasses in terms of the time required to form them. Half a dozen different kinds of natural glasses are considered, classified mainly by the mechanism by which they were formed - fulgarites, diaplectic glasses formed by impact, impact glasses formed by thermal melting of the parent minerals and rocks during the impact event on the Earth, the Moon and the planets, tektites, and terrestrial, lunar and planetary volcanic glasses. The book provides a concise review of the subject. From the geological setting, forms, structure, physical properties and chemical composition, through to the utilization of natural glasses, the authors summarize information from 400 scientific papers as well as from their own research experience.
