This book discusses how—by analysis of the physical felds and processes within and on the Earth—we learn how old the Earth is, about its internal structure and external form, and about the causes and properties of its magnetic and temperature felds. What will not be discussed are the geophysical survey methods for characterizing the upper crust that are used to explore for mineral ore deposits and hydrocarbon reservoirs; specialized textbooks should be consulted for these.

The process of metamorphism is one of change, and within the mineral assemblage and texture of a metamorphic rock is a memory of that change. The transformations are brought about by geological processes from the global plate tectonic level to the more localised scale. In view of this, recovering the memory of the change locked in metamorphic rocks helps to constrain geological processes well back into the Earth's history.

The crust of the Earth and underlying relatively rigid mantle make up the lithosphere. The crust is composed of a great variety of minerals and rocks. More than 80% of all raw materials that are used in various sectors of economy, society and the environment are of mineral origin, and demand for them is greater every day. In most countries, the values of raw materials used for the metal industry and building materials exceed the value of the funds allocated for oil and gas, although, we hear more about oil and gas <...>

We are all familiar with the subdivision of the natural world into the plant, animal, and mineral kingdoms. Of these the realm of minerals is the study and research area of mineralogy. A mineralogist uses the word mineral, however, in a much more restricted sense than prevails with common usage. If we examine a rock rather closely, we notice, for example, that a sandstone is composed of individual quartz grains.