A map displays the geology rock types across different regions of the world, categorized by geological periods and formations.
Cenozoic sedimentary rocks (green) are prevalent in coastal regions of Washington and Oregon, central California, extending into western Mexico, the Great Plains of North America, the Gulf Coast of the United States and Mexico, and large areas of South America, including the Amazon Basin in Brazil. These rocks also extend east of the Andes from Venezuela through eastern Colombia, western Brazil, eastern Peru, central Bolivia, western Paraguay, and northern Argentina. In Europe, Cenozoic sedimentary rocks are found along the North Sea and Baltic Sea from Belgium to Poland, central Spain, eastern Italy, and non-mountainous eastern Europe. In Russia, they are located near the Caspian Sea and the West Siberian Lowland, and in Central Asia, they surround the Caspian Sea. Northern China also features these rocks, as do the Indus and Ganges river lowlands in South Asia. In Southeast Asia, they are along the Mekong River and throughout Sumatra, Java, Borneo, Luzon, and New Guinea. Southwest Asia sees these rocks in the Tigris and Euphrates river valleys, around the Persian Gulf, and across the eastern Arabian Peninsula. In Africa, they are found in the extreme north, the Sahel Region, the Horn of Africa, and the Kalahari Desert. Australia’s Null arbor Plain and Great Artesian Basin, along with New Zealand’s North Island lowlands, are also comprised of Cenozoic sedimentary rocks. Paleozoic sedimentary rocks (orange) are widespread in North America, covering areas like northwestern Canada, the Hudson Bay region, northern Utah and Nevada, around Lake Winnipeg, and a large swath from central Texas northeast through the Great Lakes, the St. Lawrence River, southern Quebec, and New England. In South America, they appear in northeastern Brazil and east of the Andes in Peru, Bolivia, and northern Argentina. Europe has Paleozoic sedimentary rocks in Ireland, northern England, Wales, Estonia, Latvia, and parts of eastern and western Ukraine. In Russia, they are found west of the Urals and in eastern Siberia. These rocks also appear in western and southern China, eastern Myanmar, and western Thailand. Africa's largest Paleozoic sedimentary rock areas are in the central and western Sahara and most of South Africa. In Australia, they are found in the central and southeastern regions, and in small areas of New Zealand’s South Island. Precambrian sedimentary rocks (brown) are mainly located in the shield areas of Canada and among the Rocky Mountains. South America features these rocks in small areas of eastern Venezuela and west-central and coastal Brazil. In Europe, they are found in eastern Norway, central Sweden, and southern Finland. Russia has these rocks in central Siberia, as does central Mongolia and southeastern China. In South Asia, they are south of the Himalayas and throughout central India. Africa’s Precambrian sedimentary rocks are in western (Mali and Mauritania), eastern (Sudan), central (Central African Republic), southern (Zambia and Namibia), and other areas. Australia features these rocks in its northwestern, north-central, and southern parts. Metamorphic rocks (dark pink) are extensive in the Canadian Shield, coastal Greenland, large portions of Brazil, much of Northern Europe, and mountainous areas of southern Europe, Russia, and Asia. They are also found along Africa’s Atlantic rim, eastern Africa’s Great Rift Valley, and highland areas within the Sahara. Madagascar is largely metamorphic. In Australia, metamorphic rock is in central and far western areas. Intrusive rocks (red) are prominent in the Canadian Rockies, Sierra Nevada, northern Manitoba, Quebec, Labrador, and Baffin Island. South America has these rocks in eastern Brazil and the Andes in Chile. Europe’s intrusive rocks are in Sweden, Finland, the Iberian Peninsula, central France, and eastern Europe. Russia’s largest areas are east of Lake Baykal. East Asia’s intrusive rocks are on the Korean Peninsula, southeastern and western China, while South Asia has them in northern Pakistan and central and southern India. Africa’s intrusive rocks are scattered in the west and south. In Australia, they are mostly in the western one-third of the country. Volcanic tectonic (dark gray) rocks in North America are found in the Rocky Mountains, Mexico’s Sierra Madre Occidental, the Appalachians, and around Lake Superior. South America has them along the Andes, the Guiana Highlands, and southern Brazil. Iceland is almost entirely volcanic tectonic rock. Europe has these rocks in Norway, Sweden, and northern Finland. Russia’s volcanic tectonic rocks are along the Urals, Central Siberian Plateau, and in southern and eastern Siberia, including the Kamchatka Peninsula. Japan is predominantly volcanic tectonic rock. Asia also features these rocks in western India, eastern Turkey, and the western Arabian Peninsula. Africa’s largest area is in the Great Rift Valley from the Red Sea through Ethiopia and Kenya to Lake Victoria. Australia’s volcanic tectonic rocks are scattered in the east, north, and west, including Tasmania. Ice caps (light gray) cover Antarctica and most of Greenland, with the vast Antarctic ice cap obscuring the underlying rock types.
Cenozoic sedimentary | Intrusive | Mesozoic sedimentary | Metamorphic | Unknown | Paleozoic sedimentary | Precambrian sedimentary | Volcanic, tectonic | Ice cap | Bilibino nuclear power plant | China Experimental Fast Reactor (CEFR) nuclear power plant | Akademik Lomonosov nuclear power plant | Balakovo nuclear power plant | Kalinin nuclear power plant | Khmelnitski nuclear power plant | Kursk nuclear power plant | Leningrad nuclear power plant | Rostov nuclear power plant | Smolensk nuclear power plant | South Ukraine nuclear power plant | Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant | Virgil C Summer nuclear power plant | Tihange nuclear power plant | Hanul nuclear power plant | River Bend nuclear power plant | Ascó nuclear power plant | Kozloduy nuclear power plant | Almaraz nuclear power plant | St. Lucie nuclear power plant | Shin-Kori nuclear power plant | Shin-Wolsong nuclear power plant | Goesgen nuclear power plant | Trillo nuclear power plant | Temelin nuclear power plant | Vandellos nuclear power plant | Fangjiashan nuclear power plant | Ningde nuclear power plant | Clinton nuclear power plant | Cofrentes nuclear power plant | Donald C Cook nuclear power plant | Catawba nuclear power plant | Columbia nuclear power plant | Astravets nuclear power plant | Limerick nuclear power plant | Diablo Canyon nuclear power plant | Sequoyah nuclear power plant | LaSalle nuclear power plant | Byron nuclear power plant | Watts Bar nuclear power plant | McGuire nuclear power plant | Alvin W Vogtle nuclear power plant | Braidwood nuclear power plant | Comanche Peak nuclear power plant | Haiyang nuclear power plant | Nanyang nuclear power plant | Sizewell nuclear power plant | Waterford nuclear power plant | Browns Ferry nuclear power plant | Callaway nuclear power plant | Leibstadt nuclear power plant | Wolf Creek nuclear power plant | Seabrook nuclear power plant | Susquehanna nuclear power plant | South Texas nuclear power plant | Cattenom nuclear power plant | Belleville nuclear power plant | Golfech nuclear power plant | Nogent nuclear power plant | Hamaoka nuclear power plant | St. Alban nuclear power plant | Paluel nuclear power plant | Penly nuclear power plant | Barakah nuclear power plant | Neckarwestheim nuclear power plant | Shin-Hanul nuclear power plant | Emsland nuclear power plant | Peach Bottom nuclear power plant | Palo Verde nuclear power plant | Isar nuclear power plant | Saeul nuclear power plant | Grand Gulf nuclear power plant | Chooz nuclear power plant | Civaux nuclear power plant | Rajasthan nuclear power plant | Kaiga nuclear power plant | Kakrapar nuclear power plant | Madras nuclear power plant | Narora nuclear power plant | Chashma nuclear power plant | Qinshan nuclear power plant | Atucha nuclear power plant | Beznau nuclear power plant | Rivne nuclear power plant | Novovoronezh nuclear power plant | Kola nuclear power plant | Armenian nuclear power plant | Doel nuclear power plant | Bohunice nuclear power plant | Dukovany nuclear power plant | Mochovce nuclear power plant | Paks nuclear power plant | Prairie Island nuclear power plant | Wolsong nuclear power plant | Beloyarsk nuclear power plant | Robert Emmett Ginna nuclear power plant | Angra nuclear power plant | Point Beach nuclear power plant | Nine Mile Point nuclear power plant | Changjiang nuclear power plant | Hartlepool nuclear power plant | Embalse nuclear power plant | Kori nuclear power plant | Torness nuclear power plant | Monticello nuclear power plant | Cernavodă nuclear power plant | Krško nuclear power plant | H. B. Robinson nuclear power plant | Cooper nuclear power plant | Turkey Point power station | Bruce nuclear power plant | James A Fitzpatrick nuclear power plant | Surry nuclear power plant | Oconee nuclear power plant | Arkansas Nuclear One nuclear power plant | Calvert Cliffs nuclear power plant | Edwin I Hatch nuclear power plant | Bugey nuclear power plant | Joseph M Farley nuclear power plant | Millstone nuclear power plant | Davis Besse nuclear power plant | Dresden nuclear power plant | Dampierre nuclear power plant | Quad Cities nuclear power plant | Gravelines nuclear power plant | Maanshan nuclear power plant | Chinon nuclear power plant | Tricastin nuclear power plant | Cruas nuclear power plant | Saint-Laurent nuclear power plant | Beaver Valley nuclear power plant | Brunswick nuclear power plant | Koeberg nuclear power plant | Shearon Harris nuclear power plant | Daya Bay nuclear power plant | Kuosheng nuclear power plant | North Anna nuclear power plant | |
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40.9% | 8.26% | 21.7% | 4.88% | 20.0% | 17.3% | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
55.0% | 15.5% | 29.7% | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
57.9% | 3.58% | 9.59% | 4.04% | 14.9% | 1.41% | 15.8% | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
36.8% | 18.6% | 1.04% | 5.11% | 85.7% | 11.8% | 8.18% | 2.10% | 68.5% | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
42.7% | 6.11% | 16.9% | 8.06% | 14.3% | 4.93% | 17.3% | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
25.3% | 8.87% | 19.3% | 5.70% | 19.7% | 5.47% | 16.9% | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
26.9% | 5.11% | 19.9% | 5.64% | 24.5% | 2.86% | 15.0% | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
35.4% | 14.5% | 23.3% | 15.9% | 18.8% | 12.3% | 11.5% | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
38.2% | 7.56% | 10.6% | 20.2% | 9.86% | 4.45% | 15.9% | 1 | 1 | 1 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
13.1% | 7.47% | 17.8% | 12.3% | 30.3% | 8.65% | 12.8% | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
42.2% | 6.75% | 4.67% | 20.8% | 2.69% | 12.7% | 19.9% | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
51.7% | 2.48% | 19.1% | 8.19% | 8.87% | 4.99% | 13.5% | 1 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
31.0% | 3.15% | 16.7% | 28.2% | 11.4% | 15.3% | 12.1% | 1 |