Definitions

from The Century Dictionary.

  • noun In geology, any change in the texture of rocks produced by fracturing and granulation, with recrystallization, whereby rocks become finer-grained and foliated, as the production of gneisses and schists from granites. Chamberlin and Salisbury, 1904.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun geology Any form of metamorphism that occurs near the Earth's surface

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • noun metamorphism that occurs at or near the earth's surface; breaks down complex minerals into simpler ones

Etymologies

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Examples

  • The zone in which katamorphism is most active, usually near the surface, is called the _zone of katamorphism_.

    The Economic Aspect of Geology 1915

  • The sedimentary iron ores in general evidently represent an advanced stage of katamorphism, and illustrate the tendency of this phase of the metamorphic cycle toward simplification and segregation of certain materials.

    The Economic Aspect of Geology 1915

  • By katamorphism rocks break down to produce the surficial rocks, and by anamorphism the surficial rocks are again consolidated and altered to produce highly crystalline rocks, which are not dissimilar in many of their characteristics to the igneous rocks from which all rocks trace their ultimate origin.

    The Economic Aspect of Geology 1915

  • A given rock may be undergoing katamorphism while rocks on either side at the same depth are suffering anamorphism.

    The Economic Aspect of Geology 1915

  • Representing in terms of weight the mineralogical changes in the katamorphism of serpentine rocks to iron ore, eastern Cuba 172 13.

    The Economic Aspect of Geology 1915

  • Representing in terms of weight the mineralogical changes in the katamorphism of serpentine rock to iron ore, on the assumption that alumina has remained constant, eastern

    The Economic Aspect of Geology 1915

  • The general process of soil formation constitutes one of the most important phases of katamorphism -- the destructive side of the metamorphic cycle, described in Chapter II.

    The Economic Aspect of Geology 1915

  • Processes of katamorphism or weathering, usually accompanied by the formation of soils, affect the surface rocks over practically all the continental areas.

    The Economic Aspect of Geology 1915

  • The process is in the main an integrating and constructive one which has been called _anamorphism_, to contrast it with the disintegrating and destructive processes near the surface, which have been called _katamorphism_ (see also pp. 27-28).

    The Economic Aspect of Geology 1915

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