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Pluton identification and geology

A body of intrusive igneous rock that has crystallized from magma below the Earth's surface. Plutons are classified by size and shape: batholiths 100 km² exposed area , stocks <100 km² , sills tabular, concordant , dikes tabular, discordant , and laccoliths dome-shaped, concordant . The coarse-grained texture of plutonic rocks reflects their slow crystallization at depth. Field: petrology. Example: The Whistler pluton in British Columbia is a Cretaceous granodiorite stock that intruded volcanic and sedimentary country rocks and is now exposed at the surface by uplift and erosion.. Related terms: Batholith, Stock, Intrusive, Magma chamber.

Sources, scope & corrections

These authoritative resources support category-level nomenclature, terminology, identification methods, and safety. When a specimen-specific safety warning appears, the public-health source listed here directly supports that precaution. They are not line-by-line citations for every other property on this entry, and natural specimens vary.

Editorial owner
GeoMiner
Last updated
2026-03-30T15:19:42.055955+00:00
Review status
Published; not independently peer-reviewed
  • USGS Thesaurus — U.S. Geological Survey. Controlled earth-science terminology used to describe USGS information resources.
  • Glossary of Geologic Terms — U.S. National Park Service. Geologic definitions prepared by the NPS Geologic Resources Inventory.

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Common questions

What does Pluton mean in geology?
A body of intrusive igneous rock that has crystallized from magma below the Earth's surface. Plutons are classified by size and shape: batholiths 100 km² exposed area , stocks <100 km² , sills tabular, concordant , dikes tabular, discordant , and laccoliths dome-shaped, concordant . The coarse-grained texture of plutonic rocks reflects their slow crystallization at depth.
What is an example of Pluton?
The Whistler pluton in British Columbia is a Cretaceous granodiorite stock that intruded volcanic and sedimentary country rocks and is now exposed at the surface by uplift and erosion.
Which earth-science field uses the term Pluton?
Pluton is used in petrology.
Which terms are related to Pluton?
Related terms in this reference are Batholith, Stock, Intrusive, Magma chamber.

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