silicates

Cultural  

1. The main minerals found in many rocks. Silicates are composed of atoms of silicon, oxygen, and elements such as potassium, sodium, or calcium, under great heat and pressure. Silicates make up about one-quarter of the crust of the Earth.

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Mica and quartz are silicates.

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silicates

Silicates are exceptionally common — all the rocky bodies in the solar system are made from them, and silicates have previously been detected in the atmospheres of hot Jupiter exoplanets before.

From Scientific American ● Oct. 20, 2023

They believe it’s brimming with iron, nickel and other metals, and quite possibly silicates, with a dull, predominantly gray surface likely covered with fine metal grains from cosmic impacts.

From Washington Times ● Oct. 13, 2023

In this representative-color image, blue tendrils trace emission from material that includes dusty silicates and sooty chemical molecules known as polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, or PAHs.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 11, 2023

Located 262 light-years from Earth, planet LTT9779b has an atmosphere made of silicates and metals like titanium.

From Salon ● Jul. 11, 2023

We know that the surface is dominated by silicates, which are relatively light and not heavy enough to account for the planet’s overall density.

From "A Short History of Nearly Everything" by Bill Bryson