The term that describes the transformation among metamorphic, sedimentary, and igneous rocks is:

The term that describes the transformation among metamorphic, sedimentary, and igneous rocks is:

• A. Rock cycle
• B. Plate tectonics
• C. Weathering
• D. Fossil record

Answer: (A)

The concept being tested is the rock cycle, the continuous sequence in which rocks change from one type to another. Weathering and erosion break existing rocks into sediments, which then lithify into sedimentary rocks. Sedimentary rocks buried deep enough with heat and pressure become metamorphic rocks, and metamorphic rocks can melt into magma that cools to form igneous rocks. Any rock can be uplifted and exposed again, starting the cycle anew. Plate tectonics helps drive these processes by moving crust and creating conditions for burial, melting, and magma generation, but it isn’t the term for the transformation itself. Weathering is just one step in the cycle, not the overall process, and the fossil record tracks ancient life rather than rock changes.

The concept being tested is the rock cycle, the continuous sequence in which rocks change from one type to another. Weathering and erosion break existing rocks into sediments, which then lithify into sedimentary rocks. Sedimentary rocks buried deep enough with heat and pressure become metamorphic rocks, and metamorphic rocks can melt into magma that cools to form igneous rocks. Any rock can be uplifted and exposed again, starting the cycle anew. Plate tectonics helps drive these processes by moving crust and creating conditions for burial, melting, and magma generation, but it isn’t the term for the transformation itself. Weathering is just one step in the cycle, not the overall process, and the fossil record tracks ancient life rather than rock changes.