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of dikes (dike swarms) are formed when the crust is pulled apart by tectonic forces. The dikes show the direction of extension, since they form at right angles to the direction of maximum extension.

Description

The thickness of a dike is much smaller than its other two dimensions, and the opposite walls are roughly parallel, so that a dike is more or less constant in thickness. The thickness of different dikes can range from a few millimeters to hundreds of meters, but is most typically from about a meter to a few tens of meters.

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