Like most Earth materials, rocks are created and destroyed in cycles. The rock cycle is a model that describes the formation, breakdown, and reformation of a rock as a result of sedimentary, igneous, and metamorphic processes. All rocks are made up of minerals. A mineral is defined as a naturally occurring, crystalline solid of definite chemical composition and a characteristic crystal structure. A rock is any naturally formed, nonliving, firm, and coherent aggregate mass of solid matter that constitutes part of a planet.