Abstract
An ophiolite is a section of the oceanic lithosphere emplaced on continental crust or within the accretionary prism sediments of a subduction zone. Much of our knowledge of the vertical structure of the ocean floor comes from the study of ophiolite sequences. From bottom to top, a typical and complete ophiolite sequence comprises depleted mantle peridotite with tectonite at the base, layered ultramafic–mafic cumulates, massive (isotropic) gabbro, sheeted dikes and extrusive volcanic rocks represented by pillow basalts (Anonymous 1972; Coleman 1977).
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Ghose, N.C., Chatterjee, N., Fareeduddin (2014). Introduction. In: A Petrographic Atlas of Ophiolite. Springer, New Delhi. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-81-322-1569-1_1
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-81-322-1569-1_1
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