Volcanic glass compositions of the Troodos ophiolite, Cyprus

Abstract

Fresh volcanic glass is preserved throughout the extrusive section of the Troodos ophiolite, which indicates that the lavas have not been pervasively metamorphosed. Glass compositions reveal the existence of two major magma suites apparently corresponding to distinct stratigraphic intervals. The basal 400–500 m of the sequence consists of an andesite-dacite-rhyolite assemblage containing abundant hyaloclastites. The remainder of the section comprises a basalt–basaltic andesite assemblage with high MgO and low TiO 2 and total iron. The lower sequence is interpreted as an evolved arc-tholeiite suite; the upper has some similarities to boninitic lavas. The close association in time and space of these two suites is similar to that observed in the Mariana and Bonin arcs and suggests that all of the Troodos lavas were erupted in a subduction-zone environment, most probably in an incipient arc or fore-arc.