In this episode of Backyard Geology, Serena takes you to the Semail Ophiolite. The small mountains on the northern coast of Oman once resided at the bottom of an ocean, before being uplifted onto land. Here, the igneous stratigraphy of the ocean crust is perfectly preserved, proving a standard for geologists to study. A special thank you goes out to Chris Spencer, who was graciously interviewed to provide information presented in this podcast.
Cover art photo credits: Chris Spencer
Resources:
Ali, M.Y., Watts, A.B., Searle, M.P., Keats, B., Pilia, S. and Ambrose, T., 2020. Geophysical imaging of ophiolite structure in the United Arab Emirates. Nature Communications, 11(1), p.2671. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-020-16521-0.
Braathen, A. and Osmundsen, P.T., 2020. Extensional tectonics rooted in orogenic collapse: Long-lived disintegration of the Semail Ophiolite, Oman. Geology, 48(3), pp.258–262. https://doi.org/10.1130/G47077.1.
Pilia, S., Kaviani, A., Searle, M.P., Arroucau, P., Ali, M.Y. and Watts, A.B., 2021. Crustal and Mantle Deformation Inherited From Obduction of the Semail Ophiolite (Oman) and Continental Collision (Zagros). Tectonics, 40(6), p.e2020TC006644. https://doi.org/10.1029/2020TC006644.
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