SEG/SEGF Student Chapter Stewart R. Wallace Funding National and Kapodistrian University of Athens Faculty of Geology and Geoenvironment Field Trip Report “Ophiolite hosted mineral deposits and sustainability-Cyprus” April 29th-May 5th 2019 SCIENTIFIC COMMITTEE: Stephanos Kilias, National & Kapodistrian University of Athens, Greece (e-mail: [email protected]) Ariadne Argyraki, National & Kapodistrian University of Athens, Greece (e-mail: [email protected]) 1 ORGANISING COMMITTEE: Michalis Constantinou, Christos Louca, Evangelos Vourdelis, Panagiota-Elpida Tsekoura, Dimitra Karagiorgaki, Adamantios Serafopoulos, Stylianos Potamousis, Efthimios Vatidis. PARTICIPANTS: STUDENTS OF THE DEPARTMENT OF GEOLOGY AND GEOENVIROMENT, NATIONAL AND KAPODISTRIAN UNIVERSITY OF ATHENS ΝKUA), MEMBERS OF THE NKUA SEG STUDENT CHAPTER Sponsors: 2 Contents Contents_____________________________________________________________________________3 Field Participants______________________________________________________________________5 Introduction and Acknowledgments_______________________________________________________7 Geological Background_________________________________________________________________ 8 Objectives__________________________________________________________________________ . 11 Day 1: 29th of April____________________________________________________________________12 • Ultramafic members of the Troodos mountain ophiolite sequence ______________________ 12 Day 2: 30th of April____________________________________________________________________13 • Diabase sheeted Dykes of the Troodos ophiolites-Klirou Bridge (Pikrovrysi of Merika, Maroullena River) Troodos UNESO Global Geopark_____________________________________________ 13 • Mitsero Mine Lake (between Mitsero and Agrokipia) _________________________________ 15 • Pillow lavas with chilled margins - Between St Iliofoti and Mitsero_______________________ 15 • Abandoned Copper Mines of Mitsero _____________________________________________ 16 • Kokkinopezoula Mine and Red Lake near the village of Mitsero_________________________ 17 • Old gypsum quarries (Between Kato Moni and St. Iliofoti) _____________________________ 18 Day 3: 1th of May_____________________________________________________________________19 • Mines of Skouriotissa___________________________________________________________19 Day 4: 2th of May_____________________________________________________________________ 21 • Botanical garden of Troodos, “A. G. Leventis”________________________________________21 • Old mine of Asbestos___________________________________________________________ 21 • Abandoned Kokkinorotsos chromite mine __________________________________________22 • Epidotized sheeted dykes - 43th Geosite of Troodos UNESCO Geopark ___________________ 24 • Gabbro of the Troodos ophiolite (Caledonia Waterfalls in Platres) _______________________25 Day 5: 3th of May_____________________________________________________________________26 • Briefing at the Skouriotissa Mine and Copper and gold production_______________________26 • Gossan deposits in the mines of Skouriotissa________________________________________26 • Gold Production Factory________________________________________________________ 27 • Fukasa_______________________________________________________________________28 3 • Copper Production Factory______________________________________________________ 28 • Cyprus Geological Survey Department_____________________________________________ 30 Day 6: 4th of May_____________________________________________________________________31 References__________________________________________________________________________31 4 Field Participants This field trip was attended by 19 persons (Fig. 1), including the team leaders Professor Stephanos Kilias and Assoc. Professor Ariadne Argyraki, 3 MSc students and 14 BSc students. Name SEG Member Academic Position E-mail Address Stephanos Kilias Academic Advisor Professor [email protected] Ariadne Argyraki Geochemistry and field Advisor Assoc. Professor [email protected] Christos Louka SEG Student Chapter President BSc Student [email protected] Stylianos SEG Student Chapter Vice- BSc Student [email protected] Potamousis President Efthimios Vatidis SEG Student Chapter Secretary BSc Student [email protected] Michalis SEG Student Chapter Treasurer BSc Student [email protected] Constantinou om Adamantios SEG Student Chapter Executive BSc Student [email protected] Serafopoulos Member Panagiotis Pomonis SEG Student Chapter Member MSc Student [email protected] Georgia Svorligkou SEG Student Chapter Member MSc Student [email protected] Aimilios Vazoukis SEG Student Chapter Member MSc Student [email protected] Antonios Adamou SEG Student Chapter Member BSc Student [email protected] Stamatina SEG Student Chapter Member BSc Student [email protected] Asimakopoulou Katerina Giovanof SEG Student Chapter Member BSc Student [email protected] Konstantinos Grivas SEG Student Chapter Member BSc Student [email protected] Dimitra SEG Student Chapter Member BSc Student [email protected] Karageorgaki Antonios Laskos SEG Student Chapter Member BSc Student [email protected] Dimitrios SEG Student Chapter Member BSc Student [email protected] Latsinoglou Panagiota-Elpida SEG Student Chapter Member BSc Student [email protected] Tsekoura Evangelos Vourdelis SEG Student Chapter Member BSc Student [email protected] Table 1. Field participants of National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, SEG Student Chapter 5 Figure 1. The team of the NKUA SEG Student Chapter with Mr. G. Constantinou, at the Skouriotissa Mine. 6 Introduction and Acknowledgments The National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, SEG Student Chapter organized the field trip to Cyprus, April 29th-May 5th 2019, entitled “Ophiolite hosted mineral deposits and sustainability-Cyprus”, as a part of the Student Chapter’s activities, and was in part funded by the Stewart R. Wallace Funding scheme. As field participants, over the course of the field trip we had the chance to observe some of the most unique geological formations in the world and gain a great amount of knowledge over a wide variety of geological fields of study and mining. All the participants are very grateful for the financial support provided by the Society of Economic Geologists. Also, the participants would like to thank Amalthia Trading Ltd. company and Earthquake Planning and Protection Organization (EPPO) of Greece for their generous sponsorships that helped implement the field trip. In addition, the Youth Board of Cyprus offered lunch and hospitality in the center of Nicosia. We would also like to thank the Geological Survey Department of Cyprus for their hospitality and briefing on, and their activities, and the geology, tectonic regime and seismicity of Cyprus area. Special thanks go to Mr. G. Constantinou, who was our guide throughout the field trip. 7 Geological Background The Troodos ophiolite (Fig. 2) of Cyprus is a rare example of remnant oceanic lithosphere that is currently in the process of emplacement onto continental crust along an active subduction plate boundary, where incipient continental subduction/collision has started only very recently [e.g., Poole et al.,1990]. These make the Troodos ophiolite a unique site to explore ophiolite emplacement mechanisms and be acquainted with the long-lasting bewilderment of how dense oceanic lithosphere is obducted over the continental crust rather than sink into the asthenosphere. Understanding the role of different ophiolite emplacement mechanisms can been masked by accurate determination of the timing of uplift of the ophiolite and its chronologic relation to tectonic events (i.e. oceanic subduction, accretion, continental subduction and collision) that ultimately lead to its emplacement onto continental crust. Despite being at the very early stages of collision with the continental margin of the African plate, represented in this area by the Eratosthenes Seamount, the Troodos ophiolite is already uplifted to approximately 2000m above sea level (asl) and exhumed down to its mantle sequence. Previous studies, suggested that the main Troodos Massif emerged above sea level in the early Miocene and apparently underwent a significant erosion phase during the early Pleistocene [e.g., Poole and Robertson, 1991]. This erosion was inferred to reflect early Pleistocene uplift of the main Troodos Massif, corresponding to the timing of increased subsidence of the Eratosthenes Seamount to the south of the Cyprus subduction trench. It was thus hypothesized that initiation of uplift resulted from underthrusting and collision of the Eratosthenes Sea mount continental crust. However, the uplift pattern observed in the Troodos massif is somewhat different from that expected in subduction-collision tectonic settings. It does not include major subhorizontal deformation structures, i.e. thrusting and stacking, and is characterized by dome-shaped uplift at the central part of the massif, accompanied in places by steep normal faults. This style of uplift and deformation has been attributed to diapiric rise of serpentinized mantle rocks, which are currently exposed at the core of the Troodos massif around Mount Olympus. Several studies have suggested that collision of the Eratosthenes continental crust has triggered enhanced serpentinization of the Troodos mantle rocks [Poole and Robertson, 1991]. However, no specific mechanism was suggested to explain the