The Late Cretaceous accretionary complex of the İzmir–Ankara–Erzincan suture zone, near Artova, is composed mainly of peridotites (variably serpentinized), amphibolite, garnet-micaschist, calc-schist, marble, basalt, sandstones, neritic limestones. The metamorphic rocks were interpreted as the metamorphic sole rocks occurring at the base of mantle tectonites, because: (i) amphibolites were observed together with the serpentinized peridotites suggesting their occurrences in the oceanic environment; (ii) foliation in amphibolites and serpentinized peridotites run subparallel to each other; (iii) all these metamorphic rocks and serpentinized peridotites are cross-cut by the unmetamorphosed dolerite dikes with island arc tholeiite-like chemistry. Geochemical characteristics of the amphibolites display enriched mid-ocean ridge basalt (E-MORB)- and ocean island basalt (OIB)-like signatures. The dolerite dikes, on the other hand, yield an island arc tholeiite-like composition. Geothermobarometric investigations of the metamorphic sole rocks suggest that the metamorphic temperature was ~650 ± 30°C and the pressure condition was less than 0.5 GPa. Dating of hornblende grains from amphibolite yielded age values ranging from 139 ± 11 to 157 ± 3.6 Ma (2σ). The oldest weighted average age value is regarded as approximating the timing of the intra-oceanic subduction. These cooling ages were interpreted to be the intra-oceanic subduction/thrusting time of the İzmir–Ankara–Erzincan oceanic domai

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The Late Cretaceous Pınarbaşı Ophiolite (PO), located at central Turkey is represented by distinct rock types (e.g., harzburgite, dunite, pyroxenite, gabbro) that can be observed in many ophiolites around the world. In this study, the classification of rock types of PO in the Eastern Tauride Belt (Turkey) was made using the advanced spaceborne thermal emission and reflection radiometer and Landsat-8 satellite images. The developed colour-band ratio composite images together with principal component analysis and minimum noise fraction transformations implemented to the remote sensing data efficiently delineate the spatial distribution of pyroxenites, metamorphic sole rocks, and gabbros in the study area. In addition, a body of serpentinized dunites, pyroxenites, metamorphic sole rocks, and listwaenites that has not been recognized before was identified within PO using remote sensing techniques. The promising results of the image processing were verified by detailed field observations and petrographic analysis. The satellite-based remote sensing approaches of this work can be applicable for mapping ophiolitic rock types in PO in particular as well as other ophiolites from similar geographical regions around the world.

Two isolated metamorphic accretionary complexes of Jurassic age, the Refahiye and Kurtlutepe metamorphic rocks, crop out as tectonic slices within the coeval suprasubduction-zone ophiolite at the southern margin of the Eastern Pontides (NE Turkey), close to the İzmir-Ankara-Erzincan suture. The Refahiye metamorphic rocks are made up of greenschist, marble, serpentinite, phyllite and minor garnet amphibolite, garnet micaschist and metachert. The whole unit was metamorphosed under garnet-amphibolite-facies conditions and strongly retrogressed during exhumation. The Kurtlutepe metamorphic rocks consist of subgreenschist-facies metavolcanics, metavolcaniclastics, marble, calc-phyllite, and minor serpentinite and metachert. Metabasites in the Refahiye metamorphic rocks are represented by four distinct geochemical affinities: (i) cumulate "flavor," (ii) alkaline oceanic island basalt (OIB), (iii) enriched mid-ocean ridge basalt (E-MORB) and (iv) tholeiitic island arc basalt (IAB). On the other hand, the Kurtlutepe metavolcanic rocks display only tholeiitic to calc-alkaline island arc geochemical affinities. The metabasic rocks with OIB affinities were interpreted as parts of the accreted oceanic islands, and those with E-MORB affinities as parts of accreted ridge segments close to oceanic islands and/or plume-distal mid-ocean ridges with a mantle previously metasomatized by plume components. The metabasic rocks with IAB affinities might have been derived from the overlying suprasubduction ophiolite and/or arc domain by a number of tectonic or sedimentary processes including tectonic slicing of accretionary complex and overlying fore-arc ophiolite, juxtaposition of the magmatic arc with subduction zone by strike slip faults, submarine gravity sliding and debris flows or subduction erosion. However, totally recrystallized nature of the metabasic rocks together with field relations does not allow any inference on the processes involved. The Kurtlutepe metavolcanic rocks might represent collided and accreted oceanic island arc with the subduction zone. Attempted subduction of an intraoceanic island arc may also explain the magmatic lull during Late Jurassic-Early Cretaceous in the Eastern Pontides.