Transition analysis of structural sequences Available to Purchase

Analysis of the frequency of transitions between pairs of lithologic or metamorphic states yields valuable results in sequences where contacts are partly or wholly deformational. The transition matrix method described here is illustrated with four examples: a Silurian slump sequence from Wales, an olistostrome terrane in the northern Appennines, the schuppen zones of the Assynt area in Scotland, and the Mamonia Complex of Cyprus. In some cases it is possible to remove the primary sedimentary or igneous component of the sequence and reveal the secondary deformational sequence. The pattern of these secondary transitions may suggest important mechanistic controls over the stacking of the sequence.