Sanriku coast area is chiefly composed of Mesozoic volcanic rocks with small amounts of black shale and sandstone.
The metamorphic effect is most evident in rocks consisting of mafic volcanic rocks.
On the basis of the characteristic distribution of metamorphic minerals such as prehnite, pumpellyite, chlorite, actinolite, and biotite, the low-grade metamorphic rocks in the Sanriku coast can be divided into the following three zones representing a progressive mineralogical changes.
Zone A; It has an assemblage of prehnite-pumpellyite, but actinolite is not commonly found.
Zone B; It has an assemblage of actinolite-chlorite, but pumpellyite is not stable.
Zone C; It has an assemblage of biotite-chlorite, but actinolite is partly stable.
So, it may be indicated that Sanriku coast area has the metamorphic facies series from prehnite-pumpellyite metagraywacke facies, to greenschist facies, but zeolite facies is not observed.
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