Skip to main content
Fig. 6 | Swiss Journal of Geosciences

Fig. 6

From: SAPHYR: Swiss Atlas of Physical Properties of Rocks: the continental crust in a database

Fig. 6

Examples of density distributions for a breccias and conglomerates and b for lower crustal (kinzingites, stronalites) and uppermost mantle (peridotites, eclogites) lithologies, separated by the crust-mantle boundary (Moho). The diagrams show a visual comparison of block histograms and respective kernel distributions (solid lines) generated from the density data. Histograms refer to the number of data (on the right vertical axis) falling in a specific densities range, here in steps of 50 kg/cm3. The numbers in parenthesis represent the total number of data for each distribution. For example, in the case of breccias, 10 of 45 samples available have densities in the range 2900–2950 kg/cm3. Solid curves represent the Kernel smoothing function calculated over the density data population and representing the relative occurrence of density values in % (left axis). The Kernel distribution builds a function to represent the probability distribution of the sample data. a The density distributions for conglomerates and breccias (from boreholes and outcrops combined) document a much wider range of values for breccias that, when combined in one single lithology group would indicate two maxima. The mode is also indicated, but not in all cases it could be calculated (n.d = not determined). b Density values for rock types from the Ivrea-Verbano zone. The density distributions of the Kinzingites, Stronalites and Peridotites/Eclogites exhibit three distinctively different maxima reflecting the different mineral and modal composition and documenting the difference in density across the Moho discontinuity between the lowermost crust and the mantle lithosphere

Back to article page