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Places

Cyprus: Island of Snakes, Cats, and Ophiolites

Cyprus, the third-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, reveals an exposed remnant of ancient ocean floor in its rocks. The island is also noted for hosting a clowder of cats.

Original reporting: NASA · 1 min read

Originally published by NASA: First briefed by The Daily Lift: Last updated:
Illustrative photo: Close-up of a dark, coarse-grained rock slab with a greenish-black matrix and scattered shiny metallic flecks, photographed on a neutral light background.
Illustrative photo: James St. John — Olivine chromitite (Troodos Ophiolite Complex, Late Cretaceous; Kokkinorotsos Mountain, Cyprus).jpg · Wikimedia Commons · CC BY 2.0. Changes: photo cropped and resized by The Daily Lift. If the remote photo is unavailable, a labelled original TDL illustration is shown instead.

Why this is good news

Cyprus's exposed remnant of ancient ocean floor and its noted clowder of cats mark distinct geological and local features of the island. That combination may be of interest to people focused on visible ancient seafloor and to those drawn to the island's notable cat population.

What happens next

What geological evidence identifies the rocks on Cyprus as an exposed remnant of ancient ocean floor, and what is known about the size or status of the island's noted clowder of cats?

Read the full story at NASA

This is a short original brief by The Daily Lift, not the publisher's full article. Credit and copyright for the original reporting remain with NASA.

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Original The Daily Lift illustration for Places, not a photograph
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