What is "obduction"

Obduction \Ob*duc"tion\, n. [L. obductio.] The act of drawing or laying over, as a covering. [Obs.]

n. 1 (context obsolete English) The act of drawing or laying over, as a covering. 2 (context largely obsolete English) An autopsy. 3 (context geology English) The overthrusting of continental crust by oceanic crust or rocks from the mantle, such that the oceanic crust is thrust onto the continental crust, as occurs at a convergent plate boundary when the continental crust is caught in a subduction zone.

Obduction was originally defined by Coleman to mean the overthrusting of oceanic lithosphere onto continental lithosphere at a convergent plate boundary where continental lithosphere is being subducted beneath oceanic lithosphere.

Subsequently, this definition has been broadened to mean the emplacement of continental lithosphere by oceanic lithosphere at a convergent plate boundary, such as closing of an ocean or a mountain building episode. This process is uncommon because the denser oceanic lithosphere usually subducts underneath the less dense continental plate. Obduction occurs where a fragment of continental crust is caught in a subduction zone with resulting overthrusting of oceanic mafic and ultramafic rocks from the mantle onto the continental crust. Obduction may occur where a small tectonic plate is caught between two larger plates, with the lithosphere (both island arc and oceanic) welding onto an adjacent continent as a new terrane. When two continental plates collide, obduction of the oceanic lithosphere between them is often a part of the resulting orogeny.

Most obductions appear to have initiated at back-arc basins above the subduction zones during the closing of an ocean or an orogeny.

Obduction is an upcoming adventure video game developed by Cyan Worlds. Obduction is considered a spiritual successor to Cyan's previous adventure games, Myst and Riven. In the game, the player finds their character transported to strange alien worlds but with human elements within the settings. The player must explore and solve puzzles to figure out how to return home.

The game was funded via a Kickstarter campaign in October 2013, and currently is expected to be released in August 2016 for Microsoft Windows and OS X, including a virtual reality version for Oculus Rift systems.