Lavas from the Lower Series show a wider compositional range. A detailed mineralogical study of the different petrographical types shows that olivine is the principal phenocryst phase in the basalts, whereas clinopyroxene and plagioclase are the main components of the groundmass. Pyroxenes are mainly clinopyroxene, but pigeonite and orthopyroxene were found in the matrix of some differentiated basalts with ophitic textures. The low Ti contents of the pyroxenes and the evolution trends are typical of tholeiitic lavas. The development of sector zoning in pyroxene microphenocrysts of the more differentiated basalts has a scattering effect on the distribution of the points on the pyroxene quadrilateral.
Opaque oxides crystallize late and are mainly titanomagnetite.
Ilmenite is also present in some lavas. The volcanic succession drilled at Hole 917A presents many petrographical and mineralogical similarities to the flood basalts of the Scoresby Sund region in East Greenland. These thick basaltic sequences, which characterize the North Atlantic volcanic rifted margins, were emplaced during a short time interval during the phase of continental breakup. The Lower and Middle Series have evolved in crustal magma chambers. The frequency of picrites in the Upper Series emphasizes an easier access of more primitive magmas to the surface during the final phase of rifting.