14 research outputs found

    Semi-groupe de Lie associé à un cÎne symétrique

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    Volcanic arcs are the surface expression of magmatic systems that result from the subduction of mostly oceanic lithosphere at convergent plate boundaries. Arcs with a submarine component include intraoceanic arcs and island arcs that span almost 22,000 km on Earth\u27s surface, the vast majority of which are located in the Pacific region. Hydrothermal systems hosted by submarine arc volcanoes commonly contain a large component of magmatic fluid. This magmatic-hydrothermal signature, coupled with the shallow water depths of arc volcanoes and their high volatile contents, strongly influences the chemistry of the fluids and resulting mineralization and likely has important consequences for the biota associated with these systems. The high metal contents and very acidic fluids in these hydrothermal systems are thought to be important analogs to numerous porphyry copper and epithermal gold deposits mined today on land

    Fluid Inclusion Evidence for Subseafloor Magmatic-Hydrothermal Processes at Brothers Volcano, Kermadec Arc, New Zealand

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    Brothers volcano is a submarine dacitic caldera located on the southern Kermadec arc. It is host to the NW Caldera vent field (Site U1530 and Hole U1530A), which locally discharges more focused, metal-rich fluids, and the Upper Cone hydrothermal vent field (Site U1528 and Hole U1528D), which discharges predominantly diffuse, acidic fluids (pH 1.9). These two active vent sites were drilled in 2018 by International Ocean Discovery Program (IODP) Expedition 376. Fluid inclusions hosted in anhydrite, quartz, barite, and alunite recovered from drill core samples were studied by microthermometry, Raman spectroscopy, and laser ablation-inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometery (LA-ICP-MS) to obtain detailed depth profiles of temperature, salinity, and composition of the hydrothermal fluids. These analyses allow for a better understanding of complex hydrothermal processes such as phase separation and an assessment of magmatic-hydrothermal contributions while making reference to the dynamics of the deep hydrothermal fluid that rises beneath the hydrothermal vents at Brothers. The fluid inclusions have homogenization temperatures (Th) ranging from 149° to 358°C and salinities between 0.7 and 10.0 wt % NaCl equiv at the Upper Cone site and Th of 254° to 394°C and salinities between 0.7 and 9.8 wt % NaCl equiv at the NW Caldera site. Microthermometry of fluid inclusions hosted in sulfate minerals from the NW Caldera site indicates subseafloor mixing between hydrothermal fluids and seawater. The enrichment of vapor-partitioning elements B and As in the fluid inclusions suggests phase separation subseafloor, which may be accompanied by halite dissolution and precipitation. Highly diverging Cl/Br values provide indirect evidence for halite dissolution that occurred via subseafloor convection of seawater. Petrographic observations made of the fluid inclusions, such as the recognition of combined liquid-rich and vapor-rich boiling assemblages and the occurrence of CO2 in the inclusions, indicate phase separation of hydrothermal fluids. The CO2 and the content of trace elements and metals in the fluid inclusions are significantly higher than that reported for Brothers vent fluid values, which reflects a magmatic-hydrothermal contribution. At the NW Caldera site, relatively high-temperature hydrothermal fluids with high Cu (max 560 ppm) and Zn (max 740 ppm) mixed with seawater before discharging at the sea floor. Depth profiles of the fluid inclusion data identify a few specific depths of channelized (focused) hydrothermal fluid flow. We suggest that the hydrothermal fluids are mainly focused along lithological contacts that act as permeable pathways, enhancing subseafloor hydrothermal fluid flow.N

    Implications of a 3.472–3.333 Gyr-old subaerial microbial mat from the Barberton greenstone belt, South Africa for the UV environmental conditions on the early Earth

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    Modelling suggests that the UV radiation environment of the early Earth, with DNA weighted irradiances of about three orders of magnitude greater than those at present, was hostile to life forms at the surface, unless they lived in specific protected habitats. However, we present empirical evidence that challenges this commonly held view. We describe a well-developed microbial mat that formed on the surface of volcanic littoral sediments in an evaporitic environment in a 3.5–3.3 Ga-old formation from the Barberton greenstone belt. Using a multiscale, multidisciplinary approach designed to strongly test the biogenicity of potential microbial structures, we show that the mat was constructed under flowing water by 0.25 Όm filaments that produced copious quantities of extracellular polymeric substances, representing probably anoxygenic photosynthesizers. Associated with the mat is a small colony of rods–vibroids that probably represent sulphur-reducing bacteria. An embedded suite of evaporite minerals and desiccation cracks in the surface of the mat demonstrates that it was periodically exposed to the air in an evaporitic environment. We conclude that DNA-damaging UV radiation fluxes at the surface of the Earth at this period must either have been low (absorbed by CO(2), H(2)O, a thin organic haze from photo-dissociated CH(4), or SO(2) from volcanic outgassing; scattered by volcanic, and periodically, meteorite dust, as well as by the upper layers of the microbial mat) and/or that the micro-organisms exhibited efficient gene repair/survival strategies

    The Origin of Magmas and Metals at the Submarine Brothers Volcano, Kermadec Arc, New Zealand

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    International Ocean Discovery Program (IODP) Expedition 376 cored the submarine Brothers volcano of the Kermadec arc to provide insights into the third dimension and the evolution of the volcano and its associated ore-forming systems. We present new petrological and geochemical data on dacitic rocks drilled from Brothers as well as mafic rocks collected at two adjacent ridges. These data include major and trace element compositions of whole rocks, including many economically important metals and metalloids such as Cu, Ag, Pt, Au, Mo, As, Sb, Tl, and Bi, plus Sr-Nd-Pb isotope compositions as well as in situ analyses of glasses and minerals. We show that the basalts and basaltic andesites erupted at the volcanic ridges near Brothers represent potential mafic analogues to the dacites that make up Brothers volcano. Mantle melting and ore potential of the associated magmas are locally enhanced by raised mantle potential temperatures and a high flux of subducted components originating from the partially subducted Hikurangi Plateau. As a result, the parental melts at Brothers are enriched in ore metals and metalloids relative to mid-ocean ridge basalts (MORBs) and a high melt oxidation state (Δ log fO2 of +1.5 fayalite-magnetite-quartz [FMQ]) suppresses early sulfide saturation. However, solid sulfide crystallization occurs late during magma differentiation, with the result that the dacitic lavas at Brothers volcano are strongly depleted in Cu but only moderately depleted in Ag and Au. The dacites at Brothers thus have a high fertility for many metals and metalloids (e.g., As, Sb, Bi), and fluids exsolving from the cooling magma have a high ore-forming potential

    Hydrothermal alteration within the Brothers submarine arc volcano, Kermadec arc, New Zealand

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    The hydrothermally active Brothers volcano on the Kermadec arc, New Zealand, hosts two geochemically distinct hydrothermal systems within a single caldera. At the NW Caldera, metal-sulfide–rich black smoker spires form on the caldera wall. In contrast, Fe-rich crusts and native sulfur-rich chimneys occur at the resurgent central Upper Cone. Previous studies have revealed that the contrasting styles of hydrothermalism relate to the variable contribution of magmatic volatiles between these sites, with the Upper Cone experiencing relatively higher amounts of magmatic volatile influx. We present results of a study of the hydrothermal alteration within Brothers volcano based on core samples to a depth of 453 meters below sea floor (mbsf) from both the Upper Cone (Site U5128) and NW Caldera sites (Site U1527 and U1530), drilled by the International Ocean Discovery Program. The dacitic to rhyolitic breccias that make up the volcano are variably altered to alteration mineral assemblages consisting of chlorite + quartz, illite + pyrophyllite, natroalunite + pyrophyllite, and smectite-rich assemblages. The distribution and textures of the alteration minerals within and between different sites at Brothers volcano reflect variations in temperature, fluid pH, and fluid flux. We find that natroalunite only occurs at the Upper Cone, while alteration at the NW Caldera is more diverse and is characterized by both chlorite and pyrophyllite-rich alteration, indicating that seawater-derived hydrothermal fluids overprinted earlier magmatic volatile-influenced alteration. Our data indicate that in magmatic volatile-dominated systems, the alteration mineralogy transitions from natroalunite to pyrophyllite-rich with increasing age or maturity. This is accompanied by a distinct change in sample texture from dominantly bleached selvages to a more massive, equigranular texture.</p

    Critical role of caldera collapse in the formation of seafloor mineralization: The case of Brothers volcano

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    Hydrothermal systems hosted by submarine arc volcanoes commonly include a large component of magmatic fluid. The high Cu-Au contents and strongly acidic fluids in these systems are similar to those that formed in the shallow parts of some porphyry copper and epithermal gold deposits mined today on land. Two main types of hydrothermal systems occur along the submarine portion of the Kermadec arc (offshore New Zealand): magmatically influenced and seawater-dominated systems. Brothers volcano hosts both types. Here, we report results from a series of drill holes cored by the International Ocean Discovery Program into these two types of hydrothermal systems. We show that the extent of hydrothermal alteration of the host dacitic volcaniclastics and lavas reflects primary lithological porosity and contrasting spatial and temporal contributions of magmatic fluid, hydrothermal fluid, and seawater. We present a two-step model that links the changes in hydrothermal fluid regime to the evolution of the volcano caldera. Initial hydrothermal activity, prior to caldera formation, was dominated by magmatic gases and hypersaline brines. The former mixed with seawater as they ascended toward the seafloor, and the latter remained sequestered in the subsurface. Following caldera collapse, seawater infiltrated the volcano through fault-controlled permeability, interacted with wall rock and the segregated brines, and transported associated metals toward the seafloor and formed Cu-Zn-Au-rich chimneys on the caldera walls and rim, a process continuing to the present day. This two-step process may be common in submarine arc caldera volcanoes that host volcanogenic massive sulfide deposits, and it is particularly efficient at focusing mineralization at, or near, the seafloor

    IODP Expedition 376 Elemental analysis (CHNS)

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    Fundamental elemental component (total carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen, and sulfur) fluctuations help define the origin, depositional environment, and diagenetic alteration of source materials. To determine C, H, N, and S, solid samples are reacted with a catalyst, separated by chromatography, and detected by thermal conductivity on a FlashEA 1112 CHNS elemental analyzer. Organic carbon can be directly measured on the elemental analyzer by acidification of the sample to drive off carbonate as carbon dioxide before analyzing. Total organic carbon on this report is measured rather than calculated

    IODP Expedition 376 Carbonates composite report

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    This composite report includes data from two analyses (total carbon from Elemental analysis [CHNS], and inorganic carbon from [Coulometer]). Each row combines the CHNS and Coulometer data from measurements made on the same sample at the same time for a particular section and section offset (depth). If data do not exist for a particular expedition, the column does not appear. To identify individual samples and tests, see each separate data type (Elemental analysis and Coulometer). If the same sample was measured multiple times by any of the methods, results in the report will be combined on one line where possible. Each additional replicate result will be shown in subsequent rows and will be combined where possible. Report includes results for carbon forms: total, inorganic, calcium carbonate, and organic by difference, along with total hydrogen, nitrogen, and sulfur
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