40Ar/39Ar geochronology of Burdigalian paleobotanical localities in the central Paratethys (south Slovakia)

The Lipovany and Mučín paleobotanical localities contain important floral associations within the tuff horizons, which were used for determination of subtropical to tropical climatic conditions during the Early Miocene. Based on the combination of results from plagioclase and biotite 40Ar/39Ar dating, the age of the tuff deposition is around 17.3Ma. For the Lipovany locality, single-grain 40Ar/39Ar convergent ages of 17.49±0.54Ma and 17.28±0.06Ma, for plagioclase and biotite were obtained, respectively. The Mučín locality only provide an imprecise convergent age of 16.5±1.4Ma due to the small size of the analyzed plagioclase crystals. The results thus allowed to include the fossil subtropical flora of the studied localities in the late Ottnangian regional stage (upper part of the Burdigalian). Additionally, these age data indicate that deposition of the overlaying Salgótarján Formation starts much later than originally thought (during Ottnangian-Karpatian boundary)

Rubble pile asteroids are forever

Rubble piles asteroids consist of reassembled fragments from shattered monolithic asteroids and are much more abundant than previously thought in the solar system. Although monolithic asteroids that are a kilometer in diameter have been predicted to have a lifespan of few 100 million years, it is currently not known how durable rubble pile asteroids are. Here, we show that rubble pile asteroids can survive ambient solar system bombardment processes for extremely long periods and potentially 10 times longer than their monolith counterparts. We studied three regolith dust particles recovered by the Hayabusa space probe from the rubble pile asteroid 25143 Itokawa using electron backscatter diffraction, time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometry, atom probe tomography, and 40Ar/39Ar dating techniques. Our results show that the particles have only been affected by shock pressure of ca. 5 to 15 GPa. Two particles have 40Ar/39Ar ages of 4,219 ± 35 and 4,149 ± 41 My and when combined with thermal and diffusion models; these results constrain the formation age of the rubble pile structure to ≥4.2 billion years ago. Such a long survival time for an asteroid is attributed to the shock-absorbent nature of rubble pile material and suggests that rubble piles are hard to destroy once they are created. Our results suggest that rubble piles are probably more abundant in the asteroid belt than previously thought and provide constrain to help develop mitigation strategies to prevent asteroid collisions with Earth

Reconstructing the ecology of a Jurassic pseudoplanktonic megaraft colony

seudoplanktonic crinoid raft colonies are an enigma of the Jurassic. These raft colonies are thought to have developed as floating filter-feeding communities due to an exceptionally rich oceanic niche, high in the water column enabling them to reach large densities on these log rafts. However, this pseudoplanktonic hypothesis has not been quantitatively tested, and there remains some doubt that this mode of life was possible. The ecological structure of the crinoid colony is resolved using spatial point process analyses and the duration estimates of the floating system until sinking using moisture diffusion models. Using spatial analysis, we found that the crinoids would have trailed preferentially positioned at the back of the floating log in the regions of least resistance, consistent with a floating, not benthic ecology. Additionally, we found using a series of moisture diffusion models at different log densities and sizes that ecosystem collapse did not take place solely due to colonies becoming overladen as previously assumed. Our analyses have found that these crinoid colonies studied could have existed for greater than ten years, even up to 20 years exceeding the life expectancy of modern documented raft systems with possible implications for the role of modern raft communities in the biotic colonisation of oceanic islands and intercontinental dispersal of marine and terrestrial species

40Ar/39Ar dating of basaltic rocks and the pitfalls of plagioclase alteration

International audience40Ar/39Ar geochronology is one of the most important techniques for constraining the timing of basaltic events due to the paucity of suitable minerals in basalts for other geochronological techniques such as U–Pb (e.g., zircon, baddeleyite). Among a variety of materials from basaltic rocks that have been used for 40Ar/39Ar dating, plagioclase is the most important due to its common presence in basalts as a primary crystallizing phase, and its transparency so that fresh grains can be selected during sample preparation. However, plagioclase 40Ar/39Ar geochronology has often been compromised by alteration (e.g., sericitization by hydrothermal events), which, in practice, is difficult to identify using a petrographic microscope when the amount of alteration is low (e.g., 70% for K-rich plagioclase samples), the age of hydrothermal alteration can be successfully dated

40Ar/39Ar geochronology of Burdigalian paleobotanical localities in the central Paratethys (south Slovakia)

The Lipovany and Mučín paleobotanical localities contain important floral associations within the tuff horizons, which were used for determination of subtropical to tropical climatic conditions during the Early Miocene. Based on the combination of results from plagioclase and biotite 40Ar/39Ar dating, the age of the tuff deposition is around 17.3Ma. For the Lipovany locality, single-grain 40Ar/39Ar convergent ages of 17.49±0.54Ma and 17.28±0.06Ma, for plagioclase and biotite were obtained, respectively. The Mučín locality only provide an imprecise convergent age of 16.5±1.4Ma due to the small size of the analyzed plagioclase crystals. The results thus allowed to include the fossil subtropical flora of the studied localities in the late Ottnangian regional stage (upper part of the Burdigalian). Additionally, these age data indicate that deposition of the overlaying Salgótarján Formation starts much later than originally thought (during Ottnangian-Karpatian boundary)

Mafic intrusions in southwestern Australia related to supercontinent assembly or breakup?

Variably oriented dolerite intrusions outcrop in the Albany–Fraser Orogen along the south coast of Western Australia with previously unknown ages but where previous studies interpreted Mesoproterozoic to Cretaceous emplacement. Here, we place temporal constraints on seven mafic intrusions across ∼150 km of coast using zircon U–Pb, apatite U–Pb, and plagioclase 40Ar/39Ar geochronology, coupled with whole-rock major and trace-element geochemistry, that reveal late Mesoproterozoic to potentially Early Cretaceous crystallisation ages. Three intrusions metamorphosed to greenschist facies are likely associated with either the emplacement of the ca 1210 Ma Marnda Moorn large igneous province or Stage II Albany–Fraser Orogeny, both of which were associated with the assembly of Rodinia. Three unmetamorphosed dykes have (probable) Neoproterozoic to lower Cambrian emplacement ages, likely associated with the ca 550–500 Ma Kuunga Orogeny during Gondwana assembly. The final sill, also unmetamorphosed, strikes perpendicular to the other six intrusions, shows unusual Pb anomalies and contains inherited zircon that has been reset by a Permian or younger event, pointing towards magmatism in southwestern Australia during the breakup of Gondwana. The new results provide hitherto unrecognised mafic intrusive evidence for modification of Proterozoic crust, potentially associated with Rodinia assembly, Gondwana assembly and Gondwana breakup in southwestern Australia. KEY POINTS Variably oriented mafic dykes in southwest Australia are dated by zircon U–Pb, apatite U–Pb and plagioclase 40Ar/39Ar methods. The dykes are related to Rodinia assembly (ca 1200 Ma), Gondwana assembly (ca 550 Ma) and, probably, Gondwana breakup (ca 135 Ma). These new ages provide evidence for mafic activity clearly linked to the supercontinent cycle

Datation 40Ar/39Ar haute précision des tectites associées à une industrie bifaciale dans le bassin de Bose au sud de la Chine (sites de Xioamei et Fengshudao) et au Vietnam (sites de Go Da et Roc Tung 1)

International audienc

Datation 40Ar/39Ar haute précision des tectites associées à une industrie bifaciale dans le bassin de Bose au sud de la Chine (sites de Xioamei et Fengshudao) et au Vietnam (sites de Go Da et Roc Tung 1)

International audienc

Emplacement of the Argyle diamond deposit into an ancient rift zone triggered by supercontinent breakup

Abstract Argyle is the world’s largest source of natural diamonds, yet one of only a few economic deposits hosted in a Paleoproterozoic orogen. The geodynamic triggers responsible for its alkaline ultramafic volcanic host are unknown. Here we show, using U-Pb and (U-Th)/He geochronology of detrital apatite and detrital zircon, and U-Pb dating of hydrothermal titanite, that emplacement of the Argyle lamproite is bracketed between 1311 ± 9 Ma and 1257 ± 15 Ma (2σ), older than previously known. To form the Argyle lamproite diatreme complex, emplacement was likely driven by lithospheric extension related to the breakup of the supercontinent Nuna. Extension facilitated production of low-degree partial melts and their migration through transcrustal corridors in the Paleoproterozoic Halls Creek Orogen, a rheologically-weak rift zone adjacent to the Kimberley Craton. Diamondiferous diatreme emplacement during (super)continental breakup may be prevalent but hitherto under-recognized in rift zones at the edges of ancient continental blocks

Viral infection switches the balance between bacterial and eukaryotic recyclers of organic matter during coccolithophore blooms

Algal blooms are hotspots of marine primary production and play central roles in microbial ecology and global elemental cycling. Upon demise of the bloom, organic carbon is partly respired and partly transferred to either higher trophic levels, bacterial biomass production or sinking. Viral infection can lead to bloom termination, but its impact on the fate of carbon remains largely unquantified. Here, we characterize the interplay between viral infection and the composition of a bloom-associated microbiome and consequently the evolving biogeochemical landscape, by conducting a large-scale mesocosm experiment where we monitor seven induced coccolithophore blooms. The blooms show different degrees of viral infection and reveal that only high levels of viral infection are followed by significant shifts in the composition of free-living bacterial and eukaryotic assemblages. Intriguingly, upon viral infection the biomass of eukaryotic heterotrophs (thraustochytrids) rivals that of bacteria as potential recyclers of organic matter. By combining modeling and quantification of active viral infection at a single-cell resolution, we estimate that viral infection causes a 2–4 fold increase in per-cell rates of extracellular carbon release in the form of acidic polysaccharides and particulate inorganic carbon, two major contributors to carbon sinking into the deep ocean. These results reveal the impact of viral infection on the fate of carbon through microbial recyclers of organic matter in large-scale coccolithophore blooms