Models of Hawaiian volcano growth and plume structure: Implications of results from the Hawaii Scientific Drilling Project

The shapes of typical Hawaiian volcanoes are simply parameterized, and a relationship is derived for the dependence of lava accumulation rates on volcano volume and volumetric growth rate. The dependence of lava accumulation rate on time is derived by estimating the eruption rate of a volcano as it traverses the Hawaiian plume, with the eruption rate determined from a specified radial dependence of magma generation in the plume and assuming that a volcano captures melt from a circular area centered on the volcano summit. The timescale of volcano growth is t = 2 R/ν_plate where R is the radius of the melting zone of the (circular) plume and νplate is the velocity of the Pacific plate. The growth progress of a volcano can be described by a dimensionless time t′ = tν_plate/2R, where t′ = 0 is chosen to be the start of volcano growth and t′ = 1 approximates the end of “shield” growth. Using a melt generation rate for the whole plume of 0.2 km^(3)/yr, a plume diameter of 50 km, and a plate velocity of 10 cm/yr, we calculate that the lifetime of a typical volcano is 1000 kyr. For a volcano that traverses the axis of the plume, the “standard” dimensions are a volume of 57,000 km^3, a summit thickness of 18 km, a summit elevation of 3.6 km, and a basal radius of 60 km. The volcano first breaches the sea surface at t′ ≈ 0.22 when it has attained only 5% of its eventual volume; 80% of the volume accumulates between t′ = 0.3 and t′ = 0.7. Typical lava accumulation rates start out over 50 m/kyr in the earliest stages of growth from the seafloor, and level out at ∼35 m/kyr from t′ ≈ 0.05 until t′ = 0.4. From t′ = 0.4 to t′ = 0.9, the submarine lava accumulation rates decrease almost linearly from 35 m/kyr to ∼0; subaerial accumulation rates are about 30% lower. The lava accumulation rate is a good indicator of volcano age. A volcano that passes over the plume at a distance 0.4R off to the side of the plume axis is predicted to have a volume of about 60% of the standard volcano, a lifetime about 8% shorter, and lava accumulation rates about 15–20% smaller. The depth-age data for Mauna Kea lavas cored by the Hawaii Scientific Drilling Project are a good fit to the model parameters used, given that Mauna Kea appears to have crossed the plume about 15–20 km off-axis. The lifetime of Mauna Kea is estimated to be 920 kyr. Mauna Loa is predicted to be at a stage corresponding to t′ ≈ 0.8, Kilauea is at t′ ≈ 0.6, and Loihi is at t′ ≈0.16. The model also allows the subsurface structure of the volcanoes (the interfaces between lavas from different volcanoes) to be modeled. Radial geochemical structure in the plume may be blurred in the lavas because the volcanoes capture magma from a sizeable cross-sectional area of the plume; this inference is qualitatively born out by available isotopic data. The model predicts that new Hawaiian volcanoes are typically initiated on the seafloor near the base of the next older volcano but generally off the older volcano's flank

Neoproterozoic to early Phanerozoic rise in island arc redox state due to deep ocean oxygenation and increased marine sulfate levels

A rise in atmospheric O_2 levels between 800 and 400 Ma is thought to have oxygenated the deep oceans, ushered in modern biogeochemical cycles, and led to the diversification of animals. Over the same time interval, marine sulfate concentrations are also thought to have increased to near-modern levels. We present compiled data that indicate Phanerozoic island arc igneous rocks are more oxidized (Fe^(3+)/ΣFe ratios are elevated by 0.12) vs. Precambrian equivalents. We propose this elevation is due to increases in deep-ocean O_2 and marine sulfate concentrations between 800 and 400 Ma, which oxidized oceanic crust on the seafloor. Once subducted, this material oxidized the subarc mantle, increasing the redox state of island arc parental melts, and thus igneous island arc rocks. We test this using independently compiled V/Sc ratios, which are also an igneous oxybarometer. Average V/Sc ratios of Phanerozoic island arc rocks are elevated (by +1.1) compared with Precambrian equivalents, consistent with our proposal for an increase in the redox state of the subarc mantle between 800 and 400 Ma based on Fe^(3+)/ΣFe ratios. This work provides evidence that the more oxidized nature of island arc vs. midocean-ridge basalts is related to the subduction of material oxidized at the Earth’s surface to the subarc mantle. It also indicates that the rise of atmospheric O_2 and marine sulfate to near-modern levels by the late Paleozoic influenced not only surface biogeochemical cycles and animal diversification but also influenced the redox state of island arc rocks, which are building blocks of continental crust

Mantle heterogeneity during the formation of the North Atlantic Igneous Province: Constraints from trace element and Sr-Nd-Os-O isotope systematics of Baffin Island picrites

Sr-Nd-Os-O isotope and major and trace element data from ~62 Ma picrites from Baffin Island constrain the composition of mantle sources sampled at the inception of North Atlantic Igneous Province (NAIP) magmatism. We recognize two compositional types. Depleted (N-type) lavas have low 87Sr/86Sri (0.702990–0.703060) and 187Os/188Osi (0.1220–0.1247) and high 143Nd/144Ndi (0.512989–0.512999) and are depleted in incompatible elements relative to primitive mantle. Enriched (E-type) lavas have higher 87Sr/86Sri (0.703306–0.703851) and 187Os/188Osi (0.1261–0.1303), lower 143Nd/144Ndi (0.512825–0.512906), and incompatible element concentrations similar to, or more enriched than, primitive mantle. There is also a subtle difference in oxygen isotope composition; E-type lavas are marginally lower in δ18Oolivine value (5.16–4.84‰) than N-type lavas (5.15–5.22‰). Chemical and isotopic variations between E- and N-type lavas are inconsistent with assimilation of crust and/or subcontinental lithospheric mantle and appear to instead reflect mixing between melts derived from two distinct mantle sources. Strontium-Nd-O isotope compositions and incompatible trace element abundances of N-type lavas suggest these are largely derived from the depleted upper mantle. The 187Os/188Osi ratios of N-type lavas can also be explained by such a model but require that the depleted upper mantle had γOs of approximately −5 to −7 at 62 Ma. This range overlaps the lowest γOs values measured in abyssal peridotites. Baffin Island lava compositions are also permissive of a model involving recharging of depleted upper mantle with 3He-rich material from the lower mantle (Stuart et al., Nature, 424, 57–59, 2003), with the proviso that recharge had no recognizable effect on the lithophile trace element and Sr-Nd-Os-O isotope composition. The origin of the enriched mantle component sampled by Baffin Island lavas is less clear but may be metasomatized and high-temperature-altered recycled oceanic lithosphere transported within the proto Iceland plume. Differences between Baffin Island lavas and modern Icelandic basalts suggest that a range of enriched and depleted mantle sources have been tapped since the inception of magmatism in the province. Similarities between Baffin Island lavas erupted and those of similar age from East and West Greenland also suggest that the enriched component in Baffin Island lavas may have been sampled by lavas erupted over a wide geographic range

The Influence of Oxygen Fugacity and Cooling Rate on the Crystallization of Ca-Al Inclusions from Allende

Although there appears to be general agreement that some coarse-grained Ca-Al-rich inclusions (CAIs) from Allende passed through a molten or partially molten stage in their evolution, there are several competing hypotheses to account for the formation of the liquid phase in CAIs (e.g., 1-4). Studies of the phase equilibria of CAI compositions can help distinguish between these mechanisms for generating liquids in CAIs

Gut feelings in general practice

Reason and feeling closely cooperate in general practitioners’ diagnostic thinking. GPs sometimes experience gut feelings in the patient contact. Researchers from the universities of Maastricht and Antwerp showed that most GPs take those feelings seriously and that these feelings can direct their diagnostic actions. Also medical disciplinary committees take the gut feelings seriously, witness the fact that in the Netherlands they reproached GPs en specialists regularly in the past ten years for not listening to their gut feelings. The researchers have established an international research agenda to further study and improve the diagnostic meaning of the gut feelings

Evaporation kinetics of Mg2SiO4 crystals and melts from molecular dynamics simulations

Computer simulations based on the molecular dynamics (MD) technique were used to study the mechanisms and kinetics of free evaporation from crystalline and molten forsterite (i.e., Mg2SiO4) on an atomic level. The interatomic potential employed for these simulations reproduces the energetics of bonding in forsterite and in gas-phase MgO and SiO2 reasonably accurately. Results of the simulation include predicted evaporation rates, diffusion rates, and reaction mechanisms for Mg2SiO4(s or l) yields 2Mg(g) + 20(g) + SiO2(g)

D/H of water released by stepped heating of Shergotty, Zagami, Chassigny, ALH 84001, and Nakhla

We report the yield and D/H of water released by stepped heating of bulk Shergotty, Zagami, Chassigny, and the newest martian meteorite, ALH 84001. For comparison, we also report data from Nakhla using the same procedure since the heating steps in this study are slightly different than our previously reported nakhlite analyses

The Stability of Zirconia-Saturated Perovskite and Conditions in the Early Solar System

Perovskite and tazheranite (cubic zirconia) are among the most refractory oxides in nebular vapors [1] and important repositories for several refractory elements whose concentrations can potentially be used to constrain the environments of formation. There are numerous studies on the phase relations and thermodynamic properties of zirconias containing Al, Ca, Mg, Sc, Ti, and the REE [e.g., 2-4], but meteoritic zirconia is rare [5]. Meteoritic perovskite is much more common [e.g., 5-9], but there are few constraints on thermodynamic properties of the relevant solid solutions. Here, we describe experiments to determine the partitioning of minor elements between perovskite and zirconia of variable Zr/Ti; the results will be used to constrain thermodynamic modeling for the solid solutions represented by meteoritic perovskite

In situ evidence for continental crust on early Mars

Understanding of the geologic evolution of Mars has been greatly improved by recent orbital, in situ and meteorite data, but insights into the earliest period of Martian magmatism (4.1 to 3.7 billion years ago) remain scarce. The landing site of NASA’s Curiosity rover, Gale crater, which formed 3.61 billion years ago within older terrain, provides a window into this earliest igneous history. Along its traverse, Curiosity has discovered light-toned rocks that contrast with basaltic samples found in younger regions. Here we present geochemical data and images of 22 specimens analysed by Curiosity that demonstrate that these light-toned materials are feldspar-rich magmatic rocks. The rocks belong to two distinct geochemical types: alkaline compositions containing up to 67 wt% SiO_2 and 14 wt% total alkalis (Na_2O + K_2O) with fine-grained to porphyritic textures on the one hand, and coarser-grained textures consistent with quartz diorite and granodiorite on the other hand. Our analysis reveals unexpected magmatic diversity and the widespread presence of silica- and feldspar-rich materials in the vicinity of the landing site at Gale crater. Combined with the identification of feldspar-rich rocks elsewhere and the low average density of the crust in the Martian southern hemisphere, we conclude that silica-rich magmatic rocks may constitute a significant fraction of ancient Martian crust and may be analogous to the earliest continental crust on Earth