利用多种地球物理观测资料直接反演地幔对流模型

假定地幔为一个均匀的、粘滞系数为常数、同时均匀分布放射性热源的流体球层,其内部存在的对流则由流体力学3个基本方程:运动方程、能量方程和连续性方程确定.如果假定地幔处于低瑞利数的状态（临界瑞利数1.5倍左右）,那么上述方程中的非线性项可以忽略不计.作为一类可能的模型,本文计算一组用6个边界条件确定6个未知数的线性方程组.这些条件包括板块绝对运动极型场、地球大地水准面异常和地震层析结果提供的地幔密度分布横向不均匀相应的“刚性地球”水准面异常等.模型计算表明:1.地幔中流体运动格局不仅受地幔热动力学参数（瑞利数）控制,而且强烈地受边界条件的影响.2.若不限定下边界为等温边界,则上、下地幔之间并不呈现出活动性明显差异;但是在模型瑞利数加大到一定值时,核-幔边界附近将出现一些局部的小尺度对流环.3.当模型瑞利数从很小增加时,对流格局将发生变化,这些格局可能反应由地幔热动力学参数决定的地幔固有特性.4.当瑞利数为50000和80000时,核-幔边界形变与PcP波得到的结果吻合较好.     

板块绝对运动及地幔热对流

本文以板块绝对运动AM1-2模型为边界条件探讨了不同的瑞利数下地幔热对流模型.结果表明,瑞利数小于10000（529.41）时,地幔对流呈现以板块驱动图式,运动的极型场和环型场由板块运动激发,两种场占有差不多相同的功率.当瑞利数增加到接近或略超过最低临界值时（约1.5倍）,对流呈现出复杂状态:1.板块运动速率小于下伏地幔对流速率;2.区域性的双层对流环出现;3.对流谱成分发生变化;4.环型场仅在地幔很浅的区域中起作用,而在地幔深部对流图式中影响很小.     

球层中的非线性自由热对流变粘度模型

粘度为常数或仅随深度变化是地幔对流模型中常用的假设. 本文在常粘度背景下， 通过假定小扰动粘度在纬向上的变化形式， 将粘度的横向变化引入地幔对流模型中， 并给出了变粘度地幔对流模型的数值解法. 对外边界为刚性、 内边界为应力自由（简记为R-F边界）和内外边界均为刚性（简记为R-R边界）边界的两种模型进行了计算， 对比了不同模型、 深度和瑞利数时的环型场的变化特征. 注意到环型场能量主要集中在球层的中、 上部区域， 其速度仅占总速度的几个百分点， 这个比例几乎不随瑞利数的变化而改变， 但其对流图样受瑞利数的影响较大. 环型场的对流形态和速度的分布特征表现出了明显的纬向差异， 这一结果清晰地反映出地幔粘度的横向变化对对流形态的影响. 目前的工作还只是初步的， 但为我们探讨全球大地构造上的某些现象， 例如南北半球的不对称性和差速旋转问题提供了一种可能的研究思路.      

利用地方震、远震走时和面波数据联合反演日本俯冲带P波和S波层析成像

通过最新收集的大量高质量的地方震和远震事件的到时数据进行联合反演,我们确定了日本俯冲带约700km深度的P波和S波速度层析成像。我们还使用远震瑞利波的振幅和相速度,确定了日本及其附近海域下方20~150s周期基阶瑞利波的二维相速度图像。研究区精细三维S波层析成像可通过地方震和远震事件的S波到时,及瑞利波相速度数据进行联合反演得到。我们的反演结果揭示:一维原始速度模型中,俯冲太平洋板块和菲律宾海板块呈现明显的高速区。在板块上方的地幔楔和太平洋板块下方的地幔中存在显著的低速异常。俯冲板块和周围地幔之间速度有明显的差异,表明温度、水含量和/或部分熔融程度有显著的横向变化。地幔楔低速异常是由板块脱水作用和地幔楔拐角流造成。在日本东北太平洋板块下方显示片状的低速区,这可能反映了地幔深部热上涌以及地幔柱软流圈的俯冲作用。我们的结果表明不同的地震数据联合反演,对于得到地壳和地幔可靠的层析成像图像是非常有效和重要的。     

鄂尔多斯地区上地幔岩石圈三维速度结构面波反演研究

双平面波拟合法是一种新的面波成像方法,反演中考虑地震波场中的非平面波成分,提高反演的分辨率.本文利用双平面波拟合法,反演获得鄂尔多斯地区上地幔岩石圈的速度结构.所用资料为国家数字地震台网69个宽频带地震仪和北京大学34个流动数字地震台观测到的地震波面波资料.首先从面波记录中提取了研究区域20~125 s瑞利波相速度频散曲线,进而得到各个周期瑞利波相速度异常分布图.结果显示,短周期瑞利波相速度异常与地表的构造特征吻合较好,中长周期的瑞利波相速度可以反映出上地幔岩石圈的速度异常分布以及构造特征.由研究区20~125 s的瑞利波相速度分布图可以反演得到地表到地下200 km范围内的三维剪切波速度结构.结果显示,鄂尔多斯块体内部稳定均一,活化或改造的痕迹不明显;鄂尔多斯块体西南缘受到青藏高原的强烈作用,有大量地幔物质流动的痕迹存在;中央转换带下超过200 km深度存在地幔物质上涌,可能与太平洋板块的俯冲和青藏高原板块的挤压有关.     

地幔对流的数值模拟及其与表面观测的关系

本文从基本的热对流方程出发,并结合地幔对流特点,特别考虑到自重及非线性影响,探讨地幔对流及其与表面观测的关系,发展了相应的数值方法.结果表明,计算得到的长波大地水准面、地表地形、板块速度场水平散度与观测值符合程度较好.上、下地幔的非绝热温度异常与由地震层析得到的地震波速异常显示一定的相关性.地幔内部的流动呈现复杂形态,反映了高瑞利数对流的特征.     

地幔柱与岩石圈相互作用过程的数值模拟

地幔柱的研究是地球科学研究的热点之一.本文主要集中研究地幔柱与岩石圈的相互作用过程.基于质量守恒方程、动量守恒方程和能量守恒方程,通过有限元数值方法可以计算得到地幔柱与岩石圈相互作用的温度场、速度场和有效黏度等的时空图.本文的流变本构模型主要基于非牛顿流体的有效黏度模型,通过数值模拟计算分析了地幔柱与岩石圈相互作用过程,着重讨论了地壳流变结构对此过程的影响.数值模拟结果显示,地幔柱与岩石圈的相互作用分为三个阶段:地幔柱上升期,时间持续到0.2 Ma,平均速度为2.75m·a-1,地幔柱顶部地形开始向上隆起;地幔柱与岩石圈纵向作用期,时间从0.2 Ma到0.26 Ma,地幔柱上升的平均速度为0.83m·a-1,地表地形隆升达到最大值;地幔柱与岩石圈横向作用期,0.26 Ma以后,岩石圈开始剪切变形,地幔柱水平运动速度为0.47m·a-1,当剪切变形达到一定程度,岩石圈底部开始出现拆沉作用.当下地壳流变强度比较小时,上地壳的流变结构控制着地幔柱顶部地表地形隆起程度,流变强度越大,隆升高度越小;而下地壳的流变结构控制着地幔柱两侧地表地形的下沉幅度,下地壳流变强度越小,下沉幅度越大.最后,讨论了数值模拟对峨眉山大火成岩省地幔柱发展演化的应用.     

攀枝花古地幔柱壳、幔结构与地球物理边界场特征

攀枝花古地幔柱的形成与演化对这一地域的大地构造格局、金属矿产的聚集和区域大陆动力学研究均有着极为重要的科学意义和应用价值.本文通过穿越攀枝花古地幔柱中心部位的四条人工源深部地震探测剖面和区域地球物理边界场响应研究提出：（1）攀枝花古地幔柱具有特异的壳、幔速度结构；（2）在其中心部位由结晶基底到壳、幔边界均为高速体，且结晶基底和Moho界面局部隆起、地壳内部存在厚达10余千米的低速层，且被数条深、大断裂切割；（3）重力场、磁力场的边界异常场响应组构了攀枝花古地幔柱的地表形态和中心部位的圈闭范围.     

蒙古中南部地区地下火山活动的地震学依据

正借助中蒙国际科技合作项目中69个流动台站获取的宽频带地震阵观测资料,在前期已经完成的瑞利波相速度层析成像的基础上,应用研究区提取到的周期为10~80s的每个网格点瑞利波相速度频散,参考体波震相资料重建的地壳结构作为地壳初始模型,采用全球AK135模型的地幔部分作为地幔初始模型(其中假设100km以上地幔部分层厚10km,100     

考虑混合地幔对流的地球热演化的参量化模型

单纯的全地幔对流或分层地幔对流热演化模型不能解释地球构造演化史中的幕式特征,故本研究在地球热历史的参量化模型研究中考虑混合地幔对流模式．我们引入时间相关的全地幔对流成分比F来表征地球热演化历史中全地幔对流所占权重,同时引入描述相变边界层对流状态的局部瑞利数Raloc和对流转换临界瑞利数Ra1及Ra2,作为地幔对流的控制参量．结果表明,混合地幔对流参量化模型得出的地球热演化史可以较好地反映地球幕式构造演化史．      

Transitions in the style of mantle convection at high Rayleigh numbers

The pattern and style of mantle convection govern the thermal evolution, internal dynamics, and large-scale surface deformation of the terrestrial planets. In order to characterize the nature of heat transport and convective behaviour at Rayleigh numbers, Ra, appropriate for planetary mantles (between 10⁴ and 10⁸), we perform a set of laboratory experiments. Convection is driven by a temperature gradient imposed between two rigid surfaces, and there is no internal heating. As the Rayleigh number is increased, two transitions in convective behaviour occur. First we observe a change from steady to time-dependent convection at Ra≈10⁵. A second transition occurs at higher Rayleigh numbers, Ra≈5×10⁶, with large-scale time-dependent flow being replaced by isolated rising and sinking plumes. Corresponding to the latter transition, the exponent β in the power law relating the Nusselt number Nu to the Rayleigh number (NuRa^β) is reduced. Both rising and sinking plumes always consist of plume heads followed by tails. There is no characteristic frequency for the formation of plumes.     

Ar/Ar geochronology of the West Greenland Tertiary volcanic province

Paleocene volcanic rocks in West Greenland and Baffin Island were among the first products of the Iceland mantle plume, forming part of a larger igneous province that is now submerged beneath the northern Labrador Sea. A ⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar dating study shows that volcanism commenced in West Greenland between 60.9 and 61.3 Ma and that 80% of the Paleocene lava pile was erupted in 1 million years or less (weighted mean age of 60.5±0.4 Ma). Minimum estimates of magma production rates (1.3×10⁻⁴ km³ year⁻¹ km⁻¹) are similar to the present Iceland rift, except for the uppermost part of the Paleocene volcanic succession where the rate decreases to <0.7×10⁻⁴ km³ year⁻¹ km⁻¹ (rift). The timing of onset of volcanism in West Greenland coincides with the opening of the northern Labrador Sea and is also strikingly similar to the age of the oldest Tertiary volcanic rocks from offshore SE Greenland and the British–Irish province. This is interpreted as manifesting the impact and rapid (>1 m/year) lateral spreading of the Iceland plume head at the base of the Greenland lithosphere at 62 Ma. We suggest that the arrival, or at least a major increase in the flux, of the Iceland mantle plume beneath Greenland was a contributing factor in the initiation of seafloor spreading in the northern Labrador Sea. Our study has also revealed a previously unrecognised Early Eocene volcanic episode in West Greenland. This magmatism may be related to movement on the transform Ungava Fault System which transferred drifting from the Labrador Sea to Baffin Bay. A regional change in plate kinematics at 55 Ma, associated with the opening of the North Atlantic, would have caused net extension along parts of this fault. This would have resulted in decompression and partial melting of the underlying asthenosphere. The source of the melts for the Eocene magmatism may have been remnants of still anomalously hot Iceland plume mantle which were left stranded beneath the West Greenland lithosphere in the Early Paleocene.     

Refining the noble gas record of the Réunion mantle plume source: Implications on mantle geochemistry

We report isotope analyses of helium, neon, argon, and xenon using different extraction techniques such as stepwise dynamic and static crushing, and high-resolution stepwise heating of three mantle xenoliths from Réunion Island. He and Ne isotopic compositions were similar to previously reported Réunion data, yielding a more radiogenic composition when compared to the Hawaiian or Icelandic mantle plume sources. We furthermore observed correlated ¹²⁹Xe/¹³⁰Xe and ¹³⁶Xe/¹³⁰Xe ratios following the mantle trend with maximum values of 6.93 ± 0.14 and 2.36 ± 0.06, respectively. High-resolution argon analyses resulted in maximum ⁴⁰Ar/³⁶Ar ratios of 9000–11,000, in agreement with maximum values obtained in previous studies. We observed a well-defined hyperbolic mixing curve between an atmospheric and a mantle component in a diagram of ⁴⁰Ar/³⁶Ar vs. ²⁰Ne/²²Ne. Using a mantle ²⁰Ne/²²Ne of 12.5 (Ne–B) a consistent ⁴⁰Ar/³⁶Ar value of 11,053 ± 220 in sample ILR 84-4 was obtained, whereas extrapolations to a higher mantle ²⁰Ne/²²Ne ratio of 13.8 (solar wind) would lead to a much higher ⁴⁰Ar/³⁶Ar ratio of 75,000, far above observed maximum values. This favours a mantle ²⁰Ne/²²Ne of about 12.5 considered to be equivalent to Ne–B. Extrapolated and estimated ⁴⁰Ar/³⁶Ar ratios of the Réunion, Iceland, Loihi, and MORB mantle sources, respectively, tend to be linearly correlated with air corrected ²¹Ne/²²Ne and show the same systematic sequence of increasing relative contributions in radiogenic isotopes (Iceland–Loihi–Réunion–MORB) as observed for ⁴He/³He. In general, He–Ne–Ar isotope systematics of the oceanic mantle can be explained by following processes: (i) different degree of mixing between pure radiogenic and pure primordial isotopes generating the MORB and primitive plume (Loihi-type) endmembers; (ii) relatively recent fractionation of He relative to Ne and Ar, in one or both endmembers; (iii) after the primary fractionation event, different degrees of mixing between melts or fluids of MORB and primitive plume affinity generate the variety of observed OIB data, also on a local scale; (iv) very late-stage secondary fractionation during magma ascent and magma degassing leads to further strong variation in He/Ne and He/Ar ratios.     

Noble gas systematics of the Réunion mantle plume source and the origin of primordial noble gases in Earth’s mantle

New noble gas data of ultramafic xenoliths from Réunion Island, Indian Ocean, further constrain the characteristics of primordial and radiogenic noble gases in Earth’s mantle plume reservoirs. The mantle source excess of nucleogenic ²¹Ne is significantly higher than for the Hawaiian and Icelandic plume reservoirs, similar to excess of radiogenic ⁴He. ⁴⁰Ar/³⁶Ar of the Réunion mantle source can be constrained to range between 8000 and 12 000, significant ¹²⁹Xe and fission Xe excess are present. Regarding the relative contribution of primordial and radiogenic rare gas nuclides, the Réunion mantle source is intermediate between Loihi- and MORB-type reservoirs. This confirms the compositional diversity of plume sources recognized in other radioisotope systematics. Another major result of this study is the identification of the same basic primordial component previously found for the Hawaiian and Icelandic mantle plumes and the MORB reservoir. It is a hybrid of solar-type He and Ne, and ‘atmosphere-like’ or ‘planetary’ Ar, Kr, Xe (Science 288 (2000) 1036). ²⁰Ne/²²Ne ratios extend to maximum values close to 12.5 (Ne-B), which is the typical signature of solar neon implanted as solar corpuscular radiation. This suggests that Earth’s solar-type noble gas inventory was acquired by small (less than km-sized) precursor planetesimals that were irradiated by an active early sun in the accretion disk after nebular gas dissipation, or, alternatively, that planetesimals incorporated constituents irradiated in transparent regions of the solar nebula. Previously, such an early irradiation scenario was suggested for carbonaceous chondrites which follow common volatile depletion trends in the sequence CI–CM–CV–Earth. In turn, CV chondrites closely match Earth’s mantle composition in ²⁰Ne/²²Ne, ³⁶Ar/²²Ne and ³⁶Ar/³⁸Ar. This indicates that mantle Ar could well be a planetary component inherited from precursor planetesimals. However, a corresponding conclusion for mantle Kr and Xe is less convincing yet, but this may be just due to the lack of appropriate ‘meteoritic’ building blocks matching terrestrial composition. Alternatively, heavy noble gases in Earth’s mantle could be due to admixing of severely fractionated air, but this effect must have affected all mantle sources to a very similar extent, e.g. by global subduction before the last homogenization of the mantle reservoirs.     

Helium and neon isotopes in the Imnaha Basalt, Columbia River Basalt Group: Evidence for a Yellowstone plume source

Helium, neon, and argon isotopic compositions were measured in two flows of the Columbia River flood basalt. The Imnaha Basalt has a ³He/⁴He ratio of 11.4 times atmospheric and ²⁰Ne/²²Ne and ²¹Ne/²²Ne ratios characteristic of a plume component. The measured ³He/⁴He is a lower limit, due to possible preferential ³He loss and/or addition of radiogenic ⁴He. A Wanapum Basalt flow, erupted approximately 2 Ma later in the waning stages of volcanism, has more MORB-like noble gases. The He, Nd and Sr isotopic compositions of these lavas suggest that the Columbia River basalts were derived from the Yellowstone plume head which contained both ‘high-helium’ plume material and entrained depleted mantle. As the eruptions progressed the plume component in the melting region was gradually diluted or replaced.     

Helium isotope composition of the early Iceland mantle plume inferred from the Tertiary picrites of West Greenland

Picrites from the 61 million year old Vaigat Formation of the Nuussuaq Peninsula in West Greenland have ³He/⁴He ratios trapped in olivine phenocrysts which range up to 30 times the atmospheric ratio. These high values, measured during gas extraction by crushing in vacuum, are similar to the highest magmatic ³He/⁴He ratios found in young terrestrial volcanic rocks. By analogy with young basalts, in which crushing selectively extracts magmatic helium, any significant cosmogenic ³He appears to be absent in these picrites. Additional evidence for the absence of cosmogenic helium is provided by fusion results on the crushed olivine powders and by a single stepwise crushing experiment, in which only magmatic and radiogenic helium components are resolvable. The West Greenland picrites have Pb, Nd and Sr isotope compositions which overlap those found in picrites from Iceland and in basalts from Loihi Seamount, localities which today also have high ³He/⁴He ratios. Isotopic variations in He, Pb, Nd and Sr for the West Greenland picrites are interpreted to largely result from interaction of the early Iceland mantle plume with the upper mantle during plume ascent and dispersion beneath the continental lithosphere. The presence of high ³He/⁴He ratios in West Greenland, and the onset of magmatism across the North Atlantic Volcanic Province near 62 Ma, supports the hypothesis for very rapid dispersion (>1 m/year) of mantle plume head material during the earliest stages of plume impact, as predicted in recent numerical simulations of plume behavior during thermal mantle convection with non-Newtonian rheology.     

An assessment of the effect of chemical scavenging within submarine hydrothermal plumes upon ocean geochemistry

Profiles of ²¹⁰Pb over the Endeavour and North Cleft Segments of the Juan de Fuca Ridge are used to model a time scale for the scavenging, by hydrothermal plumes, of reactive elements in seawater. The hydrothermal plumes above these ridge segments are sites of intense scavenging removal of ²¹⁰Pb. At Endeavour, the total ²¹⁰Pb activities within the plume are as low as 8 dpm/100 l and dissolved activities are as low as 3 dpm/100 l. At the North Cleft, which is characterized by higher particulate Fe concentrations, the total ²¹⁰Pb activities are 4.5 dpm/100 l, the dissolved activities are 1–2 dpm/100 l and the ²¹⁰Pb activities are deficient with respect to the activity of the ²¹⁰Po daughter. These are perhaps the lowest ²¹⁰Pb activities ever measured in the deep sea. The large gradient of ²¹⁰Pb between the plume and surrounding deep water suggests that scavenging is focused into the plumes through horizontal transport. The implication, therefore, is that this process might impact the ocean on a scale larger than that local to the ridge crest. By coupling published measurements of particle flux from Endeavour with ²¹⁰Pb activities on particles trapped at that site, the total volume of seawater stripped of ²¹⁰Pb per year for that site was calculated to be 7.4 × 10¹² l/y. Globally, the extrapolated volume flux of seawater stripped of reactive constituents is 5.7 × 10¹⁵ l/y, such that the entire ocean is processed in this manner in 2.4×10⁵ y. The geochemical cycle of elements with ocean residence times much shorter than this (e.g., Pb and Th) will not be greatly affected by hydrothermal scavenging. On the other hand, this process holds significance for the geochemistry of other elements scavenged by hydrothermal plumes, such as P and V, whose ocean residence times are > 10⁴ y.     

膨胀地球基本参数的初值及其平均变化率

本文讨论了地球膨胀过程的初始半径R₀、膨胀起始时间t₀以及半径R、转动惯量I、地表重力加速度g和反映地球内部物质分布状态参数y等膨胀基本参数的平均变化率。研究结果表明,在地球的地质年龄之内,地球膨胀的初始半径R₀>4619km,膨胀的起始时间t₀>43.8×10²Ma,膨胀过程中的地球半径R、物质分布状态参数y、转动惯量I、地表重力加速度g和表面积S随时间的平均变化率分别为:dR/dt=4×10^-4m/a,dy/dt=-6.7×10¹²/a,dI/dt=8.49×10²⁷kg·m~2/a,dg/dt=-1.23×10^-10kg·s^-2/a和ds/dt=6.41×10⁴m²/a。地球膨胀过程中的半径平均增长率,是首次用天文学方法研究得出,且该值介于其他作者用古地磁、古地理等方法所求得的地球半径增长率若干数值之间。     

Helium isotope geochemistry of mid-ocean ridge basalts from the South Atlantic

We report new helium isotope results for 49 basalt glass samples from the Mid-Atlantic Ridge between 1°N and 47°S.³He/⁴He in South Atlantic mid-ocean ridge basalts (MORB) varies between 6.5 and 9.0 R_A (R_A is the atmospheric ratio of1.39 × 10⁻⁶), encompassing the range of previously reported values for MORB erupted away from high³He/⁴He hotspots such as Iceland. He, Sr and Pb isotopes show systematic relationships along the ridge axis. The ridge axis is segmented with respect to geochemical variations, and local spike-like anomalies in³He/⁴He, Pb and Sr isotopes, and trace element ratios such as(La/Sm)_N are prevalent at the latitudes of the islands of St. Helena, Tristan da Cunha and Gough to the east of the ridge. The isotope systematics are consistent with injection beneath the ridge of mantle “blobs” enriched in radiogenic He, Pb and Sr, derived from off-axis hotspot sources. The variability in³He/⁴He along the ridge can be used to refine the hotspot source-migrating-ridge sink model.

MORB from the 2–7°S segment are systematically the least radiogenic samples found along the mid-ocean ridge system to date. Here the depleted mantle source is characterized by⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr of 0.7022, Pb isotopes close to the geochron and with²⁰⁶Pb/²⁰⁴Pb of 17.7, and³He/⁴He of 8.6–8.9 R_A. The “background contamination” of the subridge mantle, by radiogenic helium derived from off-ridge hotspots, displays a maximum between 20 and 24°S. The HePb and HeSr isotope relations along the ridge indicate that the³He/⁴He ratios are lower for the hotspot sources of St. Helena, Tristan da Cunha and Gough than for the MORB source, consistent with direct measurements of³He/⁴He ratios in the island lavas. Details of the HeSrPb isotope systematics between 12 and 22°S are consistent with early, widespread dispersion of the St. Helena plume into the asthenosphere, probably during flattening of the plume head beneath the thick lithosphere prior to continental breakup. The geographical variation in theHe/Pbratio deduced from the isotope systematics suggests only minor degassing of the plume during this stage. Subsequently, it appears that the plume component reaching the mid-Atlantic ridge was partially outgassed of He during off-ridge hotspot volcanism and related melting activity.

Overall, the similar behavior of He and Pb isotopes along the ridge indicates that the respective mantle sources have evolved under conditions which produced related He and Pb isotope variations.     

Preservation of near-solar neon isotopic ratios in Icelandic basalts

Neon isotopic ratios measured in olivine and basaltic glass from Iceland are the most primitive observed so far in terrestrial mantle-derived samples. Ratios were measured in gas released from olivine and basaltic glass from a total of 10 samples from the Reykjanes Peninsula, Iceland, and one sample from central Iceland. The neon isotopic ratios include solar-like, mid-ocean ridge basalt (MORB)-like and atmospheric compositions. Neon isotopic ratios near the air–solar mixing line were obtained from the total gas released from glass separates from five samples. MORB-like neon isotopic compositions were measured in the total gas released from olivine and glass separates from four samples. Although there is clear evidence for a solar neon component in some of the Icelandic samples, there is no corresponding evidence for a solar helium ratio (320R_a>³He/⁴He>100R_a). Instead, ³He/⁴He ratios are mainly between 12±2(R_a) and 29±3(R_a), similar to the range observed in ocean island basalts, indicating that the He–Ne isotopic systematics are decoupled. The mantle source of Icelandic basalts is interpreted to be highly heterogeneous on a local scale to explain the range in observed helium and neon isotopic ratios. The identification of solar-like neon isotopic ratios in some Icelandic samples implies that solar neon trapped within the Earth has remained virtually unchanged over the past 4.5 Ga. Such preservation requires a source with a high [Ne_solar]/[U+Th] ratio so that the concentration of solar neon overwhelms the nucleogenic ²¹Ne* produced from the decay of U and Th in the mantle over time. High [Ne_solar]/[U+Th] ratios are unlikely to be preserved in the mantle if it has experienced substantial melting. An essentially undegassed primitive mantle component is postulated to be the host of the solar neon in the Icelandic plume source. Relatively small amounts of this primitive mantle component are likely to mix with more depleted and degassed mantle such that the primitive mantle composition is not evident in other isotopic systems (e.g. strontium and neodymium). The lower mantle plume source is inferred to be relatively heterogeneous owing to being more viscous and less well stirred than the upper mantle. This discovery of near-solar neon isotopic ratios suggests that relatively primitive mantle may be preserved in the Icelandic plume source.