Paleomagnetism of the Siberian Flood Basalts of the Noril'sk Area: A Constraint on Eruption Duration

The volcanic sequence of the Noril'sk area, northern Siberia, provides the most complete section of early Siberian flood-basalt volcanism. Paleomagnetic measurements for more than 4000 samples of lava and tuff indicate that nearly all of this >3500-m-thick sequence was laid down during one interval of normal magnetic polarity. Lavas of the lower third of this sequence are cut by the ore-bearing Noril'sk-I intrusion, which has an age of 251 Ma, identical to that of the Permian-Triassic boundary. Thus, the normal-polarity interval represented by this sequence is inferred to be the first of the Triassic Period. Eruption of this enormous volume of material in a relatively brief period coincident with the earth's greatest mass extinction requires that all aspects of Siberian flood-basalt volcanism be evaluated carefully as possibly contributing to that catastrophe.     

Paleomagnetism and magnetostratigraphy of Upper Cretaceous and Cretaceous-Paleogene boundary intervals,southern Kulunda basin (West Siberia)

The study presents new paleomagnetic data on the Upper Cretaceous and Cretaceous-Paleogene boundary intervals of the southern Kulunda basin (Alei area), which were obtained from core samples collected from a 305-m-thick section penetrated in two wells. The paleomagnetic sections of each well were compiled and correlated based on the characteristic remanent magnetization (ChRM). Paleomagnetic, geological, stratigraphic, and paleontological data were used to compile the Upper Cretaceous and Cretaceous-Paleogene magnetostratigraphic section of the southern Kulunda basin. The magnetostratigraphic section consists of five magnetozones, one normal polarity zone, and four reversed polarity zones spanning the Upper Cretaceous and Lower Paleogene. The lower part of the Gan’kino Horizon, showing normal polarity, forms a single normal polarity magnetozone N. The upper part of the Gan’kino Horizon comprises two reversed polarity magnetozones (R₁km and R₂mt). The Talitsa and Lyulinvor Formations of Lower Paleogene age correspond to two reversed polarity magnetozones (R₁zl and R₂i). The compiled Upper Cretaceous and Lower Paleogene magnetostratigraphic section was correlated with the geomagnetic polarity time scale. Two options were considered for correlating the lower normal polarity part of the section with geomagnetic polarity time scale of Gradstein.     

Results of New Field and Geochemical Studies of the Volcanic and Intrusive Rocks of the Maymecha-Kotuy Area,Siberian Flood-Basalt Province,Russia

The Maymecha-Kotuy area, comprising ～70,000 km² of the northern part of the Siberian flood-basalt province, is of unusual interest because it appears to be the only such province in the world where high-Ti, alkaline-ultramafic rocks with associated carbonatites predominate over basaltic extrusive and intrusive rocks. New field and geochemical studies of the igneous rocks of this area were initiated with the goals of (1) correlating them with the magmatic formations of the well-studied Noril'sk area and (2) reconstructing the entire magmatic evolution of Siberian flood-basalt volcanism.

This report presents the first complete stratigraphic section for the volcanic sequence of the Maymecha River Basin (the most extensive in the Maymecha-Kotuy area), based on flow-by-flow mapping and sample collection. The geochemical and lithologic characteristics of the volcanic and intrusive rocks are thoroughly documented and show an unusually broad range in composition–e.g., SiO₂ and MgO contents range from 40 to 70 and from <1 to 38 wt%, respectively. New geochemical data, considered together with earlier paleomagnetic data, indicate that as much as 3000 m of the Maymecha-Kotuy sequence consists of lavas younger than those preserved near Noril'sk. Thus, the combined thickness of the lavas and tuffs that constitute the Siberian flood-basalt province is estimated as ～6500 m. As at Noril'sk, the volcanic sequence lies with unconformity on sedimentary rocks of the Tungusskaya Series. At Maymecha, the sequence begins with a major, basaltic-tuff unit and an overlying suite of low-Ti, tholeiitic basalts, but the magmatism then became more diverse, with several alternations of low-Ti and high-Ti lavas, and evolved to eruption of high-Ti trachybasalts, melanephelinites, trachyandesites, trachytes, trachydacites, and trachyrhyodacites. The uppermost ～1400 m of the sequence consists of high-Ti, limburgitic and picritic lavas, as well as Mg-rich (23 to 38 wt%), high-Ti, meymechitic lavas, apparently unique in the world. Graphic evidence of the volcanic nature of the meymechites is presented here for the first time.

The numerous dikes and several sills of the Maymecha River Basin are subdivided into seven types, which can be geochemically related to the volcanic sequence and in some cases can be reliably correlated with magmatic rocks of the Noril'sk area. Preliminary indications are that the complex body commonly referred to as the Guli intrusion is, in fact, an intrusive-volcanic complex occupying ～2000 km², in which a large, laccolithic intrusive mass of dunitic to peridotitic rocks was breached by a central volcanic edifice from which flowed ankaratrite and picritic ankaratrite lavas. Cutting the ankaratrites and picritic ankaratrites of the complex, but intimately related to it, is a variety of intrusive, alkaline rock types and two carbonatite bodies that may be related to a central feeder zone.

We recognize four magma types as products of Siberian flood-basalt volcanism and refer to them herein as low-Ti-I, low-Ti-2, moderate-Ti, and high-Ti. In contrast to the Noril'sk area, where high-Ti magmas constitute <1 vol% of the igneous rocks, their proportion is ～50 vol% in the Maymecha River Basin. These high-Ti rocks can be subdivided into trachybasaltic, melanephelinitic, and meymechitic rock series; clearly related to these series, judging from trace-element characteristics, are associated trachyandesitic, trachytic, and felsic lavas. In general, the trachyandesitic, trachytic, and felsic lavas appear to be related to the trachybasaltic series through fractionation, but some of the felsic tuffs display characteristics that suggest their relation to the melanephelinitie series. Previous investigators have concluded that meymechitic magma formed by low degrees of mantle-peridotite melting (<7%) at pressures corresponding to depths of 250 to 300 km. The distinctions between the trachybasaltic, melanephelinitic, and meymechitic rock series must relate to different sources and conditions of melting. It is remarkable that no geochemical signature of crustal contamination can be recognized for any of the high-Ti rocks, including the felsic lavas and tuffs. We conclude that the alternation of low-Ti and high-Ti magma types observed in the lower half of the volcanic sequence in the Maymecha River Basin resulted from repetitive expulsion from discrete mantle sources through independent plumbing systems.     

Tectonic Controls on Ore-Bearing Intrusions of the Talnakh Ore Junction: Position,Morphology, and Ore Distribution

Analysis of fifteen hundred deep boreholes permits understanding of Noril'sk-type, ore-bearing intrusions with respect to stratigraphic position, thickness, and ore distribution, and provide insights into the evolution of the Talnakh and Noril'sk ore junctions. Weakly miner-alized, Lower Talnakh-type intrusions were emplaced early in each ore junction, followed by emplacement of the ore-bearing intrusions. The morphology of the Lower Talnakh-type intrusions appears to have been controlled largely by inferred, arcuate faults; tight, N-S-trend-ing folds in the Noril'sk-Kharaelakh fault zone; and pre- Tungusskaya anticlines. The spreading and morphology of the ore-bearing intrusions were influenced by these features, but were more strongly controlled by the Noril'sk-Kharaelakh fault zone and by arcuate, thickened lenses within the Lower Talnakh-type intrusions. Host-rock characteristics strongly influenced the shapes of the ore-bearing intrusions in section and plan, the configurations of their flanking and frontal parts, and the attitudes of their peripheral sills.     

Magnetic stratigraphy of the Permian-Triassic traps in the Kotui River valley (Siberian Platform): New paleomagnetic data

The Permian-Triassic effusive traps in the Kotui River valley (Siberian Platform) were studied in detail by a paleomagnetic method, resulting in a summarized magnetic stratigraphic section of the studied sequence. The presence of the reversed polarity zone corresponding to the Khardakh Formation was argued for the section basement. Inside the Kogotok Group, the boundary between the direct and reversed polarity zones occurs in the lower part of the Onkuchak Formation and mismatches the boundary between the formations of the Kogotok Group, as was accepted before. These results contradict the presence of the transition record between the direct and reversed polarity zones in basalts of the lower part of the Onkuhcak Formation. The strong transitional interval between the Ivakinsk Formation and the upper parts of the Nadezhda Formation of the Norilsk section has no analogs in the Kotui section. This means the absence of any significant volcanic activity in the Maimecha-Kotui province during the intense eruptions in the Norilsk region resulting in origination of the greater part of the lower formations of the trap sequence. These data and possible correlations of the traps of the Kotui River valley and Norilsk region indicate that the Norilsk and Maimecha-Kotui sections were temporally overlapped.     

Geochemistry of Tertiary tholeiites and picrites from Qeqertarssuaq (Disko Island) and Nuussuaq, West Greenland with implications for the mineral potential of comagmatic intrusions

Tertiary continental flood basalts on Qeqertarssuaq and Nuussuaq in West Greenland contain ～3?km of picrites and variably contaminated tholeiites. The picrites are in the Naujánguit member of the Vaïgat Formation and they have 7–29?wt% MgO, La/Sm?=?0.9–2.1, and ¹⁴³Nd/¹⁴⁴Nd?=?0.51263–0.51307. They appear to have crystallised from high-Mg parental magmas (14.4–16.4?wt% MgO) with isotope and trace element ratios similar to recent Icelandic picrites. Discrete horizons of tholeiites, including the Asûk and?Kûgánguaq, have elevated SiO₂ (50–58 wt%), La/Sm?=?3–7, ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr?=?0.70550–0.71224, and low ¹⁴³Nd/¹⁴⁴Nd?=?0.51234–0.51174. These lavas have low Cu and Ni abundances (typically 10–50?ppm Ni or Cu), and in the case of the Asûk on Qeqertarssuaq, they contain droplets of native iron. The low Cu and Ni contents are attributed to scavenging by magmatic sulphides formed in response to crustal contamination of picritic magmas. Two contamination trends are recognised, one to a sediment end-member with high Th/Nb and Archaean model Nd ages, and the other to a meta-igneous component with high La/Sm, low Th/Nb and Rb/Nb, and Proterozoic source ages. Overall, ²⁰⁶Pb/²⁰⁴Pb varies from 16.47–21.68. Both contamination trends are associated with low Cu and Ni, and high SiO₂, and it is argued that the magmatic sulphides were triggered by the increases in silica, rather than simply by the introduction of additional crustal-derived sulphur. Geochemically, the Asûk and Kûgánguaq rocks resemble the most contaminated Nadezhdinsky lavas of the Siberian Trap, which are widely regarded as the source of the Ni and Cu mineralisation in the giant Noril'sk deposits. Mass balance considerations indicate that the parental liquids to the contaminated magmas contained sufficient Ni, Cu, S and platinum group elements to form substantial magmatic sulphide deposits. However, unlike the lavas at Noril'sk, the contaminated (low Cu and Ni) West Greenland basalts are in isolated units with no evidence for a gradual recovery in Ni and Cu abundances with height in the lava column. Comparison with Noril'sk suggests that although significant quantities of metals were scavenged by sulphides in West Greenland, the metal contents of the sulphides may not have been upgraded by continued interaction with subsequent magma batches.     

New data on stratigraphy (palynomorphs,ostracods, paleomagnetism) of Cenozoic continental deposits of the Ishim plain,Western Siberia

New micropaleontological and paleomagnetic data were obtained by studying core samples of Cenozoic continental deposits from two boreholes drilled in the south of Tyumen oblast (Western Siberia). Palynological assemblages in deposits of the Tavda (upper part), Novomikhailovka, Turtas, Abrosimovka, Tobolsk, Smirnovka, and Suzgun formations were described. Deposits of these formations are enriched in spore-pollen assemblages, which can be correlated with assemblages of regional palynozones of the West Siberian Plain. Ostracods were described in Quaternary deposits. On the basis of biostratigraphic and paleomagnetic data, the Late Eocene (Priabonian)–Holocene age of deposits was substantiated. For the first time, beds with dinocysts of genus Pseudokomewuia were identified in deposits of the Turtas Formation (Upper Oligocene) of the Ishim lithofacial area. In total, nine regional magnetozones were distinguished in the paleomagnetic section. On the basis of palynological and paleomagnetic data, sections of two boreholes were correlated, and hiatuses in sedimentation were revealed. A large hiatus is at the Eocene-Oligocene boundary (Western Siberia): the Lower Oligocene Atlym Horizon and Miocene–Pliocene and Eopleistocene sediments are missing. The Oligocene interval of the section is represented in a reduced volume.     

Petrogenesis of the Flood-Basalt Sequence at Noril'sk,North Central Siberia

The 3500-m-thick sequence of volcanic rocks at Noril'sk, formed during a brief interval (～1 m.y.) at the Permian/Triassic time boundary (～251 Ma), represents the earliest part of the ～6500-m-thick sequence presently ascribed to the Siberian flood-basalt province. It is composed of picritic and basaltic lavas of both low-Ti and high-Ti parentage. Extensive geological, geochemical, and isotopic study of the lava sequence and related intrusions allows detailed reconstruction of its petrogenesis. Various crustal-related processes-fractionation, crustal contamination, sulfide separation, and magma mixing-participated in the formation of the lavas. The geochemical and isotopic characteristics indicative of these processes, as well as mantle-related signatures of lava compositions, are discussed. Based on these characteristics, detailed interpretations of lava genesis and evolution throughout the Noril'sk sequence are presented. Eight varieties of lavas are recognized to be primitive, similar in composition to primary mantle melts; they varied from low-Mg basalts to olivine tholeiites or picrites, with normal tholeiites predominating.

The primitive lavas are subdivided into four groups (magma types) on the basis of trace-element ratios (principally, Gd/Yb, Th/U, La/Yb, Ta/La, Ti/Sc, and V/Yb) and isotopic data. Three of the groups include both basaltic and picritic primitive lavas (with low-Mg basalts present in one of them), whereas the fourth group is represented exclusively by tholeiites. Distinctions among the groups cannot be related to degree of melting, and isotopic data indicate that none of the magma types could have formed by mixing or contamination of other types. Apparently, only differences in source composition and/or depth of melting can explain the magmatic diversity.

This multitude of primitive magma types may be explained by melting in different layers of the upper mantle, which is complexly layered beneath Siberia to depths of 270 km. Moreover, no clear boundary between lithosphere and asthenosphere is evident in the deep seismic profile. A large-scale event is necessary to account for melting in different parts of the upper mantle and formation of the great volume of the Siberian flood basalts in ～1 m.y. Extension, caused by ascent of a mantle plume, would provide a reasonable explanation, but no plume-related uplift is documented in north-central Siberia prior to, or during, eruption of the volcanic sequence.     

Paleomagnetism of the Late Cretaceous intrusions from the Minusa trough (southern Siberia)

The paper summarizes paleomagnetic and rock-magnetic data on the Late Cretaceous diatremes and associated dikes from the Minusa trough located within the southwestern Siberian Platform. It is shown that the stable characteristic component of magnetization is superimposed magnetization (in physical sense). It is linked to Fe-rich titanomagnetite produced by the decay and oxidation of Ti-rich titanomagnetite derived from a primary magma. This process, however, coincides in time with the intrusion cooling, which is supported by paleomagnetic tests. Correlation of magnetic polarity with ³⁹Ar/⁴⁰Ar ages suggests that the acquired stable characteristic component of magnetization corresponds to magnetic Chrons C33-C32 and characterizes the Middle Campanian magnetic field (74–82 Ma). The mean paleomagnetic pole for this span is located at 82.8° N, 188.5° E, with α₉₅ = 6.1 and, within confidence intervals, coincides with the reference data from the European part of the Eurasian plate. The excellent agreement between virtual paleomagnetic poles testifies that the intraplate motions in the Mesozoic resulting in the crust deformation of Central Asia ceased in the late Cretaceous or were so small that elude detection by the paleomagnetic method.     

A preliminary paleomagnetic result of quaternary drilling core from southern Leizhou Peninsula, Guangdong Province

313 orientated samples were collected from Drilling Core ZK1 in southern Leizhou Peninsula for the study of Quaternary paleomagnetic strato-chronology.Te polarity measurement results indicate that the core recorded paleomagnetic information in three main parts:the upper one of the core,from the ground surface to the depth of 39m ,is normally magnetized in polarity,the middle one,from 39m 59 210m in depth,mainly shows reversed polarity and the lower one recorded normal polarity again.They correspond to the Brunhes normal chron,the Matuyama reversed chron and the Guass normal chron in the geomagnetic polarity time scale,respectively.The age of he core could be over 3.4Ma.Meanwhile,the magnetic susceptibility was measured and its result is significant for stratigraphic division and paleoclimatic research.     

Reversals of the geomagnetic field,magnetostratigraphy, and relative magnitude of paleosecular variation in the phanerozoic

The percentage of normal and reversed magnetization in land-based paleomagnetic studies of Phanerozoic rocks (0 to ? 570 m.y.) have been compiled in order to determine the long-term variation in polarity bias of the geomagnetic field. Where possible the results are compared with the record from marine magnetic anomalies. Only rarely is there an even balance between normal and reversed polarity. During the past 350 m.y. two quiet intervals can be recognized when few reversals occurred, the Cretaceous (KN about ? 81 to ? 110 m.y.) and Permo-Carboniferous (PCR about ? 227 to ? 313 m.y.). Less firmly established are two other quiet intervals, one in the Jurassic (JN about ? 145 to ? 165 m.y.), and one in the Triassic (TRN about ? 205 to ? 220 m.y.). Between these quiet intervals there are disturbed intervals when reversals were comparatively frequent. From ? 680 to ? 350 m.y. the paleomagnetic record is inadequate to delineate a succession of quiet and disturbed intervals although one is probably present. Maximum entropy spectral analysis reveals three periodicities, a dominant one at about 300 m.y. and others, less well-defined, at 113 and 57 m.y. The variations in polarity bias are compared with the paleosecular variation, and it is shown that the magnitude of the paleosecular variation is greater in disturbed than in quiet intervals. This indicates that the magnitude of paleosecular variation and polarity bias are governed by variations in the balance between non-dipole and dipole components of the field, and that these variations probably had their origin in processes near the core—mantle interface. The correspondence between the dominant periods of 300 m.y. and plate tectonics is noted and a causal relationship suggested.     

Magnetic polarity stratigraphy of the Pleistocene section at Portland (Victoria), Australia

Three to seven oriented paleomagnetic samples were collected from 16 sites in the Nelson Bay and Bridgewater formations at Portland, Victoria, which contains the recently discovered Nelson Bay local fauna (L.F.). The entire section has reversed polarity. These results, along with Globorotalia truncatulinoides within the section, and the presence of underlying middle Pliocene-dated basalts, indicate that the Portland section, and the included Nelson Bay L.F., was deposited within the late Matuyama Chron between 1.66 and 0.73 myr ago. This represents the first well-documented pre-¹⁴C Pleistocene mammalian fauna in Australia calibrated in direct stratigraphic context with absolute dating methods. In addition, the reversed polarity for the Bridgewater Formation confirms the previous hypothesis that the depositional history of this beach-sand deposit is time-transgressive across the Brunhes-Matuyama boundary.     

Paleomagnetism of the Paleogene-Neogene continental sediments of the Om’ basin (southern West Siberia)

The paper presents the results of detailed paleomagnetic studies of the Paleogene-Neogene continental sediments stripped by borehole 8 in southwestern West Siberia (Russkaya Polyana district, Omsk Region), near the Kazakhstan frontier. According to the previous biostratigraphic data, the sediments under study formed from Rupelian to Ruscinian. The results of stepwise thermal demagnetization and alternating-field demagnetization were used to carry out a component analysis of natural remanent magnetization, which revealed characteristic (primary) remanent magnetization (ChRM). The compiled paleomagnetic section, which includes seven regional horizons and same-named formations (Oligocene Atlym, Novomikhailovka, and Zhuravka Formations and Neogene Abrosimovka, Beshcheul, Tavolzhan, and Novaya Stanitsa Formations), was compared with the Cenozoic polarity scale for the West Siberian Plate. This made it possible to assess the completeness of the geologic section of the Paleogene and Neogene continental sediments in borehole 8 and to record the magnetozones and their fragments missing from the magnetostratigraphic section (for some intervals, in absolute chronology). The comparison shows that the magnetostratigraphic section of the studied sediments at the edges of the Om’ basin is approximately twice shorter than that of the basin center.     

北京平原区上新统一更新统的划分

本文涉及的范围包括北京凹陷、大兴凸起、大厂凹陷及武清凹陷的一部分(图1)。第四系在凸起部位沉积较薄,在凹陷部位沉积较厚(图2)。新生代以来的地壳活动,特别是平原区主要断裂的继承性活动,对第四系的分布、岩性、岩相特征、海浸、海退都起着控制作用。     

Distribution of eruptive volcanic basalt in the South China Sea and adjacent areas by interpreting gravity,magnetic and seismic data

Volcanic basalt eruption activity in the South China Sea and adjacent areas occurred strongly in Cenozoic E ra. However, it is difficult to define their ranges and spatial locations.This paper presents the methods of reduction to the magnetic equator in low latitudes to bring out a better correlation between magnetic anomalies and their causing-sources; high-frequency filtering is to separate gravity and magnetic anomalies as well as information about the volcanic basalts in the upper part of the Earth’s crust; 3D total gradient is to define the spatial location of high density and magnetic bodies. The distribution of eruptive volcanic basalt is determined by multi-dimensional correlation analysis between high frequency gravity and magnetic anomalies with weighted total gradient 3D.The results from the above-mentioned methods have shown that the distribution of the eruptive volcanic basalt is mainly concentrated along the South China Sea’s sea floor-spreading axis, transitional crust, Manila trench and some large faults zone. These results are improved by existing boreholes and seismic data in the study area.     

Magnetostratigraphic Study of Meishan Permian-Triassic Section, Changxing, Zhejiang Province, China

INTRODUCTIONBecause many P/ T boundary sections around the worldare stratigraphically unconformed,som e possible exceptionsdeveloped in Greenland,Iran,Russia and South China are ofcourse of international importance.Especially successive sedi-ments from the L ate Paleozoic to Early Mesozoic widely ap-peared in South China,for example,the Meishan Section inChangxing County,Zhejiang Province,and som e analogies inGuangyuan,Wulong and Shangsi counties,Sichuan Province.Some geologists…     

Magnetostratigraphic evidence from the Cold Creek bar for onset of ice-age cataclysmic floods in eastern Washington during the Early Pleistocene

This study provides a detailed magnetostratigraphy of sediments composing the Cold Creek cataclysmic flood bar in the Pasco Basin, Washington. Our interpretation suggests onset of Missoula floods or similar events prior to 1.1 myr, later than previously suggested by Bjornstad et al. [Bjornstad, B.N., Fecht, K.R., Pluhar, C.J., 2001. Long history of pre-Wisconsin, Ice Age cataclysmic floods: evidence from southeastern Washington State. Journal of Geology 109 (6), 695-713]. Nonetheless these data suggest that Channeled Scabland features formed over a much longer timespan than commonly cited, that continental ice sheets of the early Pleistocene reached as far south as those of the late Pleistocene, and that similar physiography existed in eastern Washington and perhaps Montana to both generate and route Missoula-flood-like events. This study adds paleomagnetic polarity results from 213 new samples of silts and sands derived from nine new drill cores penetrating the Cold Creek cataclysmic flood bar to our previous database of 53 samples from four boreholes, resulting in a much more robust and detailed magnetostratigraphy. Rock magnetic studies on these sediments show pure magnetite to be the predominant remanence-carrying magnetic mineral, ruling out widespread remagnetization by secondary mineralization. The magnetostratigraphy at eastern Cold Creek bar is characterized by a normal polarity interval bracketed by reversed polarities. Equating the normal zone with the Jaramillo subchron (0.99-1.07 myr) affords the simplest correlation to the magnetic polarity timescale. Western Cold Creek bar was likely deposited during the Brunhes chron (0-0.78 myr) since it exhibits mainly normal polarities with only two thin reversed-polarity horizons that we interpret as magnetic excursions during the Brunhes.     

Siderophile and chalcophile metal variations in Tertiary picrites and basalts from West Greenland with implications for the sulphide saturation history of continental flood basalt magmas

Sixty-five million year old continental flood basalts crop out on Qeqertarssuaq Island and the Nuussuaq Peninsula in West Greenland, and they include ～1,000 m of picritic lavas and discrete 10- to 50-m-thick members of highly contaminated basalts. On Qeqertarssuaq, the lavas are allocated to the Vaîgat and Maligât Formations of which the former includes the Naujánguit member, which consists of picrites with 7–29 wt% MgO, 80–1,400 ppm Ni, 5.7–9.4 ppb Pt and 4.2–12.9 ppb Pd. The Naujánguit member contains two horizons of contaminated basalts, the Asûk and Kûgánguaq, which have elevated SiO2 (52–58 wt%) and low to moderate MgO (7.5–12.8 wt%). These lavas are broadly characterized by low Cu and Ni abundances (average, 40 ppm Ni and 45 ppm Cu) and very low Pt (0.16–0.63 ppb) and Pd (0.13–0.68 ppb) abundances, and in the case of the Asûk, they contain shale xenoliths and droplets of native iron and troilite. The contaminated basalts from Nuussuaq, the B0 to B4 members, are also usually Ni-, Cu-, and platinum-group elements (PGE)-depleted. The geochemical signatures (especially the ratios of incompatible trace elements such as Th/Nb) of all of the contaminated basalts from Qeqertarssuaq and some of those from Nuussuaq record what appears to be a chemical contribution from deltaic shales that lie immediately below the lavas. This suggests that the contamination of the magmas occurred during the migration of the magmas through plumbing systems developed in sedimentary rocks, and hence, at a high crustal level. Nickel, Cu, and PGE depletion together with geochemical signatures produced by crustal contamination are also a feature of Siberian Trap basalts from the Noril’sk region. These basalts belong to the 0- to 500-m thick, ～5,000- to 10,000-km³ Nadezhdinsky Formation, which is centered in the Noril’sk Region. A major difference between Siberia and West Greenland is that PGE depletion in the Nadezhdinsky Formation samples with the lowest Cu and Ni contents is much more severe than that of the West Greenland contaminated basalts. Moreover, the volumes of the contaminated and metal-depleted volcanic rocks in West Greenland pale is significant when compared to the Nadezhdinsky Formation; local centers rarely contain more than 15 thin flows with a combined thickness of <50 m and more typically 10–20 m, so the volume of the eruptive portions of each system is probably two orders of magnitude smaller than the Nadezhdinsky edifice. The West Greenland centres are juxtaposed along fault zones that appear to be linked to the subsidence of the Tertiary delta, and so emplacement along N–S structures appears to be a principal control on the distribution of lavas and feeder intrusions. This leads us to suggest that the Greenland system is small and segregation of sulphide took place at high levels in the crust, whereas at Noril’sk, the saturation event took place at depth with subsequent emplacement of sulphide-bearing magmas into high levels of the crust. As a consequence, it may be unreasonable to expect that the West Greenland flood basalts experienced mineralizing processes on the scale of the Noril’sk system.