Provenance of Des Moines lobe till records ice‐stream catchment evolution during Laurentide deglaciation

Lusardi, B. A., Jennings, C. E. & Harris, K. L. 2011: Provenance of Des Moines lobe till records ice‐stream catchment evolution during Laurentide deglaciation. Boreas, 10.1111/j.1502‐3885.2011.00208.x. ISSN 0300‐9483. Mapping and analysis of deposits of the Des Moines lobe of the Laurentide Ice Sheet, active after the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM), reveal several texturally and lithologically distinct tills within what had been considered to be a homogeneous deposit. Although the differences between tills are subtle, minor distinctions are predictable and mappable, and till sheets within the area covered by the lobe can be correlated for hundreds of kilometres parallel to ice flow. Lateral till‐sheet contacts are abrupt or overlap in a narrow zone, coincident with a geomorphic discontinuity interpreted to be a shear margin. Till sheets 10 to 20 m thick show mixing in their lower 2 to 3 m. We suggest that: (i) lithologically distinct till sheets correspond to unique ice‐stream source areas; (ii) the sequence of tills deposited by the Des Moines lobe was the result of the evolution and varying dominance of nearby and competing ice streams and their tributaries; and (iii) in at least one instance, more than one ice stream simultaneously contributed to the lobe. Therefore the complex sequence of tills of subtly different provenances, and the unconformities between them record the evolution of an ice‐catchment area during Laurentide Ice Sheet drawdown. Till provenance data suggest that, after till is created in the ice‐stream source area, the subglacial conditions required for transporting till decline and incorporation of new material is limited.     

Climate-induced fluvial dynamics in tropical Africa around the last glacial maximum?

The Greenland and East and West Antarctic ice sheets are assessed as being the source of ice that produced an Eemian sea level 6 m higher than present sea level. The most probable source is total collapse of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet accompanied by partial collapse of the adjacent sector of the East Antarctic Ice Sheet in direct contact with the West Antarctic Ice Sheet. This conclusion is reached by applying a simple formula relating the “floating fraction” of ice along flowlines to ice height above the bed. Increasing the floating fraction lowered ice elevations enough to contribute up to 4.7 m to global sea level. Adding 3.3 m resulting from total collapse of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet accounts for the higher Eemian sea level. Partial gravitational collapse that produced the present ice drainage system of Amery Ice Shelf contributes 2.3 m to global sea level. These results cast doubt on the presumed stability of the East Antarctic Ice Sheet, but destabilizing mechanisms remain largely unknown. Possibilities include glacial surges and marine instabilities at the respective head and foot of ice streams.     

Volume of Antarctic Ice at the Last Glacial Maximum, and its impact on global sea level change

The volume of Antarctic ice at the Last Glacial Maximum is a key factor for calculating the past contribution of melting ice sheets to Late Pleistocene global sea level change. At present, there are large uncertainties in our knowledge of the extent and thickness of the formerly expanded Antarctic ice sheets, and in the timing of their release as meltwater into the world’s oceans. This paper reviews the four main approaches to determining former Antarctic ice volume, namely glacial geology, glacio-isostatic studies, glaciological modelling, and ice core analysis and attempts to reconcile these to give a ‘best estimate’ for ice volume. In the Ross Sea there was a major expansion of grounded ice at the Last Glacial Maximum, accounting for 2.3–3.2 m of global sea level. At some time in the Weddell Sea a large grounded ice sheet corresponding to c. 2.7 m of global sea level extended to the shelf break. However, this ice expansion has not yet been confidently dated and may not relate to the Last Glacial Maximum. Around East Antarctica there was thickening and advance offshore of ice in coastal regions. Ice core evidence suggests that the interior of East Antarctica was either close to its present elevation or thinner during the last glacial so the effect of East Antarctica on sea level depends on the net balance between marginal thickening and interior thinning. Suggested East Antarctic contributions vary from a 3–5.5 m lowering to a 0.64 m rise in global sea level. The Antarctic Peninsula ice sheet thickened and extended offshore at the Last Glacial Maximum, with a sea level equivalent contribution of c. 1.7 m. Thus, the Antarctic ice sheets accounted for between 6.1 and 13.1 m of global sea level fall at the Last Glacial Maximum. This is substantially less than has been suggested by most previous studies but the maximum figure matches well with one modelling estimate. The timing of Antarctic deglaciation is not well known. In the Ross Sea, terrestrial evidence suggests deglaciation may have begun at c. 13,000 yr BP¹ but that grounded ice persisted until c. 6,500 yr BP. Marine evidence suggests the western Ross Sea was deglaciated by c. 11,500 yr BP. Deglaciation of the Weddell Sea is poorly constrained. Grounded ice in the northern Antarctic Peninsula had retreated by c. 13,000 yr BP, and further south deglaciation occurred sometime prior to c. 6,000 yr BP. Many parts of coastal East Antarctica apparently escaped glaciation at the LGM, but in those areas that were ice-covered deglaciation was underway by 10,000 yr BP. With existing data, the timing of deglaciation shows no firm relation to northern hemisphere-driven sea level rise. This is probably due partly to lack of Antarctic dating evidence but also to the combined influence of several forcing mechanisms acting during deglaciation.     

A detrital apatite fission‐track study of the CIROS‐2 sedimentary record: Tracing ice pathways in the Ross Sea area over the last 5 Ma

The Ross Sea is a crucial area to investigate pathways of ice during the Cenozoic as it records the evolution of both the East and West Antarctic Ice Sheets. This work is based on detrital apatite fission track (AFT) data extracted from the sedimentary record of well CIROS‐2, which spans the last 5 Ma. The AFT data show a large range of ages, and most of the grains fit well with two main components that fall between 24 and 42 Ma and between 43 and 70 Ma, whereas the other components are not regularly distributed through the well, thus indicating a mixture of provenance from different areas along the Transantarctic Mountains. As a whole, our work suggests glacial expansion over the McMurdo Sound during the Pliocene, and ice periodically invading and retreating in Pleistocene.     

Holocene glacial history of Antarctica and the sub-Antarctic islands

A history of Holocene glaciation in the Antarctic and sub-Antarctic affords insight into questions concerning present and future ice-sheet and mountain-glacier behavior and global climate and sea-level change. Existing records permit broad correlation of Holocene ice fluctuations within the region. In several areas, ice extent was less than at present in mid-Holocene time. An important exception to this is the West Antarctic Ice Sheet, which has undergone continued recession throughout the Holocene, probably in response to internal dynamics. The first Neoglacial ice advances occurred at 5.0 ka, although some sites (e.g., western Ross Sea) lack firm evidence for glacial expansion at that time. Glaciers in all areas underwent renewed growth in the past millennium, and most have subsequently undergone recession in the past 50 years, ranging from near-catastrophic in parts of the Antarctic Peninsula to minor in the western Ross Sea region and sections of East Antarctica. This magnitude difference likely reflects the much greater warming that is taking place in the Antarctic Peninsula region today as compared to East Antarctica.     

A model for Holocene retreat of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet

Marine ice sheets are grounded on land which was below sea level before it became depressed under the ice-sheet load. They are inherently unstable and, because of bedrock topography after depression, the collapse of a marine ice sheet may be very rapid. In this paper equations are derived that can be used to make a quantitative estimate of the maximum size of a marine ice sheet and of when and how rapidly retreat would take place under prescribed conditions. Ice-sheet growth is favored by falling sea level and uplift of the seabed. In most cases the buttressing effect of a partially grounded ice shelf is a prerequisite for maximum growth out to the edge of the continental shelf. Collapse is triggered most easily by eustatic rise in sea level, but it is possible that the ice sheet may self-destruct by depressing the edge of the continental shelf so that sea depth is increased at the equilibrium grounding line.Application of the equations to a hypothetical “Ross Ice Sheet” that 18,000 yr ago may have covered the present-day Ross Ice Shelf indicates that, if the ice sheet existed, it probably extended to a line of sills parallel to the edge of the Ross Sea continental shelf. By allowing world sea level to rise from its late-Wisconsin minimum it was possible to calculate retreat rates for individual ice streams that drained the “Ross Ice Sheet.” For all the models tested, retreat began soon after sea level began to rise (～15,000 yr B.P.). The first 100 km of retreat took between 1500 and 2500 yr but then retreat rates rapidly accelerated to between 0.5 and 25 km yr^?1, depending on whether an ice shelf was present or not, with corresponding ice velocities across the grounding line of 4 to 70 km yr^?1. All models indicate that most of the present-day Ross Ice Shelf was free of grounded ice by about 7000 yr B.P. As the ice streams retreated floating ice shelves may have formed between promontories of slowly collapsing stagnant ice left behind by the rapidly retreating ice streams. If ice shelves did not form during retreat then the analysis indicates that most of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet would have collapsed by 9000 yr B.P. Thus, the present-day Ross Ice Shelf (and probably the Ronne Ice Shelf) serves to stabilize the West Antarctic Ice Sheet, which would collapse very rapidly if the ice shelves were removed. This provides support for the suggestion that the 6-m sea-level high during the Sangamon Interglacial was caused by collapse of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet after climatic warming had sufficiently weakened the ice shelves. Since the West Antarctic Ice Sheet still exists it seems likely that ice shelves did form during Holocene retreat. Their effect was to slow and, finally, to halt retreat. The models that best fit available data require a rather low shear stress between the ice shelf and its sides, and this implies that rapid shear in this region encouraged the formation of a band of ice with a preferred crystal fabric, as appears to be happening today in the floating portions of fast bounded glaciers.Rebound of the seabed after the ice sheet had retreated to an equilibrium position would allow the ice sheet to advance once more. This may be taking place today since analysis of data from the Ross Ice Shelf indicates that the southeast corner is probably growing thicker with time, and if this persists then large areas of ice shelf must become grounded. This would restrict drainage from West Antarctic ice streams which would tend to thicken and advance their grounding lines into the ice shelf.     

Evidence of a full West Antarctic Ice Sheet back to the early Oligocene: insight from double dating of detrital apatites in Ross Sea sediments.

The West Antarctic Ice Sheet is the most unstable component of the Antarctic cryosphere. Its fluctuations are well documented since the Pliocene, but its behaviour over the last 35 Ma is more controversial, particularly during periods of past high global pCO₂ values similar to those predicted in future global climate scenarios. Here, we present new U–Pb dating of detrital apatite grains (previously dated by the fission‐track method) from Cape Roberts Project Oligocene to Pliocene marine sediments in the Ross Sea. Two past ice‐flow patterns were identified: one formed by outlet glaciers sourcing short‐travelled apatites and one, northerly directed, bringing far‐travelled apatite grains. The latter provides the first robust physical evidence for the presence and repeated expansion of an Oligocene West Antarctic Ice Sheet.     

Modelling Antarctic sea-level data to explore the possibility of a dominant Antarctic contribution to meltwater pulse IA

We compare numerical predictions of glaciation-induced sea-level change to data from 8 locations around the Antarctic coast in order to test if the available data preclude the possibility of a dominant Antarctic contribution to meltwater pulse IA (mwp-IA). Results based on a subset of 7 spherically symmetric earth viscosity models and 6 different Antarctic deglaciation histories indicate that the sea-level data do not rule out a large Antarctic source for this event. Our preliminary analysis indicates that the Weddell Sea is the most likely source region for a large (∼9 m) Antarctic contribution to mwp-IA. The Ross Sea is also plausible as a significant contributor (∼5 m) from a sea-level perspective, but glacio-geological field observations are not compatible with such a large and rapid melt from this region. Our results suggest that the Lambert Glacier component of the East Antarctic ice sheet experienced significant retreat at the time of mwp-IA, but only contributed ∼0.15 m (eustatic sea-level change). All of the ice models considered under-predicted the isostatic component of the sea-level response in the Antarctic Peninsula and the Sôya Coast region of the East Antarctic ice sheet, indicating that the maximum ice thickness in these regions is underestimated. It is therefore plausible that ice melt from these areas, the Antarctic Peninsula in particular, could have made a significant contribution to mwp-IA.     

Relationships between Volcanism, Hydrothermal Alteration and Epithermal Gold-Silver Mineralization in the Muka Mine Area in the Kitami Metallogenic Province, Hokkaido, Japan

Abstract: Neogene magmatism in the Muka mine area in the Kitami metallogenic province was characterized on the basis of K-Ar age data by felsic–to–mafic terrestrial extrusive and intrusive volcanism from Late Miocene to Early Pliocene. The geology of the Muka mine area comprises the Upper Cretaceous-Paleocene Yubetsu Group, consisting primarily of sandstone and shale; Upper Miocene Ikutahara Formation, consisting of clastic and felsic volcaniclastic rocks and Kane-hana Lava (rhyolite) of 7. 5 Ma; Upper Miocene Yahagi Formation, consisting of clastics, felsic volcaniclastics and rhyolite lavas; Late Miocene andesite and rhyolite dikes (Chidanosawa Rhyolite of 7. 2 Ma and Hon-Mukagawa Andesite of 6. 6 Ma); Lower Pliocene Hakugindai Lava (basalt: 4. 0 Ma); and Quaternary System. The volcanism consists of earlier Late Miocene felsic extrusive activity during the sedimentation of the Ikutahara Formation, later Late Miocene felsic extrusive and intrusive activities during the sedimentation of the Yahagi Formation and intermediate intrusive activity after the sedimentation of the Yahagi Formation and Early Pliocene mafic extrusive activity. The Muka gold-silver ore deposit occurs primarily in the felsic volcaniclastic rocks and Kanehana Lava of the Ikutahara Formation and in Hon-Mukagawa Andesite. These wall–rocks, the clastic rocks of the Ikutahara Formation and the clastic and felsic volcaniclastic rocks of the Yahagi Formation were affected to various extents by hydrothermal alteration. The hydrother-mal alteration can be divided into two stages (early and late) based on the modes of occurrence and mineral assemblages. Early hydrothermal alteration is characterized by regional and vein-related alterations associated with epithermal gold-silver mineralization in a near-neutral hydrothermal system. Regional alteration can be subdivided into a zeolite zone (mordenite+adularia±heulandite–clinoptilolite series mineral±smectite±quartz°Cristobalite±opal–CT) and a smectite zone (smec–tite±quartz±opal–CT). Vein-related alteration can be subdivided into a K-feldspar zone (quartz+adularia±illite±interstratified illite/smectite±pyrite), an illite zone (quartz+illite°Chlorite±interstratified illite/smectite±smectite±pyrite) and an interstratified illite/smectite zone (quartz+interstratified illite/smectite±smectite±pyrite). The adularization age of 6. 8 Ma in the K-feldspar zone that developed in Kanehana Lava hosting ore veins coincides well with the epithermal gold-silver mineralization age of 6. 6 Ma. Late hydrothermal alteration is characterized by a kaolinite zone (kaolinite±dickite±alunite±quartz°Cristobalite± tridymite±pyrite) in an acid hydrothermal system, and cuts early alteration zones such as the K-feldspar zone. Other modes of occurrence of acid alteration are a 7Å halloysite-kaolinite vein in the hydrothermal explosion breccia dike and smectite–kaoli–nite veins along joint planes of Kanehana Lava. The style of the gold-silver deposit associated with early near-neutral hydrothermal alteration is a low-sulfidation epithermal type. The low-sulfidation epithermal gold-silver mineralization of 6. 6 Ma in the vicinity of the Muka ore deposit was essentially accompanied by felsic volcanic activity during the sedimentation of the Yahagi Formation, and was closely related both temporally and spatially to the felsic intrusive activity of Chidanosawa Rhyolite of 7. 2 Ma. The related hydrother-mal activity of the gold-silver mineralization took place at intervals of approximately 0. 4–0. 6 Ma after the volcanic activity related to the mineralization.     

Provenance,tectonic setting and source of Archean metasedimentary rocks of the Browns Range Metamorphics,Tanami Region,Western Australia

This study combines U–Pb age and Lu–Hf isotope data for magmatic and detrital zircons, with whole-rock geochemistry of the Browns Range Metamorphics (BRM), Western Australia. The BRM are medium- to coarse-grained metasandstones that consist of angular to sub-rounded detrital quartz and feldspars with minor granitic lithic fragments. The sequence has undergone partial to extensive quartz–muscovite alteration and rare-earth-element mineralisation and has been intruded by mafic/ultramafic, syenitic and pegmatitic intrusive rock units. Uranium–Pb and Lu–Hf isotopic data on detrital zircons from the metasandstones and intruding granitic rocks yield a well-defined age of ca 3.2 to ca 3.0 Ga for all samples, with relatively radiogenic ?_Hf values (?_Hf = –1.7 to 5.1) indicating derivation from Mesoarchean granite basement of juvenile origin. This is consistent with geochemical and petrological data that support deposition from a granitic source in a continental rift basin setting. The timing of sediment deposition is constrained between the ca 3.0 Ga age of the source rocks and ca 2.5 Ga age of the granitic intrusive bodies that cross-cut the metasedimentary rocks. The ca 2.5 Ga zircons from the intrusive rocks have ?_Hf model ages of ca 3.4 to ca 3.1 Ga, which is consistent with formation via partial melting of the BRM, or the Mesoarchean granite basement. Zircons of the Gardiner Sandstone that unconformably overlies the BRM return detrital ages of ca 2.6 to ca 1.8 Ga with no trace of ca 3.1 Ga zircons, which discounts a significant contribution from the underlying BRM. The Mesoarchean age and isotopic signatures of the BRM zircons are shared by some zircon records from the Pine Creek Orogen, and the Pilbara, Yilgarn and Gawler cratons. Collectively, these records indicate that juvenile Mesoarchean crust is a more significant component of Australian cratons than is currently recognised. This work also further demonstrates that detrital minerals in Paleoproterozoic/Archean sedimentary rocks are archives to study the early crustal record of Earth.     

Petrography and provenance of subsurface Neogene sandstones of Bengal Basin, Bangladesh

This study deals with petrography and provenance of the Neogene reservoir sandstones encountered in the Kailas Tila, Titas, Bakhrabad and Shahbazpur Gas Fields of Bengal Basin. Framework grains are sand-sized to silt-sized particles of mainly detrital origin. The most common detrital grains are quartz, feldspars, and rock fragments. Mica occurred as minor and non-opaque heavy minerals found as minor accessories. Among the main detrital framework grains, quartz constitutes 51–60%, feldspar 3–15%, lithic fragments 8–22%. Sandstones encountered in the studied wells have been classified as sublithic arenite, feldspathic arenite and lithic arenite in order of abundance. Different triangular plots reveal that the Neogene sandstones of the studied wells exhibit a quartzolithic composition, low feldspar, very low volcanic grains and abundant sedimentary and low grade metamorphic lithic clasts indicating that the sands were derived from quartzose recycled orogen province, such as a fold thrust province or a collision suture zone. This study suggests that either the eastern Himalayas or Indo-Burman Ranges might act as the source of the sandstones of the studied wells of the Bengal Basin.     

Reconstructing flow paths of the Middle Pleistocene British Ice Sheet in central-eastern England: the application of regional soil geochemical data

High-density regional geochemical data for surface soils in central England and East Anglia reveal that much of their geochemical character is inherited from the tills that they are developed upon. Multivariate statistical analysis highlighted three significant element associations of Al–Fe–Ga–K–La–Mg–Rb, Ca–Sr and K–Fe accounting for almost 93% of the geochemical variability of soils derived from tills. Provenancing the geochemical signatures of the latter elements enabled the construction of ice flow paths associated with two different Middle Pleistocene ‘chalky’ till sheets. A lower till sheet relating to ‘Pennine’ ice flowing from west to east across the region, and an upper till sheet deposited by North Sea ice moving into northern East Anglia, and to the west of the Fen Basin, before fanning-out across central England. Overall, geochemical signatures of different till units are largely derived from local bedrock sources, with dilution and a new geochemical signature acquired as the ice flows over and incorporates new bedrock lithologies. The results show that high resolution soil geochemical data provides a further proxy with which the flow paths of former ice sheets can be delineated.     

祁连山老君山砾岩的碎屑组成和源区大地构造背景

老君山砾岩是一套由砾岩和杂砂岩组成的陆相粗碎屑岩.砾岩由来自下伏基底的超镁铁岩、中-基性火山岩、硅质岩、花岗岩等碎屑组成.杂砂岩中岩屑含量大于70%,石英约10%,长石约15%.岩屑以中基性火山岩和花岗岩为主;硅质岩屑是主要的沉积岩屑.锆石、磷灰石、磁铁矿是杂砂岩中最为丰富的重矿物,同时还有铬铁矿、石榴子石、电气石、金红石、黄铁矿.这些事实说明,老君山砾岩的源区曾出露有超镁铁岩、中基性火山岩、变质岩等类型的岩石.砂岩碎屑模式和粉砂岩、泥岩的地球化学成分均表明,老君山砾岩源区为大陆边缘弧和大洋岛弧,形成于活动大陆边缘与岛弧相关的沉积盆地中.     

Aeolian dust in the Talos Dome ice core (East Antarctica,Pacific/Ross Sea sector): Victoria Land versus remote sources over the last two climate cycles

A new ice core (TALDICE) drilled at Talos Dome (East Antarctica, Ross Sea sector) preserves a ca. 250 ka long record of palaeoclimate and atmospheric history. We investigate dust variability and provenance at the site during glacial periods and the Holocene through the Sr–Nd isotopic composition of ice core dust and potential source areas (PSA). We provide new isotopic data on dust sources from Victoria Land such as regoliths, glacial drifts, aeolian sands and beach deposits. Some of these sources are located at high altitude and are known to have been ice free throughout the Pleistocene. The major features of the TALDICE dust record are very similar to those from central East Antarctica. During glacial times, South America was the dominant dust supplier for Talos Dome as well as for the entire East Antarctic plateau. Conversely, during the Holocene the principal input of mineral dust at Talos Dome probably derives from proximal sources which are the ice‐free areas of northern Victoria Land, located at similar altitude with respect to the drilling site. Atmospheric mobilisation of dust from these neighbouring areas and transport inland to Talos Dome can be ultimately associated with advection of maritime air masses from the Pacific/Ross Sea region. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Eocene to Miocene geometry of the West Antarctic Rift System

Tectonic models for the Late Cretaceous/Tertiary evolution of the West Antarctic Rift System range from hundreds of kilometres of extension to negligible strike-slip displacement and are based on a variety of observations, as well as kinematic and geodynamic models. Most data constraining these models originate from the Ross Sea/Adare Trough area and the Transantarctic Mountains. We use a new Antarctic continental crustal-thinning grid, combined with a revised plate-kinematic model based on East Antarctic – Australia – Pacific – West Antarctic plate circuit closure, to trace the geometry and extensional style of the Eocene – Oligocene West Antarctic Rift from the Ross Sea to the South Shetland Trench. The combined data suggest that from chron 21 (48 Ma) to chron 8 (26 Ma), the West Antarctic Rift System was characterised by extension in the west to dextral strike-slip in the east, where it was connected to the Pacific – Phoenix – East Antarctic triple junction via the Byrd Subglacial Basin and the Bentley Subglacial Trench, interpreted as pullapart basins. Seismic-reflection profiles crossing the De Gerlache Gravity Anomaly, a tectonic scar from a former spreading ridge jump in the Bellingshausen Sea, suggest Late Tertiary reactivation in a dextral strike-slip mode. This is supported by seismic-reflection profiles crossing the De Gerlache Gravity Anomaly in the Bellingshausen Sea, which show incised narrow sediment troughs and vertical faults indicating strike-slip movement along a north – south direction. Using pre-48 Ma plate circuit closure, we test the hypothesis that the Lord Howe Rise was attached to the Pacific Plate during the opening of the Tasman Sea. We show that this plate geometry may be plausible at least between 74 and 48 Ma, but further work especially on Australian – Antarctic relative plate motions is required to test this hypothesis.     

Provenance and tectonic setting of Late Carboniferous clastic rocks in West Junggar,Xinjiang, China: A case from the Hala-alat Mountains

The Late Carboniferous palaeo-tectonic setting of the West Junggar region is comprised of arcs alternating with basins. Geochemical analysis of the sedimentary rocks associated with these arc-related basins was conducted to better constrain the provenance and tectonic setting.Major and trace element geochemistry data of Late Carboniferous mudstones and sandstones in the Hala-alat Mountains suggest that these sedimentary rocks and their source areas are characterized by the following four features: (1) sediments experienced a simple recycling process; (2) a low degree weathering conditions in the source areas; (3) compositional immature of the sedimentary rocks; (4) dominated by intermediate to felsic provenance, with a few intermediate to mafic sediments. Integrated with the palaeo-flow data and previous authors’ works, a fore-arc basin model is proposed for the tectonic setting of the sedimentary rocks. The Sawur arc is the primary provenance and supplies the major intermediate to felsic detrital fragments. The Bozchekul-Chingiz arc and Kexia oceanic island arc are the other two secondary sources.     

Middle to early Late Ordovician hydrothermal veining in the Molong Volcanic Belt,northeastern Lachlan Fold Belt: Sedimentological evidence

Detrital volcanic and vein quartz, accompanied by felsic volcanic debris, occur as minor constituents in the Ordovician subduction‐related mafic volcanics of the Molong Volcanic Belt. In the western province of the Molong Volcanic Belt, detrital quartz is present in the three episodes of the mafic Volcanics. Volcanic quartz occurs in allochthonous limestone blocks in the Bendigonian Hensleigh Siltstone overlying the Mitchell Formation. The second volcanic episode (the Fairbridge Volcanics) commenced after a hiatus of approximately 20 million years and lasted around 10 million years from Darriwilian to Gisbornian time. Locally derived vein quartz, volcanic quartz and felsic detritus are concentrated at the bases of autochthonous Wahringa and Yuranigh Limestone Members of the volcanics and are extensive and abundant in basal beds of the regional Eastonian limestone body that transgressed over an eroded volcanic centre at Cargo. This early Eastonian debris, deposited early in an 8 million‐year volcanic hiatus preceding the final Ordovician Bolindian volcanism, establishes a pre‐Eastonian age for mineralisation at Cargo. It is inferred that the pauses in volcanism were preceded by magmatic fractionation, intrusion and hydrothermal activity and followed by erosion, subsidence and deposition of autochthonous limestones. Minor occurrences of vein and volcanic quartz are found in Bolindian volcanogenic sediments of the third volcanic phase. It is concluded that hydrothermal vein formation (and mineralisation by inference) was associated with pauses in volcanic activity throughout the Middle to early Late Ordovician over a wide area in the western province, culminating in the mineralisation at Cargo and Copper Hill near Molong. Volcanism in the eastern province of the Molong Volcanic Belt was continuous from at least Darriwilian to latest Ordovician time. Here, detrital hydrothermal vein quartz and volcanic quartz and felsic detritus are distributed through late Middle and early Late Ordovician turbidites of the Weemalla Formation. The possible existence of cycles in the source area like those of the Fairbridge Volcanics is masked by the distal nature of these deposits. Vein formation occurred in both provinces from late Middle Ordovician to early Late Ordovician, long before the formation of the world‐class mineral deposit at Cadia associated with the latest Ordovician Cadia Monzonite.     

珠江口盆地白云凹陷渐新世/中新世地质事件的碎屑组分响应

南海北部渐新世/中新世之交发生了物源突变地质事件。利用珠江口盆地白云凹陷渐新统珠海组和中新统珠江组砂岩薄片镜下计点法统计技术,详细研究了碎屑组分的变化特征。结果表明:珠海组砂岩碎屑组分中,岩屑以深成的岩浆岩屑占绝对优势,长石和沉积岩屑含量也相对较高,与该期物源主要来自华南沿海近源以燕山期花岗岩为主的母岩区相一致;而珠江组砂岩中,岩屑以变质岩屑占优势,同时也含有一定量的岩浆岩屑、沉积岩屑和较多的长石,显示珠江组具有更多的物源供给区。随着渐新世/中新世之交各种地质事件发生,尤其是伴随青藏高原隆升引起的大陆风化及侵蚀程度增强,珠江口盆地沉积物源区向华南古陆内部古老的沉积-变质岩区和青藏高原东麓扩展,碎屑组分变化应该是该期各种地质事件的综合作用结果。     

Laser-ablation ICP-MS analysis of silicate and sulfide melt inclusions in an andesitic complex II: evidence for magma mixing and magma chamber evolution

Laser-ablation microanalysis of a large suite of silicate and sulfide melt inclusions from the deeply eroded, Cu-Au-mineralizing Farallón Negro Volcanic Complex (NW Argentina) shows that most phenocrysts in a given rock sample were not formed in equilibrium with each other. Phenocrysts in the andesitic volcano were brought together in dominantly andesitic—dacitic extrusive and intrusive rocks by intense magma mixing. This hybridization process is not apparent from macroscopic mingling textures, but is clearly recorded by systematically contrasting melt inclusions in different minerals from a given sample. Amphibole (and rare pyroxene) phenocrysts consistently contain inclusions of a mafic melt from which they crystallized before and during magma mixing. Most plagioclase and quartz phenocrysts contain melt inclusions of more felsic composition than the host rock. The endmember components of this mixing process are a rhyodacite magma with a likely crustal component, and a very mafic mantle-derived magma similar in composition to lamprophyre dykes emplaced early in the evolution of the complex. The resulting magmas are dominantly andesitic, in sharp contrast to the prominently bimodal distribution of mafic and felsic melts recorded by the inclusions. These results severely limit the use of mineral assemblages to derive information on the conditions of magma formation. Observed mineral associations are primarily the result of the mixing of partially crystallized magmas. The most mafic melt is trapped only in amphibole, suggesting pressures exceeding 350 MPa, temperatures of around 1,000 °C and water contents in excess on 6 wt%. Upon mixing, amphibole crystallized with plagioclase from andesitic magma in the source region of porphyry intrusions at 250 MPa, 950 °C and water contents of 5.5 wt%. During ascent of the extrusive magmas, pyroxene and plagioclase crystallized together, as a result of magma degassing at low pressures (150 MPa). Protracted extrusive activity built a large stratovolcano over the total lifetime of the magmatic complex (>3 m.y.). The mixing process probably triggered eruptions as a result of volatile exsolution.Electronic Supplementary Material Supplementary material (eTable 1and eFigure 1) is available for this article if you access the article at . A link in the frame on the left on that page takes you directly to the supplementary material.Editorial responsibility: T.L. Grove     

Plio-Pleistocene sedimentation in Ferrar Fiord, Antarctica

A 166 m thick Plio-Pleistocene sequence of glacial sediments has been cored in Ferrar Fiord in the southwestern corner of the Ross Sea, Antarctica. The core has the following lithofacies: massive diamictite (33% of the core; interpreted as lodgement or waterlain till), weakly stratified diamictite (25%; waterlain till or proximal glaciomarine sediment), well-stratified diamictite (8%; proximal glaciomarine or glaciolacustrine sediment), sandstone (25%; sand of aeolian or supraglacial origin), mudstone(7%; derived from subglacial debris and transported offshore in suspension), and minor amounts of rhythmite and tuff. The range of facies in this polar setting differs from those normally found in subpolar and temperate glacier fiord settings in the high proportion of aeolian-derived sand and the low proportion of mudstone facies. The core can be divided into two sequences based on composition and texture. The sequence from 162 to 100 mbsf (metres below the sea floor) comprises alternations of diamictite dominated by basement lithologies and thin marine mudstone beds. It is Pliocene in age (4.9–2.0 Ma) and records several advances and retreats of ice through the Transantarctic Mountains and across the drill site from the west. The sequence from 100 mbsf to the sea floor, of Pleistocene age, consists of alternations of diamictite, interpreted as lodgement and waterlain till, and sandstone of aeolian origin deposited in a glaciolacustrine setting, similar to ice-covered lakes in the Dry Valleys today. These sediments have a high volcanic component, and hence are thought to have been derived by the grounding and advance of the Ross Ice Shelf from the east past volcanic Ross Island. This change in source is attributed to the rising Transantarctic Mountains increasingly containing East Antarctic ice. The Pleistocene sequence above 100 mbsf clearly represents polar glacial sedimentation, with alternations of till and glaciolacustrine sand. Mudstones from the Pliocene sequence beneath include palynomorphs, indicating times when the landscape was at least partially vegetated, but contain no evidence of meltwater influence.