Textural history of recent basaltic-andesites and plutonic inclusions from Merapi volcano

Mt. Merapi in Central Java is one of the most active stratovolcanoes on Earth and is underlain by a multistage plumbing system. Crystal size distribution analyses (CSD) were carried out on recent Merapi basaltic-andesites and co-eruptive magmatic and plutonic inclusions to characterise the crystallisation processes that operate during storage and ascent and to obtain information on respective time scales. The basaltic-andesites exhibit log-linear, kinked-upwards CSD curves for plagioclase and clinopyroxene that can be separated into two main textural populations. Large plagioclase phenocrysts (≥1.6 mm) make up one population, but correspond to crystals with variable geochemical composition and reflect a period of crystal growth at deep to mid-crustal levels. This population was subsequently influenced by crystal accumulation and the onset of crustal assimilation, including the incorporation of high-Ca skarn-derived xenocrysts. Textural re-equilibration is required for these crystals to form a single population in CSD. A second episode of crystal growth at shallower levels is represented by chemically homogenous plagioclase crystals <1.6 mm in size. Crustal assimilation is indicated by, for example, oxygen isotopes and based on the CSD data, crystallisation combined with contamination is likely semi-continuous in these upper crustal storage chambers. The CSD data observed in the basaltic-andesite samples are remarkably consistent and require a large-volume steady state magmatic system beneath Merapi in which late textural equilibration plays a significant role. Plagioclase CSDs of co-eruptive magmatic and plutonic inclusions may contain a third crystal population (<1 mm) not found in the lavas. This third population has probably formed from enhanced degassing of portions of basaltic-andesite magma at shallow crustal levels which resulted in increased crystallinity and basaltic-andesite mush inclusions. A suite of coarse plutonic inclusions is also present that reflects crystallisation and accumulation of crystals in the deep Merapi plumbing system, as deduced from CSD patterns and mineral assemblages.     

Petrological imaging of an active pluton beneath Cerro Uturuncu,Bolivia

Uturuncu is a dormant volcano in the Altiplano of SW Bolivia. A present day ~70 km diameter interferometric synthetic aperture radar (InSAR) anomaly roughly centred on Uturuncu’s edifice is believed to be a result of magma intrusion into an active crustal pluton. Past activity at the volcano, spanning 0.89 to 0.27 Ma, is exclusively effusive and almost all lavas and domes are dacitic with phenocrysts of plagioclase, orthopyroxene, biotite, ilmenite and Ti-magnetite plus or minus quartz, and microlites of plagioclase and orthopyroxene set in rhyolitic groundmass glass. Plagioclase-hosted melt inclusions (MI) are rhyolitic with major element compositions that are similar to groundmass glasses. H₂O concentrations plotted versus incompatible elements for individual samples describe a trend typical of near-isobaric, volatile-saturated crystallisation. At 870 °C, the average magma temperature calculated from Fe–Ti oxides, the average H₂O of 3.2 ± 0.7 wt% and CO₂ typically <160 ppm equate to MI trapping pressures of 50–120 MPa, approximately 2–4.5 km below surface. Such shallow storage precludes the role of dacite magma emplacement into pre-eruptive storage regions as being the cause of the observed InSAR anomaly. Storage pressures, whole-rock (WR) chemistry and phase assemblage are remarkably consistent across the eruptive history of the volcano, although magmatic temperatures calculated from Fe–Ti oxide geothermometry, zircon saturation thermometry using MI and orthopyroxene-melt thermometry range from 760 to 925 °C at NNO ± 1 log. This large temperature range is similar to that of saturation temperatures of observed phases in experimental data on Uturuncu dacites. The variation in calculated temperatures is attributed to piecemeal construction of the active pluton by successive inputs of new magma into a growing volume of plutonic mush. Fluctuating temperatures within the mush can account for sieve-textured cores and complex zoning in plagioclase phenocrysts, resorption of quartz and biotite phenocrysts and apatite microlites. That Fe–Ti oxide temperatures vary by ~50–100 °C in a single thin section indicates that magmas were not homogenised effectively prior to eruption. Phenocryst contents do not correlate with calculated magmatic temperatures, consistent with crystal entrainment from the mush during magma ascent and eruption. Microlites grew during ascent from the magma storage region. Variability in the proportion of microlites is attributed to differing ascent and effusion rates with faster rates in general for lavas >0.5 Ma compared to those <0.5 Ma. High microlite contents of domes indicate that effusion rates were probably slowest in dome-forming eruptions. Linear trends in WR major and trace element chemistries, highly variable, bimodal mineral compositions, and the presence of mafic enclaves in lavas demonstrate that intrusion of more mafic magmas into the evolving, shallow plutonic mush also occurred further amplifying local temperature fluctuations. Crystallisation and resorption of accessory phases, particularly ilmenite and apatite, can be detected in MI and groundmass glass trace element covariation trends, which are oblique to WRs. Marked variability of Ba, Sr and La in MI can be attributed to temperature-controlled, localised crystallisation of plagioclase, orthopyroxene and biotite within the evolving mush.     

Plutonic xenoliths from Martinique,Lesser Antilles: evidence for open system processes and reactive melt flow in island arc crust

The Lesser Antilles Volcanic Arc is remarkable for the abundance and variety of erupted plutonic xenoliths. These samples provide a window into the deeper crust and record a more protracted crystallisation history than is observed from lavas alone. We present a detailed petrological and in situ geochemical study of xenoliths from Martinique in order to establish their petrogenesis, pre-eruptive storage conditions and their contribution to construction of the sub-volcanic arc crust. The lavas from Martinique are controlled by crystal–liquid differentiation. Amphibole is rarely present in the erupted lavas, but it is a very common component in plutonic xenoliths, allowing us to directly test the involvement of amphibole in the petrogenesis of arc magmas. The plutonic xenoliths provide both textural and geochemical evidence of open system processes and crystal ‘cargos’. All xenoliths are plagioclase-bearing, with variable proportions of olivine, spinel, clinopyroxene, orthopyroxene and amphibole, commonly with interstitial melt. In Martinique, the sequence of crystallisation varies in sample type and differs from other islands of the Lesser Antilles arc. The compositional offset between plagioclase (~An₉₀) and olivine (~Fo₇₅), suggests crystallisation under high water contents and low pressures from an already fractionated liquid. Texturally, amphibole is either equant (crystallising early in the sequence) or interstitial (crystallising late). Interstitial amphibole is enriched in Ba and LREE compared with early crystallised amphibole and does not follow typical fractionation trends. Modelling of melt compositions indicates that a water-rich, plagioclase-undersaturated reactive melt or fluid percolated through a crystal mush, accompanied by the breakdown of clinopyroxene, and the crystallisation of amphibole. Geothermobarometry estimates and comparisons with experimental studies imply the majority of xenoliths formed in the mid-crust. Martinique cumulate xenoliths are inferred to represent crystal mushes within an open system, through which melt can both percolate and be generated.     

Petrological and experimental evidence for differentiation of water-rich magmas beneath St. Kitts,Lesser Antilles

St. Kitts lies in the northern Lesser Antilles, a subduction-related intraoceanic volcanic arc known for its magmatic diversity and unusually abundant cognate xenoliths. We combine the geochemistry of xenoliths, melt inclusions and lavas with high pressure–temperature experiments to explore magma differentiation processes beneath St. Kitts. Lavas range from basalt to rhyolite, with predominant andesites and basaltic andesites. Xenoliths, dominated by calcic plagioclase and amphibole, typically in reaction relationship with pyroxenes and olivine, can be divided into plutonic and cumulate varieties based on mineral textures and compositions. Cumulate varieties, formed primarily by the accumulation of liquidus phases, comprise ensembles that represent instantaneous solid compositions from one or more magma batches; plutonic varieties have mineralogy and textures consistent with protracted solidification of magmatic mush. Mineral chemistry in lavas and xenoliths is subtly different. For example, plagioclase with unusually high anorthite content (An_≤100) occurs in some plutonic xenoliths, whereas the most calcic plagioclase in cumulate xenoliths and lavas are An₉₇ and An₉₅, respectively. Fluid-saturated, equilibrium crystallisation experiments were performed on a St. Kitts basaltic andesite, with three different fluid compositions (XH₂O = 1.0, 0.66 and 0.33) at 2.4 kbar, 950–1025 °C, and fO₂ = NNO ? 0.6 to NNO + 1.2 log units. Experiments reproduce lava liquid lines of descent and many xenolith assemblages, but fail to match xenolith and lava phenocryst mineral compositions, notably the very An-rich plagioclase. The strong positive correlation between experimentally determined plagioclase-melt Kd_Ca–Na and dissolved H₂O in the melt, together with the occurrence of Al-rich mafic lavas, suggests that parental magmas were water-rich (> 9 wt% H₂O) basaltic andesites that crystallised over a wide pressure range (1.5–6 kbar). Comparison of experimental and natural (lava, xenolith) mafic mineral composition reveals that whereas olivine in lavas is predominantly primocrysts precipitated at low-pressure, pyroxenes and spinel are predominantly xenocrysts formed by disaggregation of plutonic mushes. Overall, St. Kitts xenoliths and lavas testify to mid-crustal differentiation of low-MgO basalt and basaltic andesite magmas within a trans-crustal, magmatic mush system. Lower crustal ultramafic cumulates that relate parental low-MgO basalts to primary, mantle -derived melts are absent on St. Kitts.     

The magma plumbing system for the 1971 Teneguía eruption on La Palma,Canary Islands

The 1971 Teneguía eruption is the most recent volcanic event of the Cumbre Vieja rift zone on La Palma. The eruption produced basanite lavas that host xenoliths, which we investigate to provide insight into the processes of differentiation, assimilation and magma storage beneath La Palma. We compare our results to the older volcano magmatic systems of the island with the aim to reconstruct the temporal development of the magma plumbing system beneath La Palma. The 1971 lavas are clinopyroxene-olivine-phyric basanites that contain augite, sodic-augite and aluminium augite. Kaersutite cumulate xenoliths host olivine, clinopyroxene including sodic-diopside, and calcic-amphibole, whereas an analysed leucogabbro xenolith hosts plagioclase, sodic-augite-diopside, calcic-amphibole and hauyne. Mineral thermobarometry and mineral-melt thermobarometry indicate that clinopyroxene and plagioclase in the 1971 Teneguía lavas crystallised at 20–45 km depth, coinciding with clinopyroxene and calcic-amphibole crystallisation in the kaersutite cumulate xenoliths at 25–45 km and clinopyroxene, calcic-amphibole and plagioclase crystallisation in the leucogabbro xenolith at 30–50 km. Combined mineral chemistry and thermobarometry suggest that the magmas had already crystallised, differentiated and formed multiple crystal populations in the oceanic lithospheric mantle. Notably, the magmas that supplied the 1949 and 1971 events appear to have crystallised deeper than the earlier Cumbre Vieja magmas, which suggests progressive underplating beneath the Cumbre Vieja rift zone. In addition, the lavas and xenoliths of the 1971 event crystallised at a common depth, indicating a reused plumbing system and progressive recycling of Ocean Island plutonic complexes during subsequent magmatic activity.     

Amphibole megacrysts as a probe into the deep plumbing system of Merapi volcano,Central Java,Indonesia

Amphibole has been discussed to potentially represent an important phase during early chemical evolution of arc magmas, but is not commonly observed in eruptive arc rocks. Here, we present an in-depth study of metastable calcic amphibole megacrysts in basaltic andesites of Merapi volcano, Indonesia. Radiogenic Sr and Nd isotope compositions of the amphibole megacrysts overlap with the host rock range, indicating that they represent antecrysts to the host magmas rather than xenocrysts. Amphibole-based barometry suggests that the megacrysts crystallised at pressures of >500 MPa, i.e., in the mid- to lower crust beneath Merapi. Rare-earth element concentrations, in turn, require the absence of magmatic garnet in the Merapi feeding system and, therefore, place an uppermost limit for the pressure of amphibole crystallisation at ca. 800 MPa. The host magmas of the megacrysts seem to have fractionated significant amounts of amphibole and/or clinopyroxene, because of their low Dy/Yb ratios relative to the estimated compositions of the parent magmas to the megacrysts. The megacrysts’ parent magmas at depth may thus have evolved by amphibole fractionation, in line with apparently coupled variations of trace element ratios in the megacrysts, such as e.g., decreasing Zr/Hf with Dy/Yb. Moreover, the Th/U ratios of the amphibole megacrysts decrease with increasing Dy/Yb and are lower than Th/U ratios in the basaltic andesite host rocks. Uranium in the megacrysts’ parent magmas, therefore, may have occurred predominantly in the tetravalent state, suggesting that magmatic fO₂ in the Merapi plumbing system increased from below the FMQ buffer in the mid-to-lower crust to 0.6–2.2 log units above it in the near surface environment. In addition, some of the amphibole megacrysts experienced dehydrogenation (H₂ loss) and/or dehydration (H₂O loss), as recorded by their variable H₂O contents and D/H and Fe³⁺/Fe²⁺ ratios, and the release of these volatile species into the shallow plumbing system may facilitate Merapi’s often erratic eruptive behaviour.     

Origin of rhyolite and rhyodacite lavas and associated mafic inclusions of Cape Akrotiri,Santorini: the role of wet basalt in generating calcalkaline silicic magmas

Amphibole-bearing mafic inclusions (low to medium-K high-alumina basalt to basaltic andesite) comprise 4.1 vol% of calc-alkaline rhyolite and rhyodacite lavas on Akrotiri Peninsula, Santorini, Greece. Physical features indicate a magmatic origin for the inclusions, involving mingling with the host silicic magma and quenching. Water contents of the mafic magmas are estimated to have been above 4% at water pressures of 1.8 kbars or more at temperatures of approximately 950–1,000 °C. Three evolutionary stages are inferred in their petrogenesis. In the first stage infiltration of slab fluids promotes partial melting in the mantle to generate primitive wet basaltic magmas enriched in LREE, LILE, Th and U in comparison to N-type MORB. In the second stage storage and crystal differentiation of primitive magmas occurred in the lithospheric mantle or deep crust, involving olivine, spinel and clinopyroxene followed by amphibole and plagioclase. In the third stage differentiated mafic magma intrudes into porphyritic silicic magma at shallower crustal levels (estimated at 7–10 km). Mingling and quenching of the mafic magmas within the silicic host causes chemical or physical interactions between the inclusions and the host prior to and during eruption. The silicic lavas have geochemical affinities with the mafic inclusions, but are relatively depleted in MREE, HREE and Y and enriched in Rb relative to Ba and K. These observations are consistent with involvement of amphibole in magma genesis due either to crystal differentiation from wet basalt or to partial melting of mafic rocks with residual amphibole. Crystallization of wet basalt in the deep crust is preferred on the basis of physical considerations.Electronic Supplementary Material Supplementary material 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: I. Parsons     

Magma evolution beneath Bequia,Lesser Antilles,deduced from petrology of lavas and plutonic xenoliths

Extrusive and intrusive igneous rocks represent different parts of a magmatic system and ultimately provide complementary information about the processes operating beneath volcanoes. To shed light on such processes, we have examined and quantified the textures and mineral compositions of plutonic and cumulate xenoliths and lavas from Bequia, Lesser Antilles arc. Both suites contain assemblages of iddingsitized olivine, plagioclase, clinopyroxene and spinel with rare orthopyroxene and ilmenite. Mineral zoning is widespread, but more protracted in lavas than xenoliths. Plagioclase cores and olivine have high anorthite (An?≤?98) and low forsterite (Fo?≤?84) compositions respectively, implying crystallisation from a hydrous mafic melt that was already fractionated. Xenolith textures range from adcumulate to orthocumulate with variable mineral crystallisation sequences. Textural criteria are used to organize the xenoliths into six groups. Amphibole, notably absent from lavas, is a common feature of xenoliths, together with minor biotite and apatite. Bulk compositions of xenoliths deviate from the liquid line of descent of lavas supporting a cumulate origin with varying degrees of reactive infiltration by evolved hydrous melts, preserved as melt inclusions in xenolith crystals. Volatile saturation pressures in melt inclusions indicate cumulate crystallization over a 162–571 MPa pressure range under conditions of high dissolved water contents (up to 7.8 wt% H₂O), consistent with a variety of other thermobarometric estimates. Phase assemblages of xenoliths are consistent with published experimental data on volatile-saturated low-magnesium and high-alumina basalts and basaltic andesite from the Lesser Antilles at pressures of 200–1000 MPa, temperatures of 950–1050 °C and dissolved H₂O contents of 4–7 wt%. Once extracted from mid-crustal mushes, residual melts ascend to higher levels and undergo H₂O-saturated crystallization in shallow, pre-eruptive reservoirs to form phenocrysts and glomerocrysts. The absence of amphibole from lavas reflects instability at low pressures, whereas its abundance in xenoliths testifies to its importance in mid-crustal differentiation processes. A complex, vertically extensive (6 to at least 21 km depth) magmatic system is inferred beneath Bequia. Xenoliths represent fragments of the mush incorporated into ascending magmas. The widespread occurrence of evolved melts in the mush, but the absence of erupted evolved magmas, in contrast to islands in the northern Lesser Antilles, may reflect the relative immaturity of the Bequia magmatic system.     

A cascade of magmatic events during the assembly and eruption of a super-sized magma body

We use comprehensive geochemical and petrological records from whole-rock samples, crystals, matrix glasses and melt inclusions to derive an integrated picture of the generation, accumulation and evacuation of 530 km³ of crystal-poor rhyolite in the 25.4 ka Oruanui supereruption (New Zealand). New data from plagioclase, orthopyroxene, amphibole, quartz, Fe–Ti oxides, matrix glasses, and plagioclase- and quartz-hosted melt inclusions, in samples spanning different phases of the eruption, are integrated with existing data to build a history of the magma system prior to and during eruption. A thermally and compositionally zoned, parental crystal-rich (mush) body was developed during two periods of intensive crystallisation, 70 and 10–15 kyr before the eruption. The mush top was quartz-bearing and as shallow as ~3.5 km deep, and the roots quartz-free and extending to >10 km depth. Less than 600 year prior to the eruption, extraction of large volumes of ~840 °C low-silica rhyolite melt with some crystal cargo (between 1 and 10%), began from this mush to form a melt-dominant (eruptible) body that eventually extended from 3.5 to 6 km depth. Crystals from all levels of the mush were entrained into the eruptible magma, as seen in mineral zonation and amphibole model pressures. Rapid translation of crystals from the mush to the eruptible magma is reflected in textural and compositional diversity in crystal cores and melt inclusion compositions, versus uniformity in the outermost rims. Prior to eruption the assembled eruptible magma body was not thermally or compositionally zoned and at temperatures of ~790 °C, reflecting rapid cooling from the ~840 °C low-silica rhyolite feedstock magma. A subordinate but significant volume (3–5 km³) of contrasting tholeiitic and calc-alkaline mafic material was co-erupted with the dominant rhyolite. These mafic clasts host crystals with compositions which demonstrate that there was some limited pre-eruptive physical interaction of mafic magmas with the mush and melt-dominant body. However, the mafic magmas do not appear to have triggered the eruption or controlled magmatic temperatures in the erupted rhyolite. Integration of textural and compositional data from all available crystal types, across all dominant and subordinate magmatic components, allow the history of the Oruanui magma body to be reconstructed over a wide range of temporal scales using multiple techniques. This history spans the tens of millennia required to grow the parental magma system (U–Th disequilibrium dating in zircon), through the centuries and decades required to assemble the eruptible magma body (textural and diffusion modelling in orthopyroxene), to the months, days, hours and minutes over which individual phases of the eruption occurred, identified through field observations tied to diffusion modelling in magnetite, olivine, quartz and feldspar. Tectonic processes, rather than any inherent characteristics of the magmatic system, were a principal factor acting to drive the rapid accumulation of magma and control its release episodically during the eruption. This work highlights the richness of information that can be gained by integrating multiple lines of petrologic evidence into a holistic timeline of field-verifiable processes.     

Amphibole perspective to unravel pre-eruptive processes and conditions in volcanic plumbing systems beneath intermediate arc volcanoes: a case study from Ciomadul volcano (SE Carpathians)

Ciomadul is the youngest volcano in the Carpathian–Pannonian region produced crystal-rich high-K dacites that contain abundant amphibole phenocrysts. The amphiboles in the studied dacites are characterized by large variety of zoning patterns, textures, and a wide range of compositions (e.g., 6.4–15 wt% Al₂O₃, 79–821 ppm Sr) often in thin-section scale and even in single crystals. Two amphibole populations were observed in the dacite: low-Al hornblendes represent a cold (<800 °C) silicic crystal mush, whereas the high-Al pargasites crystallized in a hot (>900 °C) mafic magma. Amphibole thermobarometry suggests that the silicic crystal mush was stored in an upper crustal storage (~8–12 km). This was also the place where the erupted dacitic magma was formed during the remobilization of upper crustal silicic crystal mush body by hot mafic magma indicated by simple-zoned and composite amphiboles. This includes reheating (by ~200 °C) and partial remelting of different parts of the crystal mush followed by intensive crystallization of the second mineral population (including pargasites). Breakdown textures of amphiboles imply that they were formed by reheating in case of hornblendes, suggesting that pre-eruptive heating and mixing could take place within days or weeks before the eruption. The decompression rim of pargasites suggests around 12 days of magma ascent in the conduit. Several arc volcanoes produce mixed intermediate magmas with similar bimodal amphibole cargo as the Ciomadul, but in our dacite the two amphibole population can be found even in a single crystal (composite amphiboles). Our study indicates that high-Al pargasites form as a second generation in these magmas after the mafic replenishment into a silicic capture zone; thus, they cannot unambiguously indicate a deeper mafic storage zone beneath these volcanoes. The simple-zoned and composite amphiboles provide direct evidence that significant compositional variations of amphiboles do not necessarily mean variation in the pressure of crystallization even if the Al-tschermak substitution can be recognized, suggesting that amphibole barometers that consider only amphibole composition may often yield unrealistic pressure variation.     

冈底斯曲水岩基斜长石嵌晶结构对岩浆补给过程的启示

藏南冈底斯岩浆带经历了中生代俯冲-增生造山作用和新生代碰撞造山作用,是研究大陆地壳生长与演化的理想场所。位于冈底斯岩浆带中段的早始新世曲水岩基,主要由花岗岩、花岗闪长岩、闪长岩及辉长岩等组成。前人已经在年代学、地球化学等方面对曲水岩基进行了大量研究。然而,对于岩基的形成是否由岩浆补给控制及其详细过程的研究还较为薄弱。花岗闪长质岩体中暗色岩浆包体特殊的产出状态,如包体墙和弥散状分布的包体等,显示岩浆补给在岩基形成过程中发挥了重要作用。包体中发育斜长石主晶包裹角闪石等客晶的嵌晶结构。本文聚焦包体斜长石的嵌晶结构及客晶矿物（如角闪石）,结合背散射图像、矿物能谱扫描与矿物电子探针分析,以追踪曲水岩基形成期间的岩浆补给过程。计算结果显示客晶角闪石的结晶温度与压力最高（783~853℃、0.23~0.45GPa）,包体基质角闪石次之（781~808℃、0.21~0.31GPa）,花岗闪长质寄主岩中角闪石最低（769~802℃、0.18~0.26GPa）。此外,发育嵌晶结构的斜长石具有明显的成分环带,其偏钠质的核部指示了晶粥体的存在。本研究初步构建了岩浆补给模型与嵌晶结构的形成模型。镁铁质岩浆沿长英质晶粥体下部裂隙上升并淬火结晶大量小颗粒角闪石,随后进入晶粥体上部贫晶熔体中破碎成为小的岩浆滴。岩浆滴捕掳晶粥体中的斜长石,继续生长的斜长石包裹结晶于深部的角闪石而形成嵌晶结构。

     

A mineral and cumulate perspective to magma differentiation at Nisyros volcano,Aegean arc

Lavas and pyroclastic products of Nisyros volcano (Aegean arc, Greece) host a wide variety of phenocryst and cumulate assemblages that offer a unique window into the earliest stages of magma differentiation. This study presents a detailed petrographic study of lavas, enclaves and cumulates spanning the entire volcanic history of Nisyros to elucidate at which levels in the crust magmas stall and differentiate. We present a new division for the volcanic products into two suites based on field occurrence and petrographic features: a low-porphyricity andesite and a high-porphyricity (rhyo)dacite (HPRD) suite. Cumulate fragments are exclusively found in the HPRD suite and are predominantly derived from upper crustal reservoirs where they crystallised under hydrous conditions from melts that underwent prior differentiation. Rarer cumulate fragments range from (amphibole-)wehrlites to plagioclase-hornblendites and these appear to be derived from the lower crust (0.5–0.8 GPa). The suppressed stability of plagioclase and early saturation of amphibole in these cumulates are indicative of high-pressure crystallisation from primitive hydrous melts (≥ 3 wt% H₂O). Clinopyroxene in these cumulates has Al₂O₃ contents up to 9 wt% due to the absence of crystallising plagioclase, and is subsequently consumed in a peritectic reaction to form primitive, Al-rich amphibole (Mg# > 73, 12–15 wt% Al₂O₃). The composition of these peritectic amphiboles is distinct from trace element-enriched interstitial amphibole in shallower cumulates. Phenocryst compositions and assemblages in both suites differ markedly from the cumulates. Phenocrysts, therefore, reflect shallow crystallisation and do not record magma differentiation in the deep arc crust.     

Petrogenesis of Mafic Inclusions in Rhyolitic Lavas from Narugo Volcano, Northeastern Japan

Mafic inclusions present in the rhyolitic lavas of Narugo volcano,Japan, are vesiculated andesites with diktytaxitic texturesmainly composed of quenched acicular plagioclase, pyroxenes,and interstitial glass. When the mafic magma was incorporatedinto the silica-rich host magma, the cores of pyroxenes andplagioclase began to crystallize (>1000°C) in a boundarylayer between the mafic and felsic magmas. Phenocryst rim compositionsand interstitial glass compositions (average 78 wt % SiO₂) inthe mafic inclusions are the same as those of the phenocrystsand groundmass glass in the host rhyolite. This suggests thatthe host felsic melt infiltrated into the incompletely solidifiedmafic inclusion, and that the interstitial melt compositionin the inclusions became close to that of the host melt (c.850°C). Infiltration was enhanced by the vesiculation ofthe mafic magma. Finally, hybridized and density-reduced portionsof the mafic magma floated up from the boundary layer into thehost rhyolite. We conclude that the ascent of mafic magma triggeredthe eruption of the host rhyolitic magma. KEY WORDS: mafic inclusion; stratified magma chamber; magma mixing; mingling; Narugo volcano; Japan     

Bulk rock composition and geochemistry of olivine-hosted melt inclusions in the Grey Porri Tuff and selected lavas of the Monte dei Porri volcano, Salina, Aeolian Islands, southern Italy

The Aeolian Islands are an arcuate chain of submarine seamounts and volcanic islands, lying just north of Sicily in southern Italy. The second largest of the islands, Salina, exhibits a wide range of compositional variation in its erupted products, from basaltic lavas to rhyolitic pumice. The Monte dei Porri eruptions occurred between 60 ka and 30 ka, following a period of approximately 60,000 years of repose. The bulk rock composition of the Monte dei Porri products range from basaltic-andesite scoria to andesitic pumice in the Grey Porri Tuff (GPT), with the Monte dei Porri lavas having basaltic-andesite compositions. The typical mineral assemblage of the GPT is calcic plagioclase, clinopyroxene (augite), olivine (Fo_72?84) and orthopyroxene (enstatite) ± amphibole and Ti-Fe oxides. The lava units show a similar mineral assemblage, but contain lower Fo olivines (Fo_57?78). The lava units also contain numerous glomerocrysts, including an unusual variety that contains quartz, K-feldspar and mica. Melt inclusions (MI) are ubiquitous in all mineral phases from all units of the Monte dei Porri eruptions; however, only data from olivine-hosted MI in the GPT are reported here. Compositions of MI in the GPT are typically basaltic (average SiO₂ of 49.8 wt %) in the pumices and basaltic-andesite (average SiO₂ of 55.6 wt %) in the scoriae and show a bimodal distribution in most compositional discrimination plots. The compositions of most of the MI in the scoriae overlap with bulk rock compositions of the lavas. Petrological and geochemical evidence suggest that mixing of one or more magmas and/or crustal assimilation played a role in the evolution of the Monte dei Porri magmatic system, especially the GPT. Analyses of the more evolved mineral phases are required to better constrain the evolution of the magma.     

Trace element geochemistry of high alumina basalt - Andesite - Dacite - Rhyodacite lavas of the Main Volcanic Series of Santorini Volcano,Greece

Trace element systematics throughout the cal-calkaline high alumina basalt — basaltic andesite — andesite — dacite — rhyodacite lavas and dyke rocks of the Main Volcanic Series of Santorini volcano, Greece are consistent with the crystal fractionation of observed phenocryst phases from a parental basaltic magma as the dominant mechanism involved in generating the range of magmatic compositions. Marked inflection points in several variation trends correspond to changes in phenocryst mineralogy and divide the Main Series into two distinct crystallisation intervals — an early basalt to andesite stage characterised by calcic plagioclase+augite+olivine separation and a later andesite to rhyodacite stage generated by plagioclase augite+hypersthene+magnetite+apatite crystallisation. Percent solidification values derived from ratios of highly incompatible trace elements agree with previous values derived from major element data using addition-subtraction diagrams and indicate that basaltic andesites represent 47–69%; andesites 70–76%; dacites ca. 80% and rhyodacite ca. 84% crystallisation of the initial basalt magma. Least squares major element mixing calculations also confirm that crystal fractionation of the least fractionated basalts could generate derivative Main Series lavas, though the details of the least squares solutions differ significantly from those derived from highly incompatible element and addition-subtraction techniques. Main Series basalts may result from partial melting of the mantle asthenosphere wedge followed by limited olivine+pyroxene+Cr-spinel crystallisation on ascent through the sub-Aegean mantle and may fractionate to more evolved compositions at pressures close to the base of the Aegean crust. Residual andesitic to rhyodacite magmas may stagnate within the upper regions of the sialic Aegean crust and form relatively high level magma chambers beneath the southern volcanic centres of Santorini. The eruption of large volumes of basic lavas and silicic pyroclastics from Santorini may have a volcanological rather than petrological explanation.     

Melt Inclusions in Primitive Olivine Phenocrysts: the Role of Localized Reaction Processes in the Origin of Anomalous Compositions

Melt inclusions are small portions of liquid trapped by growingcrystals during magma evolution. Recent studies of melt inclusionshave revealed a large range of unusual major and trace elementcompositions in phenocrysts from primitive mantle-derived magmaticrocks [e.g. in high-Fo olivine (Fo > 85 mol %), spinel, high-Anplagioclase]. Inclusions in phenocrysts crystallized from moreevolved magmas (e.g. olivine Fo < 85 mol %), are usuallycompositionally similar to the host lavas. This paper reviewsthe chemistry of melt inclusions in high-Fo olivine phenocrystsfocusing on those with anomalous major and trace element contentsfrom mid-ocean ridge and subduction-related basalts. We suggestthat a significant portion of the anomalous inclusion compositionsreflects localized, grain-scale dissolution–reaction–mixing(DRM) processes within the magmatic plumbing system. The DRMprocesses occur at the margins of primitive magma bodies, wheremagma is in contact with cooler wall rocks and/or pre-existingsemi-solidified crystal mush zones (depending on the specificenvironment). Injection of hotter, more primitive magma causespartial dissolution (incongruent melting) of the mush-zone phases,which are not in equilibrium with the primitive melt, and mixingof the reaction products with the primitive magma. Localizedrapid crystallization of high-Fo olivines from the primitivemagma may lead to entrapment of numerous large melt inclusions,which record the DRM processes in progress. In some magmaticsuites melt inclusions in primitive phenocrysts may be naturallybiased towards the anomalous compositions. The occurrence ofmelt inclusions with unusual compositions does not necessarilyimply the existence of new geologically significant magma typesand/or melt-generation processes, and caution should be exercisedin their interpretation. KEY WORDS: melt inclusions; olivine; geochemistry; mush zones; MORB; subduction-related magmas     

Temporal variation of mineralogy and petrology in cognate gabbroic enclaves at Arenal volcano,Costa Rica

Gabbroic enclaves ejected during the current eruption phase (A-1) and during the latest prehistoric eruption phase (A-2) of Arenal Volcano show systematic variations in texture, mineralogy and composition as a function of host rock chemistry and timing of eruption. The most differentiated enclaves occur in the more differentiated A-2 lavas. Enclaves in the A-1 volcanics are consistently less evolved. Within the current A-1 eruption, the most mafic enclaves are amphibole-bearing rocks that were erupted during the first 2–3 years of activity (1968–1970). These enclaves occur in the most differentiated A-1 volcanics and are not in equilibrium with their host rocks. They crystallized from a hydrous melt that was slightly more mafic than anything erupted during the current cycle. We interpret the enclaves as sidewall crystallization products of a melt, possibly a high-alumina basalt, that was immediately parental to the A-1 lavas. Enclaves that occur in A-1 rocks erupted after 1970 and all of the A-2 enclaves are amphibole-free and less mafic than the early A-1 enclaves. Their chemistry suggests that they formed during the early to intermediate crystallization of their host lavas. None of the enclaves contain minerals that might have equilibrated with a primary, mantle-derived melt. Geothermometry is consistent with geochemistry, with amphibole-bearing A-1 enclaves yielding the highest pyroxene temperatures (ave. 1090° C) and A-2 enclaves the lowest (ave. 1030° C). Geobarometry suggests mid- to upper crustal depths for the crystallization of all enclaves. The enclaves are cognate and reflect pre-eruptive crystallization of Arenal magmas. They record evolution from a hydrous, basaltic magma to the drier basaltic andesites that characterize the current eruption. Volatiles appear to have been lost due to depressurization during the slow ascent of the magmas through the upper levels of the crust following the initial explosive eruption. Volatile loss and depressurization resulted in the destabilization and the progressive resorption of amphibole. The A-2 lavas may represent the long-term fractionation products of basaltic andesite magmas similar in composition to the A-1 lavas. Anorthitic plagioclase, commonly thought of as a phase stabilized by high Ca/Na and high water pressure, continued to crystallize in a system with relatively low Ca/Na and which had dehydrated and/or depressurized to the point at which amphibole was no longer stable. This suggests that compositional characteristics other than high Ca/Na or high water content may have stabilized the anorthite in the basaltic and basaltic andesite melts at Arenal. We speculate that the high-alumina content of the Arenal magmas may be the stabilizing factor.     

Generation of Porphyritic and Equigranular Mafic Enclaves During Magma Recharge Events at Unzen Volcano, Japan

Mafic to intermediate enclaves are evenly distributed throughoutthe dacitic 1991–1995 lava sequence of Unzen volcano,Japan, representing hundreds of mafic recharge events over thelife of the volcano. This study documents the morphological,textural, chemical, and petrological characteristics of theenclaves and coexisting silicic host lavas. The eruptive productsdescribed in this study appear to be general products of magmamingling, as the same textural types are seen at many othervolcanoes. Two types of magmatic enclaves, referred to as Porphyriticand Equigranular, are easily distinguished texturally. Porphyriticenclaves display a wide range in composition from basalt toandesite, are glass-rich, spherical and porphyritic, and containlarge, resorbed, plagioclase phenocrysts in a matrix of acicularcrystals and glass. Equigranular enclaves are andesitic, non-porphyritic,and consist of tabular, medium-grained microphenocrysts in amatrix glass that is in equilibrium with the host dacite magma.Porphyritic enclaves are produced when intruding basaltic magmaengulfs melt and phenocrysts of resident silicic magma at theirmutual interface. Equigranular enclaves are a product of a moreprolonged mixing and gradual crystallization at a slower coolingrate within the interior of the mafic intrusion. KEY WORDS: mafic enclaves; quenched mafic inclusions; magma mingling; Unzen volcano; Unzen Scientific Drilling Project; resorbed plagioclase     

Upper mantle source for some hawaiites,mugearites and benmoreites

Chemical analyses of over seventy lavas or dykes containing spinel lherzolite inclusions of high pressure mineralogy, show that most host magmas are of alkali olivine basalt or basanite composition with relatively rare olivine nephelinites, and olivine melilitites. The 100 Mg/Mg+Fe⁺⁺ ratios of host magmas display a strong maximum at about Mg₇₀ consistent with partial melting of source peridotite with olivine of Fo_88–90. In contrast to these primary magmas, there occur some host magmas with 100 Mg/Mg+Fe⁺⁺<60 and with chemical compositions resembling those of classical hawaiite, mugearite, and nepheline benmoreite magmas. It is inferred that these magmas have been produced by crystal fractionation, within the upper mantle, of parental basanites or alkali olivine basalts. The presence of kaersutitic hornblende xenocrysts accompanying the lherzolite inclusions, and the nature of the chemical variation between associated basanites and nepheline benmoreites suggests that crystal fractionation has been dominated by kaersutitic hornblende, together with olivine and, in some cases, probably clinopyroxene. The mantle-derived nepheline benmoreite magmas also show similarities to some plutonic nepheline syenites.     

Water-saturated magmas in the Panama Canal region: a precursor to adakite-like magma generation?

Amphibole, while uncommon as a phenocryst in arc lavas, is increasingly recognized as a key constituent in the petrogenesis of arc magmas. Fractional crystallization of water-saturated arc magmas in the lower crust can yield substantial volumes of amphibole cumulates that, depending on the pressure of crystallization, may also contain garnet. Fractionation of this higher pressure assemblage has been invoked as a possible mechanism in the production of magmas that contain an adakitic signature. This study examines newly dated Late-Oligocene (25.37 ± 0.13 Ma) hypabyssal amphibole-rich andesites from Cerro Patacon in the Panama Canal region. These andesites contain nodules of amphibole cumulates that are ~4–6 cm in diameter and are almost entirely composed of 5–10-mm amphibole crystals (dominantly ferri-tschermakite). Geochemical variations, optical and chemical zoning of the Cerro Patacon amphiboles are consistent with their evolution in a crystal mush environment that had at least one recharge event prior to entrainment in the host andesite. Amphiboles hosted within the cumulate nodules differ from those hosted in the Cerro Patacon andesite and contain consistently higher values of Ti. We suggest these nodules represent the early stages of fractionation from a water-saturated magma. Cerro Patacon andesites have REE concentrations that plot at the most depleted end of Central American Arc magmas and exhibit a distinctive depletion in the middle REE. These geochemical and petrographic observations strongly support significant amphibole fractionation during formation of the Cerro Patacon andesite, consistent with the petrographic evidence. Fractionation of water-saturated magmas is a mechanism by which adakitic compositions may be produced, and the Cerro Patacon andesites do exhibit adakite-like geochemical characteristics (e.g., elevated Sr/Y; 28–34). However, the relatively elevated concentrations of Y and HREE indicate garnet was not stable in the fractionating assemblage during this early stage of arc development.