Geochemical Evolution of the Soufriere Hills Volcano, Montserrat, Lesser Antilles Volcanic Arc

The geochemical evolution of Montserrat provides an importantbackground to understanding the current activity of this islandarc volcano. Here we present major and trace element, and U-,Th- and O-isotope data for rocks generated in the last 300 kyrthat provide constraints on the magmatic processes occurringbeneath the volcano. Samples range from low- to medium-K calc-alkalinebasalts to dacites. Three suites can be distinguished on thebasis of major and trace element compositions: the South SoufrièreHills suite; the Soufrière Hills suite, including thelava from the current eruption; and the mafic inclusions. Magmaticdifferentiation of the magma that crystallized to form the maficinclusions appears to have been governed by closed-system processes,modelled by fractional crystallization (F     

Degassing at the Soufriere Hills Volcano, Montserrat, Recorded in Matrix Glass Compositions

Compositions of matrix glasses from the current eruption ofSoufrière Hills Volcano indicate that decompression-drivencrystallization results in 20–70 wt % groundmass crystallizationduring eruption and variable degassing. Variations in crystallinityand volatile contents (water and chlorine) of matrix glassesare attributed to variations in extrusion rates and residencetimes in the lava dome. Residual water contents in pumice clasts(0·2–0·6 wt %) indicate minimum pressuresof 1·1–3·7 MPa in 1997 Vulcanian explosions.Residual water contents of 1·6 wt % in a ballistic blockejected in sub-Plinian explosive activity on 17 September 1996imply larger pressure drops (     

Experimental Constraints on the Conditions of Formation of Highly Calcic Plagioclase Microlites at the Soufrire Hills Volcano, Montserrat

High-pressure and -temperature experiments on a bulk-rock compositionrepresentative of the groundmass of the Soufrière HillsVolcano andesite have allowed the phase equilibria of the systemto be determined; these are then compared with the natural samples.Experimental conditions varied from 825 to 1100°C and from5 to 225 MPa; the main phases observed were clinopyroxene, crystallinesilica, amphibole and plagioclase. A relationship between plagioclasemicrolite size and anorthite content is identified in samplesof the natural andesite. Large crystals (>60 µm² inarea) have cores of An_60–75, whereas small crystals (<60µm² in area) have cores of An_40–60. Experimentalresults show that if the magma is heated to >950°C thehigh-anorthite microlite crystals can form at magma chamberpressures without any need for a change in bulk composition.It is proposed that convective self-mixing occurs within themagma chamber. Geothermometry of coexisting plagioclase–amphibolepairs confirms the complex crystallization history of the naturalsamples. Analysis of natural glass samples has identified compositionalvariations that can be related to the crystallinity of the sampleand also the groundmass plagioclase composition. Rapidly eruptedpumice samples have high glass contents, lower SiO₂ glass compositionsand plagioclase microlites that are large in size (>60 µm²)and have a high anorthite content (>An₆₀). Slowly erupteddome samples are highly crystalline and contain numerous plagioclasemicrolites of variable size and composition. KEY WORDS: glass evolution; experiment; Montserrat; plagioclase; self-mixing