Oxygen isotope heterogeneity of the mantle beneath the Canary Islands: insights from olivine phenocrysts

A relatively narrow range of oxygen isotopic ratios (?? ¹⁸O?=?5.0?C5.4??) is preserved in olivine of mantle xenoliths, mid-ocean ridge (MORB), and most ocean island basalts (OIB). The values in excess of this range are generally attributed either to the presence of a recycled component in the Earth??s mantle or to shallow level contamination processes. A viable way forward to trace source heterogeneity is to find a link between chemical (elemental and isotopic) composition of the earlier crystallized mineral phases (olivine) and the composition of their parental magmas, then using them to reconstruct the composition of source region. The Canary hotspot is one of a few that contains ~1- to 2-Ga-old recycled ocean crust that can be traced to the core-mantle boundary using seismic tomography and whose origin is attributed to the mixing of at least three main isotopically distinct mantle components i.e. HIMU, DMM, and EM. This work reports ion microprobe and single crystal laser fluorination oxygen isotope data of 148 olivine grains also analyzed for major and minor elements in the same spot. The olivines are from 20 samples resembling the most primitive shield stage picrite through alkali basalt to basanite series erupted on Gran Canaria, Tenerife, La Gomera, La Palma and El Hierro, Canary Islands, for which shallow level contamination processes were not recognized. A broad range of ?? ¹⁸O_olivine values from 4.6 to 6.1?? was obtained and explained by stable, long-term oxygen isotope heterogeneity of crystal cumulates present under different volcanoes. These cumulates are thought to have crystallized from mantle-derived magmas uncontaminated at crustal depth, representing oxygen isotope heterogeneity of source region. A relationship between Ni?×?FeO/MgO and ?? ¹⁸O_olivine values found in one basanitic lava erupted on El Hierro, the westernmost island of the Canary Archipelago, was used to estimate oxygen isotope compositions of partial melts presumably originated from peridotite (HIMU-type component inherited its radiogenic isotope composition from ancient, ~1 to 2?Ga, recycled ocean crust) and pyroxenite (young, <1?Ga, recycled oceanic crust preserved as eclogite with depleted MORB-type isotopic signature) components of the Canary plume. The model calculations yield 5.2 and 5.9?±?0.3?? for peridotite- and pyroxenite-derived melts, respectively, which appeared to correspond closely to the worldwide HIMU-type OIB and upper limit N-MORB ?? ¹⁸O values. This difference together with the broad range of ?? ¹⁸O variations found in the Canarian olivines cannot be explained by thermodynamic effects of oxygen isotopic fractionation and are believed to represent true variations in the mantle, due to oceanic crust and continental lithosphere recycling.     

Liquid Immiscibility and the Evolution of Basaltic Magma

This experimental study examines relationships between alternativeevolution paths of basaltic liquids (the so-called Bowen andFenner trends), and silicate liquid immiscibility. Syntheticanalogues of natural immiscible systems exhibited in volcanicglasses and melt inclusions were used as starting mixtures.Conventional quench experiments in 1 atm gas mixing furnacesproved unable to reproduce unmixing of ferrobasaltic melts,yielding instead either turbid, opalescent glasses, or crystallizationof tridymite and pyroxenes. In contrast, experiments involvingin situ high-temperature centrifugation at 1000g (g = 9·8m/s²) did yield macroscopic unmixing and phase separation. Centrifugationfor 3–4 h was insufficient to complete phase segregation,and resulted in sub-micron immiscible emulsions in quenchedglasses. For a model liquid composition of the Middle Zone ofthe Skaergaard intrusion at super-liquidus temperatures of 1110–1120°C,centrifugation produced a thin, silicic layer (64·5 wt%SiO₂ and 7·4 wt% FeO) at the top of the main Fe-richglass (46 wt% SiO₂ and 21 wt% FeO). The divergent compositionsat the top and bottom were shown in a series of static runsto crystallize very similar crystal assemblages of plagioclase,pyroxene, olivine, and Fe–Ti oxides. We infer from theseresults that unmixing of complex aluminosilicate liquids maybe seriously kinetically hampered (presumably by a nucleationbarrier), and thus conventional static experiments may not correctlyreproduce it. In the light of our centrifuge experiments, immiscibilityin the Skaergaard intrusion could have started already at thetransition from the Lower to the Middle Zone. Thus, magma unmixingmight be an important factor in the development of the Fe-enrichmenttrend documented in the cumulates of the Skaergaard LayeredSeries. KEY WORDS: liquid immiscibility; Skaergaard; layered intrusions; experimental petrology     

Gravity and magnetic data inversion for 3D topography of the Moho discontinuity in the northern Red Sea area, Egypt

The main goal of our study is to investigate 3D topography of the Moho boundary for the area of the northern Red Sea including Gulf of Suez and Gulf of Aqaba. For potential field data inversion we apply a new method of local corrections. The method is efficient and does not require trial-and-error forward modeling. To separate sources of gravity and magnetic field in depth, a method is suggested, based on upward and downward continuation. Both new methods are applied to isolate the contribution of the Moho interface to the total field and to find its 3D topography. At the first stage, we separate near-surface and deeper sources. According to the obtained field of shallow sources a model of the horizontal layer above the depth of 7 km is suggested, which includes a density interface between light sediments and crystalline basement. Its depressions and uplifts correspond to known geological structures. At the next stage, we isolate the effect of very deep sources (below 100 km) and sources outside the area of investigation. After subtracting this field from the total effect of deeper sources, we obtain the contribution of the Moho interface. We make inversion separately for the area of rifts (Red Sea, Gulf of Suez and Gulf of Aqaba) and for the rest of the area. In the rift area we look for the upper boundary of low-density, heated anomalous upper mantle. In the rest of the area the field is satisfied by means of topography for the interface between lower crust and normal upper mantle. Both algorithms are applied also to the magnetic field. The magnetic model of the Moho boundary is in agreement with the gravitational one.     

Ionization of the earth’s atmosphere by solar and galactic cosmic rays

A brief review of the research of atmospheric effects of cosmic rays is presented. Numerical models are discussed, that are capable to compute the cosmic ray induced ionization at a given location and time. Intercomparison of the models, as well as comparison with fragmentary direct measurements of the atmospheric ionization, validates their applicability for the entire atmosphere and the whole range of the solar activity level variations. The effect of sporadic solar energetic particle events is shown to be limited on the global scale, even for the most severe event, but can be very strong locally in polar regions, affecting the physical-chemical properties of the upper atmosphere, especially at high altitudes. Thus, a new methodology is presented to study cosmic ray induced ionization of the atmosphere in full detail using realistic numerical models calibrated to direct observations.     

Volcanic arc of Kamchatka: a province with high-δO magma sources and large-scale O/O depletion of the upper crust

We present the results of a regional study of oxygen and Sr-Nd-Pb isotopes of Pleistocene to Recent arc volcanism in the Kamchatka Peninsula and the Kuriles, with emphasis on the largest caldera-forming centers. The δ¹⁸O values of phenocrysts, in combination with numerical crystallization modeling (MELTS) and experimental fractionation factors, are used to derive best estimates of primary values for δ¹⁸O(magma). Magmatic δ¹⁸O values span 3.5‰ and are correlated with whole-rock Sr-Nd-Pb isotopes and major elements. Our data show that Kamchatka is a region of isotopic diversity with high-δ¹⁸O basaltic magmas (sampling mantle to lower crustal high-δ¹⁸O sources), and low-δ¹⁸O silicic volcanism (sampling low-δ¹⁸O upper crust). Among one hundred Holocene and Late Pleistocene eruptive units from 23 volcanic centers, one half represents low-δ¹⁸O magmas (+4 to 5‰). Most low-δ¹⁸O magmas are voluminous silicic ignimbrites related to large >10 km³ caldera-forming eruptions and subsequent intracaldera lavas and domes: Holocene multi-caldera Ksudach volcano, Karymsky and Kurile Lake-Iliinsky calderas, and Late Pleistocene Maly Semyachik, Akademy Nauk, and Uzon calderas. Low-δ¹⁸O magmas are not found among the less voluminous products of stratovolcano eruptions and these volcanoes do not show drastic changes in δ¹⁸O during their evolution. Additionally, high-δ¹⁸O(magma) of +6.0 to 7.5‰ are found among basalts and basaltic andesites of Bezymianny, Shiveluch, Avachinsky, and Koryaksky volcanoes, and dacites and rhyolites of Opala and Khangar volcanoes (7.1-8.0‰). Phenocrysts in volcanic rocks from the adjacent Kurile Islands (ignimbrites and lavas) define normal-δ¹⁸O magmas. The widespread and volumetric abundance of low-δ¹⁸O magmas in the large landmass of Kamchatka is possibly related to a combination of near-surface volcanic processes, the effects of the last glaciation on high-latitude meteoric waters, and extensive geyser and hydrothermal systems that are matched only by Iceland. Sr and Pb isotopic compositions of normal and low-δ¹⁸O, predominantly silicic, volcanic rocks show negative correlation with δ¹⁸O, similar to the trend in Iceland. This indicates that low-δ¹⁸O volcanic rocks are largely produced by remelting of older, more radiogenic, hydrothermally altered crust that suffered δ¹⁸O-depletion during >2 My-long Pleistocene glaciation. The regionally-distributed high-δ¹⁸O values for basic volcanism (ca. + 6 to +7.5‰) in Kamchatka cannot be solely explained by high-δ¹⁸O slab fluid or melt (± sediment) addition in the mantle, or local subduction of hydrated OIB-type crust of the Hawaii-Emperor chain. Overall, Nd-Pb isotope systematics are MORB-like. Voluminous basic volcanism (in the Central Kamchatka Depression in particular) requires regional, though perhaps patchy, remobilization of thick (30-45 km) Mesozoic-Miocene arc roots, possibly resulting from interaction with hot (ca. 1300°C), wedge-derived normal-δ¹⁸O, low-⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr basalts and from dehydration melting of lower crustal metabasalts, variably high in δ¹⁸O and ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr.     

High-Energy 3He-Rich Solar Particle Events

Energetic particle observations of the ERNE instrument on board SOHO enable measurements of ³He and ⁴He fluxes beyond 15 MeV nucleon^–1 with good statistical resolution. We report results of a survey of the ERNE observations covering the period from 8 February 1999 to 6 December 2000. We find 10 and 5 days during which the ³He-to-⁴He ratio exceeds the levels of 20% and 50%, respectively. Those periods include, in particular, four ³He-rich events that are sufficiently strong for a reasonably accurate estimate of the time-intensity profiles. We analyze the history of solar and interplanetary phenomena associated with these high-energy ³He-rich events. Basic properties of such events and significant solar and interplanetary factors are formulated. The significant factors comprise, in particular, a strong, impulsive flare, typically observed about day before the ³He onset, and an interplanetary shock wave or magnetic field enhancement arriving at 1 AU about frac43 day after the ³He onset. The high-energy ³He-rich events make up a new kind of hybrid events, possessing the impulsive-type composition and the gradual-type time-profiles. We emphasize a dependence of the resultant particle event on the history of the particular solar eruption comprising coronal mass ejection (CME) and the flare associated with the CME.     

Starspots, Activity Cycles, and Differential Rotation on Cool Stars

We present the first results of searching for stellar cycles by analysis of stellar spottedness using an algorithm developed at the Crimean Astrophysical Observatory. For more than 35 red spotted stars, we find ten targets which demonstrate cyclic variations of average latitudes and total areas of starspots. Activity cycles detected by this method have a typical cycle length about 4–15 years which are analogous to the 11-year solar Schwabe cycle. Most of the program stars demonstrate a rough analogue with the solar butterfly diagram. They show a tendency for the average starspot latitude lowering when the total spot area grows. At the same time these stars show variations of stellar photometric period (which is traced by starspots) with the starspot latitudinal drift analogously to the solar differential rotation effect. We suspect that the starspot latitudinal drift rate and the differential rotation gradient depend on the stellar spectral type.     

Correction to: Multilevel Graph Partitioning for Three-Dimensional Discrete Fracture Network Flow Simulations

Mathematical Geosciences - The publication of this article unfortunately contained a mistake. The assignment to the affiliations of author Satish Karra was not correct