Formation of the Green Tuff,Pantelleria

The strongly peralkaline Green Tuff, Pantelleria, is an example of a thin, densely welded air-fall tuff which mantles an area of at least 85 km². Offshore the tuff is correlated with the Y-6 ash layer in the central Mediterranean Sea, and the total volume of the eruption is estimated at 7 km³ D.R.E. New petrological data suggests that the tuff was erupted from a zoned magma chamber containing a cooler, more fractionated upper zone relative to be bulk of the magma. Analysis of the distribution of accessory lithic fragments in terms of existing models of eruption dynamics indicates emplacement by a plinian-type eruption. It is shown that, due to the low viscosity of pantelleritic ejecta, dense welding can occur at moderate tephra accumulation rates and a rate of the order of 1 cm/minute is suggested for the Green Tuff; this yields an estimate for the eruption duration of rather less than one day. It is predicted that welded tuff should be formed during large plinian eruptions of pantelleritic magma, and therefore that welded airfall tuffs should be common in areas of peralkaline volcanism.     

Tectonostratigraphic development of the Trondheim region Caledonides, Central Norway

The metamorphic allochthon of the central Norwegian Caledonides comprises a complex of discrete nappes of metasediments and igneous rocks ranging in age from probable Svecofennian through Vendian to Silurian. This southeastward-translated allochthon overlies a thin cover of autochthonous Vendian to Cambrian sediments deposited upon a crystalline Precambrian basement, and is superseded by late-orogenic, intermontanebasinal sediments of latest Silurian to Middle Devonian age. Stratigraphical sequences in higher allochthonous units are floored by oceanic tholeiitic basalts with rare, subjacent sheeted-dyke and gabbro units, considered as fragments of an ophiolite assemblage which suffered initial eastward transport in pre-Middle Arenig times, an important orogenic event which is well represented in northern and southwestern Norway. The overlying Ordovician—Silurian sequences, disturbed by episodic parorogenic events, embrace a variety of sedimentary facies from shallow-water carbonates to deep-marine terrigenous turbidites and include both island arc and marginal basin lavas and intrusives. Polyphase Middle Silurian metamorphism and deformation resulted in a complex telescoping and dissection of the Lower Palaeozoic rocks and their Precambrian substrate, with nappe translation in the order of several hundred kilometres. Folding and thrusting of Old Red Sandstone molasse sediments attests to continuing tectonism well into Devonian times.     

The Santa Filomena meteorite shower: Trajectory,classification, and opaque phases as indicators of metamorphic conditions

On August 19, 2020, at 13:18—UTC, a meteor event ended as a meteorite shower in Santa Filomena, a city in the Pernambuco State, northeast Brazil. The heliocentric orbital parameters resulting from images by cameras of the weather broadcasting system were semimajor axis a = 2.1 ± 0.1 au, eccentricity e = 0.55 ± 0.03, and inclination i = 0.15^o ± 0.05. The data identified the body as an Apollo object, an Earth-crossing object with a pericenter interior to the Earth's orbit. The chemical, mineralogical, and petrological evaluations, as well as the physical analysis, followed several traditional techniques. The meteorite was identified as a H5-6 S4 W0 ordinary chondrite genomict breccia. The large amount of metal in the meteorite made a metallographic evaluation based on the opaque phases possible. The monocrystalline kamacite crystals suggest a higher petrological type and the distorted Neumann lines imply at least two different shock events. The absence of the plessite phase shows that the meteorite did not reach the highest shock levels S5 and S6. The well-defined polycrystalline taenite is indicative of petrologic types 4 and 5 due to the conserved internal tetrataenite rim at the boundaries. The presence of polycrystalline taenites and the characteristics of the Agrell Effect suggest that the Santa Filomena meteorite did not reheat above 700°C. The absence of martensite confirms reheating temperatures <800°C and a slow cooling rate. The Ni contents and sizes of the zoned taenite particles indicate a slow cooling rate ranging from 1 to 10 K Myr⁻¹.     

Mineral and chemical composition of the Jezersko meteorite—A new chondrite from Slovenia

The Jezersko meteorite is a newly confirmed stony meteorite found in 1992 in the Karavanke mountains, Slovenia. The meteorite is moderately weathered (W2), indicating short terrestrial residence time. Chondrules in partially recrystallized matrix are clearly discernible but often fragmented and have mean diameter of 0.73 mm. The meteorite consists of homogeneous olivine (Fa_19.4) and low‐Ca pyroxenes (Fs_16.7Wo_1.2), of which 34% are monoclinic, and minor plagioclase (Ab₈₃An₁₁Or₆) and Ca‐pyroxene (Fs₆Wo_45.8). Troilite, kamacite, zoned taenite, tetrataenite, chromite, and metallic copper comprise about 16.5 vol% of the meteorite. Phosphates are represented by merrillite and minor chlorapatite. Undulatory extinction in some olivine grains and other shock indicators suggests weak shock metamorphism between stages S2 and S3. The bulk chemical composition generally corresponds to the mean H chondrite composition. Low siderophile element contents indicate the oxidized character of the Jezersko parent body. The temperatures recorded by two‐pyroxene, olivine‐chromite, and olivine‐orthopyroxene geothermometers are 854 °C, 737–787 °C, and 750 °C, respectively. Mg concentration profiles across orthopyroxenes and clinopyroxenes indicate relatively fast cooling at temperatures above 700 °C. A low cooling rate of 10 °C Myr^?1 was obtained from metallographic data. Considering physical, chemical, and mineralogical properties, meteorite Jezersko was classified as an H4 S2(3) ordinary chondrite.     

Reorganization of continent-scale sediment routing based on detrital zircon and rutile multi-proxy analysis

The duration and extent of sediment routing systems are intrinsically linked to crustal- to mantle-scale processes. Therefore, distinct changes in the geodynamic regime may be captured in the detrital record. This study attempts to reconstruct the sediment routing system of the Canning Basin (Western Australia) during the Early Cretaceous to decipher its depositional response to Mesozoic-Cenozoic supercontinent dispersal. Specifically, we reconstruct source-to-sink relationships for the Broome Sandstone (Dampier Peninsula) and proximal modern sediments through multi-proxy analysis of detrital zircon (U–Pb, Lu–Hf and trace elements) and detrital rutile (U–Pb and trace elements). Multi-proxy comparison of detrital signatures and potential sources reveals that the majority of the detrital zircon and rutile grains are ultimately sourced from crystalline basement in central Australia (Musgrave Province and Arunta region) and that proximal sediment supply (i.e., Kimberley region) is negligible. However, a significant proportion of detritus might be derived from intermediate sedimentary sources in central Australia (e.g., Amadeus Basin) rather than directly from erosion of crystalline basement. Broome Sandstone data are consistent with a large-scale drainage system with headwaters in central Australia. Contextualization with other broadly coeval drainage systems suggests that central Australia acted as a major drainage divide during the Early Cretaceous. Importantly, reorganization after supercontinent dispersal is characterized by the continuation of a sediment pathway remnant of an earlier transcontinental routing system originating in Antarctica that provided a template for Early Cretaceous drainage. Review of older Canning Basin strata implies a prolonged denudation history of central Australian lithologies. These observations are consistent with the long-lived intracontinental tectonic activity of central Australia governing punctuated sediment generation and dispersion more broadly across Australia and emphasize the impact of deep Earth processes on sediment routing systems.     

Origin of the Okrouhlá Radouň episyenite-hosted uranium deposit,Bohemian Massif,Czech Republic: fluid inclusion and stable isotope constraints

The Okrouhlá Radouň shear zone hosted uranium deposit is developed along the contact of Variscan granites and high-grade metasedimentary rocks of the Moldanubian Zone of the Bohemian Massif. The pre-ore pervasive alteration of wall rocks is characterized by chloritization of mafic minerals, followed by albitization of feldspars and dissolution of quartz giving rise to episyenites. The subsequent fluid circulation led to precipitation of disseminated uraninite and coffinite, and later on, post-ore quartz and carbonate mineralization containing base metal sulfides. The fluid inclusion and stable isotope data suggest low homogenization temperatures (～50–140 °C during pre-ore albitization and post-ore carbonatization, up to 230 °C during pre-ore chloritization), variable fluid salinities (0–25 wt.% NaCl eq.), low fluid δ¹⁸O values (?10 to +2 ‰ V-SMOW), low fluid δ¹³C values (?9 to ?15 ‰ V-PDB), and highly variable ionic composition of the aqueous fluids (especially Na/Ca, Br/Cl, I/Cl, SO₄/Cl, NO₃/Cl ratios). The available data suggest participation of three fluid endmembers of primarily surficial origin during alteration and mineralization at the deposit: (1) local meteoric water, (2) Na–Ca–Cl basinal brines or shield brines, (3) SO₄–NO₃–Cl–(H)CO₃ playa-like fluids. Pre-ore albitization was caused by circulation of alkaline, oxidized, and Na-rich playa fluids, whereas basinal/shield brines and meteoric water were more important during the post-ore stage of alteration.