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1.
Back-arc basin basalt systematics 总被引：7，自引：0，他引：7
The Mariana, east Scotia, Lau, and Manus back-arc basins (BABs) have spreading rates that vary from slow (<50 mm/yr) to fast (>100 mm/yr) and extension axes located from 10 to 400 km behind their island arcs. Axial lava compositions from these BABs indicate melting of mid-ocean ridge basalt (MORB)-like sources in proportion to the amount added of previously depleted, water-rich, arc-like components. The arc-like end-members are characterized by low Na, Ti and Fe, and by high H2O and Ba/La; the MORB-like end-members have the opposite traits. Comparisons between basins show that the least hydrous compositions follow global MORB systematics and an inverse correlation between Na8 and Fe8. This is interpreted as a positive correlation between the average degree and pressure of mantle melting that reflects regional variations in mantle potential temperatures (Lau/Manus hotter than Mariana/Scotia). This interpretation accords with numerical model predictions that faster subduction-induced advection will maintain a hotter mantle wedge. The primary compositional trends within each BAB (a positive correlation between Fe8, Na8 and Ti8, and their inverse correlation with H2O(8) and Ba/La) are controlled by variations in water content, melt extraction, and enrichments imposed by slab and mantle wedge processes. Systematic axial depth (as a proxy for crustal production) variations with distance from the island arc indicate that compositional controls on melting dominate over spreading rate. Hydrous fluxing enhances decompression melting, allowing depleted mantle sources just behind the island arc to melt extensively, producing shallow spreading axes. Flow of enriched mantle components around the ends of slabs may augment this process in transform-bounded back-arcs such as the east Scotia Basin. The re-circulation (by mantle wedge corner flow) to the spreading axes of mantle previously depleted by both arc and spreading melt extraction can explain the greater depths and thinner crust of the East Lau Spreading Center, Manus Southern Rifts, and Mariana Trough and the very depleted lavas of east Scotia segments E8/E9. The crust becomes mid-ocean ridge (MOR)-like where the spreading axes, further away from the island arc and subducted slab, entrain dominantly fertile mantle. 相似文献
2.
D. R. Toomey W. S. D. Wilcock J. A. Conder D. W. Forsyth J. D. Blundy E. M. Parmentier W. C. Hammond 《Earth and Planetary Science Letters》2002,200(3-4):287-295
The mantle electromagnetic and tomography (MELT) experiment found a surprising degree of asymmetry in the mantle beneath the fast-spreading, southern East Pacific Rise (MELT Seismic Team, Science 280 (1998) 1215–1218; Forsyth et al., Science 280 (1998) 1235–1238; Toomey et al., Science 280 (1998) 1224–1227; Wolfe and Solomon, Science 280 (1998) 1230–1232; Scheirer et al., Science 280 (1998) 1221–1224; Evans et al., Science 286 (1999) 752–756). Pressure-release melting of the upwelling mantle produces magma that migrates to the surface to form a layer of new crust at the spreading center about 6 km thick (Canales et al., Science 280 (1998) 1218–1221). Seismic and electromagnetic measurements demonstrated that the distribution of this melt in the mantle is asymmetric (Forsyth et al., Science 280 (1998) 1235–1238; Toomey et al., Science 280 (1998) 1224–1227; Evans et al., Science 286 (1999) 752–756) at depths of several tens of kilometers, melt is more abundant beneath the Pacific plate to the west of the axis than beneath the Nazca plate to the east. MELT investigators attributed the asymmetry in melt and geophysical properties to several possible factors: asymmetric flow passively driven by coupling to the faster moving Pacific plate; interactions between the spreading center and hotspots of the south Pacific; an off-axis center of dynamic upwelling; and/or anomalous melting of an embedded compositional heterogeneity (MELT Seismic Team, Science 280 (1998) 1215–1218; Forsyth et al., Science 280 (1998) 1235–1238; Toomey et al., Science 280 (1998) 1224–1227; Wolfe and Solomon, Science 280 (1998) 1230–1232; Evans et al., Science 286 (1999) 752–756). Here we demonstrate that passive flow driven by asymmetric plate motion alone is not a sufficient explanation of the anomalies. Asthenospheric flow from hotspots in the Pacific superswell region back to the migrating ridge axis in conjunction with the asymmetric plate motion can create many of the observed anomalies. 相似文献
3.
Mantle process beneath Philippine Sea back-arc spreading ridges: A synthesis of peridotite petrology and tectonics 总被引：2，自引：0，他引：2
Abstract In order to obtain a general view of the mantle process beneath a back‐arc basin spreading ridge, the diversity of peridotite petrology and tectonic occurrences in two back‐arc basin spreading ridges from the Philippine Sea were examined: the Parece Vela Rift and the Mariana Trough. The Parece Vela Basin spreading ridge (Parece Vela Rift) was a physically fast/intermediate‐spreading ridge, although many tectono‐magmatic features resemble those of slow‐ to ultraslow‐spreading ridges. Two unusual features of the Parece Vela Rift further demonstrate the uniqueness of the ridge: full‐axial development of oceanic core complexes and exposure of mantle peridotite at segment midpoints. The Parece Vela Rift yields a lithological assemblage of residual but still fertile lherzolite/harzburgite, plagioclase‐bearing harzburgite and dunite; similar assemblages are reported from the equatorial Mid‐Atlantic Ridge at the Romanche Fracture Zone and the ultraslow‐spreading ridges from the Indian and Arctic Oceans. The tectono‐magmatic characteristics of the Parece Vela Rift suggest that diffuse porous melt flow and pervasive melt–mantle interaction were the important mantle processes there. Globally, this ‘porous melt flow‐type’ mantle process is likely to occur beneath a segment midpoint of the ridge having a thick lithosphere, typically an ultraslow‐spreading ridge. In contrast, the Mariana Trough is a typical slow‐spreading ridge, exposing mantle peridotite at segment ends. The Mariana Trough yields a lithological assemblage of residual harzburgite and veined harzburgite, a common assemblage among the global abyssal peridotite suite. The tectono‐magmatic characteristics of the Mariana Trough suggest that channeled melt/fluid flow and limited melt–mantle interaction are the important mantle processes there, because of the colder wall‐rock peridotite in the segment end. This ‘channeled melt flow‐type’ mantle process is likely to occur in the shallow lithospheric mantle at the segment ends of any spreading ridges. 相似文献
4.
Preliminary analysis of the Knipovich Ridge segmentation: influence of focused magmatism and ridge obliquity on an ultraslow spreading system 总被引：2，自引：0，他引：2
Kyoko Okino Daniel CurewitzMiho Asada Kensaku TamakiPeter Vogt Kathleen Crane 《Earth and Planetary Science Letters》2002,202(2):275-288
Bathymetry, gravity and deep-tow sonar image data are used to define the segmentation of a 400 km long portion of the ultraslow-spreading Knipovich Ridge in the Norwegian-Greenland Sea, Northeast Atlantic Ocean. Discrete volcanic centers marked by large volcanic constructions and accompanying short wavelength mantle Bouguer anomaly (MBA) lows generally resemble those of the Gakkel Ridge and the easternmost Southwest Indian Ridge. These magmatically robust segment centers are regularly spaced about 85-100 km apart along the ridge, and are characterized by accumulated hummocky terrain, high relief, off-axis seamount chains and significant MBA lows. We suggest that these eruptive centers correspond to areas of enhanced magma flux, and that their spacing reflects the geometry of underlying mantle upwelling cells. The large-scale thermal structure of the mantle primarily controls discrete and focused magmatism, and the relatively wide spacing of these segments may reflect cool mantle beneath the ridge. Segment centers along the southern Knipovich Ridge are characterized by lower relief and smaller MBA anomalies than along the northern section of the ridge. This suggests that ridge obliquity is a secondary control on ridge construction on the Knipovich Ridge, as the obliquity changes from 35° to 49° from north to south, respectively, while spreading rate and axial depth remain approximately constant. The increased obliquity may contribute to decreased effective spreading rates, lower upwelling magma velocity and melt formation, and limited horizontal dike propagation near the surface. We also identify small, magmatically weaker segments with low relief, little or no MBA anomaly, and no off-axis expression. We suggest that these segments are either fed by lateral melt migration from adjacent magmatically stronger segments or represent smaller, discrete mantle upwelling centers with short-lived melt supply. 相似文献
5.
—More than 60 events recorded by four recently deployed seismic broadband stations around Scotia Sea, Antarctica, have been collected and processed to obtain a general overview of the crust and upper mantle seismic velocities.¶Group velocity of the fundamental mode of Rayleigh waves in the period between 10 s to 30–40 s is used to obtain the S-wave velocity versus depth along ten different paths crossing the Scotia Sea region. Data recorded by two IRIS (Incorporated Research Institutions for Seismology) stations (PMSA, EFI) and the two stations of the OGS-IAA (Osservatorio Geofisico Sperimentale—Instituto Antarctico Argentino) network (ESPZ, USHU) are used.¶The Frequency-Time Analysis (FTAN) technique is applied to the data set to measure the dispersion properties. A nonlinear inversion procedure, "Hedgehog," is performed to retrieve the S-wave velocity models consistent with the dispersion data.¶The average Moho depth variation on a section North to South is consistent with the topography, geological observations and Scotia Sea tectonic models.¶North Scotia Ridge and South Scotia Ridge models are characterised by similar S-wave velocities ranging between 2.0 km/s at the surface to 3.2 km/s to depths of 8 km/s. In the lower crust the S-wave velocity increases slowly to reach a value of 3.8 km/s. The average Moho depth is estimated between 17 km to 20 km and 16 km to 19 km, respectively, for the North Scotia Ridge and South Scotia Ridge, while the Scotia Sea, bounded by the two ridges, has a faster and thinner crust, with an average Moho depth between 9 km and 12 km.¶On other paths crossing from east to west the southern part of the Scotia plate and the Antarctic plate south of South Scotia Ridge, we observe an average Moho depth between 14 km and 18 km and a very fast upper crust, compared to that of the ridge. The S-wave velocity ranges between 3.0 and 3.6 km/s in the thin (9–13 km) and fast crust of the Drake Passage channel. In contrast the models for the tip of the Antarctic Peninsula consist of two layers with a large velocity gradient (2.3–3.0 km/s) in the upper crust (6-km thick) and a small velocity gradient (3.0–4.0) in the lower crust (14-km thick). 相似文献
6.
David W. Muenow Norman W.K. Liu Michael O. Garcia Andrew D. Saunders 《Earth and Planetary Science Letters》1980,47(2):272-278
The volatile content of glassy pillow rims from East Scotia Sea back-arc basin (BAB) lavas are unlike those of mid-ocean ridge (MOR) pillow-rim glasses, although non-volatile compositions of the two rock groups overlap. The East Scotia Sea samples have three to ten times greater water contents and nearly twice the average CO2 and Cl contents of MOR samples; F contents are similar. S contents are only one-third those from MOR samples. H2O and CO2 contents of glassy pillow rims from Mariana island arc andesites are similar to those in the BAB lavas studied. Nevertheless, volatiles in the East Scotia Sea BAB magmas are probably not directly derived from the subducted slab, because there is no seismic evidence that the slab extends within 200 km of the spreading axis of the East Scotia Sea. Available data do not preclude the possibility that the magmas were contaminated by seawater prior to eruption or that the mantle under the East Scotia Sea spreading center is volatile-rich. The volatiles may have been added to the mantle during an earlier period of subduction, perhaps during the initial formation of the East Scotia Sea basin. 相似文献
7.
J.-C. Sempr P. Blondel A. Briais T. Fujiwara L. Gli N. Isezaki J.E. Pariso L. Parson P. Patriat C. Rommevaux 《Earth and Planetary Science Letters》1995,130(1-4):45-55
The segmentation of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge between 29°N and 31°30′ N during the last 10 Ma was studied. Within our survey area the spreading center is segmented at a scale of 25–100 km by non-transform discontinuities and by the 70 km offset Atlantis Transform. The morphology of the spreading center differs north and south of the Atlantis Transform. The spreading axis between 30°30′N and 31°30′N consists of enéchelon volcanic ridges, located within a rift valley with a regional trend of 040°. South of the transform, the spreading center is associated with a well-defined rift valley trending 015°. Magnetic anomalies and the bathymetric traces left by non-transform discontinuities on the flanks of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge provide a record of the evolution of this slow-spreading center over the last 10 Ma. Migration of non-transform offsets was predominantly to the south, except perhaps in the last 2 Ma. The discontinuity traces and the pattern of crustal thickness variations calculated from gravity data suggest that focused mantle upwelling has been maintained for at least 10 Ma south of 30°30′ N. In contrast, north of 30°30′N, the present segmentation configuration and the mantle upwelling centers inferred from gravity data appear to have been established more recently. The orientation of the bathymetric traces suggests that the migration of non-transform offsets is not controlled by the motion of the ridge axis with respect to the mantle. The evolution of the spreading center and the pattern of segmentation is influenced by relative plate motion changes, and by local processes, perhaps related to the amount of melt delivered to spreading segments. Relative plate motion changes over the last 10 Ma in our survey area have included a decrease in spreading rate from 32 mm a−1 to 24 mm a−1, as well as a clockwise change in spreading direction of 13° between anomalies 5 and 4, followed by a counterclockwise change of 4° between anomaly 4 and the present. Interpretation of magnetic anomalies indicates that there are significant variations in spreading asymmetry and rate within and between segments for a given anomaly time. These differences, as well as variations in crustal thickness inferred from gravity data on the flanks of spreading segments, indicate that magmatic and tectonic activity are, in general, not coordinated between adjacent spreading segments. 相似文献
8.
9.
Plate boundary geometry likely has an important influence on crustal production at mid-ocean ridges. Many studies have explored the effects of geometrical features such as transform offsets and oblique ridge segments on mantle flow and melting. This study investigates how triple junction (TJ) geometry may influence mantle dynamics. An earlier study [Georgen, J.E., Lin, J., 2002. Three-dimensional passive flow and temperature structure beneath oceanic ridge-ridge-ridge triple junctions. Earth Planet. Sci. Lett. 204, 115–132.] suggested that the effects of a ridge–ridge–ridge configuration are most pronounced under the branch with the slowest spreading rate. Thus, we create a three-dimensional, finite element, variable viscosity model that focuses on the slowest-diverging ridge of a triple junction with geometry similar to the Rodrigues TJ. This spreading axis may be considered to be analogous to the Southwest Indian Ridge. Within 100 km of the TJ, temperatures at depths within the partial melting zone and crustal thickness are predicted to increase by ~ 40 °C and 1 km, respectively. We also investigate the effects of differential motion of the TJ with respect to the underlying mantle, by imposing bottom model boundary conditions replicating (a) absolute plate motion and (b) a three-dimensional solution for plate-driven and density-driven asthenospheric flow in the African region. Neither of these basal boundary conditions significantly affects the model solutions, suggesting that the system is dominated by the divergence of the surface places. Finally, we explore how varying spreading rate magnitudes affects TJ geodynamics. When ridge divergence rates are all relatively slow (i.e., with plate kinematics similar to the Azores TJ), significant along-axis increases in mantle temperature and crustal thickness are calculated. At depths within the partial melting zone, temperatures are predicted to increase by ~ 150 °C, similar to the excess temperatures associated with mantle plumes. Likewise, crustal thickness is calculated to increase by approximately 6 km over the 200 km of ridge closest to the TJ. These results could imply that some component of the excess volcanism observed in geologic settings such as the Terceira Rift may be attributed to the effects of TJ geometry, although the important influence of features like nearby hotspots (e.g., the Azores hotspot) cannot be evaluated without additional numerical modeling. 相似文献
10.
Juergen Kienle Philip R. Kyle Stephen Self Roman J. Motyka Volker Lorenz 《Journal of Volcanology and Geothermal Research》1980,7(1-2)
During ten days of phreatomagmatic activity in early April 1977, two maars formed 13 km behind the Aleutian arc near Peulik volcano on the Alaska Peninsula. They have been named “Ukinrek Maars”, meaning “two holes in the ground” in Yupik Eskimo. The western maar formed at the northwestern end of a low ridge within the first three days and is up to 170 m in diameter and 35 m in depth. The eastern maar formed during the next seven days 600 m east of West Maar at a lower elevation in a shallow saddle on the same ridge and is more circular, up to 300 m in diameter and 70 m in depth. The maars formed in terrain that was heavily glaciated in Pleistocene times. The groundwater contained in the underlying till and silicic volcanics from nearby Peulik volcano controlled the dominantly phreatomagmatic course of the eruption.During the eruptions, steam and ash clouds reached maximum heights of about 6 km and a thin blanket of fine ash was deposited north and east of the vents up to a distance of at least 160 km. Magma started to pool on the floor of East Maar after four days of intense phreatomagmatic activity.The new melt is a weakly undersaturated alkali olivine basalt (Ne = 1.2%) showing some transitional character toward high-alumina basalts. The chemistry, an anomaly in the tholeitic basalt-andesite-dominated Aleutian arc, suggests that the new melt is primitive, generated at a depth of 80 km or greater by a low degree of partial melting of garnet peridotite mantle with little subsequent fractionization during transport.The Pacific plate subduction zone lies at a depth of 150 km beneath the maars. Their position appears to be tectonically controlled by a major regional fault, the Bruin Bay fault, and its intersection with cross-arc structural features. We favor a model for the emplacement of the Ukinrek Maars that does not link the Ukinrek conduit to the plumbing system of nearby Peulik volcano. The Ukinrek eruptions probably represent a genetically distinct magma pulse originating at asthenospheric depths beneath the continental lithosphere. 相似文献
11.
12.
西南印度洋中脊（SWIR）增生的洋壳面积仅占印度洋的15%左右,但其具有比东南印度洋中脊和西北印度洋中脊更悠久而复杂的演化历史.基于已有的地质、地球物理和地球化学等资料,系统总结了SWIR的地质构造特征,并讨论了SWIR的演化过程、洋脊地幔的不均一性、洋脊周边海底高原成因等核心问题.SWIR地形中段高、东西两段低,空间重力异常基本与地形变化一致.按转换断层一级边界可将SWIR划分为20个一级段.SWIR的磁异常条带呈现两端渐进式分布和中段带状分布特征,对应洋脊的三期演化历史.SWIR的地幔源区极不均一,尤其是中新元古代造山带根部集中拆离的中段.源区地幔的不均一性与大陆裂解和洋脊演化过程密切相关.SWIR的东端与西北印度洋中脊和东南印度洋中脊的邻近洋脊段具有地球化学亲缘性,西端与大西洋中脊和南美洲—南极洲洋中脊的邻近洋脊段具有地球化学亲缘性,这与SWIR的渐近式扩张有关.SWIR周边海底高原普遍具有较大的地壳厚度,其成因除了陆壳基底之外,可能与热点火山作用、热点-洋脊相互作用或热点-三联点相互作用有关,目前尚未形成统一的认识.SWIR的形成演化及其作用域内的熔融异常（如海底高原）是冈瓦纳大陆裂解、残留岩石圈地幔、软流圈地幔和深部地幔热柱物质共同作用的结果.了解SWIR的演化过程对揭示冈瓦纳大陆的裂解过程和印度洋的演化具有重要意义. 相似文献
13.
John J. Armitage Timothy J. Henstock Timothy A. Minshull John R. Hopper 《Earth and Planetary Science Letters》2008,269(1-2):248-258
We have developed a generic dynamic model of extension of the lithosphere, which predicts major element composition and volume of melt generated from initial extension to steady state seafloor spreading. Stokes equations for non-Newtonian flow are solved and the mantle melts by decompression. Strengthening of the mantle due to dehydration as melting progresses is included. The composition is then empirically related to depletion. Using a crystallisation algorithm, the predicted primary melt composition was compared with mean North Atlantic mid-ocean ridge basalt (MORB). At steady state, using half spreading rates from 10 to 20 mm yr− 1 and mantle potential temperatures of 1300 to 1325 °C we predict a major element composition that is within the variation in the mean of North Atlantic MORB.
This model is applied to the Southeast Greenland margin, which has extensive coverage of seismic and ODP core data. These data have been interpreted to indicate an initial pulse of magmatism on rifting that rapidly decayed to leave oceanic crustal thickness of 8 to 11 km. This pattern of melt production can be recreated by introducing an initial hot layer of asthenosphere beneath the continental lithosphere and by having a period of fast spreading during early opening. The hot layer was convected through the melt region giving a pulse of high magnesian and low silica melt during the early rifting process. The predicted major element composition of primary melts generated are in close agreement with primary melts from the Southeast Greenland margin. The observed variations in major element composition are reproduced without a mantle source composition anomaly. 相似文献
14.
Measurements of the seafloor deformation under ocean waves (compliance) reveal an asymmetric lower crustal partial melt zone (shear velocity less than 1.8 km/s) beneath the East Pacific Rise axis between 9° and 10°N. At 9°48′N, the zone is less than 8 km wide and is centered beneath the rise axis. The zone shifts west of the rise axis as the rise approaches the westward-stepping 9°N overlapping spreading center discontinuity and is anomalously wide at the northern tip of the discontinuity. The ratio of the compliance determined shear velocity to the compressional velocities (estimated by seismic tomography) suggests that the melt is well-connected in high-aspect ratio cracks rather than in isolated sills. The shear and compressional velocities indicate less than 18% melt in the lower crust on average. The compliance measurements also reveal a separate lower crustal partial melt zone 10 km east of the rise axis at 9°48′N and isolated melt bodies near the Moho beneath four of the 39 measurement sites (three on-axis and one off-axis). The offset of the central melt zone from the rise axis correlates strongly with the offset of the overlying axial melt lens and the inferred center of mantle melting, but its shape appears to be controlled by crustal processes. 相似文献
15.
J.-G. Schilling 《Earth and Planetary Science Letters》1975,25(2):103-115
Rare earths (RE) in basalts erupted within the rift of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge show a progressive change from light-RE enriched to depleted patterns from the Azores Platform (40°N) down to 33°30′N. South, the pattern remains light-RE depleted as along other “normal ridge” segments. A progressive increase in chemical variability of the basalts towards the Azores is also noted.The latitudinal RE profile and corresponding ΣFeO/ΣFeO + MgO variations, together, indicate that the origin of these basalts cannot be accounted for simply by considering variable extents of partial melting of a single mantle source and subsequent fractional crystallization during the ascent of the magmas. These two processes produce only second-order effects on the RE patterns. The data requires the presence of a distinct, light-RE richer, mantle source beneath the Azores Platform relative to that of south of 33°30′N and an intermediate zone where both mantle types mix. The relative contribution of the Azores mantle source to the mix appears to decrease fairly regularly southward along the ridge and becomes negligible at 33°30′N. Increasing chemical variability of the basalts towards the Azores is probably caused by correspondingly larger extent of fractional crystallization at shallow depth, and/or greater variability in the extent of partial melting, apparently subsequent to, and superimposed on the mixing of the two mantle sources.The combined morphological, geophysical and RE evidence along the profile are consistent with a model suggesting upwelling of a major blob (plume) under the Azores Plateau; and reveal the present extent of the blob's overflow and mixing with the asthenosphere depleted in large ionic lithophile trace elements. The influence of the Azores blob is geochemically detectable up to 1000 km southwestward beneath the ridge axis. 相似文献
16.
R.C Searle J.A Keeton R.B Owens R.S White R Mecklenburgh B Parsons S.M Lee 《Earth and Planetary Science Letters》1998,160(3-4):463-478
We report a comprehensive morphological, gravity and magnetic survey of the oblique- and slow-spreading Reykjanes Ridge near the Iceland mantle plume. The survey extends from 57.9°N to 62.1°N and from the spreading axis to between 30 km (3 Ma) and 100 km (10 Ma) off-axis; it includes 100 km of one arm of a diachronous ‘V-shaped' or ‘chevron' ridge. Observed isochrons are extremely linear and 28° oblique to the spreading normal with no significant offsets. Along-axis there are ubiquitous, en-echelon axial volcanic ridges (AVRs), sub-normal to the spreading direction, with average spacing of 14 km and overlap of about one third of their lengths. Relict AVRs occur off-axis, but are most obvious where there has been least axial faulting, suggesting that elsewhere they are rapidly eroded tectonically. AVRs maintain similar plan views but have reduced heights nearer Iceland. They are flanked by normal faults sub-parallel to the ridge axis, the innermost of which occur slightly closer to the axis towards Iceland, suggesting a gradual reduction of the effective lithospheric thickness there. Generally, the amplitude of faulting decreases towards Iceland. We interpret this pattern of AVRs and faults as the response of the lithosphere to oblique spreading, as suggested by theory and physical modelling. An axial, 10–15 km wide zone of high acoustic backscatter marks the most recent volcanic activity. The zone's width is independent of the presence of a median valley, so axial volcanism is not primarily delimited by median valley walls, but is probably controlled by the lateral distance that the oblique AVRs can propagate into off-axis lithosphere. The mantle Bouguer anomaly (MBA) exhibits little mid- to short-wavelength variation above a few milliGals, and along-axis variations are small compared with other parts of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Nevertheless, there are small axial deeps and MBA highs spaced some 130 km along-axis that may represent subdued third-order segment boundaries. They lack coherent off-axis traces and cannot be linked to Oligocene fracture zones on the ridge flanks. The surveyed chevron ridge is morphologically discontinuous, comprising several parallel bands of closely spaced, elevated blocks. These reflect the surrounding tectonic fabric but have higher fault scarps. There is no evidence for off-axis volcanism or greater abundance of seamounts on the chevron. Free-air gravity over it is greater than expected from the observed bathymetry, suggesting compensation via regional rather than pointwise isostasy. Most of the observed variation along the ridge can be ascribed to varying distance from the mantle plume, reflecting changes in mantle temperature and consequently in crustal thickness and lithospheric strength. However, a second-order variation is superimposed. In particular, between 59°30′N and 61°30′N there is a minimum of large-scale faulting and crustal magnetisation, maximum density of seamounts, and maximum axial free-air gravity high. To the north the scale of faulting increases slightly, seamounts are less common, and there is a relative axial free-air low. We interpret the 59°30′N to 61°30′N region as where the latest chevron ridge intersects the Reykjanes Ridge axis, and suggest that the morphological changes that culminate there reflect a local temperature high associated with a transient pulse of high plume output at its apex. 相似文献
17.
Thomas K. Nielsen Hans Christian Larsen John R. Hopper 《Earth and Planetary Science Letters》2002,200(3-4):271-286
We present new and reprocessed seismic reflection data from the area where the southeast and southwest Greenland margins intersected to form a triple junction south of Greenland in the early Tertiary. During breakup at 56 Ma, thick igneous crust was accreted along the entire 1300-km-long southeast Greenland margin from the Greenland Iceland Ridge to, and possibly 100 km beyond, the triple junction into the Labrador Sea. However, highly extended and thin crust 250 km to the west of the triple junction suggests that magmatically starved crustal formation occurred on the southwest Greenland margin at the same time. Thus, a transition from a volcanic to a non-volcanic margin over only 100–200 km is observed. Magmatism related to the impact of the Iceland plume below the North Atlantic around 61 Ma is known from central-west and southeast Greenland. The new seismic data also suggest the presence of a small volcanic plateau of similar age close to the triple junction. The extent of initial plume-related volcanism inferred from these observations is explained by a model of lateral flow of plume material that is guided by relief at the base of the lithosphere. Plume mantle is channelled to great distances provided that significant melting does not take place. Melting causes cooling and dehydration of the plume mantle. The associated viscosity increase acts against lateral flow and restricts plume material to its point of entry into an actively spreading rift. We further suggest that thick Archaean lithosphere blocked direct flow of plume material into the magma-starved southwest Greenland margin while the plume was free to flow into the central west and east Greenland margins. The model is consistent with a plume layer that is only moderately hotter, 100–200°C, than ambient mantle temperature, and has a thickness comparable to lithospheric thickness variations, 50–100 km. Lithospheric architecture, the timing of continental rifting and viscosity changes due to melting of the plume material are therefore critical parameters for understanding the distribution of magmatism. 相似文献
18.
A summary of results based mainly on the inversion of available surface-wave dispersion data is given for the Mediterranean area both for crustal and upper mantle structure. The results are presented on maps outlining the regionalization of the crust and the lithosphere-asthenosphere system in the area. It is possible to distinguish several types of crust with average S-wave velocities in the range 2.8–3.8 km s−1 and thickness varying from a minimum of about 10–16 km, in the Western Mediterranean, to a maximum of about 50 km (including a possible transitional layer) beneath the Ionian Sea. The average properties of the crust and of the lithospheric part of the mantle indicate a possible continuous structure extending from North Africa through the Ionian Sea to the Adriatic Sea, characterized by the presence of a transitional layer at the crust-mantle boundary. Strong lateral variations are present in the lithosphere-asthenosphere system both in thickness, from 30 km in the Western Mediterranean, to about 130 km, under the Alps, and in S-wave velocity, from 4.1–4.2 km s−1 up to 4.7 km s−1. The relatively high position of low resistivity material that seems to characterize the Mediterranean area agrees fairly well with the shallower average top of the asthenosphere found in this area from the study of the elastic properties. The usefulness of combining seismological and electromagnetic studies is stressed. 相似文献
19.
Yongshun John Chen 《Pure and Applied Geophysics》1996,146(3-4):621-648
The global mid-ocean ridge system is one of the most active plate boundaries on the earth and understanding the dynamic processes at this plate boundary is one of the most important problems in geodynamics. In this paper I present recent results of several aspects of mid-ocean ridge studies concerning the dynamics of oceanic lithosphere at these diverging plate boundaries. I show that the observed rift valley to no-rift valley transition (globally due to the increase of spreading rate or locally due to the crustal thickness variations and/or thermal anomalies) can be explained by the strong temperature dependence of the power law rheology of the oceanic lithosphere, and most importantly, by the difference in the rheological behavior of the oceanic crust from the underlying mantle. The effect of this weaker lower crust on ridge dynamics is mainly influenced by spreading rate and crustal thickness variations. The accumulated strain pattern from a recently developed lens model, based on recent seismic observations, was proposed as an appealing mechanism for the observed gabbro layering sequence in the Oman Ophiolite. It is now known that the mid-ocean ridges at all spreading rates are offset into individual spreading segments by both transform and nontransform discontinuities. The tectonics of ridge segmentation are also spreading-rate dependent: the slow-spreading Mid-Atlantic Ridge is characterized by distinct bulls-eye shaped gravity lows, suggesting large along-axis variations in melt production and crustal thickness, whereas the fast-spreading East-Pacific Rise is associated with much smaller along-axis variations. These spreading-rate dependent changes have been attributed to a fundamental differences in ridge segmentation mechanisms and mantle upwelling at mid-ocean ridges: the mantle upwelling may be intrinsically plume-like (3-D) beneath a slow-spreading ridge but more sheet-like (2-D) beneath a fast-spreading ridge. 相似文献
20.
C.L. Andronicos J. Phipps Morgan J.M. Chang D.E. Wolf 《Earth and Planetary Science Letters》2008,273(3-4):270-278
Mid-ocean ridges represent important locations for understanding the interactions between deformation and melt production, transport, and emplacement. Melt transport through the mantle beneath mid-ocean ridges is closely associated with deformation. Currently recognized transport and emplacement processes at ridges include: 1) dikes and sills filling stress-controlled fractures, 2) porous flow in a divergent flow field, 3) self-organizing porous dunite channels, and 4) shear zones. Our recent observations from the sub-oceanic mantle beneath a propagating ridge axis in the Oman ophiolite show that gabbronorite and olivine gabbro dikes fill hybrid fractures that show both shear and extensional components of strain. The magnitudes of shear strain recorded by the dikes are significant and comparable to the longitudinal extensions across the dikes. We suggest that the hybrid dikes form from the interactions between shear deformation and pressurized melt in regions of along-axis flow at mid-ocean ridges. The displacement across the dikes is kinematically compatible with high temperature flow recorded by plastic fabrics in host peridotites. Field observations and mechanical considerations indicate that the dikes record conditions of higher stress and lower temperature than those recorded by the plastic flow fabrics. The features of hybrid dikes suggest formation during progressive deformation as conditions changed from penetrative plastic flow to strain localization along melt-filled fractures. The combined dataset indicates that the dikes are formed during along-axis flow away from regions of diapiric upwelling at propagating ridge segments. Hybrid dikes provide a potentially powerful kinematic indicator and strain recorder and define a previously unrecognized mechanism of melt migration. Our calculations show that hybrid dikes require less melt pressure to form than purely tensile dikes and thus may provide a mechanism to tap melt reservoirs that are under-pressurized with respect to lithostatic pressure. 相似文献