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Origin of the Oceanic Lithosphere |
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| Authors: | Presnall Dean C; Gudfinnsson Gudmundur H |
| Institution: | 1Department of Geosciences, University of Texas at Dallas, Po Box 830688, Richardson, TX 75083-1305, USA 2Geophysical Laboratory, 5251 Broad Branch Road, NW, Washington, DC 20015, USA 3Bayerisches Geoinstitut, Universität Bayreuth, D-95440 Bayreuth, GermanY |
| Abstract: | In a global examination of mid-ocean ridge basalt (MORB) glasscompositions, we find that Na8–Fe8–depth variationsdo not support modeling of MORBs as aggregates of melt compositionsgenerated over a large range of temperature and pressure. However,the Na8–Fe8 variations are consistent with the compositionalsystematics of solidus melts in the plagioclase–spinellherzolite transition in the CaO–MgO–Al2O3–SiO2–Na2O–FeO(CMASNF) system. For natural compositions, the P–T rangefor melt extraction is estimated to be  1·2–1·5GPa and 1250–1280°C. This P–T range is a closematch with the maximum P–T conditions for explosive pressure-releasevaporization of carbonate-bearing melts. It is proposed thatfracturing of the lithosphere induces explosive formation andescape of CO2 vapor. This provides the vehicle for extractionof MORBs at a relatively uniform T and P. The upper portionof the CO2-bearing and slightly melted seismic low-velocityzone flows toward the ridge, rises at the ridge axis to lower-lithospheredepths, melts much more extensively during this rise, and releasesMORB melts to the surface driven by explosively escaping CO2vapor. The residue and overlying crust produced by this meltingthen migrate away from the ridge axis as new oceanic lithosphere.The entire process of oceanic lithosphere creation involvesonly the upper 140 km. When lithospheric stresses shift fractureformation to other localities, escape of CO2 ceases, the vehiclefor transporting melt to the surface disappears, and ridgesdie. Inverse correlations of Na8 vs Fe8 for MORB glasses areexplained by mantle heterogeneity, and positive variations superimposedon the inverse variations are consistent with progressive extractionof melts from short, ascending melting columns. The uniformlylow temperatures of MORB extraction are not consistent withthe existence of hot plumes on or close to ocean ridges. Inthis modeling, the southern Atlantic mantle from Bouvet to about26°N is relatively homogeneous, whereas the Atlantic mantlenorth of about 26°N shows significant long-range heterogeneity.The mantle between the Charlie Gibbs and Jan Mayen fracturezones is strongly enriched in FeO/MgO, perhaps by a trappedfragment of basaltic crust. Iceland is explained as the productof this enrichment, not a hot plume. The East Pacific Rise,Galapagos Ridge, Gorda Ridge, and Juan de Fuca Ridge samplemantle that is heterogeneous over short distances. The mantlebeneath the Red Sea is enriched in FeO/MgO relative to the mantlebeneath the northern Indian Ocean. |
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