PHYSICAL PROPERTIES of ANORTHOCLASE from ANTARCTICA1 Eucbnb L. Bouobrre and Anrnun B. Fono, U.S. Geological, Surtey, Washington

Total Page:16

File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb

PHYSICAL PROPERTIES of ANORTHOCLASE from ANTARCTICA1 Eucbnb L. Bouobrre and Anrnun B. Fono, U.S. Geological, Surtey, Washington THE AMERICAN MINERALOGIST. VOL 51, SEPTEMBER OCTOBER, 1966 PHYSICAL PROPERTIES OF ANORTHOCLASE FROM ANTARCTICA1 EucBNB L. BouoBrrE ANDAnrnun B. Fono, U.S. Geological,Surtey, Washington,D. C. and' Menlo Park, ColiJornio. Assrnnc't The lattice parameters of anorthoclase [OrrszAbza:Anro r(mol per cent)] from the Crary Mountains, and anorthoclase lOrrosAbonsAnraa(molpercent)] from Cape Royds,Ross Island, Antarctica, have been determined from r-ray diffractometer patterns by a least- squares cell refinement program. Chemical and spectrographic analyses and optical data are also furnished from the feldspar and Quaternary alkaline trachytes in which they occur. The Cape Royds feldspar is markedly higher in An content than any anorthoclase in which lattice parameters have been determined Both suites of new data compare favorably with data from other modern rn'ork, considering that difierent methods of measurement are involved. The antarctic anorthoclase is believed to be highly disordered and it difiers optically from average anorthoclase by higher indices of refraction and 2V. The Cape Royds rock which bears the anorthoclase contains 7 4 per cent normative nepheline which is manifested by sodalite(?) in the mode. The partitioning of sodium to the sodalite is believed to be re- sponsible for the unusually high An content of the Cape Royds feldspar, although the latter is not predictedin the norm. INrnonucrror.t The composition, optical properties, and lattice parameters of an- orthoclasefrom the Crary Ilountains, West Antarctica (lat. 76005'S.; long. 118o15'W.)and from Cape Royds, Ross Island, East Antarctica lat. 77o30'S.;long. 166o15'E.)(Fig. 1) havebeen determined as part of a study of Quaternaryrhomb porphyry trach-vtesassociated in an antarctic alkaline basalt-trachyte province. The crystals occur as conspicuous phenocrystsin trachyte flows that were first describedin detail on Ross Island by Prior (1907)and subsequentlyaroused considerable interest for their comparisonto kenyte of the African Rift. Thesephenocrysts have beenclassified variousl.v as anorthoclaseor plagioclasein antarctic litera- ture (seefor exampleDavid and Priestlv,l9l4; Jensen,1916; Woolnough, 1916;Smith, 1954; and Treves,1962). The present work was undertaken to clarify the nature of thesefeld- sparsand to comparethem to the ternary feldsparsrecently described by Carmichael and I,IacKen zie (.1964). Trachyte from the Crary ltlountains was coilectedin 1959by Boudette as a memberof the 1950-60U.S. B1'rdlitndOversnow Traverse. The Cape Ro.vdstrachyte was collectedin 1961by Ford and J. X'I. Aaron in con- junction with specialfield studiesof the occurrenceof the trachyte. 1 Publication authorized by the Director, U.S GeologicalSurvey. 1374 A NTA RCTI CA A NORTHOCLAS D 1375 Frc. 1. Index map of Antarctica showing extent of Quaternary alkaline basalt-trachyte province and anorthoclase trachyte localities (l). Anorthoclase from locality "S" (at Mt. Sidley, Executive Committee Range) is not specifically described. Mnrnoos AND SAMPLES Neither of the samples has been previously aualyzed chemically or studied structurally. However, Carmichael and MacKenzie (1964, p. 950-957, sample No. 8) describeanorthoclase from the summit of Mt. Erebus on RossIsland, Antarctica (Fig. 1, Table 1) that is comparable in occurrence.The occurrence,chemical analysis, texture and mor- phology of Mt. Erebusfeldspar have beenreported by Mountain (1925) and Jensen (1916)I Carmichael and MacKenzie do not specify which sample was used in their work. Calculations of the theoretical feldspar molecules from the analyses weremade on the basisof 32 oxygens(Deer, et al,.1963, p. 106-107).We assumedthat Ba substitutesfor K, and Sr for Ca, but have not computed Cn and Fs1s.yin the theoreticalmolecule (Table 1). The chemicalanalyses, modes and norms of the rocks containing the feldsparsdescribed herein are given in Table 2. Crary X,Iountainssample 'fanr,r 1. Cnnurclr, AN.rr,vsrs rN Worcnt Pon CrNr ,tNo Ca.r,cur,areu Couposrrrolt or ANontnocr,ASE lRoM ANrancucA Mt. craryMts, ?0" T?d'i Summit Erebus, Ross Island BrB_8 ^"Ti:i"" No 8z SiOs 65.4 628 65 23 62.79 62.49 60 83 AlzOa 21 3 222 20 68 22 1,2 21 86 23 92 Fero3 10 .18 20 36 .30 11 FeO .10 .20 ,41 t3\ 214 Meo 10 U5 00 16 07 CaO 20 37 .87 376 374 339 BaO .15* 18 SrO 071 .15* .22 Naro 82 1a 845 735 7 20 6.11, KzO 2.6 2.8 378 298 326 296 HrO+ .12 28 26 .19 04 07 HzO- .00 00 06 07 00 t2 TiOr 05 l5 .36 PrOr 07 .06 MnO 00 00 Total 996 99 93 100 03 100 36 100 08 Number of iors on the basis of 32 (0)6 Si 11 .5804 tr 2771 11 6686 tt 257 rr 211 to 9289 AI + 4409 4 6961 4 3583 4 623 5 0657 Fe+r 0213 021.5 .02l5 0 048 0 0,+1 0.0215 Ti 0107 0216 0 0539 Mg .0319 .0107 0 043 0 0216 Fe+r 0106 .o323 0 061 0.196 0 32J3 Na 2.8048 2 4988 2 9198 2 554 2 504 2 1i40 Ca .3825 .7109 1718 722 .719 .6575 Sr 0215 K 5950 6462 .8588 681 .746 6682 Ba 0107 >z 16 0533 16 0163 16 048,1 t5 98 t6 07 16 07 )w 3 8248 3 898q 3 9826 402 401 380 or) 16.8 21 8 170 186 193 eu!,uaZ, 74 2 648 73.3 635 62+ 61 7 A"J 10 1 184 49 195 190 190 1 5308 1 5372 1 536 1.536 p 1 5364 1 5416 I 539 1 539 ^l 1 5380 1 5430 I 541 1 541 2Ya7 559 593 61 6" 61 6' 2YaB 53 2" 61 9 62" 62" Ext. on {010J 6'-7" 2.6" sp gr 2 50** 2 620 2 .620 r Chemical analysis by Paul Elmore, Sam Botts, Gillison Chloe, Lowell Artis, and H Smith by *-ray fluo- rescencemethods supplemented by methods describedby Shapiro and Brannock (1962), 2 SpecimenNo 8 of Carmichaeland MacKenzie (196,1,p. 950 Table 1). s "Potash-oligoclase,Type 1" of Mountain (1925,p 336); Analyst: E D Mountain Theoreticalmolecule fuomDeer el al,-(1963, p 42) I "Potash-oligoclase,Type 1" of Mountain (1925,p 336); Analyst; E. D. Mountain. Theoreticalmolecule fuomDeer et al (1963 p a2) s "Anorthoclase"of Jensen(1916, p. 122);Analysts: G E Burrous and A B Walkom 6 Af ter the method ol Deer,et al,. (1963, p 106-107). 7 CalculatedJrom refractiveindices. 3 Direct optical measurementmethods BTB-8 and FR 1 neasuredby universalstage techniques. * Semiquantitative spectrographic analysis by J L Harris Results are reported in percent to the nearest number in the series1, 0,7, 0 .5,0 3, O 2, O 1.5,and 0 1, etc ; which representapproximate midpoints of group data on a geometric scale The assigned group for semiquantitative results will include the quantitative value about 30ol of the time N ol included in analysis summation *t Determined with specific gravity bottle and toluene by Blanche Ingram Precision t 0 05. A N T A RCT I CA A NORT IIOC L.4 S E Tegt-n 2. Cnrurcar, AN.a.r,vsrs, Nonus, Moors, ,qlu SnlrrQuaNTrrATrvE SpBcteocnlpntc ANalvsn's op ANtanctrc ANonruocle.ss Tn.qcnvtns Field No BTB-8 FR-1 Plagioclase* o7 Lab. No 159615 163086 Clinopyroxene* <03 13 Olivine* 03 04 Chemical analysesr Ore minerals* o2 tl "K-Ieldspal"*x 30 21. SiOz 57 6 559 Plagioclase*+ 104 14 5 AlsOa 18 3 198 Orthopyroxene Sp FezOa 38 19 Clinopyroxene** Sp l'eO 28 3.5 Olivine** Sp Sp Meo 77 l2 Amphibole** Sp CaO 19 3.0 Apatite Tr Tr Naro 73 Calcite Tr K:O .35 39 "Iddingsits"*x Tr Tr HzO .81 13 "Zeoli.tes'' 01 HOf .96 ..53 Glass** sp-A TlOr 12 Ore minerals** Sp spA Pror .30 13 (A*Sp*Tr) 54i 126 MnO 24 I4 Estimated /6 An in COz <05 < .05 gloundmass plagioclase (:2s) (2s) Sum r00 -trace A : major component, Sp :5p21.", 1t amount Powder density by air * Reported as phenocryst, may also be in groundmass pycnometer 269 if indicated. ** Groundmass constituent C.I P W Norms Semiquantitative spectrographic analyses3 Orthoclase 21 1 228 AIbite .tn / 498 B 0007 .0007 Anorthite 70 Ba .15 t Nepheline 26 Be .000.5 0007 Corundum 10 Ce .o7 .o7 00.)7 |,*o 041 Co Diooside{ En 0.210. 7 Cu 001 0007 i- 0.rJ 003 003 )-" 03 lro 1 3l 'rr"\n La .02 Olivine j 12.1 ' Mo 0007 .001 01.5 IFu 0.8J Nb 01 Magnetite 28 Nd .02 03 Ilmenite 23 Sc 000.5 .0005 Hematite Sr 05 15 Apatite :; 30 V 002 Y 00.5 005 Sum Yb 000.5 .0005 2t115 Modes (volume per cent)2 Looked for, but not found: Ag, As, Au, Bi, Cd, Cr, Eu, Ge, Hi, Hg, In, Li, Ni, Pb, Pd, Pt, Pr, Re, Sb, Anorthoclase* 31.0 333 Sm, Sn, Ta, Te, Th, Tl, U, W, Zn, Pr I BTB-8, Crary Mountains, West Antarctica; FR-1, Cape Royds, Ross Island, Ross Archipellago, Antarc- tica. Analysts: Paul Dlmore, Samuel Botts, Gillison Chloe Analyzed by methods similar to those described by Shapiro and Brannock (1962) r The ratios of phenocrysts to groundmass in the trachyte were made by a macroscopic grid counting of sawed slabs; groundmass modes were point counted microscopically by the Chayes nethod and then combined with the macroscopiccount and recalculated as the reported rock modes. a Analyst: J. L. Harris. Resultsare reported,in per cent, to the nearestnumber in the series1,0 7,0 5, 0 3, 0.2, 0.15, and 0 1, etc ; which represent approximate midpoints of group data on a geometric scale The assigned group for semiquantitative results will include the quantitative value about 3016 of the time.
Recommended publications
  • Petrographic and Field Characteristics of Marie Byrd Land Volcanic Rocks Volcanic Rocks of the Ross Island Area
    References flows in the basal sequences, but ultramafic nodules Cast, Paul W., G. R. Tilton, and Carl Hedge. 1964. Iso- are much more common in the parasitic cones. Most topic composition of lead and strontium from Ascension of the nodules examined contain about 50 percent and Cough Islands. Science, 145(3637): 1181-1185. olivine, plus variable proportions of orthopvroxene, Halpern, M. 1968. Ages of antarctic and Argentine rocks clinopyroxene, and a brown garnet tentativel y identi- bearing on continental drift. Earth and Planetary Science Letters, 5: 159-167. fied as melanite. Harrington, H. J . 1958. Nomenclature of rock units in the Stratovolcanoes, many exceeding 4,000 m (13,000 Ross Sea region, Antarctica. Nature, 182(4631): 290. feet) in height, make up most of the Flood, Ames, Jones, L. M. and G. Faure. 1968. Origin of the salts in and Executive Committee Ranges, Mount Takahe, Taylor Valley. Antarctic Journal of the U.S., 111(5): Toney Mountain, and the Crary Mountains. They are 177-178. Wade, F. Alton. 1967. Geology of the Marie Byrd Land composed of trachyandesite flows and tuff breccias, coastal sector of West Antarctica. Antarctic Journal of and apparently lesser amounts of trachyte and the U.S., 11(4): 93-94. rhyolite. Mounts Waesche and Hartigan are stratovol- canoes that are exceptional in that each is composed of a large proportion of basalt. The trachyandesites are rich in olivine and soda-iron pyroxene, which may be found in the groundmass or as phenocrysts. Some Petrographic and Field Characteristics of these rocks carry modal nepheline and socialite. of Marie Byrd Land Volcanic Rocks Feldspar phenocrysts in the trachyandesites are most commonly anorthoclase, similar to that described by \VESLEY E.
    [Show full text]
  • Geological Survey Research 1961 Synopsis of Geologic and Hydrologic Results
    Geological Survey Research 1961 Synopsis of Geologic and Hydrologic Results GEOLOGICAL SURVEY PROFESSIONAL PAPER 424-A Geological Survey Research 1961 THOMAS B. NOLAN, Director GEOLOGICAL SURVEY PROFESSIONAL PAPER 424 A synopsis ofgeologic and hydrologic results, accompanied by short papers in the geologic and hydrologic sciences. Published separately as chapters A, B, C, and D UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE, WASHINGTON : 1961 FOEEWOED The Geological Survey is engaged in many different kinds of investigations in the fields of geology and hydrology. These investigations may be grouped into several broad, inter­ related categories as follows: (a) Economic geology, including engineering geology (b) Eegional geologic mapping, including detailed mapping and stratigraphic studies (c) Eesource and topical studies (d) Ground-water studies (e) Surface-water studies (f) Quality-of-water studies (g) Field and laboratory research on geologic and hydrologic processes and principles. The Geological Survey also carries on investigations in its fields of competence for other Fed­ eral agencies that do not have the required specialized staffs or scientific facilities. Nearly all the Geological Survey's activities yield new data and principles of value in the development or application of the geologic and hydrologic sciences. The purpose of this report, which consists of 4 chapters, is to present as promptly as possible findings that have come to the fore during the fiscal year 1961 the 12 months ending June 30, 1961. The present volume, chapter A, is a synopsis of the highlights of recent findings of scientific and economic interest. Some of these findings have been published or placed on open file during the year; some are presented in chapters B, C, and D ; still others have not been pub­ lished previously.
    [Show full text]
  • Combined Sr, Nd, Pb and Li Isotope Geochemistry of Alkaline Lavas from Northern James Ross Island (Antarctic Peninsula) and Implications for Back-Arc Magma Formation
    Chemical Geology 258 (2009) 207–218 Contents lists available at ScienceDirect Chemical Geology journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/chemgeo Combined Sr, Nd, Pb and Li isotope geochemistry of alkaline lavas from northern James Ross Island (Antarctic Peninsula) and implications for back-arc magma formation J. Košler a,b,⁎, T. Magna a,b,c,1,B.Mlčoch b, P. Mixa b, D. Nývlt b, F.V. Holub d a Centre for Geobiology and Department of Earth Science, University of Bergen, Allegaten 41, N-5007 Bergen, Norway b Czech Geological Survey, Klárov 3, CZ-118 21 Prague 1, Czech Republic c Institute of Mineralogy and Geochemistry, University of Lausanne, CH-1015 Lausanne, Switzerland d Department of Petrology and Structural Geology, Charles University, Albertov 6, CZ-128 43 Prague 2, Czech Republic article info abstract Article history: We present a comprehensive geochemical data set for a suite of back-arc alkaline volcanic rocks from James Received 26 February 2008 Ross Island Volcanic Group (JRIVG), Antarctic Peninsula. The elemental and isotopic (Sr, Nd, Pb and Li) Received in revised form 3 October 2008 composition of these Cenozoic basalts emplaced east of the Antarctic Peninsula is different from the Accepted 3 October 2008 compositions of the fore-arc alkaline volcanic rocks in Southern Shetlands and nearby Bransfield Strait. The Editor: R.L. Rudnick variability in elemental and isotopic composition is not consistent with the JRIVG derivation from a single mantle source but rather it suggests that the magma was mainly derived from a depleted mantle with Keywords: subordinate OIB-like enriched mantle component (EM II).
    [Show full text]
  • Evidence for Elevated and Spatially Variable Geothermal Flux Beneath the West Antarctic Ice Sheet
    Evidence for elevated and spatially variable geothermal flux beneath the West Antarctic Ice Sheet Dustin M. Schroeder1, Donald D. Blankenship, Duncan A. Young, and Enrica Quartini Institute for Geophysics, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX 78758 Edited by Mark H. Thiemens, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, and approved May 8, 2014 (received for review March 19, 2014) Heterogeneous hydrologic, lithologic, and geologic basal boundary sounding survey (11). To date, the use of radar sounding data to conditions can exert strong control on the evolution, stability, constrain melt rates has been limited to the interpretation of and sea level contribution of marine ice sheets. Geothermal flux bed echo strengths (6, 18) to infer basal water or radar layer is one of the most dynamically critical ice sheet boundary con- drawdown to infer melted ice loss at the bed (19). However, ditions but is extremely difficult to constrain at the scale required the interpretation of layer drawdown relies on the existence, to understand and predict the behavior of rapidly changing persistence, and interpretability of layers in radar sounding pro- glaciers. This lack of observational constraint on geothermal files as well as constrained accumulation rates (19). Further, the flux is particularly problematic for the glacier catchments of strength of bed echoes is affected by a combination of the the West Antarctic Ice Sheet within the low topography of the material and geometric properties of the ice sheet and bed West Antarctic Rift System where geothermal fluxes are ex- which introduce ambiguities in quantitative echo interpretation pected to be high, heterogeneous, and possibly transient.
    [Show full text]
  • The Ohio State University Research Foundation Report 825-1-Pt
    THE OHIO STATE UNIVERSITY RESEARCH FOUNDATION 1314 KINNEAR ROAD COLUMBUS 12, OHIO USHC-IGY ANTARCTIC GLACIOLOGICAL DATA FIELD WORK 1958 AND 1959 (The Petrography of Some Rocks From Marie Byrd Land, Antarctica) Report 825-2-Part VIII IGJf Project No. if.10 NSF Grant No. Y/k.U0/2&5 V. H. Anderson September i960 USNC-IGY ANTARCTIC GLACIOLOGICAL DATA Report Number 2: Field Work 1958-59 Part VIII THE PETROGRAPHY OF SOME ROCKS FROM MARIE BYRD LAND, ANTARCTICA by V. H. ANDERSON The Ohio State University- Research Foundation Columbus 12, Ohio Project 825, Report No. 2, Part VIII Submitted to the U. 8. National Committee for the IGY National Academy of Sciences, in partial fulfillment of IGY Project Number J+.10 - NSF Grant No. Y/lf.lO/285 September i960 Bock specimens tram. newly-^sc©¥ered •nantain Masses and nunataks in ffarie Ejyrd land, Antarctica, are described. FOOT chemLcai analyses of ¥olasyiie rocdts frai 1ft. Dnkahe are presented- The volcanic Identified, as oUgpclase aodesite, reflect a fflargl^al-contlmental ren.ce, typical of the drcum-Baelfic Pet.rr>grapMc, llthologic^ ass£L structural evidence suggest that the Sentinel MbimtalBS straetare can be extended for about 200 miles sootli­ westimrd, to Mt. Jcims and Ifi;. Siting. Detailed pet:rograpMc descriptions of 80 thin sectioDS are presented. il CONTENTS Page Introduction 1 Mt. Takahe I Megascopic description 6 Microscopic description 6 Chemical character of four volcanic rocks 6 Similar rock types in the area vest of Mt. Takahe 7 Sentinel Mountains JX> Fisher Nunatak (SF Series) 20 Larson Nunatak (SL, S3, Sk Series) 21 Mt, Johns (J Series) 21 Mt.
    [Show full text]
  • Melt Origin Across a Rifted Continental Margin: a Case for Subduction-Related Metasomatic Agents in the Lithospheric Source of A
    J OURNAL OF Journal of Petrology, 2018, Vol. 59, No. 3, 517–558 doi: 10.1093/petrology/egy036 P ETROLOGY Advance Access Publication Date: 10 April 2018 Original Article Melt Origin across a Rifted Continental Margin: a Case for Subduction-related Metasomatic Agents in the Lithospheric Source of Alkaline Basalt, NW Ross Sea, Antarctica Kurt S. Panter1*, Paterno Castillo2, Susan Krans3, Chad Deering4, William McIntosh5, John W. Valley6, Kouki Kitajima6, Philip Kyle7, Stan Hart8 and Jerzy Blusztajn8 1Department of Geology, Bowling Green State University, Bowling Green, OH 43403, USA; 2Scripps Institute of Oceanography, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, CA 92093, USA; 3Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI 48824, USA; 4Department of Geology & Mining Engineering & Sciences, Michigan Tech University, Houghton, MI 49931, USA; 5New Mexico Bureau of Geology & Mineral Resources, Socorro, NM 87801, USA; 6Department of Geoscience, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI 53706, USA; 7Department of Earth & Environmental Science, New Mexico Tech, Socorro, NM 87801, USA; 8Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, Woods Hole, MA 02543, USA *Corresponding author. Telephone: 01 419 372 7337. E-mail: [email protected] Received August 4, 2017; Accepted March 23, 2018 ABSTRACT Alkaline magmatism associated with the West Antarctic rift system in the NW Ross Sea (NWRS) includes a north–south chain of shield volcano complexes extending 260 km along the coast of Northern Victoria Land (NVL), numerous small volcanic seamounts located on the continental shelf and hundreds more within an 35 000 km2 area of the oceanic Adare Basin. New 40Ar/39Ar age dat- ing and geochemistry confirm that the seamounts are of Pliocene–Pleistocene age and petrogeneti- cally akin to the mostly middle to late Miocene volcanism on the continent, as well as to a much broader region of diffuse alkaline volcanism that encompasses areas of West Antarctica, Zealandia and eastern Australia.
    [Show full text]
  • The Geochemical Evolution of Alkaline Magmas from the Crary Mountains, Marie Byrd Land, Antarctica
    THE GEOCHEMICAL EVOLUTION OF ALKALINE MAGMAS FROM THE CRARY MOUNTAINS, MARIE BYRD LAND, ANTARCTICA SUVANKAR CHAKRABORTY A Thesis Submitted to the Graduate College of Bowling Green State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of MASTER OF SCIENCE May 2007 Committee: Kurt Panter, Advisor John Farver Thomas Wilch © 2007 Suvankar Chakraborty All Rights Reserved iii ABSTRACT Kurt Panter, Advisor Late Cenozoic alkaline volcanism in the Crary Mountains, Marie Byrd Land, Antarctica is associated with the West Antarctic rift system. More than 400 km 3 (LeMasurier et al., 1990) of alkaline magmas were erupted from four major volcanic centers. Based on previous field and dating studies the volcanism occurred between ~9 and <1 Ma and the activity migrated to the south at a rate of ~0.7 cm/yr. The Crary Mountains represent one of four ranges of volcanoes in Marie Byrd Land that show this type of age progression; younging away from the center of the province (LeMasurier and Rex, 1989; Panter et al., 2000). The volcanic deposits at the Crary Mountains consist of lavas and interbedded agglutinated scoria deposits as well as thick hydrovolcanic sequences (hyaloclastites, pillow breccia, tuff) all of which range in composition from basanite to intermediate types to phonolite, trachyte, and rhyolite. This study focuses exclusively on lava samples that are fresh and unaltered. Basaltic rocks are consisting of olivine, clinopyroxene, plagioclase and titanomagnetite phenocrysts. Phenocrysts found in intermediate to felsic compositions include of olivine, clinopyroxene, alkali amphibole, alkali and plagioclase feldspars, nepheline, apatite, titanomagnetite, and aenigmatite. Most of the phenocrysts of different rock types are either unzoned or normally zoned and disequilibrium textures are rare.
    [Show full text]
  • Argon- 4Olargon-39 Geochronology of the Crary Mountains Volcanoes, Marie Byrd Land, West Antarctica THOMAS I
    Preliminary report on field investigations and argon- 4Olargon-39 geochronology of the Crary Mountains volcanoes, Marie Byrd Land, West Antarctica THOMAS I. WILCH, WILLIAM C. MCINTOSH, KURT S. PANTER, and NELIA W. DUNBAR, Department of Geoscience, New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology, Socorro, New Mexico 87801 ield party of four geologists mapped and sampled vol- based local ice cap (McIntosh et al. 1991) at Mount Murphy in N anic outcrops in the Crary Mountains (76°45S the late Miocene. Glacially striated surfaces, located up to 900 117°00W), Marie Byrd Land, during the 1992-1993 austral meters (m) above present ice levels, have been interpreted as summer field season as part of the west antarctic volcano evidence for posteruptive overriding by the continental ice exploration (WAVE II) project. Our study objectives include sheet (McIntosh et al. 1991). The late Miocene glaciovolcanic the following: record at Mount Murphy provides a useful model for compar- • to characterize the volcanic geology by field mapping, par- ison to the Crary Mountains record. ticularly to document and date radiometrically past During November and December 1992, we mapped out- magma-ice interactions; crops on all four of the Crary Mountains volcanoes and col- • to build upon preliminary age and geochemical data from lected a total of 195 samples for petrographic, geochemical, previous studies to develop a more thorough description and 40Ar/ 39Ar dating analyses. Preliminary results from of the volcanic evolution of the Crary Mountains; and 40Ar/ 39Ar laser fusion dating analyses of anorthoclase feldspar • to place the petrogenesis of the Crary Mountains in the crystals from five felsic lava samples are presented in the table broader context of Marie Byrd Land volcanism.
    [Show full text]
  • Glaciovolcanic Evidence for a Polythermal Neogene East Antarctic Ice Sheet John L
    View metadata, citation and similar papers at core.ac.uk brought to you by CORE provided by Archivio della Ricerca - Università di Pisa Smellie/Rocchi/et al Polythermal EAIS Revised paper for Geology 1 Glaciovolcanic evidence for a polythermal Neogene East 2 Antarctic Ice Sheet 3 John L. Smellie1*, Sergio Rocchi2, Thomas I. Wilch3, Maurizio Gemelli2, Gianfranco Di 4 Vincenzo4, William McIntosh5, Nelia Dunbar5, Kurt Panter6, and Andrew Fargo5 5 1Department of Geology, University of Leicester, Leicester LE1 7RH, UK 6 2 Dipartimento di Scienze della Terra, Università di Pisa, I-56126 Pisa, Italy 7 3 Department of Geological Sciences, Albion College, Michigan 49224, USA 8 4 Istituto di Geoscienze e Georisorse, Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, I-56127, Pisa, Italy 9 5 New Mexico Geochronology Laboratory and Institute of Mining and Technology, Socorro, 10 NM 87801, USA 11 6 Department of Geology, Bowling Green State University, Ohio, 43403, USA 12 *E-mail: [email protected] 13 ABSTRACT 14 A paradigm has existed for more than 30 years that the basal thermal regime of the 15 East Antarctic Ice Sheet in Victoria Land made a fundamental transition from wet-based to 16 cold-based either at ~14 Ma or after ~2.5 Ma. Basal thermal regime is important because it 17 determines the potential for unstable behavior in an ice sheet, with profound implications for 18 global sea levels. We have studied the environmental characteristics of volcanic centers 19 scattered along 800 km of the Ross Sea flank of the Transantarctic Mountains. The volcanoes 20 were largely erupted subglacially. They preserve evidence for the coeval paleo-ice 21 thicknesses and contain features diagnostic of both wet-based and cold-based ice conditions.
    [Show full text]
  • Late Cretaceous -Neogene Volcanism on Chatham Island
    Panter et al., revised draft - 2/17/2006. The Origin of HIMU in the SW Pacific: Evidence from Intraplate Volcanism in Southern New Zealand and Subantarctic Islands K. S. PANTER 1*, J. BLUSZTAJN 2, S. R. HART 2, P. R. KYLE 3, R. ESSER 3, W. C. MCINTOSH 3 1 DEPARTMENT OF GEOLOGY, BOWLING GREEN STATE UNIVERSITY, BOWLING GREEN, OH 43403, USA 2 DEPARTMENT OF GEOLOGY & GEOPHYSICS, WOODS HOLE OCEANOGRAPHIC INSTITUTION, WOODS HOLE, MA 02543, USA 3 DEPARTMENT OF EARTH & ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE, NEW MEXICO INSTITUTE OF MINING & TECHNOLOGY, SOCORRO, NM 87801, USA ABSTRACT This paper presents field, geochemical and isotopic (Sr, Nd, Pb) results on basalts from the Antipodes, Campbell and Chatham Islands, New Zealand. New 40Ar/39Ar age determinations along with previous K-Ar dates reveal three major episodes of volcanic activity on Chatham Island (85- 82, 41-35, ~5 Ma). Chatham and Antipodes samples comprise basanite, alkali and transitional basalts that have HIMU-like isotopic (206Pb/204Pb >20.3-20.8, 87Sr/86Sr <0.7033, 143Nd/144Nd >0.5128) and trace element affinities (Ce/Pb 28-36, Nb/U 34-66, Ba/Nb 4-7). The geochemistry of transitional to Q-normative samples from Campbell Island is explained by interaction with continental crust. The volcanism is part of a long-lived (~100 Myr), low-volume, diffuse alkaline magmatic province that includes deposits on the North and South Islands as well as portions of West Antarctica and SE Australia. All of the continental areas were juxtaposed on the eastern margin of Gondwanaland at >83 Ma. A ubiquitous feature of mafic alkaline rocks from this region is their depletion in K and Pb relative to other highly incompatible elements when normalized to primitive mantle values.
    [Show full text]
  • Spatial Variation in Cenozoic Volcanism of Marie Byrd Land and Ellsworth Land
    Spatial variation in Cenozoic volcanism western Marie Byrd Land. The Cenozoic volcanic sec- of Marie Byrd Land and Ellsworth Land tion in the Jones Mountains, for example, is roughly 500 ui thick (Craddock et al., 1963), and the thickest section in the Hudson Mountains is roughly 200 m thick (field notes, 1968-1969 Ellsworth Land Survey). WESLEY E. LEMASURIER By contrast, the basalt section at Mount Murphy is University of Colorado about 2,000 m thick; in the Crary Mountains a Denver Center 1,200-rn thickness of basaltic rock is exposed; and at Toney Mountain, seismic evidence indicates that the base of the basalt section lies 3,000 m below sea level During the past decade, field and laboratory studies or about 4,000 in the exposed top of the section have brought to light several lines of evidence that (Bentley and Clough, in press). In addition to their suggest a continuity of Andean geologic features, such great thickness, preliminary studies of vesicularity sug- as Mesozoic plutonism and Cenozoic volcanism, ex- gest that the central Marie Byrd Land basalts were tending from the base of the Antarctic Peninsula erupted at much greater depths beneath ice level than across Marie Byrd Land and Ellsworth Land to the those in Ellsworth Land (e.g., Moore, 1970). The fact Ross Sea region (e.g., Halpern, 1968; LeMasurier and that these deposits are now exposed at elevations as in Wade, 1968; Craddock, in press). In this context, one much as 1,000 to 2,000 than the coastal of the major objectives of research on Marie Byrd ranges in Ellsworth Land or western Marie Byrd Land volcanism has been to examine the possibilities Land suggests that, during Cenozoic time, central for gochernical correlations with other areas of Ceno- Marie Byrd Land was much more mobile tectonically zoic volcanism in Antarctica and to relate the charac- than adjacent regions.
    [Show full text]
  • Petrographic and Field Characteristics of Marie Byrd Land Volcanic Rocks Volcanic Rocks of the Ross Island Area
    References flows in the basal sequences, but ultramafic nodules Cast, Paul W., G. R. Tilton, and Carl Hedge. 1964. Iso- are much more common in the parasitic cones. Most topic composition of lead and strontium from Ascension of the nodules examined contain about 50 percent and Cough Islands. Science, 145(3637): 1181-1185. olivine, plus variable proportions of orthopvroxene, Halpern, M. 1968. Ages of antarctic and Argentine rocks clinopyroxene, and a brown garnet tentativel y identi- bearing on continental drift. Earth and Planetary Science Letters, 5: 159-167. fied as melanite. Harrington, H. J . 1958. Nomenclature of rock units in the Stratovolcanoes, many exceeding 4,000 m (13,000 Ross Sea region, Antarctica. Nature, 182(4631): 290. feet) in height, make up most of the Flood, Ames, Jones, L. M. and G. Faure. 1968. Origin of the salts in and Executive Committee Ranges, Mount Takahe, Taylor Valley. Antarctic Journal of the U.S., 111(5): Toney Mountain, and the Crary Mountains. They are 177-178. Wade, F. Alton. 1967. Geology of the Marie Byrd Land composed of trachyandesite flows and tuff breccias, coastal sector of West Antarctica. Antarctic Journal of and apparently lesser amounts of trachyte and the U.S., 11(4): 93-94. rhyolite. Mounts Waesche and Hartigan are stratovol- canoes that are exceptional in that each is composed of a large proportion of basalt. The trachyandesites are rich in olivine and soda-iron pyroxene, which may be found in the groundmass or as phenocrysts. Some Petrographic and Field Characteristics of these rocks carry modal nepheline and socialite. of Marie Byrd Land Volcanic Rocks Feldspar phenocrysts in the trachyandesites are most commonly anorthoclase, similar to that described by \VESLEY E.
    [Show full text]