Three-Dimensional Magmatic Architecture of a Buried Shield Volcano
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https://doi.org/10.1130/G47941.1 Manuscript received 22 January 2020 Revised manuscript received 24 August 2020 Manuscript accepted 29 August 2020 © 2020 The Authors. Gold Open Access: This paper is published under the terms of the CC-BY license. Published online 12 October 2020 Inside the volcano: Three-dimensional magmatic architecture of a buried shield volcano Faye Walker1*, Nick Schofield1, John Millett1,2, Dave Jolley1, Simon Holford3, Sverre Planke2,4, Dougal A. Jerram4,5 and Reidun Myklebust6 1 Geology and Petroleum Geology, University of Aberdeen, Aberdeen AB24 3UE, UK 2 Volcanic Basin Petroleum Research, Blindernveien 5, N-0361 Oslo, Norway 3 Australian School of Petroleum, University of Adelaide, Adelaide, South Australia 5000, Australia 4 Centre for Earth Evolution and Dynamics (CEED), University of Oslo, N-0315 Oslo, Norway 5 DougalEARTH Ltd., Solihull B91 3NU, UK 6 TGS, Asker N-1386, Norway ABSTRACT its magma chamber have never been imaged in The nature and growth of magmatic plumbing systems are of fundamental importance detail before. to igneous geology. Traditionally, magma chambers have been viewed as rapidly emplaced Magma chambers have traditionally been bodies of molten rock or partially crystallized “magma mush” connected to the surface viewed as large, long-lived, geometrically sim- by a narrow cylindrical conduit (referred to as the “balloon-and-straw” model). Recent ple bodies of molten rock, which are emplaced data suggest, however, that magma chambers beneath volcanoes are formed incrementally rapidly and slowly crystallize to form plutons through amalgamation of smaller intrusions. Here we present the first high-resolution three- (Glazner et al., 2004; Annen et al., 2015; Jerram dimensional reconstruction of an ancient volcanic plumbing system as a large laccolithic and Bryan, 2018; Sparks et al., 2019). These complex. By integrating seismic reflection and gravity data, we show that the∼ 200 km3 chambers are typically depicted as being con- laccolith appears to have formed through partial amalgamation of smaller intrusions. The nected to the surface by a vertical cylindrical complex appears to have fed both surface volcanism and an extensive sill network beneath conduit allowing for movement and eruption the volcanic edifice. Numerous sills are imaged within the volcanic conduit, indicating that of magma, commonly known as the “balloon- magma stalled at various levels during its ascent. Our results reveal for the first time the and-straw” model (i.e., a large balloon-like entire multicomponent plumbing system within a large ancient shield volcano. magma chamber and a narrow straw-like con- duit; Jerram and Bryan, 2018). There is little INTRODUCTION commonly missing. Although careful recon- geophysical evidence for large melt-dominated Extensive study of modern shield volca- struction of eroded plutons based on detailed magma chambers in active volcanic areas, how- noes, e.g., in Hawaii and Iceland, has provided field mapping (e.g., Mattsson et al., 2018) has ever, causing researchers to propose that large detailed understanding of surface processes proven useful, the fundamental limits of surface magma bodies are transient and that magmatic associated with basaltic volcanism (Moore and exposure cannot be circumvented by fieldwork systems are instead dominated by partially crys- Clague, 1992; Valentine and Gregg, 2008; Cash- alone. Previous studies have attempted to image talline “magma mush” with small melt fractions man and Sparks, 2013). However, knowledge of magma chambers using seismic tomography (Glazner et al., 2004; Annen et al., 2015; Sparks the internal three-dimensional (3-D) structure (e.g., Bushenkova et al., 2019), and while such et al., 2019). An emerging view is that magma of volcanic edifices and how this influences the data can indicate locations and approximate vol- chambers are emplaced incrementally via amal- storage and transport of magma within plumbing umes of large magma bodies, the low spatial gamation of numerous smaller intrusions into systems is comparatively poor. This is because resolution (typically several kilometers) means a single body, so that at any one time, only a these systems cannot be observed directly and that detailed geometries and melt distributions small fraction of the chamber is molten (Glazner are generally studied through incomplete eroded remain poorly constrained (Sparks et al., 2019). et al., 2004; Menand, 2011; Michaut and Jau- outcrops (e.g., Chambers and Pringle, 2001; Seismic reflection data (with typical vertical and part, 2011; Annen et al., 2015; Morgan, 2018). Westerman et al., 2004; Emeleus and Bell, 2005; lateral resolutions of tens of meters) enable The focus of this study is the Erlend vol- Galland et al., 2018). Such exposures commonly visualization of this detail (e.g., Bischoff et al., cano, a polygenetic shield volcano in the north- provide a limited view of the inner workings of 2017). However, although intrusive complexes eastern Faroe-Shetland Basin (Fig. 1), which is the volcanic system, with most of the structure within sedimentary basins (Cartwright and Han- now buried by ∼1100 m of sedimentary strata. remaining buried and inaccessible, and key fea- sen, 2006; Schofield et al., 2015) and melt lenses This is one of numerous volcanoes that erupted tures, such as the conduit and chamber contacts, beneath active seafloor spreading centers (e.g., along the pre-rift northeastern Atlantic margin Arnulf et al., 2014) have previously been imaged (Ritchie et al., 2011, p. 222–228) between ca. 62 using seismic data, the fossilized plumbing sys- and 55 Ma. Unlike many ancient volcanoes, it *E-mail: [email protected] tem associated with a large volcanic center and has been drilled at three locations ( hydrocarbon CITATION: Walker, F., et al., 2021, Inside the volcano: Three-dimensional magmatic architecture of a buried shield volcano: Geology, v. 49, p. 243–247, https://doi.org/10.1130/G47941.1 Geological Society of America | GEOLOGY | Volume 49 | Number 3 | www.gsapubs.org 243 Downloaded from http://pubs.geoscienceworld.org/gsa/geology/article-pdf/49/3/243/5236731/243.pdf by guest on 30 September 2021 METHODS 25 km Erlend -10 The first part of this study consisted of 0 volcanic B 6 detailed seismic interpretation of the Erlend 20 center Faroe 40 edifice and its plumbing system using a 3-D seis- West 2 Islands 60 Figure 1. (A) Map of the mic volume covering an area of ∼2000 km . The 60 Erlend 80 Shetland Faroe-Shetland Basin, second part of the study used 2-D gravity model- showing location of study Figs. ing to determine the nature and geometry of the 2 and 4 area in B. (B) Free-air grav- laccolithic complex. The gravity response was ity anomaly over Erlend POV of C volcano. Black line shows modeled for three different scenarios and com- UK -40 mGal +90 edifice outline; white line pared to the observed free-air gravity anomaly AB0 N shows locations of Fig- over the volcano. For further details and expla- Crater-like ures 2 and 4; box shows nation, see the Supplemental Material. C depression location of C (POV—point Planate of view). White dots rep- surface STRUCTURE OF THE ERLEND Onlapping resent wells penetrating tabular lava the edifice: 209/04-1A EDIFICE flows (top), 209/03-1 (left), and The Erlend volcano is an elliptical dome with 209/09-1 (bottom). (C) a diameter of 30–50 km (Fig. 1C). The volcano Oblique view of the Erlend edifice, showing flanks comprise numerous subaerially erupted root mean square (RMS) compound lava flows that dip radially away from amplitude of the top of the the crest (Fig. 2). The edifice is onlapped on all High basalt surface. sides except the eastern side by a package of e d u t tabular lava flows originating from a fissure to i l Edifice edge p m the west of the volcano. Packages of clinoforms a S build radially outward at the edifice margins, 10 km M N R Low interpreted as subaqueous hyaloclastite deltas formed due to lava flowing into a body of water. exploration wells 209/03-1 (drilled in 1980 by volcano (Erlend; Fig. 1C; Fig. S1 in the Supple- The volcanic sequence is as much as ∼1 km Mobil North Sea Ltd.), 209/04-1a (drilled in mental Material1) and its magmatic plumbing sys- thick at the crest of the volcano and thins toward 1985 by North Sea Sun Oil Company Ltd.), and tem, revealed by careful seismic mapping. The its edges (Fig. 2), with an estimated volume 209/09-1 (drilled in 1979–1980 by the British plumbing system comprises a large laccolithic of ∼400 km3. The crest has been extensively National Oil Corporation; Fig. 1B), providing complex that appears to feed hundreds of seismi- eroded, resulting in a planate surface ∼100 km2 good subsurface constraints for seismic inter- cally resolvable, radially distributed sills (similar in area (Figs. 1C and 2). Extending the pre- pretation. The wells reveal varying thicknesses to examples in the Henry Mountains, Utah, USA; served flanks of the volcanic edifice upward of basaltic lava and hyaloclastite interbedded Johnson and Pollard, 1973) and a conduit struc- suggests that the thickness of material removed with siltstones and mudstones, underlain by ture containing numerous stacked sills. by erosion may be as much as ∼600–700 m Paleocene and Cretaceous sedimentary rocks (Fig. 2). containing abundant mafic and felsic intrusions 1Supplemental Material. Detailed methodology, (Kanaris-Sotiriou et al., 1993; Ridd, 1983; Jolley Video S1 (volcanic edifice and plumbing system MAGMATIC PLUMBING SYSTEM and Bell, 2002). in 3-D), and Figures S2–S6. Please visit https://doi Sedimentary strata beneath the Erlend vol- .org/10.1130/GEOL.S.12990923 to access the supple- In this study, we present the first high-reso- mental material, and contact [email protected] cano are heavily intruded, containing >300 seis- lution 3-D seismic images of a subsurface shield with any questions.