The Zarza Intrusive Complex, Baja California, Mexico

Total Page:16

File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb

The Zarza Intrusive Complex, Baja California, Mexico Structure and emplacement history of a multiple-center, cone-sheet–bearing ring complex: The Zarza Intrusive Complex, Baja California, Mexico S. E. Johnson* Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, Macquarie University, Sydney, New South Wales 2109, Australia, and Departamento de Geología, CICESE, Km 107 Carratera, Ensenada-Tijuana, Baja California, México S. R. Paterson Department of Earth Sciences, University of Southern California, California 90089-0740 M. C. Tate Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, Macquarie University, Sydney, New South Wales 2109, Australia ABSTRACT chambers and suggest that the complex may pletely accessible, and structural patterns are well have been overlain by a caldera. developed within the complex and surrounding The Cretaceous Zarza Intrusive Complex, country rocks. Thus, we were able to collect a de- located in the Peninsular Ranges of Baja Cali- INTRODUCTION tailed structural data set, and evaluate its intrusive fornia Norte, Mexico, is perhaps the best- history and emplacement mechanisms (a detailed preserved multiple-center, cone-sheet–bearing Because much of Earth’s continental crust was petrological/geochemical study of the complex ring complex documented in North America. formed and/or influenced by magmatic processes can be found in Tate et al., 1999). The complex The 7 km2 elliptical complex hosts three (e.g., Taylor and McLennan, 1985; Hamilton, consists of three nested intrusive centers, two of nested, non-concentric intrusive centers that 1989; Saleeby, 1990; Lipman, 1992; Yanagi and which contain some of the best-preserved cone are successively younger to the south. The Yamashita, 1994; Brown and Rushmer, 1997), sheets in North America. The Zarza Intrusive northern and central centers show the same the temporal and spatial evolution of magma Complex differs significantly from most other evolutionary sequence of (1) intrusion of con- plumbing systems remains one of the outstand- cone-sheet–bearing intrusive complexes in that it centric gabbroic cone sheets, (2) intrusion of ing problems in our search for a better under- is surrounded by an intense, concentric, ductile massive core gabbros, and (3) development of standing of how continents grow and evolve. deformation aureole in the adjacent country subvertical, ductile ring faults. Ring-fault kine- Particularly interesting and important parts of rocks. This aureole is intriguing, and we focus matics indicate that both centers moved down these systems are the pathways taken by magma particular attention on evaluating its formation. relative to the surrounding country rocks, sug- travelling from shallow magma chambers to vol- gesting collapse into an underlying magma canoes. Where the surface expression of magma- BACKGROUND AND DEFINITIONS chamber. The southern center is composed of tism is a caldera, the magma pathways com- approximately equal proportions of gabbro monly manifest themselves as ring complexes, In this paper we present evidence that the Zarza and tonalite and lacks cone sheets. Aluminum- which contain a wide variety of intrusive phases Intrusive Complex is a cone-sheet–bearing ring in-hornblende barometry on the tonalite indi- including cone sheets, ring dikes, and massive complex. Because ring complexes are relatively cates a maximum emplacement depth of 2.3 ± central intrusions (e.g., Richey, 1948; Smith and rarely described in recent literature, we provide 0.6 kbar. The Zarza Intrusive Complex is sur- Bailey, 1968; Lipman, 1984). Because of their the following definitions of relevant terms used in rounded by a ductile deformation aureole, and well-defined spatial and geologic context, ring this paper. These definitions partially incorporate bedding is inward dipping and inward young- complexes provide an unparalleled opportunity definitions and descriptions provided by Billings ing around the entire complex. Excellent to evaluate the evolution of subvolcanic mag- (1943), Jacobson et al. (1958), Walker (1975), and preservation of the intrusive history allowed us matic systems and upper-crustal magma-transfer Bates and Jackson (1980). to evaluate the origin of the aureole, and the zones in general. Ring Dike. A ring dike consists of a discor- three most applicable models are (1) collapse In this paper, we evaluate the intrusive history dant intrusive body that can be circular, elliptical, of the complex into its underlying magma of the shallow (2.3 ± 0.6 kbar) Zarza Intrusive polygonal, or arcuate in plan and has steeply dip- chamber, (2) sinking of the complex and its Complex, which we suggest may be the solidi- ping to subvertical contacts. Widths are variable, chamber after solidification, and (3) formation fied remains of a magma-transfer zone between a but can reach up to several thousand meters, and of the aureole prior to emplacement of the caldera and its underlying magma chamber. The rock types are generally felsic. The first descrip- complex. The preserved structural and intru- Zarza Intrusive Complex is located in the western tion of a ring dike in relation to a collapsed caul- sive relationships provide information on the Peninsular Ranges batholith of Baja California dron was made at Glen Coe by Clough et al. dynamic evolution of subvolcanic magma Norte, Mexico (Fig. 1), where it intruded calc- (1909), but the term “ring-dyke” was first used by alkalic volcanogenic rocks of the Alisitos Forma- Bailey (1914). *E-mail: [email protected]. tion. The complex is relatively small and com- Cone Sheet. A cone sheet is a discordant intru- GSA Bulletin; April 1999; v. 111; no. 4; p. 607–619; 15 figures; 1 table. 607 Downloaded from http://pubs.geoscienceworld.org/gsa/gsabulletin/article-pdf/111/4/607/3383223/i0016-7606-111-4-607.pdf by guest on 30 September 2021 JOHNSON ET AL. sive body that is arcuate in plan and has variably inward-dipping contacts. Collectively, a swarm of cone sheets can be circular or elliptical in plan. Thicknesses are highly variable; mafic sheets sel- dom reach more than a few tens of meters, whereas felsic sheets can reach widths greater than 60 m. Cone sheets were first described in the Cuillin district of Skye by Harker (1904), who called them “inclined sheets.” The term “cone- sheets” was later introduced by Bailey et al. (1924), reflecting the fact that they are generally of conical form surrounding intrusive centers. Ring Complex. A ring complex is a general term used to describe an intrusive complex that contains cone sheets and/or ring dikes. Com- plexes containing only cone sheets or ring dikes are occasionally called cone-sheet complexes and ring-dike complexes, respectively. Ring complexes have long been thought to represent transitional links between calderas and their un- derlying magma chambers (e.g., Williams, 1941; Richey, 1948; Turner, 1963; Smith and Bailey, 1968; Oftedahl, 1978). Ring Zone. The part of a ring complex that contains cone sheets and/or ring dikes is termed the ring zone. Notable Occurrences of Ring Complexes Figure 1. Reconnaissance geology of the Peninsular Ranges batholith in Baja California Norte, Well over 100 ring complexes have been de- Mexico, between La Calentura and Bahia Camalu. The black rectangle in the lefthand box (see scribed around the world, but most of them lack arrow) shows the location of the main map. The Zarza Intrusive Complex is located in the south- cone sheets and are defined as ring complexes on central part of the main map, which shows Mesozoic plutons and intrusive complexes in the west- the basis of ring dikes and arcuate intrusions. No- ern and eastern belts. Differences between the belts, summarized above the map, are based on in- table examples of cone-sheet–bearing ring com- formation from Gastil et al. (1975, 1990, 1991), Walawender et al. (1990), Gromet and Silver plexes have been previously described in (1) the (1987), Silver and Chappell (1988), and Rothstein (1997). Geology after Gastil et al. (1975) and British Tertiary intrusive centers of Mull, Ardna- this study. murchan, Skye, southern Arran, and Carlingford (e.g., Richey, 1932, 1948; Walker, 1975); (2) the (Gastil et al., 1981; Silver and Chappell, 1988; General Description and Rock Types Georgetown Inlier of Queensland, Australia Todd et al., 1988; Walawender et al., 1990). A (Branch, 1966); (3) the Baie-des-Moutons syenitic semicontinuous, well-exposed oblique section The northern intrusive center is composed of complex of Quebec, Canada (Lalonde and Martin, occurs across the batholith in Baja California variably distinct, concentric, fine- to medium- 1983); (4) the Mediterranean island of Corsica Norte (Fig. 1), with shallow-level rocks exposed grained cone sheets with anorthositic gabbro (Bonin, 1986); (5) the Younger Granite province of in the west and middle-crustal rocks from compositions (Streckeisen, 1976). The sheets, northern Nigeria (Jacobson et al., 1958); and depths as great as ~20 km (Rothstein, 1997) ex- which intruded volcanogenic country rocks, vary (6) the Canary Islands (Schmincke, 1967). posed in the east. The Zarza Intrusive Complex in width from ~0.1–10 m, lack chilled margins, is located in the western belt, ~25 km from the strike subparallel to the margins of the center, and GEOLOGIC SETTING west coast (Fig. 1). have an average inward dip of ~65°. Individual sheets vary markedly in length, and some of the The Zarza Intrusive Complex occurs in the ZARZA INTRUSIVE COMPLEX wider ones are continuous for at least several hun- Jurassic to Cretaceous Peninsular Ranges bath- dred meters around the center. Two coarser- olith, which extends ~1600 km from Riverside, The Zarza Intrusive Complex consists of grained units of modally similar anorthositic gab- California, USA, to the southern tip of the Baja three discrete intrusive centers (Fig. 2), which bro (G1 and G2, Fig. 2) intruded much of the ring California peninsula, Mexico (Fig. 1; Todd we describe below in terms of rock types, zone. G1 commonly occurs as lenticular intru- et al., 1994). The batholith is divisible into west- crosscutting relationships, chronology, barom- sions elongated subparallel to the margins of the ern and eastern belts on the basis of several cri- etry, and structural patterns.
Recommended publications
  • Volume Lateral Magma Transport from the Mull Volcano: 10.1002/2016GC006712 an Insight to Magma Chamber Processes
    PUBLICATIONS Geochemistry, Geophysics, Geosystems RESEARCH ARTICLE Large-volume lateral magma transport from the Mull volcano: 10.1002/2016GC006712 An insight to magma chamber processes Key Points: Osamu Ishizuka1,2 , Rex N. Taylor3, Nobuo Geshi1, and Nobutatsu Mochizuki4 The magma flow direction within dikes from the Mull volcano gradually 1Research Institute of Earthquake and Volcano Geology, Geological Survey of Japan, AIST, Tsukuba, Japan, 2Japan Agency changed from near vertical to for Marine-Earth Science and Technology, Yokosuka, Japan, 3Ocean and Earth Science, University of Southampton, horizontal within 30 km of its center National Oceanography Centre, European Way, Southampton, 4Priority Organization for Innovation and Excellence, Magma assimilating lower crust only forms proximal dikes and feeds Kumamoto University, Kumamoto, Japan overlying upper crustal reservoir which forms proximal or distal dikes Magma volumes from basaltic lower Abstract Long-distance lateral magma transport within the crust has been inferred for various magmatic and felsic upper crustal reservoirs systems including oceanic island volcanoes, mid-oceanic ridges, and large igneous provinces. However, were combined to generate andesitic long-distance dikes studying the physical and chemical properties of active fissure systems is difficult. Hence, this study investi- gates the movement of magma away from the Mull volcano in the North Atlantic Igneous Province, where Supporting Information: erosion has exposed its upper crustal dike networks. Magmatic lineations within dikes indicate that the Supporting Information S1 magma flow in the Mull dike suite changed from near vertical to horizontal within 30 km of the volcanic Table S1 center. This implies that distal dikes were fed by lateral magma transport from Mull.
    [Show full text]
  • Ardnamurchan 3D Cone-Sheet Architecture Explained by a Single
    OPEN Ardnamurchan 3D cone-sheet SUBJECT AREAS: architecture explained by a single VOLCANOLOGY STRUCTURAL GEOLOGY elongate magma chamber GEOLOGY Steffi Burchardt1, Valentin R. Troll1, Lucie Mathieu2, Henry C. Emeleus3 & Colin H. Donaldson4 PETROLOGY 1Department of Earth Sciences, CEMPEG, Uppsala University, Villava¨gen 16, 75236 Uppsala, Sweden, 2CONSOREM, University 3 Received of Que´bec a` Chicoutimi, 555 Boulevard de l’universite´ Chicoutimi, Que´bec, G7H2B1, Canada, Department of Earth Sciences, 4 4 April 2013 University of Durham, South Road, Durham, DH1 3LE, United Kingdom, Department of Earth and Environmental Science, University of St Andrews, KY16 9AL, Scotland. Accepted 12 September 2013 The Palaeogene Ardnamurchan central igneous complex, NW Scotland, was a defining place for the Published development of the classic concepts of cone-sheet and ring-dyke emplacement and has thus fundamentally 8 October 2013 influenced our thinking on subvolcanic structures. We have used the available structural information on Ardnamurchan to project the underlying three-dimensional (3D) cone-sheet structure. Here we show that a single elongate magma chamber likely acted as the source of the cone-sheet swarm(s) instead of the traditionally accepted model of three successive centres. This proposal is supported by the ridge-like Correspondence and morphology of the Ardnamurchan volcano and is consistent with the depth and elongation of the gravity requests for materials anomaly underlying the peninsula. Our model challenges the traditional model of cone-sheet emplacement should be addressed to at Ardnamurchan that involves successive but independent centres in favour of a more dynamical one that S.B. (Steffi.Burchardt@ involves a single, but elongate and progressively evolving magma chamber system.
    [Show full text]
  • Mafic-Ultramafic Igneous Rocks and Associated Carbonatites of the Gem Park Complex, Custer and Fremont Counties, Colorado
    Mafic-Ultramafic Igneous Rocks And Associated Carbonatites of the Gem Park Complex, Custer and Fremont Counties, Colorado GEOLOGICAL SURVEY PROFESSIONAL PAPER 649 MAFIG-ULTRAMAFIC IGNEOUS ROCKS AND ASSOCIATED CARBONATITES OF THE GEM PARK COMPLEX, CUSTER AND FREMONT COUNTIES, COLORADO S a wa tc h C r i s t o Range S a n g r e d a Range rh p I e x * '*w 5 tp" *,. ' j^.*f\ A- j*s'j»- ' ^«K*£ DEMOB R^TjC MQ^NTAIN. \3 1 /T* :S>- * >." " '"' _J^ ^: '-V*^ Bdj^|*°C,j^B^*' * X* -H'c;"",.,,,,'*^ ,,' -aCr* Gem Park, Colo. View northwestward from Democratic Mounta GEM MOUNTAIN Sawatch Range ark -Cbtrfplex -« "*» +** 4ifa. ving pyroxenite and gabbro of the Gem Park Complex. Mafic-Ultramafic Igneous Rocks And Associated Carbonatites of the Gem Park Complex, Custer and Fremont Counties, Colorado By RAYMOND L. PARKER and WILLIAM N. SHARP GEOLOGICAL SURVEY PROFESSIONAL PAPER 649 The Gem Park Complex its geology and mineralogy, and its niobium distribution UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE, WASHINGTON: 1970 UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR WALTER J. HIGKEL, Secretary GEOLOGICAL SURVEY William T. Pecora, Director Library of Congress catalog-card No. 79-608291 For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, B.C. 20402 (Paper cover) CONTENTS Pag-e Abstract __ _-_---__---__-_--..---__-_____-_______-____ Gem Park Complex Continued Introduction __________________________________________ 1 Carbonatite dikes_--______---------_--__-__-___-__- 7 General geology-______________________________________ 1 Attitude, orientation, and distribution of dikes.___ 7 Precambrian rocks.________________________________ 3 Composition of dikes.-______..______..__-_____-__ P Cambrian rocks.__________________________________ 3 Carbonatite in rocks that enclose the complex.
    [Show full text]
  • Watkins and Le Roex Okonyenya IC
    Communs geol. Surv. Namibia, 9 (1994), 13-22 A reinvestigation of the Okenyenya igneous complex: a new geological map, structural interpretation and model of emplacement R.T. Watkins1* & A.P. Le Roex2 1Fission Track Research Group, Department of Geological Sciences, University College London, Gower St. London WC1E 6BT, 2Department of Geological Sciences, University of Cape Town, Rondebosch 7700, South Africa *Present address: School of Applied Geology, Curtin University of Technology, G.P.O. Box U1987, Perth, W.A. 6001, Australia The Okenyenya igneous complex, of Mesozoic age and located in northwestern Namibia, is notable for its extremely wide range of rock types of both tholeiitic and alkaline affinities. The intrusive rocks, which range from highly alkaline, silica-poor lamprophyres through to quartz-syenite, have been emplaced by a variety of contrasting mechanisms. A detailed geological map of the igneous complex is presented, together with a structural reinterpretation of a number of the component intrusions. A model of emplacement is proposed comprising: Stage 1, emplacement of a tholeiitic gabbro-quartz monzodiorite sill or cone sheet complex, followed by Stage 2, the intrusion of picritic gabbro dykes; and Stage 3, the emplacement of alkaline gabbros into high level magma chambers. Stage 4 involved the injection of syenite and quartz syenite as a series of dykes and sills, primarily in the southwest of the complex but includ- ing a major peripheral ring dyke. Stage 5 saw the emplacement of concentric intrusions of nepheline syenite and essexite during the last major phase of magmatism, with the final magmatism ofStage 6, involving the emplacement of lamprophyric rock types as narrow dykes, small stocks and volcanic diatremes.
    [Show full text]
  • A Basic Radial Dike Swarm of Boa Vista (Cape Verde Archipelago); Its Significance in the Evolution of the Island
    A basic radial dike swarm of Boa Vista (Cape Verde Archipelago); its significancein the evolution of the island Eumenio Ancochea a,*, Francisco Hernan b, Maria Jose Huertas a, Jose Luis Brandle C • Dpto, Petro[ogfa y Geoqufmica, Fae Ciencias Geol6gicas, Universidad Complutense, 28040 Madrid, Spain b Dpto, Eda[ologfa y Geologfa, Universidad de La Laguna, 38206 La Laguna, Tenerife, Spain c Inst GeologfaEcon6mica (CSIC, Universidad Complutense), 28040 Madrid, Spain ABSTRACT A basic radial dike swarm unrelated to other basic units of Boa Vista (Cape Verde Archipelago) has been lo­ calized and characterized in the central sector of the island. According to new radiometric data three main stages in the evolution of Boa Vista are distinguished: the ear­ lier (the Old Volcanic Complex: 17-16 Ma) is equivalent to the shield building stage of Hawaii and the later (the Recent Volcanics Ma) is in some aspects comparable to the post-erosional stage. An important in­ Keywords: (8-4 Basic dikes termediate essentially felsic stage (the Trachytic-Phonolitic Complex: 14.3-12.8 Ma) followed the basaltic Radial dikes shield stage. This felsic stage has equivalents in some other oceanic islands as the Canary Islands, specially Oceanic islands Gran Canaria, Tenerife, and La Gomera. The central sector of Boa Vista is also occupied by the Felsic Boa Vista Island Subvolcanic Complex, a unit consisting of phonolitic breccias, syenites and monzonites that represent the cape Verde Islands Trachytic-Phonolitic Complex hypabyssal roots. The felsic rocks as a whole constitute half of the total amount of igneous rocks on the island making up Boa Vista, the island with the highest percentage of felsic rocks in the Central Atlantic Ocean.
    [Show full text]
  • An Alternative Emplacement Model for the Classic Ardnamurchan Cone
    University of Birmingham An alternative emplacement model for the classic Ardnamurchan cone sheet swarm, NW Scotland, involving lateral magma supply via regional dykes Magee, Craig; Stevenson, Carl; O'driscoll, Brian; Schofield, Nick; Mcdermott, Ken DOI: 10.1016/j.jsg.2012.08.004 License: Creative Commons: Attribution (CC BY) Document Version Publisher's PDF, also known as Version of record Citation for published version (Harvard): Magee, C, Stevenson, C, O'driscoll, B, Schofield, N & Mcdermott, K 2012, 'An alternative emplacement model for the classic Ardnamurchan cone sheet swarm, NW Scotland, involving lateral magma supply via regional dykes', Journal of Structural Geology, vol. 43, pp. 73-91. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsg.2012.08.004 Link to publication on Research at Birmingham portal Publisher Rights Statement: Elsevier Retrospective Gold 20/03/2013. This version is published in Journal of Structural Geology 43 (2012) DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jsg.2012.08.004. This article is licensed under a CC-BY license. The funders were Natural Environment Research Council. Eligibility for repository : checked 04/03/2014 General rights Unless a licence is specified above, all rights (including copyright and moral rights) in this document are retained by the authors and/or the copyright holders. The express permission of the copyright holder must be obtained for any use of this material other than for purposes permitted by law. •Users may freely distribute the URL that is used to identify this publication. •Users may download and/or print one copy of the publication from the University of Birmingham research portal for the purpose of private study or non-commercial research.
    [Show full text]
  • Geology of the Bermuda Seamount
    Geology Of The Bermuda Seamount FABRIZIO AUMENTO1 AND BERNARD M. GUNN2 1 DALHOUSIE UNIVERSITY, HALIFAX. (NOW AT ELC-ELECTRONCONSULT MILANO – ITALIA 1982) 2 UNIVERSITIE DE MONTREAL (NOW AT VOLCANIC DATA RESEARCH, WANAKA, NEW ZEALAND [email protected]) Note: This paper was submitted to Jour.Pet. in 1975 and was rejected by the Canadian editor, on the grounds that some the rocks described were not previously known and therefore our data was suspect. ABSTRACT Contrary to common belief, the Bermuda Islands are not made up Recent investigations of submerged seamounts by the DSDP totally of limestones and eolian sands, but in fact some 99% of its drillship Glomar Challenger have revealed the often complex structure is in the form of a truncated cone built up of interlayered history of these underwater volcanoes (see for example Leg 32, igneous rocks. The latter are totally capped by a very thin layer of Geotimes, December, 1973), suggesting periods of emergence and the sedimentary rocks of coralline origin that the visitors to submergence. Multiple holes and especially the continuous drill Bermuda are so enchanted with during their stay. Bermuda is a core through the Bermuda Seamount reported here provides a typical Pacific type atoll, the only one found in the Atlantic region. unique insight into the lithology, structure and origin of one of the large seamounts in the Atlantic Ocean. To date, four holes have been drilled through the limestone capping into the basement igneous rocks. Two of the holes were The Bermuda Islands lie approximately 1100 km east of Cape shallow perforations in the search for potable water; another Hatteras, a third of the way to the axis of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge.
    [Show full text]
  • Three-Dimensional Magma Flow Dynamics Within Subvolcanic Sheet Intrusions
    This is a repository copy of Three-dimensional magma flow dynamics within subvolcanic sheet intrusions. White Rose Research Online URL for this paper: http://eprints.whiterose.ac.uk/137253/ Version: Accepted Version Article: Magee, C orcid.org/0000-0001-9836-2365, O’Driscoll, B, Petronis, MS et al. (1 more author) (2016) Three-dimensional magma flow dynamics within subvolcanic sheet intrusions. Geosphere, 12 (3). pp. 842-866. ISSN 1553-040X https://doi.org/10.1130/GES01270.1 © 2016 Geological Society of America. This is an author produced version of a paper published in Geosphere. Uploaded in accordance with the publisher's self-archiving policy. Reuse Items deposited in White Rose Research Online are protected by copyright, with all rights reserved unless indicated otherwise. They may be downloaded and/or printed for private study, or other acts as permitted by national copyright laws. The publisher or other rights holders may allow further reproduction and re-use of the full text version. This is indicated by the licence information on the White Rose Research Online record for the item. Takedown If you consider content in White Rose Research Online to be in breach of UK law, please notify us by emailing [email protected] including the URL of the record and the reason for the withdrawal request. [email protected] https://eprints.whiterose.ac.uk/ Geosphere Three-dimensional magma flow dynamics within sub-volcanic sheet intrusions --Manuscript Draft-- Manuscript Number: GS1270R2 Full Title: Three-dimensional magma flow dynamics
    [Show full text]
  • Volcanoes and Related Basalts of Albuquerque Basin, New Mexico by V
    Circular 156 1978 Volcanoes and related basalts of Albuquerque Basin, New Mexico by V. C. Kelley and A. M. Kudo New Mexico Bureau of Mines & Mineral Resources A DIVISION OF NEW MEXICO INSTITUTE OF MINING & TECHNOLOGY Circular 156 New Mexico Bureau of Mines & Mineral Resources A DIVISION OF NEW MEXICO INSTITUTE OF MINING & TECHNOLOGY Volcanoes and related basalts of Albuquerque Basin, New Mexico by V. C. Kelley and A. M. Kudo SOCORRO 1978 ii Published by Authority of State of New Mexico, NMSA 1953 Sec. 63-1-4 Printed by University of New Mexico Printing Plant, September, 1978 Available from New Mexico Bureau of Mines & Mineral Resources, Socorro, NM 87801 Price $5.00 Preface This paper results from our mutual interest and current work on basalts of the Albuquerque Basin. Much new work is presented on the petrology and chemistry of the rocks (by Kudo) and on field relationships (by Kelley). Kudo's contribu- tions are a part of his study of basalts in New Mexico and other places in the Rockies. Kelley's contribution is an outgrowth of current study of the stratig- raphy, structure, and geomorphology of the Albuquerque Basin (Kelley, 1977). Parts of this circular appeared in "Guidebook to Albuquerque Basin of the Rio Grande rift" (Kelley and others, 1976). We acknowledge the assistance of: 1) John Husler, for chemical analyses of the rocks, 2) James A. Kasten, who mapped Cerro de Los Lunas and Tome Hill for his master's thesis under Kudo's direction, and 3) Jacques R. Renault, for suggestions on improving the manuscript.
    [Show full text]
  • Bimodal Magmatism Produced by Progressively Inhibited Crustal Assimilation
    ARTICLE Received 27 Nov 2013 | Accepted 22 May 2014 | Published 20 Jun 2014 DOI: 10.1038/ncomms5199 Bimodal magmatism produced by progressively inhibited crustal assimilation F.C. Meade1, V.R. Troll1,2, R.M. Ellam3, C. Freda2, L. Font4, C.H. Donaldson5 & I. Klonowska1 The origin of bimodal (mafic–felsic) rock suites is a fundamental question in volcanology. Here we use major and trace elements, high-resolution Sr, Nd and Pb isotope analyses, experimental petrology and thermodynamic modelling to investigate bimodal magmatism at the iconic Carlingford Igneous Centre, Ireland. We show that early microgranites are the result of extensive assimilation of trace element-enriched partial melts of local metasiltstones into mafic parent magmas. Melting experiments reveal the crust is very fusible, but thermodynamic modelling indicates repeated heating events rapidly lower its melt-production capacity. Granite generation ceased once enriched partial melts could no longer form and subsequent magmatism incorporated less fertile restite compositions only, producing mafic intrusions and a pronounced compositional gap. Considering the frequency of bimodal magma suites in the North Atlantic Igneous Province, and the ubiquity of suitable crustal compositions, we propose ‘progressively inhibited crustal assimilation’ (PICA) as a major cause of bimodality in continental volcanism. 1 Department of Earth Sciences, CEMPEG, Uppsala University, Villava¨gen 16, 752 36 Uppsala, Sweden. 2 Istituto Nazionale di Geofisica e Vulcanologia, Via di Vigna Murata, 605, 00143 Rome, Italy. 3 Scottish Universities Environmental Research Centre, Rankine Avenue, East Kilbride, G75 0QF Scotland, UK. 4 Department of Petrology, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, De Boelelaan 1085, 1081 HV Amsterdam, Netherlands. 5 School of Geography and Geosciences, University of St Andrews, North Street, St Andrews, KY16 9AL Scotland, UK.
    [Show full text]
  • Magma Transport in Sheet Intrusions of the Alnö Carbonatite Complex, Central Sweden Received: 22 April 2015 Magnus Andersson1, Bjarne S
    www.nature.com/scientificreports OPEN Magma transport in sheet intrusions of the Alnö carbonatite complex, central Sweden Received: 22 April 2015 Magnus Andersson1, Bjarne S. G. Almqvist1, Steffi Burchardt1, Valentin R. Troll1, Accepted: 19 May 2016 Alireza Malehmir1, Ian Snowball1 & Lutz Kübler2 Published: 10 June 2016 Magma transport through the Earth’s crust occurs dominantly via sheet intrusions, such as dykes and cone-sheets, and is fundamental to crustal evolution, volcanic eruptions and geochemical element cycling. However, reliable methods to reconstruct flow direction in solidified sheet intrusions have proved elusive. Anisotropy of magnetic susceptibility (AMS) in magmatic sheets is often interpreted as primary magma flow, but magnetic fabrics can be modified by post-emplacement processes, making interpretation of AMS data ambiguous. Here we present AMS data from cone-sheets in the Alnö carbonatite complex, central Sweden. We discuss six scenarios of syn- and post-emplacement processes that can modify AMS fabrics and offer a conceptual framework for systematic interpretation of magma movements in sheet intrusions. The AMS fabrics in the Alnö cone-sheets are dominantly oblate with magnetic foliations parallel to sheet orientations. These fabrics may result from primary lateral flow or from sheet closure at the terminal stage of magma transport. As the cone-sheets are discontinuous along their strike direction, sheet closure is the most probable process to explain the observed AMS fabrics. We argue that these fabrics may be common to cone-sheets and an integrated geology, petrology and AMS approach can be used to distinguish them from primary flow fabrics. Within many central volcanoes, cone-sheet and dyke intrusions represent the main channels of magma trans- port from magma reservoirs to the Earth’s surface.
    [Show full text]
  • Three-Dimensional Magma Flow Dynamics Within Subvolcanic Sheet Intrusions GEOSPHERE; V
    Research Paper GEOSPHERE Three-dimensional magma flow dynamics within subvolcanic sheet intrusions GEOSPHERE; v. 12, no. 3 C. Magee1, B. O’Driscoll2,*, M.S. Petronis3, and C.T.E. Stevenson4 1Basins Research Group (BRG), Department of Earth Sciences and Engineering, Imperial College London, London SW7 2BP, UK doi:10.1130/GES01270.1 2School of Physical and Geographical Sciences, Keele University, Keele ST5 5BG, UK 3Environmental Geology, Natural Resource Management Department, New Mexico Highlands University, PO Box 9000, Las Vegas, New Mexico 87701, USA 14 figures; 1 table 4School of Geography, Earth, and Environmental Sciences, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, B15 2TT, UK CORRESPONDENCE: c.magee@ imperial .ac .uk ABSTRACT Walker, 1993; Schirnick et al., 1999; Gudmundsson, 2002; Muirhead et al., CITATION: Magee, C., O’Driscoll, B., Petronis, M.S., 2012; Schofield et al., 2012b; Cashman and Sparks, 2013; Petronis et al., 2013). and Stevenson, C.T.E., 2016, Three- dimensional magma flow dynamics within subvolcanic sheet Sheet intrusions represent important magma conduits and reservoirs in Analy ses of ancient sheet intrusion complexes provide invaluable insights into intru sions: Geosphere, v. 12, no. 3, p. 842–866, doi: subvolcanic systems. Constraining the emplacement mechanisms of such in- magma emplacement mechanisms and thereby contribute to volcanic haz- 10 .1130 /GES01270.1. trusions is crucial to understanding the physiochemical evolution of magma, ard assessment (e.g., Sparks, 2003; Sparks et al., 2012; Cashman and Sparks, volcano deformation patterns, and the location of future eruption sites. How- 2013), understanding the distribution of eruption locations (e.g., Abebe et al., Received 22 September 2015 ever, magma plumbing systems of active volcanoes cannot be directly accessed 2007; Gaffney et al., 2007), and elucidating controls on crystal growth and geo- Revision received 2 February 2016 Accepted 4 March 2016 and we therefore rely on the analysis of ancient systems to inform the interpre- chemical variations (e.g., Latypov, 2003).
    [Show full text]