The High-Pressure Mineral Inventory of Shock Veins from the Steen River Impact Structure
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46th Lunar and Planetary Science Conference (2015) 2512.pdf The high-pressure mineral inventory of shock veins from the Steen River impact structure. Walton E.L., Sharp T. G. and Hu J. 1MacEwan University, Department of Physical Sciences, 10700 104 Ave, Edmonton, AB, T5J 2S2, Canada ([email protected] / [email protected] ), 2University of Alberta, Department of Earth & Atmospheric Sciences, Edmonton, AB, T6G 2E3, Canada. 3Arizona State University, School of Earth & Space Ex- ploration,Tempe, AZ 85287-1404, USA. Introduction: The Steen River impact struc- equipped with five WDS spectrometers. Raw data ture (SRIS; 59o31'N, 117o39’W) is a buried complex were corrected using the ZAF procedure. The excel crater with an apparent diameter of ~25 km [1]. The spreadsheets of [6,7] where used to recast chemical SRIS is the largest known impact structure in the analyses of amphiboles and garnets following the IMA Western Canada Sedimentary Basin and is a producer reccomentations. Micro-Raman spectra of various and host of oil and gas reservoirs [1]. The target rocks phases were obtained with point measurements, using comprise a 70 m layer of Missippian calcareous shale a Bruker SENTERRA instrument. The 100X objective underlain by a thick (1530 m) sequence of Devonian of a petrographic microscope was used to focus the marine sedimentary rocks including carbonates and excitation laser beam (532 nm line of Ar+ laser) to a evaporates. This ~1.6 km thick sedimentary cover focal spot size of ~1 µm. TEM sections will be pre- overlies Precambrian basement rocks (primarily gran- pared using an FEI Nova200 NanoFab dual-beam FIB, ite / gneiss / granodiorite). A variety of shock meta- focusing on the shock vein and associated transformed morphic effects have been observed at the SRIS, in- minerals. Analytical TEM will be done using an FEI cluding kink banding in biotite, planar fractures and CM200 FEG. High-pressure minerals will be indenti- planar deformation features in quartz and feldspar, fied using a combination of electron diffraction, EDX ballen quartz, lechatelierite and diaplectic glasses of and imaging. Transformation microstructures will also feldspar and quartz [2, 3, 4], which helped to ascribe a be investigated to illucidate the mechanisms of horn- hypervelocity impact origin to this structure. Despite blende and biotite transformation. the documentation of diagnostic shock effects in min- Sample Selection: In early 2000, New Claymore erals, mostly quartz and feldspar, uncertainty as to the Resources Ltd drilled three continuous drill holes into origin of the SRIS structure by volcanic or meteoritic the allochthonous proximal deposits of the SRIS. One origin remains, primarily within the industrial sector (ST003) penetrated the central uplift. This core, previ- (e.g., [5]), with terms such as “pitchstone” and “tuff” ously logged in detail by [4], has been re-visited in this used to describe the SRIS impactites. A portion of this study (see Walton et al. LPSC companion abstract for uncertainty lies in the inability of previous studies to a description of ST003 impactites). Sample names in isolate high-pressure, high-temperature minerals such the following description refer to depth (in meters). as the SiO2 polymorphs coesite and stishovite in SRIS The lower 10 m of the hole (between 352‒377.4 m) deposits. This may also reflect the lack of recognition comprises granitic to gneissic rocks of the Precambrian of impact cratering as a ubiquitous geologic process basement. Fabrics in these rocks are cut across by outside the planetary science community. thicker mm-size veins of finely-comminuted melt- Here, the results of a combined SEM, EMPA, Ra- bearing material and thin, opaque veins. These micro- man and TEM study of shock veins in the central uplift pseudotachylites are similar to shock veins in meteor- of the SRIS are reported. These shock veins exhibit a ites, and the general term for all these shock-induced unique assemblage of high-pressure, high-temperature melt veinlets will be referred to as “shock veins” fol- minerals within and around shock veins. This study lowing [8]. These shock vein-bearing rocks represent clarifies the impact origin of the SRIS, helps to eluci- either meter-size megablocks within the allochthonous date the location and distribution of high-pressure impactites or more likely the hole penetrated the cen- minerals in impact structures, and constrains the P-T tral uplift. An anastomosing network of thin shock conditions experienced by rocks in the central uplift of veins (<1 µm up to 0.5 mm apparent diameter) in a a moderate-size complex impact structure. plagioclase-amphibole-biotite-quartz gneiss was sam- Anaytical Methods: A total of 44 polished thin pled at a depth of 374 m. Apatite, zircon, ilmenite, sections were prepared from core offcuts for petro- titanite and chloritized biotite occur as accessory phas- graphic analysis (optical microscopy). From these, es. several thin section were selected for detailed investi- Results: Quartz and plagioclase in the granitic gation using a Zeiss EVO MA LaB6 filament SEM in gneiss, far away from the shock vein, exhibit planar BSE imaging mode, focusing on the minerals associat- deformation features (up to three distinct orientations ed with the shock veins. Major and minor element in quartz) with weak to moderate mosaicism. Plagio- abundances were analyzed with a JEOL 8900 EMPA clase, in a zone ~0.5 mm surrounding the shock vein, 46th Lunar and Planetary Science Conference (2015) 2512.pdf has transformed to maskelynite, a diaplectic glass of the shock melt. One spectra from the vein matrix was feldspar composition. Quartz near the shock vein pos- consistent with the presence of shishovite with a sharp sesses an unusual texture of thin veins or elongated peak at 750 cm-1. TEM work is needed to confirm this. aggregates surrounded by smooth silica glass. Raman Discussion: The majorite component in the shock- spectra contain peaks at 464 cm-1 and 520 cm-1, indi- produced garnets at the SRIS is a strong indicator of cating an intimate mixture of α-quartz and coesite. high pressure. This is consistent with the presence of Amphibole in the host rock is pleochroic in shades coesite and stishovite, as well as the transformation of of green, yellow-green and brown. EMPA analyses plagioclase to maskelynite, only in those grains within show that it is ferro-pargasite with general formula or surrounding the shock vein. Although both garnets 2+ (Na0.41K0.27)(Ca1.82Na0.10Mn0.08)(Fe 3.04Mg1.33Al0.29Ti0.1 are shock-produced, their distinct texture and composi- 3+ 9Fe 0.14)(Si6.60Al0.40)O22(OH)2. Within a zone tion implies a different formation mechanism (solid ~100‒300 µm along the shock vein margin and clasts state transformation of amphibole vs. crystallization entrained within the shock vein matrix, ferro-pargasite from impact melt). A shock pressure estimates of has undergone a nearly isochemical phase transfor- 15‒17 GPa for similar amphibole-garnet transfor- mation to garnet. This is observed under plane polar- mations described by [9] from shock veins in clasts ized light as a striking transition from green amphibole within suevite of the ~25 km diameter Ries impact to a bright orange garnet. The garnet is weakly aniso- structure, also apply to the same phase transformation tropic. The shock-transformed pargasite is almandine, described here for the SRIS. The coexistence of crys- (Fe1.37Ca0.97Mg0.42Na0.2Mn0.05)(Al0.92Si0.36Fe0.35Mg0.22Ti0. talline plagioclase and maskelynite suggests a moder- )Si O , with a 36% majorite component (based on 10 3 12 ate shock pressure of 16–23 GPa [10], and is constitent 0.36 pfu of Si in the octahedral site). The pargasite- with, but slightly higher than, the 15‒17 GPa required almandine phase transformation was nearly isochemi- to produce the majorite-bearing garnets. cal, with the exception of the most volatile species Conclusions: In meteorites, the association be- (Na, K and Cl). Raman spectra collected on ferro- tween minerals stable at high pressures and tempera- pargasite show sharp peaks at 150, 533, 660-667 and -1 tures and shock veins is well-documented [e.g., 10]. 734 cm , characteristic of well-crystallized amphibole. Spectra collected on almandine garnets show peaks However, the high-pressure mineral inventory of near 360 and 910 cm-1. Biotite in direct contact with shock veins from terrestrial impact structures has been the shock vein has also undergone a phase transfor- described in detail by relatively few researchers. Pre- mation. This biotite breakdown material is opaque in vious studies of impactites at the SRIS failed to identi- transmitted light and appears to be Raman inactive, fy high-pressure mineral polymorphs largely because although one spectrum obtained on this material they were looking in the wrong place, i.e., small clasts showed a single peak at 667 cm-1 (12 additional spec- in clast-rich impactites which remain hot after shock tra were collected, none of which yielded a useful pressure release. In these rocks high pressure minerals spectra). BSE images show a brighter greyscale of this are less likely to be preserved because they will rapidly phase compared to adjacent non-transformed biotite. back-transform to their lower pressure compositional EMPA analyses show enrichment in Al, Fe and Mg, equivalents. The high pressure mineral inventory doc- and depletion in Ti, K, Na and Cl compared to biotite. umented in this study formed at ~15‒23 GPa, and are Totals for wt% oxides close to 100 for this phase indi- preferentially associated with thin shock veins in large cate that it is anhydrous. meter-size blocks of crystalline basement where post- The matrix of the shock vein is opaque in plane shock temperatures were low enough to preserve these light, ranging from black, reddish-brown to grey.