A Single Superplume is Splitting Africa

Africa is splitting in two. The reason: a geologic rift runs along the eastern side of the continent that one day, many millions of years in the future, will be replaced with an ocean. Scientists have argued for decades about what is causing this separation of tectonic plates. Geophysicists thought it was a superplume, a giant section of the earth's mantle that carries heat from near the core up to the crust. As evidence, they pointed to two large plateaus (one in Ethiopia and one in Kenya) that they said were created when a superplume pushed up the mantle. Geochemists were not able to confirm that theory. Instead they thought there might be two small, unrelated plumes pushing up the plateaus individually. The theories did not align, says David Hilton, a geochemist at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography in La Jolla, Calif. “There was a mismatch between the chemistry and the physics.”

So in 2006 and 2011 Hilton headed to East Africa to see whether he could lay the argument to rest. He and his team decided to use gases emanating from the rift to determine how it was created. Donning gas masks, they hiked to the tops of volcanoes in Tanzania and Ethiopia and climbed into mazuku (the Swahili word for “evil wind”)—geothermal vents and depressions where deadly gases accumulate and often kill animals. At these locations, the team collected samples of rocks deposited during eruptions, including olivines, crystals that trap volcanic gases like a bottle.

Back home in California, Hilton crushed the rocks inside a vacuum to release their gases. He was looking for helium 3, an isotope of helium present when the planet was forming that was trapped in the earth's core. Hilton figured that if rocks around both the Ethiopian and Kenyan plateaus contained this primordial gas, that would at least confirm that underground mantle plumes created them. The readings showed that, indeed, both plateaus contained helium 3. But Hilton and his group still had to wonder: Was one superplume behind it all? Or were there a couple of lesser plumes?

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Well, James, there's no need to go to the Moon!  Let's strip mine the Olduvai Gorge for Helium-3!

The Rate of Continental Drift has Varied Wildly From the Precambrian to the Present

Two studies show that the movement rate of plates carrying the Earth's crust may not be constant over time. This could provide a new explanation for the patterns observed in the speed of evolution and has implications for the interpretation of climate models. The work is presented today at Goldschmidt 2014, the premier geochemistry conference taking place in Sacramento, California, USA.

The Earth's continental crust can be thought of as an archive of Earth's history, containing information on rock formation, the atmosphere and the fossil record. However, it is not clear when and how regularly crust formed since the beginning of Earth history, 4.5 billion years ago.

Researchers led by Professor Peter Cawood, from the University of St. Andrews, UK, examined several measures of continental movement and geologic processes from a number of previous studies. They found that, from 1.7 to 0.75 billion years ago (termed Earth's middle age), Earth appears to have been very stable in terms of its environment, with little in the way of crust building activity, no major fluctuations in atmospheric composition and few major developments seen in the fossil record. This contrasts markedly with the time periods either side of this, which contained major ice ages and changes in oxygen levels. Earth's middle age also coincides with the formation of a supercontinent called Rodinia, which appears to have been stable throughout this time.

Professor Cawood suggests this stability may have been due to the gradual cooling of the earth's crust over time. "Before 1.7 billion years ago, the Earth's crust would have been substantially hotter, meaning that continental plate movement may have been governed by different rules to those that operate today," said Professor Cawood. "0.75 billion years ago, the crust reached a point where it had cooled sufficiently to allow modern day plate tectonics to start working, in particular allowing subduction zones to form (where one plate of the crust moves under another). This increase in activity could have kick-started a myriad of changes including the break-up of Rodinia and changes to levels of key elements in the atmosphere and seas, which in turn may have induced evolutionary changes in the life forms present."

This view is backed up by work from Professor Kent Condie from New Mexico Tech, USA, which suggests the movement rate of the Earth's crust is not constant but may be speeding up over time. Professor Condie examined how supercontinents assemble and break up. "Our results challenge the view that the rate of plate movement is stable over time," said Professor Condie. "The interpretation of data from many other disciplines such as stable isotope geochemistry, palaeontology and paleoclimatology in part rely on the assumption that the movement rate of the Earth's crust is constant."

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How Far Back in Deep Time did Tectonic Plate Subduction Begin?

Heading down early on? Start of subduction on Earth

Authors:

Turner et al

Abstract:

How the Earth's earliest crust was formed and when present-day plate tectonics (i.e., subduction) and life commenced remain fundamental questions in Earth sciences. Whereas the bulk composition of the crust is similar to that of rocks generated in subduction settings, it does not necessarily follow that melting and crust formation require subduction. Many workers suggest that subduction may have only commenced toward the end of the Archean or later. Here we observe that both the stratigraphy and geochemistry of rocks found in Quebec, Canada, that have been variously argued to be 4.4 or 3.8 Ga in age, closely match those from the modern-day Izu-Bonin-Mariana forearc. We suggest that this geochemical stratigraphy might provide a more robust test of ancient tectonic setting than individual chemical or isotopic signatures in rocks or detrital minerals. If correct, the match suggests that at least some form of subduction may have been operating as early as the Hadean or Eoarchean. This could have provided an ideal location for the development of first life.

Another Model of the Archean Eon's Crust

Earth's mantle temperatures during the Archean eon, which commenced some 4 billion years ago, were significantly higher than they are today. According to recent model calculations, the Archean crust that formed under these conditions was so dense that large portions of it were recycled back into the mantle. This is the conclusion reached by Dr. Tim Johnson who is currently studying the evolution of the Earth's crust as a member of the research team led by Professor Richard White of the Institute of Geosciences at Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz (JGU). According to the calculations, this dense primary crust would have descended vertically in drip form. In contrast, the movements of today's tectonic plates involve largely lateral movements with oceanic lithosphere recycled in subduction zones. The findings add to our understanding of how cratons and plate tectonics, and thus also the Earth's current continents, came into being.

Because mantle temperatures were higher during the Archean eon, the Earth's primary crust that formed at the time must have been very thick and also very rich in magnesium. However, as Johnson and his co-authors explain in their article recently published in Nature Geoscience, very little of this original crust is preserved, indicating that most must have been recycled into the Earth's mantle. Moreover, the Archean crust that has survived in some areas such as, for example, Northwest Scotland and Greenland, is largely made of tonalite–trondhjemite–granodiorite complexes and these are likely to have originated from a hydrated, low-magnesium basalt source. The conclusion is that these pieces of crust cannot be the direct products of an originally magnesium-rich primary crust. These TTG complexes are among the oldest features of our Earth's crust. They are most commonly present in cratons, the oldest and most stable cores of the current continents.

With the help of thermodynamic calculations, Dr. Tim Johnson and his collaborators at the US-American universities of Maryland, Southern California, and Yale have established that the mineral assemblages that formed at the base of a 45-kilometer-thick magnesium-rich crust were denser than the underlying mantle layer. In order to better explore the physics of this process, Professor Boris Kaus of the Geophysics work group at Mainz University developed new computer models that simulate the conditions when the Earth was still relatively young and take into account Johnson's calculations.

These geodynamic computer models show that the base of a magmatically over-thickened and magnesium-rich crust would have been gravitationally unstable at mantle temperatures greater than 1,500 to 1,550 degrees Celsius and this would have caused it to sink in a process called 'delamination'. The dense crust would have dripped down into the mantle, triggering a return flow of mantle material from the asthenosphere that would have melted to form new primary crust. Continued melting of over-thickened and dripping magnesium-rich crust, combined with fractionation of primary magmas, may have produced the hydrated magnesium-poor basalts necessary to provide a source of the tonalite–trondhjemite–granodiorite complexes. The dense residues of these processes, which would have a high content of mafic minerals, must now reside in the mantle.

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Evidence Suggests Some Pre-NeoProterozoic Contribution to Southern Egyptian Crust

U-Pb zircon geochronology and Hf-Nd isotopic systematics of Wadi Beitan granitoid gneisses, South Eastern Desert, Egypt

Authors:

Ali et al

Abstract:

Migmatitic granitoid gneisses are widespread in the southern Eastern Desert of Egypt, but their formation ages are poorly understood. They consist of granitoid gneiss ranging in composition from tonalite to granodiorite, with a distinct calc-alkaline chemical character. Zircons from three migmatitic gneiss samples from Wadi Beitan were dated on SHRIMP II and yielded magmatic emplacement ages of 719 ± 10, 725 ± 9 and 744 ± 10 Ma, respectively, indicating that the gneiss protoliths are Neoproterozoic. The zircons yielded εHf(t) values of -4.8 to + 12.5 and corresponding Hf crustal model ages ranging from 824 to 1753 Ma. These data indicate the involvement of both juvenile and older continental crust in protolith formation. Positive whole-rock εNd(t) values (+ 5.1 to + 6.6) and corresponding Nd model ages of 690 to 830 Ma suggest a relatively young, juvenile Neoproterozoic crustal source for the Wadi Beitan granitic gneisses. However, a εNd(t) value of + 5.1 (sample WB-23) is less than predicted for a depleted mantle source at ~ 700 Ma (εNd of about + 6.5), perhaps indicating that there was minor contribution from old (pre-Neoproterozoic) crust. The chemical data and significant variations in both isotopic systems argue for source heterogeneity and may suggest that the Wadi Beitan granitoids formed along an active continental margin.

Evidence of the Collison of the Precambrian Kokchetav Microcontinent With Future Asia During Paleozoic

Formation of the Kokchetav subduction-collision zone (northern Kazakhstan): Insights from zircon U-Pb and Lu-Hf isotope systematics

Authors:

Glorie et al

Abstract:

The Kokchetav subduction-collision zone is located in the western part of the ancestral Central Asian Orogenic Belt. This zone is built up by the Precambrian Kokchetav microcontinent which includes a HP-UHP metamorphic belt, and the North Kokchetav tectonic zone (NKTZ) which represents an accretionary complex between the Kokchetav microcontinent and the adjacent Stepnyak island-arc. The entire region is widely intruded by Palaeozoic granitoids which were emplaced after the collision of the Stepnyak island-arc with the Kokchetav microcontinent. We present zircon U-Pb ages and Lu-Hf systematics in zircon to better characterize the tectonic evolution of the Kokchetav subduction-collision zone.

The Lu-Hf results indicate that the Kokchetav basement rocks are derived from late Neoarchaean – early Palaeoproterozoic (~ 2.5 Ga) crust. For the granite-gneiss basement of the Kokchetav microcontinent, early Mesoproterozoic (Grenville-age, ~ 1.17-1.14 Ga) zircon U-Pb crystallization ages were obtained. For the NKTZ, two main age-components were recognized: (1) an oldest Mesoproterozoic age-component (~ 1.20-1.05 Ga) similar as for the Kokchetav microcontinental zircons, and (2) a younger Early Cambrian (540-520 Ma) or Late Cambrian - Early Ordovician (~ 490-480 Ma) age-component. Th/U ratios (< 0.1) are indicative of a metamorphic origin for both Early Cambrian and Late Cambrian - Early Ordovician zircon populations. The oscillatory zoned Mesoproterozoic zircons have higher Th/U ratios (> 0.1) and are typical of a magmatic protolith. The distinction between both zircon types is supported by characteristic cathodoluminescence images. These results confirm previous observations, indicating early Palaeozoic high-grade metamorphism (~ 540-520 Ma) and collisional deformation (~ 490-480 Ma) of the Mesoproterozoic Kokchetav zone as a result of subduction-accretion and collision of the Stepnyak island-arc to the Kokchetav microcontinent. For two additional samples of the Balkashin granitic complex Early Devonian (~ 415-395 Ma) zircon crystallization ages (magmatic Th/U ratios) were obtained. The occurrence of a Mesozoic xenocryst within these leucogranites may indicate that they were emplaced in a continental-arc setting.

Was There a Magmatic Slowdown in Siderian and Rhyacian PaleoProterozoic?

Cratonic sedimentation regimes in the ca. 2450–2000 Ma period: Relationship to a possible widespread magmatic slowdown on Earth?

Authors:

P.G. Eriksson and K.C. Condie

Abstract:

The ca. 2.45–2.0 Ga supracratonic record of six cratonic terranes (Superior Province, Hearne Domain, Fennoscandian crustal segment, and São Francisco, Pilbara and Kaapvaal cratons) is investigated. A less than ~2415–2420 basal unconformity appears pervasive, floored by basement lithologies for the three “Kenorland-related” terranes (Superior, Hearne and Fennoscandian) and by passive margin chemical sedimentary platform deposits for the apparently “non-amalgamated” cratons. Palaeosols are locally associated with this unconformity, and glacigenic lithologies, for all of the “non-amalgamated” cratons as well as for Superior. A relatively complete sedimentary record is recorded for the three Kenorland supercontinent terranes, including at least two glacial events, whereas hiatuses characterise the Pilbara and São Francisco cratons, with an incomplete record for Kaapvaal. Evidence for geodynamic reactivation at ca. 2.2 Ga includes widespread mafic dykes and volcanics, orogenies in Pilbara and São Francisco, glaciation in Kaapvaal and Pilbara, and significant transgressions thereafter on many of the cratonic terranes. While the overall ca. 2.45–2.2 Ga records studied here are at least compatible with the postulated global magmatic slowdown of Condie et al. (2009), distinct differences between the records associated with “Kenorland-related” and “non-amalgamated” cratons might reflect thermal subsidence and associated sedimentation accompanying the slowdown for the former group (where thermal blanketing likely played a role), while elevated freeboard and concomitant erosive regimes accompanied the inferred slowdown for the latter group.

Evidence of a Microcontinent and Modern Plate Tectonics in MesoArchean India

An exotic Mesoarchean microcontinent: The Coorg Block, southern India

Authors:

M. Santosh, Qiong-Yan Yang, E. Shaji, T. Tsunogae, M. Ram Mohan and M. Satyanarayanan

Abstract:

Sandwiched between the Dharwar Craton in the north and the Neoarchean – Proterozoic crustal blocks to the south, the Coorg Block in southern India is composed dominantly of a suite of arc magmatic rocks including charnockites, TTG (tonalite-trondhjemite-granodiorite)-related granitoid suite and felsic volcanic tuffs together with minor accreted oceanic remnants along the periphery of the block. Coeval mafic and felsic magmatism with magma mixing and mingling in an arc setting is well represented in the block. Here we present the petrology, geochemistry, zircon U-Pb geochronology and Lu-Hf isotopes of all the major lithologies from this block. Computation of metamorphic P-T conditions from mineral chemical data shows consistent granulite-facies P-T conditions of 820-870 °C and up to 6 kbar. Our geochemical data from major, trace and REE on representative samples of the dominant rock types from the Coorg Block corroborate an arc-related signature, with magma generation in a convergent margin setting. The zircon data yield weighted mean 207Pb/206Pb ages of 3153.4 ± 9 to 3184.0 ± 5.5 Ma for syenogranites, 3170.3 ± 6.8 Ma for biotite granite, 3275 ± 5.1 Ma for trondhjemite, 3133 ± 12 to 3163.8 ± 6.9 Ma for charnockites, 3156 ± 10 to 3158.3 ± 8.2 for mafic enclaves, 3161 ± 16 Ma for diorite and 3173 ± 16 Ma for felsic volcanic tuff. An upper intercept age of 3363 ± 59 Ma and a lower intercept age of 2896 ± 130 Ma on zircons from a charnockite, as well as an evaluation of the Th/U values of the zircon domains against respective 207Pb/206Pb ages suggest that the Mesoarchean magma emplacement which probably ranged from greater than 3.3 to 3.1 Ga was immediately followed by metamorphism at ca. 3.0 to 2.9 Ga. The ages of magmatic zircons from the charnockites and their mafic granulite enclaves, as well as those from the volcanic tuff and biotite granite, are all remarkably consistent and concordant marking ca. 3.1 Ga as the peak of subduction-related crust building in this block, within the tectonic milieu of an active convergent margin. The majority of zircons from the Coorg rocks show Hf isotope features typical of crystallization from magmas derived from juvenile sources. Their Hf crustal model ages suggest that the crust building might have also involved partial recycling of basement rocks as old as ca. 3.8 Ga. The crustal blocks in the Southern Granulite Terrane in India preserve strong imprints of major tectonothermal events at 2.5 Ga, 2.0 Ga, 0.8 Ga and 0.55 Ga associated with various subduction-accretion-collision or rifting events. However, the Coorg Block is exceptional with our data suggesting that none of the above events affected this block. Importantly, there is also no record in the Coorg Block for the 2.5 Ga pervasive regional metamorphism that affected all the other blocks in this region. The geochronological data raise the intriguing possibility that this block is an exotic entity within the dominantly Neoarchean collage in the northern domain of the Southern Granulite Terrane of India. The Mesoarchean arc-related rocks in the Coorg Block suggest that the magma factories and their tectonic architecture in the Early Earth were not markedly different from those associated with the modern-style plate tectonics.

Tracking Mantle Plume Activitiy Through Deep Time

Accretionary complexes in the Asia-Pacific region: Tracing archives of ocean plate stratigraphy and tracking mantle plumes

Authors:

I.Yu. Safonova and M. Santosh

Abstract:

The accretionary complexes of Central and East Asia (Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Mongolia, and China) and the Western Pacific (China, Japan, Russia) preserve valuable records of ocean plate stratigraphy (OPS). From a comprehensive synthesis of the nature of occurrence, geochemical characteristics and geochronological features of the oceanic island basalts (OIB) and ophiolite units in the complexes, we track extensive plume-related magmatism in the Paleo-Asian and Paleo-Pacific Oceans. We address the question of continuous versus episodic intraplate magmatism and its contribution to continental growth. An evaluation of the processes of subduction erosion and accretion illustrates continental growth at the active margins of the Siberian, Kazakhstan, Tarim and North China blocks, the collision of which led to the construction of the Central Asian Orogenic Belt (CAOB). Most of the OIB-bearing OPS units of the CAOB and the Western Pacific formed in relation to two superplumes: the Asian (Late Neoproterozoic) and the Pacific (Cretaceous), with a continuing hot mantle upwelling in the Pacific region that contributes to the formation of modern OIBs. Our study provides further insights into the processes of continental construction because the accreted seamounts play an important role in the growth of convergent margins and enhance the accumulation of fore-arc sediments.

A New Model for how the Newly Formed Earth's Crust, Mantle and Core Differentiated

Early differentiation of the bulk silicate Earth as recorded by the oldest mantle reservoir

Authors:

Xuan-Ce Wang, Zheng-Xiang Li, Xian-Hua Li

Abstract:

An emerging challenge for understanding the Earth system is to determine the relative roles of early planetary processes versus progressive differentiation in shaping the Earth's chemical architecture. An enduring tenet of modern chemical geodynamics is that the Earth started as a well-mixed and homogeneous body which evolved progressively over the geologic time to several chemically distinct domains. As a consequence, the observable chemical heterogeneity in mantle-derived rocks has generally been attributed to the Earth's dynamic evolution over the past 4.5 Ga. However, the identification of chemical heterogeneity formed during the period 4.53–4.45 Ga in the ca. 60 Ma Baffin Bay high-magnesium lavas provides strong evidence that chemical effects of early differentiation can persist in mantle reservoirs to the present day. Here, we demonstrate that such an ancient mantle reservoir is likely composed of enriched and depleted dense melts, and propose a model for early global differentiation of the bulk silicate Earth that would produce two types of dense melts with distinctive chemical compositions in the deep Earth. These dense melts ultimately became parts of the thermo-chemical piles near the core-mantle boundary that have been protected from complete entrainment by subsequent mantle convection currents. We argue that although such dense melts likely exhibit some ‘primordial’ geochemical signatures, they are not representative of the bulk silicate Earth. Our work provides a strong case for the mantle chemical heterogeneity being formed by a major differentiation event shortly after planet accretion rather than through the subsequent geodynamic evolution

Ancient Mantle Keels Formed the Kernels for Continents

New research led by a University of Calgary geophysicist provides strong evidence against continent formation above a hot mantle plume, similar to an environment that presently exists beneath the Hawaiian Islands.

The analysis, published this month in Nature Geoscience, indicates that the nuclei of Earth's continents formed as a byproduct of mountain-building processes, by stacking up slabs of relatively cold oceanic crust. This process created thick, strong 'keels' in the Earth's mantle that supported the overlying crust and enabled continents to form.

The scientific clues leading to this conclusion derived from computer simulations of the slow cooling process of continents, combined with analysis of the distribution of diamonds in the deep Earth.

The Department of Geoscience's Professor David Eaton developed computer software to enable numerical simulation of the slow diffusive cooling of Earth's mantle over a time span of billions of years.

Working in collaboration with former graduate student, Assistant Professor Claire Perry from the Universite du Quebec a Montreal, Eaton relied on the geological record of diamonds found in Africa to validate his innovative computer simulations.

"For the first time, we are able to quantify the thermal evolution of a realistic 3D Earth model spanning billions of years from the time continents were formed," states Perry.

Mantle plumes consist of an upwelling of hot material within Earth's mantle. Plumes are thought to be the cause of some volcanic centres, especially those that form a linear volcanic chain like Hawaii. Diamonds, which are generally limited to the deepest and oldest parts of the continental mantle, provide a wealth of information on how the host mantle region may have formed.

"Ancient mantle keels are relatively strong, cold and sometimes diamond-bearing material. They are known to extend to depths of 200 kilometres or more beneath the ancient core regions of continents," explains Professor David Eaton. "These mantle keels resisted tectonic recycling into the deep mantle, allowing the preservation of continents over geological time and providing suitable environments for the development of the terrestrial biosphere."

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