Publication Date:
2022-10-26
Description:
© The Author(s), 2021. This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License. The definitive version was published in Anderson, M., Wanless, V. D., Perfit, M., Conrad, E., Gregg, P., Fornari, D., & Ridley, W. I. Extreme heterogeneity in mid-ocean ridge mantle revealed in lavas from the 8 degrees 20 ' N near-axis seamount chain. Geochemistry Geophysics Geosystems, 22(1), (2021): e2020GC009322, https://doi.org/10.1029/2020GC009322.
Description:
Lavas that have erupted at near‐axis seamounts provide windows into mid‐ocean ridge mantle heterogeneity and melting systematics which are not easily observed on‐axis at fast‐spreading centers. Beneath ridges, most heterogeneity is obscured as magmas aggregate toward the ridge, where they efficiently mix and homogenize during transit and within shallow magma chambers prior to eruption. To understand the deeper magmatic processes contributing to oceanic crustal formation, we examine the compositions of lavas erupted along a chain of near‐axis seamounts and volcanic ridges perpendicular to the East Pacific Rise. We assess the chemistry of near‐ridge mantle using a ∼200 km‐long chain at ∼8°20′N. High‐resolution bathymetric maps are used with geochemical analyses of ∼300 basalts to evaluate the petrogenesis of lavas and the heterogeneity of mantle feeding these near‐axis eruptions. Major and trace element concentrations and radiogenic isotope ratios are highly variable on 〈1 km scales, and reveal a continuum of depleted, normal, and enriched basalts spanning the full range of ridge and seamount compositions in the northeast Pacific. There is no systematic compositional variability along the chain. Modeling suggests that depleted mid‐ocean ridge basalt (DMORB) lavas are produced by ∼5%–15% melting of a depleted mid‐ocean ridge (MOR) mantle. Normal mid‐ocean ridge basalts (NMORB) form from 5% to 15% melting of a slightly enriched MOR mantle. Enriched mid‐ocean ridge basalts (EMORB) range from 〈1% melting of 10% enriched mantle to 〉15% melting of 100% enriched mantle. The presence of all three lava types along the seamount chain, and on a single seamount closest to the ridge axis, confirms that the sub‐ridge mantle is much more heterogeneous than is commonly observed on‐axis and heterogeneity exists over small spatial scales.
Description:
This work was supported by NSF OCE‐MGG 1356610 (Romano and Gregg), NSF OCE‐MGG 1356822 (Fornari), NSF OCE‐MGG 1357150 (Perfit), NSF OCE‐MGG 2001314 (Perfit and Wanless), the Burnham Research Grant at Boise State University, and the Graduate School Funding Fellowship at University of Florida.
Keywords:
East Pacific Rise
;
Mantle heterogeneity
;
Mantle melting
;
Mid‐ocean ridge basalt
;
Near‐axis seamounts
;
Seamount volcanism
Repository Name:
Woods Hole Open Access Server
Type:
Article
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