Displays

Apart from the Iberia-Newfoundland margins, the South China Sea (SCS) represents  another passive margin where continent-ocean transition basement was sampled by deep drilling. Drilling data from IODP Expedition 367-368 and 368X combined with seismic profiles revealed a narrow continent-ocean transition (COT) between the Distal High sampled at Site U1501 and the Ridge B sampled at Site U1500. Results suggested that major Eocene lithospheric thinning triggered Mid-Ocean Ridge type melt production which emplaced within hyperextended continental crust leading eventually to continental breakup.  

Because of available dense seismic survey consisting of deep-penetrated seismic data imaging as deep as 12 s TWT, as well as drilling results from IODP Expeditions 367-368 and 368X, the COT in the northern SCS enables us to investigate the 3D propagation of continental breakup and the interactions between tectonic extension and magmatism. The top of acoustic basement can be consistently interpreted through all of our seismic survey and reveal various types of reliefs and nature from hyperextended continental crust to oceanic crust. In the basement, deep-penetrated seismic profiles present series of densely sub-parallel high-amplitude reflections that occurred within the lower crust. The lower boundary of these reflections is often characterized by double continual and high reflections interpreted as the Moho. Across the COT, the basement structure is characterized by: 1) Series of tilted blocks bounded by high angle faults on the Distal High and filled by syn-tectonic sedimentary wedges, 2) Rounded mounds of the basement with chaotic seismic reflection and sedimentary onlaps on these structures, 3) Series of ridges delimited by high-angle normal faults with no sedimentary wedge on the first oceanic crust.

Based on the detail stratigraphic framework constraint by drilling results from IODP Expeditions, the nature and timing of formation of these basement highs can be investigated. Some of these highs are limited by extensional faults while the nature of mounded structures located on the thinnest continental crust remain mysterious.  Our detailed analyses emphasize the occurrence and local control of syn-rift magmatism in order to build such structures. At larger scale, the hyperextended continental crust is characterized by significant 3D morphological variations both observed on dip and strike profiles. In contrast, the initial oceanic crust is characterized by a more homogenous structure and consistently juxtaposed to continental crust over a sharp and narrow zone.

How to cite: Lei, C., Ren, J., Mohn, G., Nirrengarten, M., Pang, X., Zheng, J., and Liu, B.: 3D structures and sedimentary infill across the continent-ocean transition of the northern South China Sea: constraint by the drilling results from IODP Expeditions 367, 368 and 368X, EGU General Assembly 2020, Online, 4–8 May 2020, EGU2020-378, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu2020-378, 2020.

The transition from continental to oceanic crust at rifted margins is characterised by changes in a variety of parameters including crustal thickness, basement morphology and magnetisation. Rifted margins also vary significantly in the degree of magmatism that is associated with breakup. The Eastern Black Sea Basin formed by backarc extension in late Cretaceous to early Cenozoic times, by the rotation of Shatsky Ridge relative to the Mid Black Sea High. Wide-angle seismic data show that anomalously thick oceanic crust is present in the southeast of the basin, while further to the northwest the crust is thinner in the centre of the basin. This thinner crust has seismic velocities that are anomalously low for oceanic crust, but is significantly magnetised and has a similar basement morphology to the thicker crust to the southeast. We synthesise constraints from wide-angle seismic data, magnetic anomaly data and new long-offset seismic reflection data into an integrated interpretation of the location and nature of the continent-ocean transition within the basin. Northwest to southeast along the axis of the basin, we infer a series of transitions from mildly stretched continental crust at the Mid Black Sea High to hyper-thinned continental crust, then to thin oceanic crust, and finally to anomalously thick oceanic crust. We explore the geodynamic processes that may have led to this configuration.

How to cite: Minshull, T., Monteleone, V., Marin Moreno, H., and Shillington, D.: Mapping the continent-ocean transition in the Eastern Black Sea Basin, EGU General Assembly 2020, Online, 4–8 May 2020, EGU2020-4998, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu2020-4998, 2020.

The West Iberian margin has been studied since the 1980 to mid 1990’s when some of the most emblematic geophysical cross-sections and borehole samples were collected in the area. Despite of this wealth of information, there is little understanding on how the transitional domain, commonly interpreted as exhumed mantle, transitions into oceanic crust. The lack of appropriate geophysical data makes the nature of the basement, and thus the origin of the structures, still debated. Also, the mechanisms of thinning occurring in the continental-ocean transition are poorly constrained due to data quality or methodological limitations.

Here, we present spatially coincident multichannel seismic (MCS) and wide angle seismic (WAS) data collected during the FRAME-2018 survey across the Tagus Abyssal Plain, South-West the Iberian margin. The MCS data were recorded with a 6-km-long streamer, while 17 Ocean Bottom Seismometers and 18 Ocean Bottom Hydrophones were deployed each 10 km and used to record the WAS data, both along a 350 km-long, E-W trending profile located at 38º N, and crossing the Tagus Abyssal Plain.

The MCS time-migrated seismic section provides a high-quality image from which we interpret the tectono-stratigraphic structure from the continent to the ocean, ~180 km eastwards from the J-anomaly. The seismic image shows three main domains: a first domain closest to the continent with tilted fault blocks with possible syn-rift sediments and a possibly continental basement. In this domain, there is high-reflectivity reflections at 1-2 s TWT from the top of the basement. Then, westwards, a domain displays gentle basement-top topography, high intra-basement complex reflectivity and deep-penetrating landward dipping reflections. No clear Moho reflection occurs. A third domain to the west correspond to a very smooth and highly reflective top of basement coincident with the magnetic J-anomaly. Further west top basement shows an irregular topography with comparatively numerous short tilted blocks.

We use refracted and reflected travel-times (TT) WAS and MCS field data to jointly invert for P-wave velocity (Vp) and the geometry of interfaces in the sediment, the top of the basement, and Moho. Combining MCS TT with WAS TT allows retrieving the Vp structure of the shallow part of the model and the geometry of seismic interfaces with a level of resolution that is beyond what can be obtained with WAS TT alone. The result of this joint WAS-MCS tomography is a Vp model of the margin that is fully consistent with the MCS image along the whole profile. The preliminary models show that the crustal structure is laterally more complex than previously modelled, presenting sharp boundaries between at least 5 different domains from the base of the continental slope to the ocean basin.

How to cite: Merino Perez, I., Prada, M., R. Ranero, C., Sallares, V., Grevemeyer, I., Calahorrano, A., L. Cameselle, A., and Neres, M.: The seismic structure of the West Iberian continent-ocean transition, EGU General Assembly 2020, Online, 4–8 May 2020, EGU2020-637, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu2020-637, 2020.

The availability of magma is a key to understand mid-ocean ridge tectonics, and specifically the distribution of the two contrasted spreading modes displayed at slow and ultraslow ridges (volcanically-dominated, and detachment fault-dominated). The part of the plate divergence that is not accommodated by magma emplaced as gabbros or basaltic dikes is taken up by normal faults that exhume upper mantle rocks, in many instances all the way to the seafloor.

Magma is, however, more than just a material that is, or is not, available to fill the gap between two diverging plates. It is the principal carrier of heat into the axial region and as such it may contribute to thin the axial lithosphere, hence diminishing the volume of new plate material formed at each increment of plate separation. Magma as a heat carrier may also, however, if emplaced in the more permeable upper lithosphere, attract and fuel vigorous hydrothermal circulation and contribute instead to overcooling the newly formed upper plate (Cochran and Buck, JGR 2001).

Magma is also a powerful agent for strain localization in the axial region: magma and melt-crystal mushes are weak; gabbros that crystallize from these melts are weaker than peridotites because they contain abundant plagioclase; and hydrothermally-altered gabbros, and gabbro-peridotite mixtures, are weaker than serpentinites because of minerals such as chlorite and talc. As a result, detachment-dominated ridge regions that receive very little magma probably have a stronger axial lithosphere than detachment-dominated ridge regions that receive a little more magma.

Because magma has this triple role (building material, heat carrier, and strain localization agent), and because it is highly mobile (through porosity, along permeability barriers, in fractures and dikes), it is likely that variations in magma supply to the ridge, in time and space, and variations in where this magma gets emplaced in the axial plate, cause a greater diversity of spreading modes, and of the resulting slow and ultraslow lithosphere composition and structure, than suggested by the first order dichotomy between volcanically-dominated and detachment-dominated spreading.

In this talk I illustrate these points using results of recent studies at the Mid-Atlantic and Southwest Indian ridges.

How to cite: Cannat, M.: On spreading modes and magma supply at slow and ultraslow mid-ocean ridges, EGU General Assembly 2020, Online, 4–8 May 2020, EGU2020-2658, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu2020-2658, 2020.

Continent Ocean Transitions (COTs) record the processes leading to continental breakup and localized oceanic accretion initiation. The recent IODP Expeditions 367-368 and 368X at the SE China margins combined with high quality multi-channel seismic profiles provide a unique dataset to explore the tectono-magmatic and thermal evolution from final rifting to early seafloor spreading. To investigate these issues, we developed a multi-disciplinary approach combining reflection seismic interpretations with geophysical quantitative analysis calibrated thanks to drilling results, from which we measured and modelled the thermal maturity in pre-/syn- to post-rift sediments.

Drilling results show that the transition from the most thinned continental crust to new, largely igneous crust is narrow (~20 km). During final rifting, decompression melting forming Mid-Ocean Ridge type magmatism emplaced within thinned continental crust as deep intrusions and shallow extrusive rocks concomitant with continued deformation by extensional faults. The initial igneous crust of the conjugate margins is asymmetric in width and morphology. The wider and faulted newly accreted domain on the SE China side indicates that magmatic accretion was associated with tectonic faulting during the formation of initial oceanic lithosphere, a feature not observed on the conjugate Palawan side. We suggest that deformation and magmatism were not symmetrically distributed between the conjugate margins during the initiation of seafloor spreading but evolved asymmetrically prior to the spreading ridge stabilising.

Organic matter from post-rift sediments has low thermal maturities due to limited burial and the absence of late post-rift magmatism. In contrast, pre to syn-rift sediments show significant variability in thermal maturities across the COT. Localised high thermal maturities for the pre- to syn-rift sediments requires that significant additional heat be imparted at shallow depths during breakup, likely related to magmatic intrusion or subsurface expressions of volcanism. The heterogeneous variation in thermal maturity observed across the COT reflects localised thermal perturbations caused by magmatic additions.

How to cite: Mohn, G., Nirrengarten, M., Schito, A., Kusznir, N., Corrado, S., Bowden, S., Pubellier, M., Sapin, F., and Larsen, H.-C.: Tectono-magmatic and thermal evolution of the SE China margin-NW Palawan breakup, EGU General Assembly 2020, Online, 4–8 May 2020, EGU2020-14296, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu2020-14296, 2020.

We investigate the extensional processes occurring during the rifting of a marginal basin to use long-streamer multichannel seismic transects across the entire southwestern South China Sea (SCS). The basin is characterized by space and time propagating breakup followed by seafloor spreading during Cenozoic. Stretching and thinning of the continental crust were accompanied by ubiquitous large extensional detachment faults. In the proximal E Vietnam margin, rifted basins are filled with lower syn-rift sedimentation (syn-rift I). These sediments pinch out towards the distal margin. On the conjugate NW Borneo margin, the same coeval syn-rift I is truncated at the top, suggesting a period of crustal uplift affecting solely the southern margin. To illustrate the pre-breakup geometries of the southwestern SCS margins, we restore two conjugate sections near the first oceanic magnetic anomaly (20.1 Ma, C6n). The result highlights a thick pre-breakup succession (syn-rift II) offset slightly by several seaward-dipping normal faults above the exhumed basement. The magmatism intruded this hyper-extended basin and proceeded to break up the continental lithosphere eventually. The COT configuration not only illustrates asymmetrical hyper-extension but also appears in map view to have a rhombic shape controlled by N-S abrupt segments and E-W hyper-extended ones. The spatial variation of the crustal structures suggests an initial N-S extension contemporaneous with the first phase of seafloor spreading in the eastern SCS. The extensional direction significantly changed later (circa 23Ma) to NW-SE in relation to a well-documented ridge jump. Interestingly, this change in the direction of opening is coeval with the collision and the counterclockwise rotation in Borneo, thus suggesting that those events are linked. Therefore, we propose that collision was responsible for significant change in the far-field stress and influenced the extensional regime in the SCS.

How to cite: Chang, S.-P., Pubellier, M., Delescluse, M., Nirrengarten, M., Mohn, G., Chamot-Rooke, N., and Qiu, Y.: Tectonic evolution of the East Vietnam-Southwest Borneo margin breakup, EGU General Assembly 2020, Online, 4–8 May 2020, EGU2020-19478, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu2020-19478, 2020.

The Galicia Interior Basin (GIB) off West Iberia, is considered an aborted rift formed in the context of opening of the North Atlantic rift system. Despite the Galicia Interior Basin being located in one of the best studied examples of magma-poor rifted margins (i.e., the West Iberia continental margin), its 3D structural variability and its role during continental rifting in the regional geodynamic context remains poorly understood. In this sense, Galicia Interior Basin represents the necessary link to understand the mechanisms of extension from the little extended shelf to the areas where continental breakup finally occurred.

Here we present new multichannel seismic data collected during FRAME cruise carried out onboard the Spanish “R/V Sarmiento de Gamboa” during summer 2018. The structure of the Galicia Interior Basin has been imaged using a 6-km-long solid-state digital multichannel streamer with 480 channels and two G-II gun arrays with a total volume of 3920 cu.in. fired every 37.5 m at 140 bar (2000 p.s.i.) pressure. The new post-stack time migrations of multichannel seismic profiles show the complex basement structure and deep sedimentary units across the region with an unprecedented detail. Additionally, we used state-of-the-art techniques to reprocessed a complementary set of vintage multichannel seismic profiles collected across the GIB. The integration of new and reprocessed seismic profiles provides the opportunity to study for the first time the 3D tectonic crustal-scale structure of the GIB.

Our images reveal syn- and post-rift sediment, tilted fault blocks, well-defined top-of-the-basement reflections, and also intra-basement and Moho reflections that offer new information about the variations in tectonic structural style during rifting. The data display an asymmetric structure and variations in the amount and distribution of crustal extension across the GIB. At the center of the basin – about 150 km landward from the continent-ocean transition – the continental basement has been thinned to 6-8 km associated with listric (in two-way travel time) normal faults without final breakup. Further offshore, the continental basement thickens again until ~20 km under the Galicia Bank, before entering the Deep Galicia Margin where continental basement thins laterally continuously to mantle exhumation and final breakup. The observed crustal structure and margin configuration represents a challenge to current models of rifting and continent-ocean transition structure, and allow to speculate on the possible causes for rift failure at the GIB in the context of the opening of the West Iberia margin.

How to cite: Cameselle, A. L., Ranero, C. R., Pinheiro, L. M., and Sallarès, V.: The seismic structure of the Galicia Interior Basin from new seismic images: Implications for the West Iberia margin formation, EGU General Assembly 2020, Online, 4–8 May 2020, EGU2020-7223, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu2020-7223, 2020.

Imaging of hyperextended zone and exhumed continental mantle rocks can improve our understanding of the tectonics of the final stages of rifting. In the Deep Galicia margin, the upper and lower crust are coupled allowing the normal faults to cut through the brittle crust and penetrate to the mantle leading to serpentinization of the mantle. Localized extensional forces caused extreme thinning and elongation of crystalline continental crust causing the continental blocks to slip over a lithospheric-scale detachment fault called the S-reflector.  

A high-resolution velocity model obtained using seismic full waveform inversion gives us deeper insights into the rifting process. In this study, we present results from three dimensional acoustic full waveform inversion performed using wide-angle seismic data acquired in the deep water environments of the Deep Galicia margin using ocean bottom seismometers. We performed full waveform inversion in the time domain, starting with a velocity model obtained using travel-time tomography, of dimensions 78.5 km x 22.1 km and depth 12 km. The high-resolution modelling shows short-wavelength variations in the velocity, adding details to the travel-time model. We superimposed our final model, converted to two-way time, on pre-stack time-migrated three-dimensional reflection data from the same survey. Compared to the starting model, our model shows improved alignment of the velocity variations along the steeply dipping normal faults and a sharp velocity contrast across the S-reflector. We validated our result using checkerboard tests, by tracking changes in phases of the first arrivals during the inversion and by comparing the observed and the synthetic waveforms. We observe a clear evidence for preferential serpentinization (45 %) of the mantle with lower velocities in the mantle correlating with the fault intersections with the S-reflector.

How to cite: Boddupalli, B., Minshull, T., Morgan, J., and Bayrakci, G.: Imaging the Deep Galicia margin using three-dimensional full waveform inversion, EGU General Assembly 2020, Online, 4–8 May 2020, EGU2020-5559, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu2020-5559, 2020.

Rifted margins are either classified as volcanic vs. non-volcanic or magma-rich vs. magma-poor. While such classifications are essentially based on the magmatic budget observed at rifted margins, they do not take into account the relative timing of magmatic activity with respect to tectonic activity, i.e. when and where first magma forms. High-quality reflection and refraction seismic surveys combined with drill hole data and field observations show that such a binary classification is unable to satisfactorily describe the magmatic processes related to rifting and lithospheric breakup.  

Our results show that the magmatic evolution of rifted margins is complex and cannot be characterized based on the volume of observed magma alone. On one hand, so-called “non-volcanic” margins are not amagmatic, as shown by the results of ODP drilling along the Iberia-Newfoundland rifted margins and field observations in fossil analogues. On the other hand, magma-rich margins, such as the Norwegian, NW Australian or the Namibia rifted margins show evidence for hyper-extension prior to magmatic activity. These observations suggest that the magmatic budget and the timing of magma production do not only depend on the amount of crustal/lithospheric extension but also on the composition and temperature of the decompressing mantle and the occurrence of mantle plumes. However, the fact that the magmatic budget may change very abruptly along strike is difficult to reconcile with the occurrence of plumes or other deep-seated, large-scale mantle phenomena only. These observations prompted us to re-examine the magmatic and tectonic processes and their interactions during rifting and lithospheric breakup and how far inheritance, rifting rates and plume-related activity may control the magmatic budget during rifting.

In our presentation we will review results from the global margins and will discuss the structural and magmatic evolution of so-called magma-rich, magma-poor and -intermediate rifted margins. In particular, we will try to examine when, where and how much magma forms during rifting and lithospheric breakup. The key questions that we aim to address are: 1) to what extent is melting directly related to decompression and extension , 2) how far is the magmatic budget controlled by inherited mantle composition, and 3) how important is magma storage in the mantle lithosphere during initial stages of magma production. Answering to these questions will allow to discuss to what extent the magmatic evolution of rift systems reflect the interplay between inheritance (innate/"genetic code"), actual physical processes (acquired/external factors) and plume induced processes.

How to cite: Manatschal, G., Tomasi, S., Kusznir, N., Zhang, C., Sauter, D., Peng, C., Ulrich, M., and Chenin, P.: Magma at rifted margins: when, where and how much?, EGU General Assembly 2020, Online, 4–8 May 2020, EGU2020-5060, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu2020-5060, 2020.

Dykes are the main magma transport pathways through the Earth’s crust and, in volcanic rifts, they are considered the main mechanism to accommodate tectonic extension. Most models consider dykes as hydro-fractures propagating as brittle tensile, mode I cracks opening perpendicular to the least principal stress. This implies that dykes emplaced in rifts are expected to be sub-vertical and accommodate crustal extension. Here we present detailed field observations of a well-exposed dyke swarm that formed near the brittle-ductile transition at a magma-rich rifted margin during opening of the Iapetus Ocean. It was related to a ca 600 million year-old large igneous province. Our observations show that dykes were not systematically emplaced by purely brittle deformation and that dyke orientation may differ from the typical mode 1 pattern. Distinct dyke morphologies related to different emplacement mechanisms have been recognized including: 1) Brittle dykes that exhibit straight contacts with the host rock, sharp tips, and en-echelon segments with bridges exhibiting angular fragments; 2) Brittle-ductile dykes with undulating contacts, rounded tips, folding of the host rock and contemporaneous brittle and ductile features; 3) Ductile “dykes” with rounded shapes and mingling between partially molten host rock and the intruding mafic magma. The brittle dykes exhibit two distinct orientations separated by ~30° that are mutually cross-cutting, demonstrating that the dyke swam did not consist of only vertical sheets oriented perpendicular to regional extension, as expected in rifts. By using the host-rock layers as markers, a kinematic restoration to quantify the average strain accommodating the emplacement of the dyke complex was performed. This strain estimate shows that the dyke swarm accommodated >100% horizontal extension, but also 27% vertical thickening. This suggests that the magma influx rate was higher than the tectonic stretching rate, which imply that magma was emplaced forcefully, as supported by field observations of the host-rock deformation. Finally, observations of typical “brittle” dykes that were subsequently deformed by ductile mechanisms as well as dykes that were emplaced by purely ductile mechanisms suggest that the fast emplacement of the dyke swarm triggered a rapid shallowing of the brittle-ductile transition. The abrupt dyke emplacement and associated heating resulted in weakening of the crust that probably facilitated the continental break-up, which culminated with opening of the Iapetus Ocean.

How to cite: Kjøll, H. J., Galland, O., Labrousse, L., and Andersen, T. B.: Emplacement mechanisms of a dyke swarm across the Brittle-Ductile transition , EGU General Assembly 2020, Online, 4–8 May 2020, EGU2020-8215, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu2020-8215, 2020.

During continental rifting, faulting, magmatic injection, and surface processes collectively shape the landscape. Although feedbacks between surface processes and faulting at rifts have been explored, the relationship between shallow magmatic intrusions, topography, and surface processes is poorly understood. Magmatic injection is controlled in part by lithospheric stress, and should therefore respond to rift-associated perturbations to the stress field. Along with normal fault formation and evolution, surficial mass redistribution via erosion, sediment transport, and deposition alters lithospheric stresses and has the potential to influence dike emplacement and long-term rift structure. Here we present a series of two-dimensional (2-D) numerical model runs utilizing the particle-in-cell, finite difference code SiStER to quantify the feedbacks between tectonic, magmatic, and surface processes that shape continental rifts. In our models, extension is accommodated through a combination of magmatic intrusion and tectonic stretching. Magmatic intrusion occurs within a narrow region when and where the sum of horizontal deviatoric stress and magmatic overpressure exceeds the tensile strength of the lithosphere. Magmatic overpressure is thus a key parameter that strongly modulates the sensitivity of dike emplacement to faulting, bending, and topographically-induced variations in lithosphere stress. Our results first probe the relationships between fault-related stresses and the timing and depth-distribution of magmatic intrusions at a rift with no active surface processes. In these cases, the locus of magmatic spreading migrates vertically in response to the evolving stress field. The 2-D tectonic model is then coupled to a 1-D landscape evolution model, which modifies topography concurrent with extension. In the simplest case, topographic diffusion effectively redistributes the topographic load, contributing to variations in injection-controlling lithospheric stresses. We compare our tectonic-responsive results with models that incorporate active surface processes to constrain the conditions under which surface processes modulate magmatic injection. Our simulations suggest that the development and redistribution of topography exerts an important control on the partitioning of tectonic and magmatic strain at extensional plate boundaries.

How to cite: Morrow, T., Olive, J.-A., Behn, M., and Smalls, P.: Feedbacks between magmatic intrusions, faulting, and surface processes at continental rifts, EGU General Assembly 2020, Online, 4–8 May 2020, EGU2020-9029, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu2020-9029, 2020.

Assessing the extent of a former ocean, of which only remnants are found in mountain belts, is challenging but crucial to understand subduction and exhumation processes. Here we present new constraints on the opening and width of the Liguro-Piemont (LP) Ocean (or Alpine Tethys) in Mesozoic time using plate kinematic reconstructions of the Western Mediterranean-Alpine area.

Our kinematic model is based on a compilation of geological-geophysical data and published reconstructions of the opening of the Atlantic for the motion of Europe, Africa and Iberia, and of the Cenozoic deformation along fold-and-thrust belts (Alps, Apennines, Dinarides, Provence) and extensional basins (Liguro-Provencal Basin and Sicily Channel Rift Zone) for the motion of the Adriatic plate (Adria) and Sardinia-Corsica. For Jurassic and Cretaceous times, our main assumption is to avoid significant convergence or divergence between Adria and Africa and between Iberia and Sardinia-Corsica, as there is no geological evidence for such deformation. This implies in return strike-slip motion between southern France and Iberia-Sardinia-Corsica and within the Adriatic plate.

Our model shows that the LP basin opened in three phases: (1) first a slow extensional phase of c. 4 mm/yr (full rate) in Lower-Middle Jurassic between 200-165 Ma, followed by (2) a faster (up to 1.5 cm/yr) oblique extension in Middle-Upper Jurassic between 165-154 Ma, which coincides with emplacement ages of gabbros and pillow-lavas, and (3) a final main extensional phase in Upper Jurassic between 154 and 145 Ma, with rates up to 2.3 cm/yr. At 145 Ma, Iberia starts to move relative to Europe and thus extension in the LP domain decreases rapidly till it ceases completely at about 130 Ma. We interpret the first phase as rifting of the proximal part of the continental margins (200-165 Ma) followed by hyper-extension and formation of the ocean-continent transition zone (165-154 Ma), and break-up and ultra-slow oceanic spreading during the final third phase (mainly 154-145 Ma). Along a NW-SE transect between Corsica and northern Adria, we estimate the width of the LP Ocean to a maximum of ~ 240 km (oceanic domain) and the extent of the whole rifted margins to ~ 500 km, subdivided into ~380 km for the proximal and necking zones, and ~120 km for the hyper-extended and ocean-continent transition zones. Our results are supported by high-resolution thermo-mechanical modelling of the rifting phase that, using our kinematic constraints, reproduces very well the geometry of the Adriatic margin, as obtained by published geological reconstructions of the Southern Alps.

We test other kinematic scenarios for the motion of Sardinia-Corsica and for the opening of the Ionian Basin which would increase the obliquity of rifting and reduce even more the width of the extended domain. Therefore, our calculated extent of the LP Ocean constitutes a maximum estimate providing crucial constraints for geodynamic modelling and a better understanding of subduction processes during the Alpine Orogeny. 

How to cite: Le Breton, E., Brune, S., Ustaszewski, K., Zahirovic, S., Seton, M., and Müller, R. D.: Kinematics and extent of the Liguro-Piemont Ocean , EGU General Assembly 2020, Online, 4–8 May 2020, EGU2020-11228, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu2020-11228, 2020.

The Demerara plateau (offshore Suriname and French Guiana) is an original transform marginal plateau located at the junction between the central and the equatorial Atlantic domains. New results combining the interpretation of several datasets of high-penetration industrial MCS, academic MCS and wide-angle seismic data image a 30 km thick crust in the plateau, evolving towards three different margins to the two adjacent oceanic domains.

This work shows that this oceanic relief is a Jurassic volcanic margin located at the southern termination of the Central Atlantic rifting, and forming the divergent western margin of the Demerara plateau. New result from dredges also show the influence of a hotspot in this rifting phase. The resulting transitional domain is unusual, characterized by a progressive thinning of the margin toward the west and the presence of SDRs outer bodies on a reworked unit probably of continental origin. Unambiguous oceanic crust is identified at about 100 km from the slope break of the shelf. Toward the plateau, the outer SDR body let place to several thick superimposed inner SDR.

Then, this Jurassic domain was remarkably reworked during the Cretaceous rifting phase linked to the opening of the Equatorial Atlantic. This second event restructured this volcanic object, forming a transform northern margin and a divergent eastern margin, each with a specific transitional domain.

The presence of a volcanic margin which subsequently undergoes a non-coaxial opening with transform constraints is relatively unusual. Our data help to better constrain the transitional domains and the TOC of the Equatorial Atlantic Cretaceous margins.

The characterization of the northern and eastern extension limit of the SDRs formations and of the high velocity lower crust observed in the plateau is an important regional issue. This knowledge is necessary in particular to characterize the volumes and structures associated with the Jurassic volcanic episode, which control the thermo-structural Cretaceous evolution of the plateau and the adjacent domains.

How to cite: Museur, T., Graindorge, D., Klingelhoefer, F., Roest, W., Basile, C., Loncke, L., and Sapin, F.: Conjunction between diachronic volcanic processes and transform margin leads to the unusual structure of the Demerara transform marginal plateau and its three different margins., EGU General Assembly 2020, Online, 4–8 May 2020, EGU2020-22080, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu2020-22080, 2020.

V-shaped propagators are ubiquist and the seafloor age map is often sufficient to unravel the first order features of the timing of continental break-up at regional or more global scale. Some propagators show  pulses in the rate of continental break-up propagation highlighted by the geometry of magnetic anomalies. These pulses, which were first introduced by Courtillot (1982) in the Gulf of Aden, represent a major element of plate tectonics. Despite the well documented geological record of these changes of rate, and their implications for plate kinematic reconstructions or the thermal regime of oblique margins, the dynamics of ridge and rift propagation at long/geodynamic timescale remains poorly studied nor understood. To date, despite the large progress made in understanding lithospheric dynamics and continental break-up, no lithospheric scale dynamic models has been able to produce self consistently pulse of ridgepropagation followed by a phase of stagnation. One obvious reason for this lack of dynamic ground stands from the fact that this problem mandates 3D thermo-mechanically coupled simulation approach that is just starting to emerge. In this work we chose to adopt a numerical modelling set-up after Le Pourhiet et al. (2018) to produce V-shaped propagators. Simulations investigate the influence of both kinematic and rheology of the lithosphere on the propagation trend and rate. The tectonic evolution of these margins shows 3 different modes of continental break-up propagation and a major change of deformation regime between phases of propagations and phases of stagnation.

How to cite: Jourdon, A., Le Pourhiet, L., Mouthereau, F., and May, D. A.: Obliquity favours propagation pulses during continental break-up , EGU General Assembly 2020, Online, 4–8 May 2020, EGU2020-9586, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu2020-9586, 2020.

Fault network orientations and three-dimensional geometries of oblique rift systems and oblique passive margins vary widely at the surface of the Earth. In fact, rift width and conjugate passive margins asymmetries also evolve along-strike oblique extensional systems. This evolution can be linked to either changes in tectonic forces and plate motion direction, or transitions between contrasting geological provinces such as mobile belts and cratons.

Here, we use high-resolution 3D forward thermo-mechanical modelling with non-linear viscoplastic rheologies to assess the importance of crustal rheology on low to moderate oblique rifts and non-volcanic passive margins deformation patterns and finite geometries. We compare two crustal end-members model series, one with a stiff crust, and the second with a weak crust. We find that the rheology of the crust strongly controls the width and timing of formation of oblique rifts and passive margins. Coupling between the frictional plastic crust and upper mantle in the stiff models promotes narrow rift systems, while decoupling in the weak models promotes wide rifts. In these wide rifts, strain partitioning in the upper crust favours the development of an interconnected wide anastomosed shear zones network with a long lifespan. While stiff crustal rheology promotes Type I narrow margins, weak crustal rheology promotes the development of Type II margins, with a delayed continental crust breakup compared with the lithospheric mantle breakup. With increasing obliquity this transition in rifting style is accompanied by an evolution of the mantle lithosphere necking behaviour from cylindrical at low obliquity to segmented at higher obliquity. We compare these results with natural oblique rift systems and passive margins in order to decipher the relative impact of crustal rheology along different terrains.

How to cite: Duclaux, G., Huismans, R., and May, D.: Impact of crustal rheology on oblique rift development and geometry: a numerical study, EGU General Assembly 2020, Online, 4–8 May 2020, EGU2020-17271, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu2020-17271, 2020.

Seismic imaging of very distal margins enabled to evidence seaward-verging normal faults with slip displacements up to 6000 meters, in several areas of both African & Brazilian magma-poor margins.

Interpretation of deep seismic profiles, including 3D seismic, time- & depth-migrated, evidence sharp depth variations of the Moho, close to areas where subcontinental mantle exhumed further to successive activation of Low-Angle Normal Faults and large detachement faults.

The sharp Moho depth variations are related to giant High-Angle Normal Faults (HANF) which had offset the Moho itself and may have rooted close to the base of the serpentinized mantle. The faults are sealed within the salt, enabling to date it Late Aptian in age.

The close synchronicity between HANF activity and salt deposition reflects some dramatic changes of depositional environments, subsidence and deformation processes at the scale of the margin, especially as salt deposition is also closely related to significant increase of magmatic additions in the ultra-distal parts of the margin.

These changes are very likely related to the lithospheric break-up process and support the post-detachement timing of activation of the HANF interpreted from cross-cutting relationships on the seismics.

The evolutionary model for HANF proposed is supported by field evidence, seismic analogs and thermomechanical models: it invokes thermal, isostatic, rheologic, tectono-magmatic processes, and documents the context of South Atlantic salt deposition.

How to cite: Denis, M. and Ballard, J.-F.: Massive High-Angle Normal Faulting at distal magma-poor margins: examples from South Atlantic, EGU General Assembly 2020, Online, 4–8 May 2020, EGU2020-20576, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu2020-20576, 2020.

Here we use observations from the central South Atlantic conjugate margins to constrain the structural style of rifting and its relation with sedimentary basin evolution during the syn and early post-rift. Three synthetics transects from North (Gabon-Brazil) to South (Angola-Brazil) are used to constrain fault distribution, margin width, crustal thickness, distribution of magmatism, syn-rift sedimentary section thickness and paleo-environment from the start of rifting in the Berriasian (145 Ma) until the early post rift in the Aptian (113 Ma). This integrated study aims to understand variations in along strike structural style, magmatic output, and sedimentary basin evolution to assess the contribution of mantle processes on topography using forward 2-D thermo-mechanical modelling. We design a model setup that reproduces South Atlantic central segment main characteristics before rifting. We then explore scenarios of lithospheric thinning where strain weakening mechanisms, degree of depletion of lithopsheric mantle and crustal rheology are the main variables. The model accounts for decompression melting with feedbacks on temperature, viscosity and density of the mantle. The subsidence in the thermo-mechanical models is calibrated with a reference ridge elevation, where a 6 km thick oceanic crust is predicted, and explained by the different contributions on buoyancy of rifted passive margin during rifting. We discuss conditions to get magma-poor margins with/without exhumed mantle at the seafloor and conditions to reach a small topographic gradient and shallow water environment between the proximal and distal domains over more than 200 km of the wide margin during most of the syn-rift.

How to cite: Theunissen, T., Huismans, R., Despinois, F., Ringenbach, J.-C., and Sapin, F.: Synrift subsidence and magmatism of the Central South Atlantic passive margins based on long term 2-D thermo-mechanical modelling, EGU General Assembly 2020, Online, 4–8 May 2020, EGU2020-21717, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu2020-21717, 2020.

Seismic observations show that some rifted continental margins may have substantial amounts of offshore sediments. For example, sediment layers of several kilometres thick are found on the margins of Mid Norway, Namibia and Angola. Intriguingly, these margins are wide, being characterised by distances of several hundreds of kilometres from typical continental crustal thicknesses of 30-40 km to clearly identifiable oceanic crust. On the other hand, some margins that are sediment-starved, such as Goban Spur, Flemish Cap and Northern Norway, have short onshore-to-offshore transitions. Variations in the amount of sediments not only impact the development of offshore sedimentary basins, but the changes in mass balance by erosion and sedimentation can also interact with extensional tectonic processes. In convergent settings, such feedback relationships between erosion and tectonic deformation have long been highlighted: Erosion reduces the elevation and width of mountain belts and in turn tectonic activity and exhumation are focused at regions of enhanced erosion. But what is the role played by surface processes during formation of rifted continental margins?

I use geodynamic finite-element experiments to explore the response of continental rifts to erosion and sedimentation from initial rifting to continental break-up. The experiments predict that rifted margins with thick syn-rift sedimentary packages are more likely to form hyper-extended crust and require more stretching to achieve continental break-up than sediment-starved margins. These findings imply that surface processes can control the style of continental break-up and that the role of sedimentation in rifted margin evolution goes far beyond the simple exertion of a passive weight.

How to cite: Buiter, S.: How syn-rift sedimentation promotes the formation of hyper-extended margins, EGU General Assembly 2020, Online, 4–8 May 2020, EGU2020-18622, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu2020-18622, 2020.

The Tyrrhenian Sea in the central Mediterranean Sea was form by Neogene slab roll-back of the retreating Ionian slab about 6 to 2 Myr ago. Yet, little is known about the structure of its southern margin off Sicily as well as back-arc extension and spreading in the southern Tyrrhenian Sea to the north of Sicily. The Sicilian margin is generally classified as a passive margin bounding a young back-arc basin. However, focal mechanisms from regional earthquakes suggest that the margins suffers presently from compressional tectonics. New seismic refraction and wide-angle data were collected along seismic profile WAS4 during the CHIANTI survey of the Spanish research vessel Sarmiento de Gamboa in 2015. The profile runs from the centre of the Tyrrhenian Sea – the Vavilov Basin – across the margin of Sicily, approaching the Gulf of Castellammare to the northwest of Sicily. Reanalyzed multi-channel seismic data supports compressional tectonics across a small basin paralleling the coastline of Sicily, revealing recent inversion of the Tyrrhenian Basin. Offshore of Sicily WAS4 indicates a roughly 120-140 km wide domain showing seismic P-wave velocities characteristic for continental crust (Vp ~4-6.7 km/s) and a base of crust defined by a wide-angle Moho reflection. Continental crust reaches a maximum thickness of 22 km to the north of the Gulf of Castellammare and is thinning to ~9 km to the north of the Ustica Ridge. The compressional belt occurs in continental crust to the south of Ustica Ridge. In the Vavilov Basin, a lithosphere was sample where seismic P-wave velocity increases from approx. 3-4 km/s to 7.5 km/s. This velocity depth-distribution clearly shows profound similarities to serpentinized mantle and hence un-roofed mantle. Thus, seismic constrains support results from Ocean Drilling Program (ODP) hole 651A, which sample serpentinized peridotites in the Vavilov Basin. The transition between serpentinized mantle and continental crust is rather abrupt. Thus, within a ~10 km wide transitional domain, continental crust with a thickness of~ 9 km is juxtaposed against un-roofed mantle. All available data from the Tyrrhenian Sea support wide-spread mantle exhumation in the Vavilov Basin. Therefore, the Tyrrhenian Sea provides a rather different structure when compared to marginal basins in the Western Pacific and hence may not have supported a mid-ocean ridge-type spreading system opening the basin.

How to cite: Grevemeyer, I., Ranero, C., Zitellini, N., Sallares, V., and Prada, M.: Seismic wide-angle constrains on the structure of the northern Sicily margin and Vavilov Basin: implications for the opening of the Tyrrhenian back-arc basin, EGU General Assembly 2020, Online, 4–8 May 2020, EGU2020-5130, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu2020-5130, 2020.

A new tectonic map is presented focused upon the extensional style accompanying the formation of the Tyrrhenian back-arc basin. Our basin-wide analysis synthetizes the interpretation of vintage multichannel and single channel seismic profiles integrated with modern seismic images and P-wave velocity models, and with a new morpho-tectonic map of the Tyrrhenian (Palmiotto & Loreto, 2019). Four distinct evolutionary opening stages have been constrained: 1) the initial Langhian(?)/Serravallian opening phase actives offshore central/southern Sardinia and offshore western Calabria; 2) the Tortonian/Messinian phase dominated by extension offshore North Sardinia-Corsica, and by oceanic accretion in the Cornaglia and Campania Terraces; 3) the Pliocene phase, dominated by mantle exhumation which was active mainly in the central Tyrrhenian and led to the full opening of Vavilov Basin; and 4) the Quaternary phase characterized by the opening of the Marsili back-arc basin. Listric and planar normal faults and their conjugates bound a series of horst and graben, half-graben and triangular basins. Distribution of extensional faults, active since Middle Miocene, throughout the basin allowed us to define a faults arrangement in the northern / central Tyrrhenian mainly related to in a pure shear which evolved a simple shear opening of continental margins. At depth, faults accommodate over a Ductile-Brittle Transitional zone cut by a low-angle detachment fault possibly responsible for mantle exhumation in the Vavilov and Magnaghi abyssal plains. In the southern Tyrrhenian, normal, inverse and transcurrent faults appear to be related to a large shear zone located along the continental margin of the northern Sicily. Extensional style variationthroughout the back-arc basin combined with wide-angle seismic velocity models, from Prada et al. (2014; 2015), allow to explore the relationship between shallow deformation, represented by faults distribution throughout the basin, and crustal-scale processes, subduction of Ionian slab and exhumation.

REFERENCES

Palmiotto, C., & Loreto, M. F., (2019). Regional scale morphological pattern of the Tyrrhenian Sea: New insights from EMODnet bathymetry. Geomorphology, 332, 88-99.

Prada, M., Sallarès, V., Ranero, C.R., Vendrell, M.G., Grevemeyer, I., Zitellini, N. & De Franco, R., 2014. Seismic structure of the Central Tyrrhenian basin: Geophysical constraints on the nature of the main crustal domains. J. Geophys. Res.: Solid Earth, 119(1), 52-70.

Prada, M., Sallarès, V., Ranero, C.R., Vendrell, M.G., Grevemeyer, I., Zitellini, N. & De Franco, R., 2015. The complex 3-D transition from continental crust to backarc magmatism and exhumed mantle in the Central Tyrrhenian basin. Geophys. J. Int., 203(1), 63-78.

How to cite: Loreto, M. F., Zitellini, N., Ranero, C. R., Palmiotto, C., and Prada, M.: Extensional tectonics during the Tyrrhenian back-arc basin formation synthetized in a new morpho-tectonic map, EGU General Assembly 2020, Online, 4–8 May 2020, EGU2020-18473, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu2020-18473, 2020.

The Ligurian Basin is located north-west of Corsica at the transition from the western Alpine orogen to the Apennine system. The Back-arc basin was generated by the southeast trench retreat of the Apennines-Calabrian subduction zone. The opening took place from late Oligocene to Miocene. While the extension led to extreme continental thinning and un-roofing of mantle material little is known about the style of back-arc rifting.

To shed light on the present day crustal and lithospheric architecture of the Ligurian Basin, active seismic data have been recorded on short period ocean bottom seismometers in the framework of SPP2017 4D-MB, the German component of AlpArray. An amphibious refraction seismic profile was shot across the Ligurian Basin in an E-W direction from the Gulf of Lion to Corsica. The profile extends onshore Corsica to image the necking zone of continental thinning.

The majority of the refraction seismic data show mantle phases at offsets up to 70 km. The arrivals of seismic phases were picked and inverted in a travel time tomography. The results show a crust-mantle boundary in the central basin at ~12 km depth below sea surface. The mantle shows rather high velocities >7.8 km/s. The crust-mantle boundary deepens from ~12 km to ~18 km within 25 - 30 km towards Corsica. The results do not map an axial valley as expected for oceanic spreading. However, an extremely thinned continental crust indicates a long lasting rifting process that possibly does not initiated oceanic spreading before the opening of the Ligurian Basin stopped.

How to cite: Kopp, H., Dannowski, A., Grevemeyer, I., Lange, D., Thorwart, M., Caielli, G., Franco, R., Petersen, F., Wolf, F. N., and Schramm, B.: Investigations of the Oligocene-Miocene opening of the Ligurian Basin using refraction seismic data, EGU General Assembly 2020, Online, 4–8 May 2020, EGU2020-6950, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu2020-6950, 2020.

The Jan Mayen Ridge (JMR) is a 150-km-long and 10–30 km wide seafloor expression in N-S direction in the centre of the North Atlantic and part of the Jan Mayen Microcontinent (JMMC). Previous studies show that the eastern flank of the JMR was formed during the breakup of the Norway Basin along today’s Aegir Ridge, prior to magnetic anomaly C23 (~50 Ma). The western margin of the JMMC is conjugate to East Greenland. Rifting gradually propagated northward, likely from Chron C21 (~46 Ma) onward. Fan-shaped magnetic anomalies in the Norway Basin suggest that the JMMC must have rotated counter-clockwise. The JMR is likely underlain by continental crust. Volcanic flows have been observed within the sediments in the Jan Mayen Basin (JMB). While a relatively uniform upper crust was observed throughout the JMMC, the thickness of the lower continental crust varies significantly from up to 15 km below the JMR down to almost zero thickness towards the western part of the JMB. However, the character of the lower crust and the development of the conjugate East Greenland – JMMC margins during Oligocene are still disputed.

Here, we investigate the crustal structure of the JMMC using a new 265-km-long seismic refraction line crossing the JMMC at 69.7°N in E-W direction, which was acquired on board of RV Maria S. Merian during cruise MSM67. The profile consists of 30 ocean bottom seismometers (OBS) with a spacing of 9.5 km. The dataset was complemented by on-board gravity measurements and a magnetometer array towed behind the vessel during shooting. The line extends from oceanic crust in the Norway Basin, across the microcontinent and into oceanic crust that formed at the presently active mid-oceanic Kolbeinsey Ridge. The magnetic profile shows old seafloor spreading anomalies in the east (likely anomaly 24, ~52 Ma), then low amplitude magnetic anomalies in the central portion of the profile, which are typical for many plutonic continental rocks. On the western part of the profile, high amplitude anomalies of younger oceanic crust (likely anomalies C5C trough C6, ~19–16 Ma) are recognized near the western termination of the JMB. The seismic velocity distribution and crustal thickness vary strongly along the profile, with velocities typical for oceanic crust at either end of the profile and a thickened crust (12–13 km) underneath the JMR. This suggests that the JMMC consists of thinned continental crust with a total width of 100 km.

How to cite: Dannowski, A., Schnabel, M., Barckhausen, U., Franke, D., Thorwart, M., Funck, T., Engels, M., and Berndt, C.: Structure and evolution of the Jan Mayen Microcontinent, EGU General Assembly 2020, Online, 4–8 May 2020, EGU2020-10040, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu2020-10040, 2020.

The split between the North American and Eurasian plates began in the Late Pleistocene - Early Eocene (58-60 million years). As the stretching took place, overlapping rift cracks formed. With further evolution, the crack that came from the north fully formed, while the south at that time died out, forming the axis of paleospreading (early Ypresian Age, 49.7 Ma). A hot spot was already functioning near Greenland at that time. In the Priabonian Age (33.1 million years), the hot spot ended under the axis of paleospreading. As a result, the spreading axis jumped (Peron-Pinvidic et al., 2012) creating the Jan Mine main microcontinent and the Kolbeinsain spreading ridge. In addition, the northern branch of the spreading ridge died out and the Aegir paleospreading ridge formed. These raises a number of questions arise:

-What is the mechanism for the separation of the Jan Mine continental block?

-Why did the spreading axis jumped and the Aegir Ridge wither away?

-What is the effect of the Icelandic hot spot on microblock formation?

-Are there similar structures in the world formed through a similar mechanism?

To answer these questions, a physical simulation was performed. Some of these issues were considered in (Muller et al., 2001, Gaina et al., 2003, Mjelde et al., 2008, Mjelde, Faleide, 2009).

Modelling was based on the initial geometry of rift cracks, known oldest magnetic anomalies and existing reconstructions. It showed two possibilities for the formation of the Jan Mayen microcontinent.

The first model is associated with parallel or oblique strike of rift cracks, the oncoming movement of which leads to their overlap, isolation of the microcontinental block, which experienced deformation and rotation.

The second model is associated with the presence of a local heat source (hot spot), the influence of which led to a jump of one branch of the rift towards the hot spot, and to the generation of a significant amount of magmatic material, which could significantly change the initial continental structure of the microblock. The second method, which combines the influence of the overlap zone and the hot spot, showed the best correlation with natural structures.

How to cite: Agranov, G., Dubinin, E., Grokholsky, A., and Makushkina, A.: Physical modeling of the formation of the microcontinent Jan Mayen, EGU General Assembly 2020, Online, 4–8 May 2020, EGU2020-1147, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu2020-1147, 2020.

Mantle conditions during the opening of the North Atlantic Ocean and specifically the presence or otherwise of a deep mantle plume have been much debated. Current models fall into two groups: the plume impingement and the plate-driven models. The plume impingement model associates the arrival of the Icelandic plume with continental break-up of the North Atlantic and the observed excess magmatism is associated with passive upwelling and elevated mantle potential temperatures. However, the plate-driven model associates this excess magmatism with increased mantle fertility due to inherited lithospheric structure and/or small-scale convection induced by sub-lithospheric topography.

We examine the spatial and temporal variation of upper mantle conditions at the time of continental break-up using an inventory of 40 published seismic refraction velocity-depth profiles acquired between the Charlie Gibbs and the East Greenland Fracture Zones. We make use of the Hc-Vp method to estimate mantle potential temperature and the ratio of active to passive upwelling by extracting igneous crustal thickness, Hc, and its mean p-wave velocity, Vp. Finally, we compare the spatial and temporal patterns obtained to those predicted by previously proposed models of mantle conditions around the time of break-up.

Our results indicate an asymmetry in mantle potential temperature between the Greenland and the European side, the latter being 100°C hotter. The temperature anomaly also varies on a wavelength of 300-500 km along strike both margins. In most profiles, the mantle potential temperature decreases with time, with normal temperatures of 1300°C being reached 5-10 Ma after the onset of seafloor spreading at 55 Ma. This temperature appears to be “steady state” once reached. The exception to this is the Greenland-Iceland-Faroes Ridge where the “steady state” temperature is 100°C higher. However, the decreasing trend of mantle potential temperature with time is not uniform across the whole North Atlantic region: the temperature decreases by a 60°C/Ma rate at the Hatton margin, while at the Møre and Vøring margins it is considerably slower, at only 20°C/Ma. A 100°C lower than normal mantle potential temperature anomaly was found at the now extinct Aegir Ridge spreading centre even though it was located less than 300 km away from the proposed reconstructed position of the Icelandic plume. Nevertheless, the plume’s position coincides well with the highest calculated upwelling ratios. The NE Greenland margin is also characterised by moderate upwelling compared to the purely passive European side.

Overall the spatial distribution of high active upwelling ratios and widespread elevated mantle potential temperatures support the plume impingement model for the opening of the North Atlantic Ocean. This thermal anomaly was exhausted at a varying rate on the different margins in 5-10 Ma. Furthermore, the 300-500 km wide localised thermal anomalies and the proximity of the proposed plume location to a low temperature anomaly indicate moderation by local complexities that might be a manifestation of upper mantle flow induced by structural inheritance or plate tectonic processes.

How to cite: Zalai, Z., Collier, J., Roberts, G., and Funck, T.: Upper mantle conditions during the opening of the North Atlantic Ocean, EGU General Assembly 2020, Online, 4–8 May 2020, EGU2020-16107, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu2020-16107, 2020.

The nature of the J magnetic anomaly off West Iberia and its implications on the kinematic and geodynamic evolution of the margin has been addressed by several studies, with several distinct interpretations and resulting models. The main reason for this is that one single geophysical dataset (the IAM-9 seismic profile on the Iberia Abyssal Plain) has until now imaged the respective crust and was available as constraint, leaving a large degree of uncertainty for interpretation and modeling. New geophysical imaging of the structure of J anomaly and nearby domains, preferably in different margin sectors, would then be essential to cast new light on the discussion on the Iberian margin evolution. We here present new constrained magnetic modeling for two profiles across the J anomaly off Iberia, in the Tagus and in the Iberia Abyssal Plain, respectively. These profiles were recently surveyed for wide angle and reflection seismics and for magnetic data, during the FRAME-2018 survey. The joint processing of wide angle and reflection seismic data revealed with unprecedented detail the velocity structure and the tectono-stratigraphy along the profiles. Here, we use these results as constraints for magnetic modeling of the measured anomalies, namely for detailed definition of the basement topography and identification of the different domains. Magnetic modeling allowed inferring the relative contribution of each layer and the existence of additional magnetic sources, such as intrusive bodies in exhumed mantle domains. Regarding the J anomaly, we show that it cannot be attributed only to magnetization contrasts between different layers. The J anomaly is rather the result of an anomalous highly magnetized source body, associated with a locally thicker crust, which claims for an abnormal magmatic composition with strong enrichment in iron oxides. We discuss possible origins for the found structure and composition of the J anomaly off Iberia, as well as implications of the new magnetic modeled profiles for the margin conjugation and kinematics.

The author would like to acknowledge the financial support  FCT through project UIDB/50019/2020 – IDL.

How to cite: Neres, M., Ranero, C., Grevemeyer, I., Merino, I., Sallares, V., Prada, M., Calahorrano, A., and Cameselle, A.: Magnetic modeling of the West Iberian Margin constrained by new geophysical data, EGU General Assembly 2020, Online, 4–8 May 2020, EGU2020-900, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu2020-900, 2020.

The Iberian-Newfoundland conjugate margins are one of the most extensively studied non-volcanic rifted margins in the world. In recent years, researchers have focused their efforts at better understanding the earliest stages of continental rifting, often relying heavily on the identification of so-called “break-up features” imaged in seismic profiles or interpreted from potential field data. Along the Iberian-Newfoundland margins, widely used break-up markers include interpretations of old magnetic anomalies from the M-Series, as well as the J-anomaly, believed to mark the occurrence and spatial extent of first oceanic lithosphere. However, uncertainties in the location and interpretation of these features have led to discrepancies between modelled depictions of the palaeopositions of Iberia and Newfoundland during the early Cretaceous as well as the timing of first seafloor spreading between the two. 

Using new seismic data from the Southern Newfoundland Basin (SNB) we are able to illustrate the unsuitability of “break-up” features along the Iberian – Newfoundland Margin for plate kinematic reconstructions. Our data shows that basement associated with the younger M-Series magnetic anomalies is comprised of exhumed mantle and magmatic additions, and most likely represents transitional domains and not true oceanic lithosphere. Magmatic activity in the SNB as early as M4 times (128 Ma), and the presence of SDR packages onlapping onto basement faults suggest that, at this time, plate divergence was still being accommodated by tectonic faulting. Therefore, young M-series anomalies (including the J-anomaly) are not suitable basis on which to reconstruct plate positions during the early stages of continental separation.

We instead follow an alternative modelling approach, not reliant on the identification of extended continental margin features, to robustly constrain North Atlantic tectonics pre-M0 (~121 Ma) times. We do this by using seafloor spreading data and a statistically robust inversion method as the basis for a number of purpose built two-plate models for Africa, Iberia, Eurasia, Greenland and North America, with quantified uncertainties. Together, these models will provide an invaluable framework within to study the evolution of the extended continental margins immediately prior to and during continental separation.

How to cite: Causer, A., Pérez-Díaz, L., Eagles, G., and Adam, J.: Uncertainties in breakup markers along the Iberian Newfoundland margin: The need for a new North Atlantic plate model, EGU General Assembly 2020, Online, 4–8 May 2020, EGU2020-11068, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu2020-11068, 2020.

The extension and thinning of the continental lithosphere during rifting may eventually lead to continental breakup. Related mechanisms are recorded within the Continent-Ocean Transitions (COT) of distal passive margins, showing different, often complex, tectono-magmatic interactions as revealed by the variability of basement architectures imaged by seismic data. Different extensional structures are interpreted in the COT, including high-angle or low-angle extensional faults dipping either oceanward or continentward. This variability appears mainly controlled by the initial rheological stratification of the lithosphere and its evolution during rifting. As a result, the relative influence between lower crustal ductility, crustal embrittlement, and serpentinization of the underlying mantle are the main parameters considered to explain the structural variability observed in the COT.

In this contribution, we document the tectonic evolution of the northern Bay of Biscay passive margin and show the impact of passive margin segmentation in controlling along strike changes in structural style during rifting and continental breakup. The Bay of Biscay is a V-shaped oceanic basin, which opened during the northward propagation of the North Atlantic Ocean. Its bordering magma-poor passive margins formed subsequently to a Late Jurassic to Early Cretaceous oblique rifting and Aptian-Albian oceanic spreading onset. A large number of studies already focused on this margin revealing a first-order along strike segmentation, but the structures accommodating the passage from one to the other segment remained poorly constrained.

We used a series of reflection seismic sections and complementary marine data sets such as dredges and drilling results from the Deep Sea Drilling Project to map the structural pattern and stratigraphic evolution related to this segment transition. Our seismic interpretations and mapping of the main rift structures define a relatively loose segment transition marked by a progressive change in structural style expressed differently between the COT and the rest of the passive margin. The differences observed between the proximal and distal parts of the margin can be explained by an evolution of the nature and depth of the main fault décollement level; crustal embrittlement and serpentinization becoming important controlling parameters oceanward. However, the progressive change in structural style observed in the distal margin from west to east from oceanward dipping to mainly continentward dipping faults is more likely to be related a different accommodation of extensional deformation across the transfer zone. This segmentation occurs near major pre-existing structures identified further continentward, suggesting a key role of inheritance.

Results of this work reveal the impact of margin segmentation in controlling changes in structural style at the end of rifting. If this soft transfer zones do not seem to be observed as far as the first oceanic crust, further work is required to determine how far it can control different interplay between tectonic and magmatic processes further oceanward in the COT.

How to cite: Tugend, J., Masini, E., Leroy, S., and Jolivet, L.: Segmentation and structural style evolution during continental breakup: observations from the Northern Bay of Biscay passive margin (offshore France), EGU General Assembly 2020, Online, 4–8 May 2020, EGU2020-13177, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu2020-13177, 2020.

The Agly massif and its neighboring Mesozoic basins altogether form part of the Pyrenean Cretaceous rift preserved in the retro-wedge of the Pyrenean mountain belt. The relationships between the tectonic evolution of these syn-rift basins and the crustal-scale tectonic processes allows us to investigate the strain partitioning, the rheology and the sequence of deformation associated with the thinning of the deep crust leading to continental break-up.

Based on structural, microstructural and thermochronological studies of the deep crust of the Agly massif and the revised stratigraphy and depositional environments of the pre- and syn-rift sedimentary rocks, we propose a tectonic reconstruction of the eastern segment of the Pyrenean rift at the time of continental break-up. Two parallel cross sections allow us to discuss about the mechanical behavior of the deep crust and the control by lateral rheological heterogeneities on the spatial and temporal evolution of rifting. We emphasize the role of low-angle (decollement) and high-angle (detachment) extensional structures in the deep crust that collectively accommodate thinning and exhumation, respectively. Structural relationships between the Variscan basement and the Mesozoic basins are highlighted, such as a major extensional detachment fault system exhuming the mantle at the contact between the Agly massif and the Boucheville basin in the south. We further discuss the origin of tectono-sedimentary breccias in the context of crustal-scale thinning/exhumation processes and basins evolution.

Our different results are finally integrated in a 3D tectonic model of the distal margin, illustrating a crustal scale space-time vision of the mechanisms leading to continental break-up.

How to cite: Motus, M., Denèle, Y., Mouthereau, F., and Nardin, É.: Mechanisms of continental break-up : tectonic, stratigraphic and structural constraints from a preserved distal rifted margin (Agly massif, eastern Pyrenees), EGU General Assembly 2020, Online, 4–8 May 2020, EGU2020-21580, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu2020-21580, 2020.

The Caribbean region has undergone a complex plate kinematics evolution due to the interaction between Central Atlantic pre-subduction paleogeography and Caribbean subduction dynamics. To better understand the initiation and dynamics of the Caribbean subduction it is important to determine the pre-subduction template. However, this template cannot be easily recognized as it either suffered from pervasive tectonic overprinting or has been consumed by subduction. To address this problem, it may be valuable to first unravel the structure and deformation history of the surrounding areas of the Caribbean region.

Here we investigate the kinematic evolution of the Triassic-Jurassic Demerara plateau and Guyana-Suriname (i.e Dp and G-S) margins which are present-day located to the south of the Caribbean subduction. To achieve our aim, we use seismic, gravity and magnetic data and apply a gravity anomaly inversion technique to determine Moho depth, crustal basement thickness and crustal thinning factor.

The Dp and G-S margins avoided subduction and consequently preserve the divergent history of Early Jurassic to Early Cretaceous rifting related to the opening of the Central Atlantic and Equatorial Atlantic respectively. This is inferred by a complex architecture of the Dp and G-S margins characterized by a set of transfer zones that crosscut each other.

By unravelling the kinematic evolution of the Dp and G-S margins we attempt to determine the pre-subduction template of the surrounding area of the Caribbean region.

How to cite: Gómez-Romeu, J., Masini, E., Kusznir, N., and Calassou, S.: The kinematic evolution of the Demerara plateau and Guyana-Suriname margins, EGU General Assembly 2020, Online, 4–8 May 2020, EGU2020-18950, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu2020-18950, 2020.

The São Paulo Plateau (SPP) and the Florianópolis Ridge (FR), located on the Santos segment of the SE Brazilian margin in the South Atlantic, are large positive bathymetric features with a combined lateral dimension of approximately 500 km. An important question is whether they are underlain by thinned continental crust or by anomalously thick magmatic crust. Each hypothesis has implications for the breakup of the South Atlantic and the evolution of the overlying saline Santos basin.

Integrated quantitative analysis consisting of gravity inversion, RDA (residual depth anomaly) analysis and flexural subsidence analysis has been applied to a deep long-offset seismic reflection line running NW-SE across the SPP and FR. Gravity inversion predicts crustal basement thicknesses in the range of 12 to 15 km for the SPP and FR, deceasing to 7-8 km thickness at the extreme SE end of the profile. The SPP and FR are separated by a region of thinner crust approximately 80 km wide. Thinning factors from subsidence analysis for SPP and FR are typically between 0.6 and 0.7.

RDA values close to zero and a thinning factor of 1 were obtained for the region with 7-8 km thick crust at the SE end of the profile which are all consistent with normal oceanic crust rather than previously interpreted exhumed mantle. This oceanic crust is highly tectonised and corresponds to the location of the Florianópolis Fracture Zone.

Flexural backstripping and reverse thermal subsidence modelling were performed to calculate palaeo-bathymetry at breakup and give 2.5 km below sea level at the SE end of the profile consistent with this region being oceanic crust. Flexural subsidence analysis applied to base salt shows that the observed base salt subsidence requires a component of syn-tectonic subsidence as well as post-rift thermal subsidence, and that the salt was deposited while the crust was still thinning.

Joint inversion of time seismic reflection and gravity data to determine the lateral variation in basement density by comparing seismic and gravity Moho in the time domain gives a basement density under the SPP and FR of between 2600 and 2700 kg/m³. The same method gives a basement density of 900kg/m³ for the oceanic crust at the SE end of the profile. The FR basement in the NW shows a basement density similar to that of the SPP while in its SE the basement density is much higher approaching 2950 kg/m3.  We interpret the relatively low basement densities of the SPP with respect to that of oceanic crust as indicating a continental rather than magmatic composition. A similar analysis to determine basement density applied to the Evain et al. (2015) seismic refraction profile in the same location also gives a SPP basement density that supports a continental composition.

How to cite: Graça, M., Cowie, L., Kusznir, N., and Stanton, N.: Crustal Thickness and Composition of the São Paulo Plateau and Florianópolis Ridge, SE Brazilian Margin , EGU General Assembly 2020, Online, 4–8 May 2020, EGU2020-10862, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu2020-10862, 2020.

The Brazilian equatorial margin has its origin in the fragmentation of the supercontinent Pangea with the separation of the South American and African continents and is composed of divergent oblique and transform segments related to large oceanic fracture zones, which are typical of the Equatorial Atlantic (e.g., Saint Paul, Romanche, and Chain). The dynamic evolution of this margin is related to the generation of marginal ridges, which are basement highs that follow the same trend of the continental-oceanic boundary in a transform margin.

The Ceará Terrace (CT), the main target of this investigation, is an E-W-striking marginal ridge located south of the western end of the Romanche Fracture Zone (RFZ) in the continental margin of Brazil. The CT has a counterpart in the African margin, the Ivory Coast-Ghana Ridge (ICGR), which is located north of the eastern termination of the RFZ. Earlier studies show that the evolution of both marginal ridges (CT and ICGR) was mainly influenced by (1) tectonic uplift due to Late Albian-Cenomanian transpressional tectonics and (2) flexural uplift due to erosion and thermal changes caused by the passage of the oceanic spreading center.

While ICGR is the most intensely studied marginal ridge in the Atlantic equatorial margin, the CT still needs further analysis to unravel its evolutionary process. The objective of the present study is thus to map and analyze the CT to understand its time and spatial evolution. Therefore, we have used and interpreted 2D reflection seismic sections and boreholes from the Brazilian Agency of Oil and Gas.

Our study shows that the CT is an intensely deformed Lower Cretaceous structure, which originates from the Atlantic opening process. The CT is controlled by the RZF and preexisting fault zones in the continent such as the Transbrasiliano lineament (TB). The interpretation of the seismic sections shows an intense ductile and brittle deformation of the CT paleo structure (syn-rift sequence) and the sedimentary units deposited after it (drift sequence). It indicates that tectonic reactivation occurred in the period where the transform movements were already restricted to the furthest spreading center. There is also evidence that some faults affect the whole rift sequence suggesting a possible brittle reactivation of the offshore continuation of the TB due to changes in plate movements in the Late Albian. This plate shifts agrees with previous works that show compressional features concentrated in continental shelf near of CT and half-grabens linked with the offshore TB prolongation. On the other hand, there is no evidence of the influence of weakness zones in the CIGR, where the Kandi lineament (the prolongation of the TB in the African continent) is far more than 300 km of that marginal ridge.

Acknowledgments:

This research was supported by Programa Institucional de Internacionalização - Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal (PRINT-CAPES) and Aarhus University (AU). Brazilian Agency of Oil and Natural Gas (ANP) is thanked for providing the seismic and borehole data. We also thank Schlumberger for giving access to Petrel.

How to cite: Tavares, A. C., de Castro, D. L., Clausen, O. R., de Oliveira, D. C., Bezerra, F. H. R., and Vital, H.: Evidence of tectonic reactivation after continental breakup in the Ceará Terrace, Equatorial margin of Brazil, from 2D reflection seismics, EGU General Assembly 2020, Online, 4–8 May 2020, EGU2020-15222, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu2020-15222, 2020.

The mechanisms of magmatic intrusion is very complex and are commonly associated to pristine unconformities (weak spots) on the crust that ease its emplacement on the form of sills or dikes. When occurring on the Oceanic crust these weak spots may led to the formation of volcanic islands (such as Fernando de Noronha, on the Brazilian Equatorial Margin-BEM), submarine highs. Alignment of such features are related to Plate motion and the set of volcanos of Fernando de Noronha Ridge are considered a consequence of the westward motion of the South American Plate. Occurrence of magmatic rocks were found on a set of offshore wells at different depths and away of submarine highs. These magmatic emplacement suggests be related to a deep plume-fed mechanism which is the source of all sills found on the wells, as well as the volcanic highs occurring of the BEM. The lateral extents of the sills is greatly influenced by the presence of faults when preceding the intrusion, during which also occurred incorporation of parts of the host rock as xenoliths. On the well logs it is possible to observe changes on sonic slowness for the same lithotype when close to the sills, which indicates rock alteration due to the magmatic intrusion.

How to cite: Aquino da Silva, A., Reyes Perez, Y. A., and Vital, H.: Brazilian Equatorial Margin: evidences of magmatic intrusion and alteration of host rock from well data, EGU General Assembly 2020, Online, 4–8 May 2020, EGU2020-20540, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu2020-20540, 2020.

The Main Ethiopian Rift (MER) as part of the large East African continental break-up zone is characterized by lateral extension and active volcanism. Rifting in the MER is magma assisted, with surface expressions of magmatism concentrated at en echelon Quaternary magmatic segments and off-axis linear features, but questions still remain about their respective roles in rifting.

The storage and pathways of magma ascent are of great interest for the assessment of both geohazard and geothermal energy potential. Imaging magma storage throughout the crust and in the upper mantle can be achieved by geophysical deep sounding techniques such as magnetotellurics (MT). Through MT measurements it is possible to access the electrical conductivity of the subsurface, a parameter that is greatly sensitive to the melt and water content. We present new MT data from the Central MER and a three-dimensional model of conductivity of the crust, imaging across-rift magma storage not only under the well-developed central-axis silicic volcanic complex Aluto, but also under several off-axis basaltic monogenetic volcanic fields. The conductivity model supports the idea of bi-modal magma storage in the CMER and helps constrain the melt and water content in the crust through the use of petrological melt-mixing models. Integrating our findings with the results from seismic tomography and receiver functions as well as Bouguer gravity data and petrological observations allows a comprehensive picture of magma storage and pathways in the MER.

How to cite: Huebert, J., Whaler, K., Fisseha, S., Iddon, F., and Hogg, C.: Imaging magma storage in the Main Ethiopian Rift with 3-D Magnetotellurics, EGU General Assembly 2020, Online, 4–8 May 2020, EGU2020-9187, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu2020-9187, 2020.

During the Meso-Cretaceous compressive tectonic event (marked by the subduction of the East European Platform under Gondwana, and the initiation of the creation of accretionary prism in front of the orogen) the absence of related magmatism, and implicitly, the lack of an "arc" is similar to that of the Alps (McCarthy et al., 2018). Afterward, in the Upper Cretaceous, the Carpathian area has evolved in an extensional geodynamic context, specific to post-collisional periods, marked by the appearance of sedimentary basins with complex evolution and Gosau type molasses (Schuller, 2004; Schuller et al., 2009). In connection to the above, or not, it has evolved a complex magmatism, from a compositional point of view and as manifestation, largely calc-alkaline, known in the geological literature as banatitic (von Cotta, 1864). Banatitic magmatism is the first such manifestation in the Carpathians, post-subduction and post-collision and the most reliable age data (using U-Pb on zircon and Re-Os on molybdenite methods) suggest a very narrow range of evolution (70.2 - 83.98 Ma, Nicolescu et al., 1999; Galhofer, 2015; 72.36 - 80.63 Ma, Ciobanu et al., 2002; Zimmerman et al., 2008), that is characteristic to short-lived magmatism. Comparatively, in Serbia (Bor-Madjanpek district), the same magmatism occurs between 86-84 Ma, in Bulgaria in the Srednogorie massif between 92-86 Ma and Rhodope massif at 67-70 Ma (von Quadt et al., 2007). The geodynamic models discussed for this type of magmatism suggest, almost all without exception, the existence of subductions that would have extended as activity from the Middle Cretaceous to the Paleogene. Or, the realities of the terrain show that this magmatism seals the mesocretacic compressive structures (napes), as Nicolescu et al. (1999) exposed for the first time in Banat region. The situation is similar in the Apuseni Mountains. From the presumption of the generation of subductions for this magmatism, the idea of an "L" form magmatic belt ("arc"), from the Apuseni Mountains to Bulgaria, was forced. If we look closely at the spatial distribution of intrusive and effusive bodies, aspect also revealed by gravimetry studies (Andrei et al. 1989), we observe that they occupy areas with specific geometries, linked to or close to the Gosau-type basins, but strictly controlled by strike-slip fractures, similar to those that have controlled the appearance of Gosau basins (Drew, 2006). The metallogenesis associated with this magmatism is represented by metalliferous accumulations of Fe, Cu, Pb, Zn, with Au, Ag and W, Mo, B, Mg, Te, Bi, Sb, with a great typological variety, spatially controlled by the same type of fractures. It is evident that the transpressive-transtensive regime worked throughout the entire range of magmatic and metallogenetic activity, controlling it. In Banat region, as well as in the Apuseni Mountains, the end of the magmatic activity ceases with mineralizing and/or bearing mineralization lamprophyres. Being so, probably the lamprophyres attend or announce the metallogenetic event.

Acknowledgments
This work was supported by two grants of the Romanian Ministry of Research and Innovation, project number PN-III-P4-ID-PCCF-2016-4-0014, and project number PN-III-P1-1.2-PCCDI-2017-0346/29, both within PNCDI III

How to cite: Tatu, M. and Iatan, E. L.: New approaches regarding the geodynamic constraints of Late Cretaceous magmatism in Carpathian area, EGU General Assembly 2020, Online, 4–8 May 2020, EGU2020-2904, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu2020-2904, 2020.

Early Paleozoic mafic dykes are widespread in South Qinling Belt, central China. In this study, we present new major element, trace element, zircon U–Pb age and Sr–Nd–Hf isotopic results of Early Paleozoic diabases dykes in the South Qinling Belt to explore nature of the mantle source. The South Qinling Belt diabases have low SiO₂ (42.1–49.5 wt%) high TiO₂ (2.89–5.17 wt%), variable MgO (4.0–9.4 wt%) contents. In primitive mantle normalized multielement diagrams, all samples are strongly enriched in the majority of incompatible trace elements but systematic depletion in Rb, K, Pb, Zr and Hf. The negative K and Rb anomaly together with high TiO₂ and high Na₂O/K₂O character suggest magma was derived from a source rich in amphibole. Partial melting modelling indicate 20–36% partial melting of amphibole-clinopyroxene-phlogopite veins with subsequent dissolution of ~30% orthopyroxene from the wall-rock peridotite within spinel stability field can produce the observed compositions of diabases. Additionally, South Qinling Belt diabases are characterized by moderately depleted Nd (ε_Nd(t)= +2.2 to 3.3) and Hf (ε_Hf(t)= +6.2 to 7.2) isotopic compositions without pronounced isotope decoupling, indicating mantle metasomatism occurred shortly prior to Early Paleozoic magmatism. It is proposed that low-degree silicate melts released from asthenosphere infiltrated and solidified within lithospheric mantle, forming non-peridotitic lithologies rich in amphibole clinopyroxene and phlogopite. Subsequent lithosphere extension caused the melting of the most easily fusible material in the lithosphere, which gave rise to the Early Paleozoic alkaline magmatism in South Qinling.

How to cite: Zhang, F. and Lai, S.: Vein-plus-wall rock melting model for the origin of Early Paleozoic alkali diabases in South Qinling Belt, Central China, EGU General Assembly 2020, Online, 4–8 May 2020, EGU2020-4336, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu2020-4336, 2020.