Misattributed tsunami: Chile, Sumatra and the subduction model

Tsunami intensity is poorly correlated with earthquake magnitude. The distribution of aftershocks that immediately followed the 2010 Maule (Chile), the 2004 Sumatra–Andaman and the 2005 Nias (Indonesia) events supports the view that faulting within an accretionary wedge or an outer rise can sometimes disrupt the seafloor more effectively than a megathrust even if the associated seismicity is minor. Monitoring offshore faults would thus seem an effective way to supplement modes of tsunami early warning which hinge on instrumental earthquake detection or wave height and period.     

Insights from trace element geochemistry as to the roles of subduction zone geometry and subduction input on the chemistry of arc magmas

Subduction zones of continental, transitional, and oceanic settings, relative to the nature of the overriding plate, are compared in terms of trace element compositions of mafic to intermediate arc rocks, in order to evaluate the relationship between subduction parameters and the presence of subduction fluids. The continental Chilean Southern Volcanic Zone (SVZ) and the transitional to oceanic Central American Volcanic Arc (CAVA) show increasing degrees of melting with increasing involvement of slab fluids, as is typical for hydrous flux melting beneath arc volcanoes. At the SVZ, the central segment with the thinnest continental crust/lithosphere erupted the highest-degree melts from the most depleted sources, similar to the oceanic-like Nicaraguan segment of the CAVA. The northern part of the SVZ, located on the thickest continental crust/lithosphere, exhibits features more similar to Costa Rica situated on the Caribbean Large Igneous Province, with lower degrees of melting from more enriched source materials. The composition of the slab fluids is characteristic for each arc system, with a particularly pronounced enrichment in Pb at the SVZ and in Ba at the CAVA. A direct compositional relationship between the arc rocks and the corresponding marine sediments that are subducted at the trenches clearly shows that the compositional signature of the lavas erupted in the different arcs carries an inherited signal from the subducted sediments.     

The systematics of chlorine, fluorine, and water in Izu arc front volcanic rocks: Implications for volatile recycling in subduction zones

We studied the systematics of Cl, F and H₂O in Izu arc front volcanic rocks using basaltic through rhyolitic glass shards and melt inclusions (Izu glasses) from Oligocene to Quaternary distal fallout tephra. These glasses are low-K basalts to rhyolites that are equivalent to the Quaternary lavas of the Izu arc front (Izu VF). Most of the Izu glasses have Cl ∼400-4000 ppm and F ∼70-400 ppm (normal-group glasses). Rare andesitic melt inclusions (halogen-rich andesites; HRA) have very high abundances of Cl (∼6600-8600 ppm) and F (∼780-910 ppm), but their contents of incompatible large ion lithophile elements (LILE) are similar to the normal-group glasses. The preeruptive H₂O of basalt to andesite melt inclusions in plagioclase is estimated to range from ∼2 to ∼10 wt% H₂O. The Izu magmas should be undersaturated in H₂O and the halogens at their preferred levels of crystallization in the middle to lower crust (∼3 to ∼11 kbar, ∼820° to ∼1200°C). A substantial portion of the original H₂O is lost due to degassing during the final ascent to surface. By contrast, halogen loss is minor, except for loss of Cl from siliceous dacitic and rhyolitic compositions. The behavior of Cl, F and H₂O in undegassed melts resembles the fluid mobile LILE (e.g.; K, Rb, Cs, Ba, U, Pb, Li). Most of the Cl (>99%), H₂O (>95%) and F (>53%) in the Izu VF melts appear to originate from the subducting slab. At arc front depths, the slab fluid contains Cl = 0.94 ± 0.25 wt%, F = 990 ± 270 ppm and H₂O = 25 ± 7 wt%. If the subducting sediment and the altered basaltic crust were the only slab sources, then the subducted Cl appears to be almost entirely recycled at the Izu arc (∼77-129%). Conversely, H₂O (∼13-22% recycled at arc) and F (∼4-6% recycled) must be either lost during shallow subduction or retained in the slab to greater depths. If a seawater-impregnated serpentinite layer below the basaltic crust were an additional source of Cl and H₂O, the calculated percentage of Cl and H₂O recycled at arc would be lower. Extrapolating the Izu data to the total length of global arcs (∼37,000 km), the global arc outflux of fluid-recycled Cl and H₂O at subduction zones amounts to Cl ∼2.9-3.8 × 10¹² g/yr and H₂O ∼0.7-1.0 × 10¹⁴ g/yr, respectively—comparable to previous estimates. Further, we obtain a first estimate of global arc outflux of fluid-recycled F of ∼0.3-0.4 × 10¹²g/yr. Despite the inherent uncertainties, our results support models suggesting that the slab becomes strongly depleted in Cl and H₂O in subduction zones. In contrast, much of the subducted F appears to be returned to the deep mantle, implying efficient fractionation of Cl and H₂O from F during the subduction process. However, if slab devolatilization produces slab fluids with high Cl/F (∼9.5), slab melting will still produce components with low Cl/F ratios (∼0.9), similar to those characteristic of the upper continental crust (Cl/F ∼0.3-0.9).     

Structure and seismicity of the Aegean subduction zone

Tomographic results show the presence of a high-velocity anomaly dipping north beneath the Aegean Sea (Hellenic arc), down to a depth of at least 600 km. This anomaly is interpreted as the image of the subducting lithosphere of the African plate. No deep seismicity, however, is associated with this downgoing slab, although this would be expected on the basis of the age of the downbending lithosphere (approximately 100 Myr) and the inferred duration of the present ongoing episode of subduction. Using a thermo-mechanical model for the subduction zone we find that the non-stationary input of the subduction zone-both in convergence rate and in thermal structure of the downgoing lithosphere - adequately accounts for both the presence of a velocity anomaly associated with a slab and the absence of deep seismicity. The non-stationarity follows from the large-scale tectonic setting of the Eastern Mediterranean basin.     

Recent geodynamics of the Kuril subduction zone

The collected GPS/GLONASS data allow us to reveal new information on the recent geodynamics of the Kuril Island arc. The maximum deformation stress accumulates in the southern and northern parts of the study area, while a long fading transition process of postseismic motions is observed in the central segment of the Kuril arc as a result of the 2006–2007 great Simushir earthquakes of M _w = 8.3 and M _w = 8.1. We have succeeded in revealing the recent interplate coupling geometry of the Pacific and the North American lithospheric plates and also in estimating the seismic potential of different segments of the Kuril subduction zone.     

俯冲带脱碳和固碳作用过程

俯冲带作为联系地表和地球深部系统的纽带,不仅是将地表碳带入地球深部的主要通道,也是地表物质和地球深部物质发生交换的重要场所.俯冲作用可以将地表碳以有机碳或无机碳酸盐矿物等形式带入地球深部,再通过火山作用或去气作用返回到地表系统.俯冲带深部碳循环控制着地表碳通量变化,对于研究全球气候变化和地球宜居环境具有重要意义.本文结...     

The water and trace element contents of melt inclusions across an active subduction zone

Water concentrations of olivine-hosted melt inclusions show no consistent variation across the northern part of the Central American subduction zone in southeastern Guatemala. Magmatic water contents remain moderately high (~2 wt%) throughout the back-arc region. Melt inclusions from some of these back-arc basalts also have notably high CO₂ contents (>900 ppm CO₂). The B and B/Ce ratios of melt inclusions systematically decline across the arc, the first parameters to exhibit systematic changes across southeastern Guatemala. It appears, therefore, that dehydration-driven, flux-melting persists across the arc, although decompression melting is of approximately equal importance in the back-arc region. Dehydration of the slab/wedge region is regarded as semi-continuous down-dip, to depths of at least 175–200 km. Moderate water contents are maintained by stepwise dehydration reactions, while truly incompatible fluid mobile elements are progressively stripped from the Cocos plate. The notably high CO₂ contents of some back-arc basalts may indicate increasing devolatilization of subducted carbonate sediments with slab depth. The moderate H₂O contents of back-arc basaltic magmas has likely contributed to their early fractionation of clinopyroxene around the Moho.Editorial responsibility: T.L. Grove     

苏丹Muglad盆地中南部西斜坡沉积层序及有利地层圈闭预测

苏丹Muglad盆地油气资源丰富,是重要的油气探区.盆地中南部西斜坡位于Kaikang坳陷西部斜坡带,是Muglad盆地重要的勘探区之一.研究区在构造转型时期遭受严重剥蚀,目前残余地层厚度约为5 000 m.受区域构造活动的影响,研究区的沉积储层发育演化与构造演化密切相关.随着构造圈闭勘探进入中后期,寻找新的勘探领域和...     

Granite subduction: Arc subduction, tectonic erosion and sediment subduction

Continental growth has been episodic, reflecting the episodic nature of mantle dynamics as well as surface dynamics of the Earth, the net result of which is exhibited by the present mantle with two huge reservoirs of TTG rocks, one on the surface continents and the other on the D″ layer on the Core-Mantle Boundary (CMB). During the early half of the Earth history, the felsic continental crust on the surface which formed in an intra-oceanic environment has mostly been subducted into the deep mantle, except in the rare case of parallel arc collision. The growth history of continental crust shows that with its simultaneous formation, a considerable amount must have also been subducted. Such ongoing subduction processes can be seen in the western Pacific region, through tectonic erosion, arc subduction, and sediment-trapped subduction.     

俯冲带的锂同位素特征

近年来,由于分析手段的不断改进,锂同位素的精确测试才得以实现。锂以其分馏大、中度不相容、易随流体迁移、地表环境与地幔锂同位素特征差异明显等优势,被认为是极具潜力的示踪元素。目前,锂同位素在壳幔物质循环、风化作用、岩浆作用、流体(热液)活动等方面研究中已得到广泛的应用,其中又以俯冲带锂同位素的研究程度最高。本文主要从锂同位素分馏机理、俯冲带锂的行为特征、岛弧岩浆的锂同位素研究以及深俯冲作用过程中锂的行为等方面总结了当前国内外锂同位素的研究进展。     

俯冲带硫的地球化学行为及硫循环SCIEI北大核心CSCD

俯冲带是全球最大的物质循环系统,控制着硫(S)在地球内部圈层及表层的循环,影响着大气圈、水圈、生物圈、岩石圈的稳定性以及地球的宜居性。厘清S在俯冲带中的地球化学行为和循环特征对理解地球各储库的氧化还原状态、岩浆作用与演化、成矿物质聚集、以及地球大气成分等具有重要意义。本文首先总结了进入俯冲带之前的大洋岩石圈的S结构模型,对S在大洋板片中的分布状态和地球化学特征进行了系统归纳。随后,系统阐述了俯冲带高压-超高压变质岩记录的板片变质及脱水过程中硫的地球化学行为。岩石学研究表明俯冲板片中的S多以硫化物相存在,硫酸盐矿物在弧前深度就已被释放或分解。相较于熔体,俯冲带流体中S的溶解度更高,是运移硫的更有效方式。DEW模型计算结果显示,流体中S含量总体较低,但在俯冲板片~90km处其含量有一个峰值(浓度0.5%~1.0%)。岩相学证据、地球化学测试结果、磷灰石S近边吸收结构(S-XANES)特征以及模拟结果都显示俯冲深部流体中S多以HS^(-)及H_(2)S形式存在,不含大量的SO_(4)^(2-)及硫酸盐;中f_(S_(2))流体有利于S迁移出俯冲板片,从而促进俯冲带大规模S循环,而高f_(S_(2))流体在流-岩交换过程沿流体通道发生S的锁固作用而不利于俯冲带S循环。质量平衡计算显示全球俯冲带S输入通量为4.65×10^(13)g/yr,弧下深度板片S输出通量为2.91×10^(12)g/yr,板片-岛弧S循环效率仅6.3%。俯冲板片在弧下深度可能存在一个短暂高效的S释放窗口,释放流体的δ^(34)S值为-2.1±3.0‰。基于高压-超高压变质岩中硫化物的研究,初步厘清了俯冲板片中S的地球化学行为,首次从板片角度全面、定量地限定了俯冲带的脱硫通量、效率、种型和同位素特征,提出俯冲带循环的S不是岛弧岩浆的氧化剂,与岛弧环境的正δ^(34)S值也无直接因果联系,对解析俯冲带S循环和理解地球长期的S循环具有重要意义。最后,本文还展望了俯冲带S循环的未来发展方向,应在俯冲带流体氧化还原性质(硫酸盐的命运)、俯冲沉积物对S循环的制约、俯冲带环境下多硫同位素的分馏效应、S循环与其它挥发分(如C等)循环之间的耦合关系、地球历史上深部S循环等方向做出探索,更深入地理解俯冲带及全球S循环过程。     

Sources of volatiles for a subduction zone volcano: Mutnovsky volcano,Kamchatka

Mass balance calculations of volatiles were performed for Mutnovsky volcano, Kamchatka, by comparing the chemical and isotopic compositions of gas emissions with the compositions of the main geochemical reservoirs in the subduction zone using a simple mixing model. The predominant deep component (up to 73% in the highest temperature fumaroles) is composed of slab fluid released during dehydration of the Pacific Plate. The mantle component does not exceed 2.1%. The fraction of gases from the continental crust varies from 0.5 to 5% depending on the composition of the crustal endmember that was used in the calculations. In terms of the gas composition, Mutnovsky volcano is a typical subduction volcano, but its fluid system has a complex structure. The observed compositional pattern in the volcanic fumaroles can be explained by degassing of two independent magma bodies.     

Early Cretaceous subduction of continental crust at the Diego de Almagro archipelago, southern Chile

In the Diego de Almagro archipelago of southern Chile, a quartz rich mica schist and a mylonitized granite contain Late Jurassic zircons of ca 166 and 170 Ma respectively. These rocks were metamorphosed during the Cretaceous in a subduction zone environment, which developed blueschist assemblages in metabasalts interleaved with the mica schist. The dated rocks were probably part of the acid large igneous province developed in southwestern Gondwanaland during the extensional phase which preceded the dismembering of the supercontinent. They constitute evidence that tectonic erosion of the margin occurred, as these siliceous igneous rocks, formed in the South American upper plate, were transported in the subduction zone to some 20 km depth prior to their exhumation. These rocks are in tectonic contact through the Seno Arcabuz shear zone, with late Permian turbidites of the Duque de York complex, which did not undergo blueschist metamorphism.     

Impact of the 1960 major subduction earthquake in Northern Patagonia (Chile,Argentina)

The recent sedimentation processes in four contrasting lacustrine and marine basins of Northern Patagonia are documented by high-resolution seismic reflection profiling and short cores at selected sites in deep lacustrine basins. The regional correlation of the cores is provided by the combination of ¹³⁷Cs dating in lakes Puyehue (Chile) and Frías (Argentina), and by the identification of Cordon Caulle 1921–22 and 1960 tephras in lakes Puyehue and Nahuel Huapi (Argentina) and in their catchment areas. This event stratigraphy allows correlation of the formation of striking sedimentary events in these basins with the consequences of the May–June 1960 earthquakes and the induced Cordon Caulle eruption along the Liquiñe-Ofqui Fault Zone (LOFZ) in the Andes. While this catastrophe induced a major hyperpycnal flood deposit of ca. 3×10⁶ m³ in the proximal basin of Lago Puyehue, it only triggered an unusual organic rich layer in the proximal basin of Lago Frías, as well as destructive waves and a large sub-aqueous slide in the distal basin of Lago Nahuel Huapi. A very recent mega-turbidite in the two distal basins of Reloncavi fjord located close to the LOFZ suggests that 1960 co-seismic movements in this area may have triggered the remobilization of ca. 187×10⁶ m³ of marine sediments.     

浅层包气带水汽昼夜运移规律及其数值模拟研究

西北干旱、半干旱地区,浅层包气带水分通量主要由水汽组成,而水汽在运移过程中产生的能量转换和质量迁移是地表质能平衡计算不可缺少的重要源汇项。在野外进行一个沙坑实验,发现土壤水在中午(12:00—15:00)达到最大值(10cm深度,5.9~6.1cm3/cm3;30cm深度,11.9~13.1cm3/cm3),而在凌晨(02:00—05:00)出现最小值(10cm深度,4.4~4.5cm3/cm3;30cm深度,10.4~10.8cm3/cm3)。为进一步验证该实验条件下的土壤水运移及分布规律,考虑了土壤水、汽、热耦合运移的HYDRUS-1D模型被用来对实验过程进行模拟,模拟结果与实测结果吻合较好。为描述土壤水分昼夜运移模式,笔者将土壤水耦合运移的时间信息和空间信息进行同步分析;并根据土壤水运移的不同驱动力,分别对温度梯度、基质势梯度作用下的液态水及汽态水通量进行了分析。     

Geochemistry of southern Pagan Island lavas,Mariana arc: the role of subduction zone processes

New major and trace element abundances, and Pb, Sr, and Nd isotopic ratios of Quaternary lavas from two adjacent volcanoes (South Pagan and the Central Volcanic Region, or CVR) located on Pagan Island allow us to investigate the mantle source (i.e., slab components) and melting dynamics within the Mariana intra-oceanic arc. Geologic mapping reveals a pre-caldera (780–9.4 ka) and post-caldera (<9.4 ka) eruptive stage for South Pagan, whereas the eruptive history of the older CVR is poorly constrained. Crystal fractionation and magma mixing were important crustal processes for lavas from both volcanoes. Geochemical and isotopic variations indicate that South Pagan and CVR lavas, and lavas from the northern volcano on the island, Mt. Pagan, originated from compositionally distinct parental magmas due to variations in slab contributions (sediment and aqueous fluid) to the mantle wedge and the extent of mantle partial melting. A mixing model based on Pb and Nd isotopic ratios suggests that the average amount of sediment in the source of CVR (~2.1%) and South Pagan (~1.8%) lavas is slightly higher than Mt. Pagan (~1.4%) lavas. These estimates span the range of sediment-poor Guguan (~1.3%) and sediment-rich Agrigan (~2.0%) lavas for the Mariana arc. Melt modeling demonstrates that the saucer-shaped normalized rare earth element (REE) patterns observed in Pagan lavas can arise from partial melting of a mixed source of depleted mantle and enriched sediment, and do not require amphibole interaction or fractionation to depress the middle REE abundances of the lavas. The modeled degree of mantle partial melting for Agrigan (2–5%), Pagan (3–7%), and Guguan (9–15%) lavas correlates with indicators of fluid addition (e.g., Ba/Th). This relationship suggests that the fluid flux to the mantle wedge is the dominant control on the extent of partial melting beneath Mariana arc volcanoes. A decrease in the amount of fluid addition (lower Ba/Th) and extent of melting (higher Sm/Yb), and an increase in the sediment contribution (higher Th/Nb, La/Sm, and Pb isotopic ratios) from Mt. Pagan to South Pagan could reflect systematic cross-arc or irregular along-arc melting variations. These observations indicate that the length scale of compositional heterogeneity in the mantle wedge beneath Mariana arc volcanoes is small (~10 km).     

北祁连山古大洋俯冲带高压变质岩研究评述

北祁连山是中国研究古板块构造和俯冲带的经典地区,肖序常先生在此进行了开创性的研究工作。该俯冲带记录了490~440Ma的高压变质年龄,是目前世界上最老的大洋冷俯冲带之一。较系统地总结了北祁连造山带的研究历史、近年来在高压变质岩及相关岩石研究领域的最新进展,并根据详细的矿物学、岩石学、地球化学和同位素年代学资料,对本区大洋扩张、俯冲和大陆碰撞造山的构造演化过程进行了新的透视和评述。     

东亚大陆边缘的俯冲带构造

东亚大陆边缘自北向南发育了琉球海沟和马尼拉海沟等俯冲带。简要论述了这些俯冲带的构造特征、演化历史和一些科学前缘问题 ;认为愈来愈多的地球科学问题 ,如地震的发生机制、俯冲板块动力学等 ,集中在俯冲板块边界 ;解决弧后盆地成因和中国大陆边缘张裂过程等许多地质科学问题 ,有待于对俯冲带构造演化的深入了解。同时 ,在这些俯冲带发现了丰富的天然气水合物 ,具有良好的资源前景 ,因而 ,俯冲带的构造研究成为科学研究的前沿热点     

Assessment of flexural analysis applied to the Sumatra-Java subduction zone

Indian Ocean subduction zone is one of the most active plate margins of the globe as evident from its vast record of great magnitude earthquake and tsunami events. We use Bouguer admittance (Morlet isostatic response function) in Sumatra-Java subduction zones comprising both the subduction and over-riding plates to determine the lithospheric mechanical strength variations. We determine effective elastic thickness (T _e ) for five oceanic windows (size 990 × 990 km²) by analyzing the admittance using Bouguer gravity and bathymetry data. The results show bimodal T _e values < 20 km for Sumatra and 20−40 km for Java. The lower bimodal values obtained for Sumatra appears to correlate well with the zones of historical seismicity. This is in sharp contrast with Java subduction zone, which shows higher T _e values (20–40 km) and apparently associated with low magnitude earthquakes. We suggest a strong and wide interseismic coupling for Sumatra between the subducting and over-riding plates, and deeper mantle contributing to low strength, shallow focus — high magnitude seismicity and vice versa for Java, leading to their seismogenic zonation.