Rapid heterogeneous assembly of multiple magma reservoirs prior to Yellowstone supereruptions

Wotzlaw, Joern Frederik; Bindeman, Ilya N.; Stern, Richard A.; D'Abzac, François-Xavier; Schaltegger, Urs

doi:10.1038/srep14026

Scientific article

English

Rapid heterogeneous assembly of multiple magma reservoirs prior to Yellowstone supereruptions

Contributors

Wotzlaw, Joern Frederik; Bindeman, Ilya N.; Stern, Richard A.; D'Abzac, François-Xavier; Schaltegger, Urs

Published in

Scientific reports, vol. 5, 14026

Publication date

2015

Abstract

Large-volume caldera-forming eruptions of silicic magmas are an important feature of continental volcanism. The timescales and mechanisms of assembly of the magma reservoirs that feed such eruptions as well as the durations and physical conditions of upper-crustal storage remain highly debated topics in volcanology. Here we explore a comprehensive data set of isotopic (O, Hf) and chemical proxies in precisely U-Pb dated zircon crystals from all caldera-forming eruptions of Yellowstone supervolcano. Analysed zircons record rapid assembly of multiple magma reservoirs by repeated injections of isotopically heterogeneous magma batches and short pre-eruption storage times of 103 to 104 years. Decoupled oxygen-hafnium isotope systematics suggest a complex source for these magmas involving variable amounts of differentiated mantle-derived melt, Archean crust and hydrothermally altered shallow-crustal rocks. These data demonstrate that complex magma reservoirs with multiple sub-chambers are a common feature of rift- and hotspot related supervolcanoes. The short duration of reservoir assembly documents rapid crustal remelting and two to three orders of magnitude higher magma production rates beneath Yellowstone compared to continental arc volcanoes. The short pre-eruption storage times further suggest that the detection of voluminous reservoirs of eruptible magma beneath active supervolcanoes may only be possible prior to an impending eruption.

Keywords

High-precision geochronology
U-Pb zircon
Yellowstone
Magma chamber
Supervolcano

UNIGE affiliation entities

Faculté des sciences / Section des sciences de la Terre et de l'Environnement / Département des sciences de la Terre

UNIGE research groups

Isotope Geochemistry, Geochronology and Thermochronology

Citation (ISO format)

WOTZLAW, Joern Frederik et al. Rapid heterogeneous assembly of multiple magma reservoirs prior to Yellowstone supereruptions. In: Scientific reports, 2015, vol. 5, p. 14026. doi: 10.1038/srep14026

Article (Published version)

Identifiers

PID : unige:75709
DOI : 10.1038/srep14026

Journal ISSN

2045-2322

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629downloads

Creation

01/10/2015 13:37:00

First validation

01/10/2015 13:37:00

Update

14/03/2023 23:39:55

Status update

14/03/2023 23:39:55

Last indexation

31/10/2024 01:25:40

Rapid heterogeneous assembly of multiple magma reservoirs prior to Yellowstone supereruptions

Contributors

Published in

Publication date

Abstract

Keywords

UNIGE affiliation entities

UNIGE research groups

Citation (ISO format)

Main files (1)

Identifiers

Journal ISSN

Technical informations

Creation

First validation

Update

Status update

Last indexation