Rhenium-Osmium Investigation of Western U.S. Magmatism

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Recent rhenium (Re)-osmium (Os) studies on a variety of magmatic products and source materials illustrate the importance of this system to resolving issues of magma and crust-mantle evolution. Preliminary results from a pilot Re-Os study of northwestern U.S. basalts illustrate that combined Re-Os, conventional isotope, and elemental data can help unravel the complexities of source- versus process-related effects. This work seeks to expand on the pilot study by investigating the Re-Os characteristics of well-documented suites of mafic and silicic extrusive rocks and crustal as well as lithologies from the northwestern and southwestern United States. The results will help to elucidate the details of mantle and crustal processes and evolution in the continental setting.