Collaborative Research: Evolution of the Tristan-Gough-Walvis Ridge Hotspot System: Age and Composition of Expedition 391/397T Volcanic Basement

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Hotspots are anomalously warm regions in the Earth’s mantle originating near the core-mantle boundary. They play an important role in plate tectonics as one of the primary drivers of continental break up and the subsequent formation of new oceans. As continental fragments drift apart and new oceans form between the land masses, the influential hotspot persists. This hotspot then creates a series of smaller volcanic eruptions on the new seafloor. These eruptions sample the deep hotspot and, in some cases, the shallow mantle. However, the shallow mantle is not uniform in composition. Instead, it evolves as continents drift apart and new seafloor is created. To better understand the role of hotspots in the creation of new seafloor and how the shallow mantle changes as the ocean basin matures, the International Ocean Discovery Program (IODP) Expeditions 391 and 397T drilled six different underwater volcanoes along the Walvis Ridge in the southern Atlantic Ocean. The Walvis Ridge consists of a line of underwater volcanoes formed by a hotspot during the separation of Africa from South American and the formation of the Southern Atlantic Ocean. Using core samples obtained at the six sites, this project will investigate three main questions. First, how much the upper mantle contributes to Walvis Ridge volcanism? What determines the proportion of upper mantle versus hotspot contribution to Walvis Ridge volcanism? Finally, how does the upper mantle change as the continents drift apart and the southern Atlantic Ocean expands. This project supports collaborations between US and international scientists. It will also fund undergraduate and graduate research by students traditionally underrepresented in geosciences (Native American, Black, LGBTQ, etc.).The overarching goal of this project seeks to better understand the magmatic processes associated with continental rifting and ocean basin formation in the South Atlantic, beginning in the early Cretaceous and continuing through today. To do this, IODP Expeditions 391 and 397T drilled six sites spanning 1200km and ~620m of basaltic basement along the Tristan-Gough-Walvis Ridge (TGW) hotspot track. The drill sites sample a significant spatial and temporal range along the TGW: one site on the Frio Rise (adjacent the African continent), two sites on the Valdivia Bank (cognate with the Rio Grande Rise and formed adjacent to the early mid-Atlantic Ridge), and three guyots on the “trident” that leads to the volcanic islands of Tristan da Cunha and Gough. In collaboration with other members of the science party, this project will conduct a comprehensive geochemical and geochronological study of recovered basaltic core to document the changing geodynamic interactions of the hotspot with the overlying lithosphere as rifting and seafloor spreading progressed. The team will collect a wealth of data, including geochronology (Duncan & Heaton, OSU), whole rock geochemistry (Nelson, TU; Potter & Shervais, USU), mineral and associated melt inclusion chemistry (Potter & Shervais, USU), noble gas abundances and isotopic signatures (Dygert & Scholpp, UTK), oxygen fugacity characterization of lavas (Dygert & Scholpp, UTK), and whole rock Re-Os isotopic compositions (Nelson, TU). The team will use these data to test three hypotheses based on preliminary work: (1) Lava chemistry will evolve geochemically from the Etendeka Large Igneous Province in the NE towards the intraplate oceanic islands of Gough and Tristan de Cunha to the SW, consistent with decreasing magma flux through time and changing melt sources; (2) Magmatic flux varies through time and is tied to the proximity to other geologic features (e.g. spreading ridge, African continent, etc.); and (3) Proximity to the spreading ridge will result in lavas with a higher proportion of MORB-like magma (DMM source) relative to the hotspot source. On a small scale, the high-quality core obtained at the various drilling sites provides a unique window into timing and geochemical variations within an individual seamount as it formed and how that may vary with proximity to the spreading ridge. On a larger scale, this work will provide an unmatched look at how plume-ridge interactions change over time.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.