Elements | 2019
Deep Carbon and the Life Cycle of Large Igneous Provinces
Abstract
Large igneous provinces (LIPs) are defined as the geologically rapid emplacement (over 105–106 years) of hundreds of thousands to millions of cubic kilometers of lava at the surface and the associated intrusive bodies (e.g., Coffin and Eldholm 1994). They are dominated by thick successions of lavas known as flood basalts. These vast igneous provinces have formed several times throughout Earth’s history, on almost all of the major continents and also in the oceans. Large igneous provinces are often found far from plate boundaries. Detailed studies of individual LIPs have shown that they are formed of igneous rocks with diverse compositions, ranging from tholeiitic basalts, to occasional rhyolites, to strongly alkaline magmas such as lamproites and carbonatites.