Ana Lillian Martin-Del Pozzo

The significance of phenocryst diversity in tephra from recent eruptions at Popocatepetl volcano (central Mexico)

Abstract Tephra lapilli from six explosive eruptions between April 1996 and February 1998 at Popocatepetl volcano (=Popo) in central Mexico have been studied to investigate the causes of magma diversification in thick-crusted volcanic arcs. The tephra particles are sparsely porphyritic (≈5 vol%) magnesian andesites (SiO2=58–65 wt%; MgO=2.6–5.9 wt%) that contain phenocrysts of NiO-rich (up to 0.67 wt% NiO) magnesian olivine (Fo89–91 cores) with inclusions of Cr-spinel (cr#=59–70), orthopyroxene (mg#=63–76), clinopyroxene (mg#=68–86), intermediate to sodic plagioclase (An33–66), and traces of amphibole. Major and trace element systematics indicate magma mixing. The liquid mg#melt ratios inferred from the ferromagnesian phenocrysts suggest the existence of a mafic (mg#melt ≈ 72–76) and an evolved component magma (mg#melt ≈ 35–40). These component magmas form a hybrid magnesian andesite with an intermediate range of mg#melt=50–72. The mafic end member (mg#melt ≈ 72–75) is saturated with olivine and spinel and crystallizes at temperatures ≈1170–1085 °C with oxygen fugacities close to the fayalite–magnetite–quartz buffer and elevated water contents of several wt% H2O. A likely location of crystallization is at lower crustal levels, possibly at the Moho. Olivine is followed by high-mg# clinopyroxene which could start to crystallize during magma ascent. At depths of ≈4 to 13 km, the mafic magma mixes with an evolved composition containing low-mg# clino- and orthopyroxene and plagioclase at a temperature of ≈950 °C. The repetitive ascent of batches of mafic magmas spaced days to weeks apart implies multiple episodes of crystallization and magma mixing. The tephra is similar to the Popo magnesian andesites, suggesting similar generic processes for the common lavas of the volcano. The advantage of the tephra is that it can be used to reconstruct the composition of the mafic magma. Building on the elemental systematics of the tephra and a comparison to the near-primary basalts from the surrounding monogenetic fields, we infer that the Popo mafic end member is a magnesian andesite with variable, but high SiO2 contents of ≈55–62 wt% and near-primary characteristics, such as high-mg#melt of 72–75, FeO*/MgO ratios <1 (if extrapolated to an mg#melt of 72–75), and high Ni contents (=200 ppm Ni). This model implies that the typical elemental signature of the Popo andesites, such as the low CaO, Al2O3, FeO*, high Na2O contents, and the depletion in high-field strength elements (e.g., P, Zr, Ti), are mantle source phenomena. Thus, determining the elemental budget of the magnesian andesite, as it is prior to the modifications by crustal differentiation, is central to quantifying the subcrustal mass fluxes beneath Popo.

A genetic link between silicic slab components and calc-alkaline arc volcanism in central Mexico

Abstract A fundamental question in the formation of orogenic andesites is whether their high melt SiO2 reflects the recycling of silicic melts from the subducted slab or the processing of basaltic mantle melts in the overlying crust. The latter model is widely favoured, because most arc magmas lack the ‘garnet’ signature of partial slab melts. Here we present new trace element data from Holocene high-Mg# >64–72 calc-alkaline basalts to andesites (50–62 wt% SiO2) from the central Mexican Volcanic Belt that crystallize high-Ni olivines with the high 3He/4He=7–8 of the upper mantle. These magmas have been proposed to be partial melts from ‘reaction pyroxenites’, which formed by hybridization of mantle peridotite (c. 82–85%) and heavy rare earth element-depleted silicic slab melt (>15–18%). Forward and inverse models suggest that the absence of a garnet signature in these melts reflects the efficient buffering of the heavy rare earth elements (Ho to Lu) in the subarc mantle. In contrast, all elements more incompatible than Ho – excepting TiO2 – are more or less strongly controlled by the silicic slab flux that also directly contributes to the silicic arc magma formation. Our study emphasizes the strong link between slab recycling and the genesis of orogenic andesites. Supplementary material: Methods, additional data and modelling parameters are available at http://www.geolsoc.org.uk/SUP18686

Paleomagnetic and rock-magnetic study on volcanic units of the Valsequillo Basin: implications for early human occupation in central Mexico

Alleged human and animal footprints were found within the upper bedding surfaces of the Xalnene volcanic ash layer that outcrops in the Valsequillo Basin, south of Puebla, Mexico (Gonzalez et al, 2005). The ash has been dated at 40 ka by optically stimulated luminescence analysis, thereby providing new evidence that America was colonized earlier than the Clovis culture (about 13.5 Ma). We carried out paleomagnetic and rock magnetic analysis on 18 Xalnene ash block and core samples collected at two distinct localities and 19 standard paleomagnetic cores belonging to nearby monogenetic volcanoes. Our data provide evidence that both the volcanic lava flow and Xalnene ash were emplaced during the Laschamp geomagnetic event spanning from about 45 to 39 ka.

Magnetic signatures associated with magma ascent and stagnation at Popocatepetl volcano, Mexico, during 2006

Abstract Monitoring of real-time magnetic signals at Popocatepetl during 2006 has allowed discrimination of magma injection and dome growth. Magnetic signals correlated with seismic, volcanotectonic events and harmonic tremor, as well as number of small emissions, spring water pH, ash components and dome evolution helped define upward magma transport and yield a better understanding of the volcanic plumbing system. Magma ascent occurs mostly in periods of 7±3 days associated with harmonic tremor and decreasing magnetic signals between −1.1 and −15 nT, followed by increasing signals linked to cooling of the domes and increased seismicity over periods of 1 to more than 3 months. The dome clogs the vent after the negative magnetic anomaly–harmonic tremor period associated with magma ascent and forces an explosive crater-reopening explosion. Larger negative changes in the magnetic signals occurred in April (−6 nT), August (−3 to −6 nT) and October to December (−5 to −15 nT), associated with dome formation and growth. Negative magnetic anomalies preceded eruptions by 3 days in 2006.