Rolf B. Pedersen

U/Pb ages of ophiolites and arc-related plutons of the Norwegian Caledonides: implications for the development of Iapetus

U/Pb zircon ages are reported for four ophiolites and three crosscutting arc-related plutons from the Norwegian Caledonides. Plagiogranite differentiated from gabbro of the Karmøy ophiolite is dated at 493+7/-4 Ma whereas arc-related trondhjemite cutting this ophiolite crystallized at 485+/−2 Ma. A crosscutting clinopyroxene-phyric gabbro intrusion is dated at 470+9/−5 Ma by near concordant magmatic titanite (sphene) and discordant U-rich (2903–6677 ppm) zircon. Lower intercepts of 247+/−68 and 191+/−70 Ma defined by the plagiogranite and clinopyroxene-phyric gabbro best-fit lines may reflect a real low-T alteration/rift-related event.A plagiogranite differentiate of the Gullfjellet ophiolite complex is dated at 489+/−3 Ma and a crosscutting arc-related tonalite is 482+6/−4 Ma. Both of these ages overlap with those of the correlative rocks at Karmøy suggesting that they are parts of one ophiolitic terrane with a common history.Trondhjemite associated with the Leka ophiolite is dated at 497+/−2 Ma, indicating that supra-subduction zone magmatism there may be coeval with spreading which formed the Karmøy axis sequence.The U/Pb zircon ages of Norwegian ophiolites reported here, combined with ages of other Appalachian-Caledonian ophiolite complexes in Britain and Canada, indicate a narrow age range for the generation of at least two marginal basins in the Tremadoc-Arenig. Two spreading episodes documented at Karmøy are separated in time by intrusion of arc-related trondhjemite magmas at 485+/−2 Ma and may correlate with two separate spreading events documented in other ophiolites.The Solund/Stavfjorden ophiolite, at 443+/−3 Ma, is the only late Ordovician ophiolite yet documented in the entire Appalachian-Caledonian Orogen and it probably represents a small, short-lived marginal basin late in the history of the Iapetus Ocean. It is correlative with Caradocian ensialic marginal basin magmatism in Wales and the Trondheim region, and with tholeiitic gabbro-diorite plutons that intruded Newfoundland ophiolites in a tensional regime after emplacement of the ophiolites over the continental margin.

Diversity of life in ocean floor basalt

Abstract Electron microscopy and biomolecular methods have been used to describe and identify microbial communities inhabiting the glassy margins of ocean floor basalts. The investigated samples were collected from a neovolcanic ridge and from older, sediment-covered lava flows in the rift valley of the Knipovich Ridge at a water depth around 3500 m and an ambient seawater temperature of −0.7°C. Successive stages from incipient microbial colonisation, to well-developed biofilms occur on fracture surfaces in the glassy margins. Observed microbial morphologies are various filamentous, coccoidal, oval, rod-shaped and stalked forms. Etch marks in the fresh glass, with form and size resembling the attached microbes, are common. Precipitation of alteration products around microbes has developed hollow subspherical and filamentous structures. These precipitates are often enriched in Fe and Mn. The presence of branching and twisted stalks that resemble those of the iron-oxidising Gallionella , indicate that reduced iron may be utilised in an energy metabolic process. Analysis of 16S-rRNA gene sequences from microbes present in the rock samples, show that the bacterial population inhabiting these samples cluster within the γ- and ϵ-Proteobacteria and the Cytophaga/Flexibacter/Bacteroides subdivision of the Bacteria, while the Archaea all belong to the Crenarchaeota kingdom. This microbial population appears to be characteristic for the rock and their closest relatives have previously been reported from cold marine waters in the Arctic and Antarctic, deep-sea sediments and hydrothermal environments.

Correlating microbial community profiles with geochemical data in highly stratified sediments from the Arctic Mid-Ocean Ridge

Microbial communities and their associated metabolic activity in marine sediments have a profound impact on global biogeochemical cycles. Their composition and structure are attributed to geochemical and physical factors, but finding direct correlations has remained a challenge. Here we show a significant statistical relationship between variation in geochemical composition and prokaryotic community structure within deep-sea sediments. We obtained comprehensive geochemical data from two gravity cores near the hydrothermal vent field Loki’s Castle at the Arctic Mid-Ocean Ridge, in the Norwegian-Greenland Sea. Geochemical properties in the rift valley sediments exhibited strong centimeter-scale stratigraphic variability. Microbial populations were profiled by pyrosequencing from 15 sediment horizons (59,364 16S rRNA gene tags), quantitatively assessed by qPCR, and phylogenetically analyzed. Although the same taxa were generally present in all samples, their relative abundances varied substantially among horizons and fluctuated between Bacteria- and Archaea-dominated communities. By independently summarizing covariance structures of the relative abundance data and geochemical data, using principal components analysis, we found a significant correlation between changes in geochemical composition and changes in community structure. Differences in organic carbon and mineralogy shaped the relative abundance of microbial taxa. We used correlations to build hypotheses about energy metabolisms, particularly of the Deep Sea Archaeal Group, specific Deltaproteobacteria, and sediment lineages of potentially anaerobic Marine Group I Archaea. We demonstrate that total prokaryotic community structure can be directly correlated to geochemistry within these sediments, thus enhancing our understanding of biogeochemical cycling and our ability to predict metabolisms of uncultured microbes in deep-sea sediments.

Microbial community diversity in seafloor basalt from the Arctic spreading ridges

Microbial communities inhabiting recent (< or =1 million years old; Ma) seafloor basalts from the Arctic spreading ridges were analyzed using traditional enrichment culturing methods in combination with culture-independent molecular phylogenetic techniques. Fragments of 16S rDNA were amplified from the basalt samples by polymerase chain reaction, and fingerprints of the bacterial and archaeal communities were generated using denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis. This analysis indicates a substantial degree of complexity in the samples studied, showing 20-40 dominating bands per profile for the bacterial assemblages. For the archaeal assemblages, a much lower number of bands (6-12) were detected. The phylogenetic affiliations of the predominant electrophoretic bands were inferred by performing a comparative 16S rRNA gene sequence analysis. Sequences obtained from basalts affiliated with eight main phylogenetic groups of Bacteria, but were limited to only one group of the Archaea. The most frequently retrieved bacterial sequences affiliated with the gamma-proteobacteria, alpha-proteobacteria, Chloroflexi, Firmicutes, and Actinobacteria. The archaeal sequences were restricted to the marine Group 1: Crenarchaeota. Our results indicate that the basalt harbors a distinctive microbial community, as the majority of the sequences differed from those retrieved from the surrounding seawater as well as from sequences previously reported from seawater and deep-sea sediments. Most of the sequences did not match precisely any sequences in the database, indicating that the indigenous Arctic ridge basalt microbial community is yet uncharacterized. Results from enrichment cultures showed that autolithotrophic methanogens and iron reducing bacteria were present in the seafloor basalts. We suggest that microbial catalyzed cycling of iron may be important in low-temperature alteration of ocean crust basalt. The phylogenetic and physiological diversity of the seafloor basalt microorganisms differed from those previously reported from deep-sea hydrothermal systems.

Hydrothermal vent fields and chemosynthetic biota on the world's deepest seafloor spreading centre.

The Mid-Cayman spreading centre is an ultraslow-spreading ridge in the Caribbean Sea. Its extreme depth and geographic isolation from other mid-ocean ridges offer insights into the effects of pressure on hydrothermal venting, and the biogeography of vent fauna. Here we report the discovery of two hydrothermal vent fields on the Mid-Cayman spreading centre. The Von Damm Vent Field is located on the upper slopes of an oceanic core complex at a depth of 2,300 m. High-temperature venting in this off-axis setting suggests that the global incidence of vent fields may be underestimated. At a depth of 4,960 m on the Mid-Cayman spreading centre axis, the Beebe Vent Field emits copper-enriched fluids and a buoyant plume that rises 1,100 m, consistent with >400 °C venting from the worlds deepest known hydrothermal system. At both sites, a new morphospecies of alvinocaridid shrimp dominates faunal assemblages, which exhibit similarities to those of Mid-Atlantic vents.

Discovery of a black smoker vent field and vent fauna at the Arctic Mid-Ocean Ridge

The Arctic Mid-Ocean Ridge (AMOR) represents one of the most slow-spreading ridge systems on Earth. Previous attempts to locate hydrothermal vent fields and unravel the nature of venting, as well as the provenance of vent fauna at this northern and insular termination of the global ridge system, have been unsuccessful. Here, we report the first discovery of a black smoker vent field at the AMOR. The field is located on the crest of an axial volcanic ridge (AVR) and is associated with an unusually large hydrothermal deposit, which documents that extensive venting and long-lived hydrothermal systems exist at ultraslow-spreading ridges, despite their strongly reduced volcanic activity. The vent field hosts a distinct vent fauna that differs from the fauna to the south along the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. The novel vent fauna seems to have developed by local specialization and by migration of fauna from cold seeps and the Pacific.

U–Pb zircon age of the Andaman ophiolite: implications for the beginning of subduction beneath the Andaman–Sumatra arc

Abstract: The Andaman ophiolites form the basement of the Andaman Islands, which is a part of the outer forearc that links the Indo-Burma accretionary complex to the north with the Java–Sumatra trench–arc system to the SE. Upper mantle harzburgite and dunite are overlain by a cumulate peridotite–gabbro complex, high-level intrusive rocks and a tholeiitic volcanic series. The upper crust in the South Andaman ophiolite shows also a prominent andesite–dacite volcanic suite, suggesting arc volcanism built onto ocean crust. U–Pb zircon dating of a trondhjemitic rock from Chiriya Tapu in South Andaman Island using laser ablation inductively coupled mass spectrometry reveals an age of crustal formation of 95 ± 2 Ma. The trondhjemites have geochemistry comparable with that of plagiogranites associated with ophiolite complexes, and εNd values around +7 further confirm that they are derived from depleted mantle melts. Basaltic pillow lava and basaltic dykes that cut the trondhjemites have mid-ocean ridge basalt-like trace-element geochemistry. The new data show that the Andaman volcanic arc was built on Cenomanian ophiolite–oceanic crust and that subduction was initiated at this time along Tethys, at least from Cyprus through Oman to the Andaman Islands.

Ordovician magmatism, deformation, and exhumation in the Caledonides of central Norway: An orphan of the Taconic orogeny?

Magmatism, contractional deformation, and extension associated with the exhumation of high-pressure rocks in the Scandinavian Caledonides are commonly attributed to the Silurian-Devonian Scandian orogeny, in which eastward thrusting of allochthonous terranes over Baltica was followed by extensional collapse and exhumation. New fieldwork and U-Pb geochronology coupled with recent pressure-temperature estimates within the highest thrust sequence of the Caledonian orogen indicate that an earlier phase of westdirected contractional deformation was punctuated by migmatite-producing events and voluminous magmatism ca. 477‐466 Ma and ca. 447 Ma, followed by exhumation in the Late Ordovician. Al-in-hornblende and GASP thermobarometry indicate that emplacement of a suite of 448‐445 Ma plutons caused partial migmatization at pressures of 700‐ 800 MPa. Subsequent isothermal exhumation to pressures of 400 MPa occurred while the host rocks were still partially molten. Rates of exhumation may have ranged from 2 to 11 mm·yr 21 or greater. These data provide evidence for a previously unrecognized phase of exhumation in the Caledonides and for aerially extensive west-vergent deformation. Deformation and magmatism associated with these events may be related to Taconic-age orogenesis near Laurentia, where the highest nappe sequences of the Scandinavian Caledonides probably resided during early Paleozoic time.

Tectonic Setting, Origin, and Obduction History of the Spontang Ophiolite, Ladakh Himalaya, NW India

The Spontang ophiolite forms the highest tectonic thrust slice above the Mesozoic–Early Tertiary continental margin of the north Indian plate in the Ladakh‐Zanskar Himalaya. Detailed field mapping, combined with geochemical analysis, has defined two major units: a full ophiolite sequence (Spontang ophiolite) overlain by an upper unit consisting of >500‐m‐thick basalt‐andesite volcanic and volcano‐sedimentary rocks of island arc affinity (Spong arc). The Spontang ophiolite comprises a harzburgitic mantle sequence, gabbroic and ultramafic cumulates, isotropic gabbros, and highly tectonized sheeted dikes feeding pillow lavas, with a few uncommon highly fractionated plagiogranites. A separate lherzolitic peridotite unit, affected by possible transform‐related shearing, was thrust over the harzburgites in the west, possibly during the early stages of subduction initiation beneath the ophiolite. Whole‐rock geochemistry and U‐Pb geochronology show that the ophiolite formed at a normal mid‐ocean ridge spreading center during the mid‐Jurassic and that the intraoceanic island arc sequence was erupted on top of the oceanic basement during the Campanian. The Spong arc is interpreted to have formed above a northward‐dipping subduction zone that was responsible for the obduction of the Spontang ophiolite during the Late Cretaceous–Early Paleocene. Although the Spong arc shows many similarities to the andesitic Dras arc within the Indus suture zone, structural, tectonic, and palaeomagnetic constraints indicate that the Spong arc was a separate intraoceanic island arc. This interpretation requires three northward‐dipping Tethyan subduction zones during the Late Cretaceous, beneath the Spong arc, Dras‐Kohistan intraoceanic arcs, and the southern margin of Asia, similar to the western Pacific region today.

U–Pb zircon ages from the Spontang Ophiolite, Ladakh Himalaya

The Spontang Ophiolite in the Ladakh Himalaya consist of a thrust sheet of upper mantle and oceanic crustal rocks obducted onto the northern passive continental margin of India during the late Cretaceous. Precise isotopic ages of Himalayan ophiolites are presently unavailable. U–Pb dating of zircons from a dioritic segregation in the high-level gabbros of the Spontang ophiolite shows that the complex formed at 177±1 Ma (mid-Jurassic) and we suggest that it represents a fragment of Neo-Tethyan oceanic crust. This Jurassic age contrasts with late Cretaceous ages (91–95 Ma) previously reported for the formation of the Troodos and Oman ophiolite complexes further west along the Neo-Tethyan suture zone and also predates the early to mid-Cretaceous Masirah ophiolite (c. 150 Ma) and its alkaline volcanic seamounts (115–125 Ma). An andesitic rock from an arc sequence overlying the Spontang ophiolite was also dated using as 88±5 Ma. This Late Cretaceous age constrains the minimum age of initiation of subduction beneath the Spontang Ophiolite. The complex was emplaced during the Turonian–Maastrictian, some 80 Ma after its formation when the Indian continental margin collided with a Cretaceous arc about 25 Ma before the India–Asia collision. The lack of a sub-ophiolite metamorphic sheet beneath the Spontang mantle sequence may be explained by the fact that the ophiolite was old and cold at the time of obduction.