Yu. A. Martynov

Cenozoic volcanism of the eastern Sikhote Alin: Petrological studies and outlooks

Based on geological and isotope geochemical data obtained during the past decade, the eastern Sikhote Alin volcanic belt can be considered as a polygenic structure with spatially superimposed magmatic complexes of different geodynamic stages. Only Late Cretaceous intermediate and silicic volcanics enriched in LILE and depleted in HFSE can be interpreted as typical subduction complexes. Cenozoic lavas of mainly basic composition were formed after the termination of active subduction under complex dynamic conditions of the rearrangement of eastern Eurasia owing to the collision with the Indian plate. The eruption of Eocene-Oligocene-early Miocene basalts corresponded to the transform continental margin environment, rupture of an ancient subducted slab, and upwelling of hot depleted oceanic asthenosphere of the Pacific MORB-type into the Asian subcontinental lithosphere with EMII-like isotopic characteristics. The late Miocene-Pliocene magmatic activity of the eastern Sikhote Alin showed an intraplate character, but the composition of erupted magmas was strongly affected by previous tectonomagmatic events: subduction of different ages and opening of the Sea of Japan Basin. The distinct EMI isotopic signature of low-potassium plateau basalts, which is not observed in the lavas of earlier stages of volcanic belt evolution, suggests that the continental asthenosphere contributed to magma formation, and the direction of mantle flows changed owing to the formation of a new subduction zone.

Geochemistry and Petrogenesis of Volcanic Rocks in the Kuril Island Arc

Newly obtained precise analytical data on trace elements and radiogenic Sr, Nd, and Pb isotopes testify to anomalous geochemical characteristics of mafic and intermediate Quaternary lavas in Paramushir (in the north of the Kuril arc), Kunashir and Iturup (in the south) islands, which are the largest three islands of the Kuril island arc. The high K and LREE concentrations in the volcanic products in Paramushir Island resulted from the southward expansion of the mantle thermal anomaly of the Kamchatka Peninsula and the involvement of melts related to the melting of oceanic sediments in magma generation. The depleted characteristics of the mafic volcanics are explained by the relatively young tectono-magmatic events during the opening of the Kuril backarc basin. The Kuril island-arc system developed on a heterogeneous basement. The northern islands are a continuation of the volcanic structures of southern Kamchatka, which were formed above an isotopically depleted and hot lithospheric mantle domain of composition close to that of the Pacific MORB type. The southern islands were produced above an isotopically enriched and cold lithospheric domain of the Indian-Ocean MORB type, which was modified in relation to relatively young backarc tectono-magmatic processes. Although issues related to the genesis of the transverse geochemical zoning were beyond the originally formulated scope of our research, the homogeneous enough isotopic composition of the rear-arc lavas in the absence of any mineralogical and geochemical lines of evidence of crustal contamination suggests an independent magmatic source.

Indian MORB-type mantle beneath the Kuril Island arc: Isotopic investigation of the mafic lavas of Kunashir Island

New data on the Hf, Pb, and Nd isotopes of the mafic rocks of various ages from Kunashir Island were used to address the nature of the sub-arc mantle of the southern segment of the Kuril island arc. At least since Late Cenozoic, its isotopic characteristics have been the MORB-type mantle of the Indian Ocean. Its boundary with the mantle reservoir of the Pacific MORB-type coincided probably with the Kuril-Kamchatka Trench.

Isotopic and geochemical characteristics of the late Miocene subalkali and alkali basalts of the southern part of the Russian Far East and the role of continental lithosphere in their genesis

Major oxides, trace elements (ICP-MS analysis), and Sr isotope ratios were analyzed in the late Miocene subalkaline and alkaline basaltoids of the southern part of the Russian Far East, which were formed during the final stage of the development of intraplate basaltic volcanism. Based on these data, variations in the main geochemical and mineralogical characteristics of various tectonomagmatic terranes were evaluated. The enriched and heterogeneous continental lithosphere modified to a varying extent by postaccretion subduction processes of different ages played a major role in the formation of the rocks. The first geochemical evidence was obtained for the subduction of the Solonker paleoceanic plate beneath the Amur microcontinent during the Permian.

Maestrichtian-Danian andesite series of the Eastern Sikhote Alin: Mineralogy, geochemistry, and petrogenetic aspects

In the stratigraphic sequence of volcanic rocks in the Eastern Sikhote Alin, Maestrichtian-Danian predominantly andesitic volcanics are characterized by a boundary position between the Late Cretaceous subduction, mostly acid volcanic rocks and Cenozoic post-subduction basaltoids. Data on these rocks are important for elucidating the genesis of andesitic magmas, constraining and specifying the geodynamic evolutionary stages in this territory, and revealing the conditions under which the parental melts of these rocks were derived and evolved. Results of detailed mineralogical and geochemical studies, including ICP-MS analysis for trace elements point to a hybrid character of the andesitic volcanic rocks and an important role of fractional crystallization and crustal contamination in their genesis. Although geological evidence (variations in the style of volcanism, the composition of its products, and the character of their distribution) testifies to a change in the geodynamic environment in the Eastern Sikhote Alin in the Maestrichtian-Danian, geochemically the volcanics of this age range are typical subduction-related rocks with anomalously low concentrations of Nb and high contents of K, Ba, Rb, Pb, and U. The volcanic piles contain no adakites, which are indicators of the geodynamic environment in which slab windows are formed. The inconsistency between geological and geochemical indicators of the geodynamic environment suggests certain genetic features of the transitional magmatic series. The parental magmas of the andesitic volcanics were derived from the suprasubduction mantle wedge, which had been metasomatically recycled in the course of the dehydration and melting of the subducted oceanic slab. The increasing extension provided the possibility for the parental basaltic magmas to enter upper crustal levels, where they could interact with the host rocks and form hybrid andesitic melts.

Geochemistry and Geodynamic Setting of Late Cretaceous-Miocene Basalts in the Southern Korean Peninsula

Newly obtained data highlight strong geological and geochemical differences between Late Cretaceous-Paleogene and Eocene-Middle Miocene volcanic rocks in the southern Korean Peninsula. The rocks are spatially separated and differ in the proportions of acid and basic varieties. The Late Cretaceous-Paleogene basalts are similar to suprasubduction rocks in having high Al2O3, LILE, and Th contents, and low TiO2 and HFSE contents. The Miocene basalts have a composition intermediate between those of subduction and within-plate rocks. Compared to subduction rocks, they are lower in radiogenic Sr, K, LILE (Cs, Rb, Ba), and Th and higher in MgO, Ni, Ti, and HREE. A drastic change in U, Ba, Rb, Ce, Th, and 87Sr/86Sr in the basic volcanic rocks of the southern Korean Peninsula at the Late Cretaceous-Paleogene boundary suggests a decreasing sedimentary contribution to the magma. The latter testifies to a change in the direction of the motion of the oceanic and continental plates, increasing compressional forces and, finally, the cessation of subduction. The synthesis of the original authors and published data on Cenozoic volcanism of the southern Korean Peninsula and the eastern Sikhote Alin showed that the tectonic evolution of the eastern Eurasian margin occurred in four stages: Late Cretaceous-Paleogene, Eocene-Oligocene, Early, and Middle-Miocene.

Physical and chemical conditions of the formation and evolution of late pleistocene-holocene magmas of the Gorely and Mutnovsky volcanoes, southern Kamchatka

A detailed mineralogical and geochemical study of basic volcanic rocks from the modern edifices of the Gorely (Q34-Q44) and Mutnovsky (Q32-Q4) volcanoes, as well as the results of numerical modeling with the COMAGMAT program, made it possible to estimate the role of fractional crystallization, the fluid regime, and geodynamic conditions in the petrogenesis of the studied basaltoids. The specific features of the evolution of magmas of the two volcanoes give grounds to suggest that beginning from the Late Pleistocene (Q34), all of the considered territory experienced a change in geodynamic regime, with an increasing role of extending strains in its evolution.

Geochemical evolution of volcanism of Matua Island in the Central Kurils

The first comprehensive isotope-geochemical study of volcanogenic rocks of different ages from Matua Island made it possible to distinguish the general stages in the magmatic evolution of the subduction system. The petrological similarity of the rocks from the central and northern chains of the Kuril island arc testifies that they were formed above “hot” geochemically enriched but isotopically depleted lithospheric mantle. The compositional change of the volcanic rocks of Matua Island in the Pleistocene-Holocene suggests a geodynamic transition at that time. Taking into account the similar tendency previously established in the southern Kuril Range (Kunashir Island) and for the Mutnovsky and Gorelyi volcanoes of southern Kamchatka, a global Pleistocene-Holocene tectonic event may be proposed in the evolution of the Kuril-Kamchatka island arc. The finding of the “adakite-like” tephra on Matua Island indicates the presence of felsic adakite-like melts among the eruption products of Sarychev Peak Volcano.

New isotope–geochemical and mineralogical data on the ultramafic xenoliths in the volcanic rocks of the Kamchatka–Koryak region: Two types of mantle protolith in the modern island-arc system

The paper presents new isotope–geochemical and mineralogical data on mantle xenoliths of the “island-arc” (Avacha, Shiveluch, and Kharchinsky volcanoes) and “within-plate” (Valovayam River, Cape Navarin, and Bakening Volcano areas) types. In terms of paragenesis and mineral composition, the “islandarc” xenoliths correspond to the olivine–plagioclase depth facies, while the “within-plate” xenoliths came from spinel lherzolite to wehrlite facies, which is transitional to the olivine–plagioclase equilibrium. The majority of the “within-plate” xenoliths are enriched in high-field-strength elements (Ti, Nb, Hf, Zr, Yb). The “island-arc” xenoliths in general are depleted in REE, while the “within-plate” xenoliths are enriched in all REE. The former have low Pb isotope ratios, being in isotope equilibrium with lower crustal basites, while most of the latter group are enriched in radiogenic Pb. The island-arc xenoliths are of magmatic origin and were derived from the sublithospheric crust–mantle mixture, while the “within-plate” xenoliths reflect the composition of the asthenospheric mantle source. The primary appearance of the xenoliths is obliterated by secondary recrystallization and metasomatic reworking.

Pleistocene basaltic volcanism of Kunashir Island (Kuril island arc): Mineralogy, geochemistry, and results of computer simulation

New mineralogical, geochemical, and isotope data in combination with numerical modeling were used to reconstruct the physicochemical and geodynamic conditions of the formation of Pleistocene basalts of Kunashir Island. Although they are petrologically close to the Holocene basalts of Tyatya Volcano, their eruption occurred during a brief period of island arc extension, which was accompanied by the high degree melting of mantle wedge asthenosphere. Numerous geological, petrological, and paleogeographical data testify that Pleistocene is an important stage in the geodynamic reorganization of the Kuril island arc. This stage was responsible for uplifting of the southern islands above sea level accompanied by catastrophic endogenous events, deformation, topographic reorganization of the large area of the Sea of Japan and adjacent land, and final folding stage in the West Sakhalin Mountains.