Isotopic geochemistry of Hualalai shield-stage tholeiitic basalts from submarine North Kona region, Hawaii

Abstract

The geochemical data of Hualalai tholeiitic basalts allow extension of the temporal variations established at Mauna Loa back in time, and provide important information for the long-term temporal variation of the Hawaiian lavas. We report new Hf, Pb, Nd, and Sr isotope compositions for 32 Hualalai tholeiitic basalts collected from deep submarine portions of the North Kona region. The samples were collected from the lower section of the North Kona bench (dives K218 and K219), a submarine stratigraphic section at Hualalai volcano's northwest rift zone (dive S690), and an elongate ridge outboard of the central section of the bench (dive S692), during two JAMSTEC Hawaii cruises in 2001 and 2002. The Hualalai shield-stage tholeiitic basalts have magma source isotopic signatures similar to Mauna Loa. The new data shows temporal Pb and Sr isotope trends that correspond to the long-term temporal variations in Loa-trend lavas, and the Hualalai–Mauna Loa lavas seem to show inter-shield geochemical excursions. Variation in Pb and Sr isotopes at Hualalai appears to take place over a longer time scale than at Mauna Loa. The merged Hualalai–Mauna Loa isotopic trends support models where heterogeneous material in the plume conduit is distributed chaotically, with variable cross-sectional density and length scale.