Months between rejuvenation and volcanic eruption at Yellowstone caldera, Wyoming

Abstract

Research Article| August 01, 2015 Months between rejuvenation and volcanic eruption at Yellowstone caldera, Wyoming Christy B. Till; Christy B. Till * 1School of Earth and Space Exploration, Arizona State University, 781 Terrace Mall, Tempe, Arizona 85287, USA2U.S. Geological Survey, 345 Middlefield Road, Menlo Park, California 94025, USA *E-mail: christy.till@asu.edu Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Jorge A. Vazquez; Jorge A. Vazquez 2U.S. Geological Survey, 345 Middlefield Road, Menlo Park, California 94025, USA Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Jeremy W. Boyce Jeremy W. Boyce 3Department of Earth, Planetary and Space Sciences, University of California–Los Angeles, 595 Charles Young Drive East, Los Angeles, California 90095, USA Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Author and Article Information Christy B. Till * 1School of Earth and Space Exploration, Arizona State University, 781 Terrace Mall, Tempe, Arizona 85287, USA2U.S. Geological Survey, 345 Middlefield Road, Menlo Park, California 94025, USA Jorge A. Vazquez 2U.S. Geological Survey, 345 Middlefield Road, Menlo Park, California 94025, USA Jeremy W. Boyce 3Department of Earth, Planetary and Space Sciences, University of California–Los Angeles, 595 Charles Young Drive East, Los Angeles, California 90095, USA *E-mail: christy.till@asu.edu Publisher: Geological Society of America Received: 07 Apr 2015 Revision Received: 26 May 2015 Accepted: 28 May 2015 First Online: 09 Mar 2017 Online Issn: 1943-2682 Print Issn: 0091-7613 © 2015 Geological Society of America Geology (2015) 43 (8): 695–698. https://doi.org/10.1130/G36862.1 Article history Received: 07 Apr 2015 Revision Received: 26 May 2015 Accepted: 28 May 2015 First Online: 09 Mar 2017 Cite View This Citation Add to Citation Manager Share Icon Share Facebook Twitter LinkedIn MailTo Tools Icon Tools Get Permissions Search Site Citation Christy B. Till, Jorge A. Vazquez, Jeremy W. Boyce; Months between rejuvenation and volcanic eruption at Yellowstone caldera, Wyoming. Geology 2015;; 43 (8): 695–698. doi: https://doi.org/10.1130/G36862.1 Download citation file: Ris (Zotero) Refmanager EasyBib Bookends Mendeley Papers EndNote RefWorks BibTex toolbar search Search Dropdown Menu toolbar search search input Search input auto suggest filter your search All ContentBy SocietyGeology Search Advanced Search Abstract Rejuvenation of previously intruded silicic magma is an important process leading to effusive rhyolite, which is the most common product of volcanism at calderas with protracted histories of eruption and unrest such as Yellowstone caldera (Wyoming), Long Valley caldera (California), and Valles caldera (New Mexico) in the United States. Although orders of magnitude smaller in volume than rare caldera-forming supereruptions, these relatively frequent effusions of rhyolite are comparable to the largest eruptions of the 20th century, and pose a considerable volcanic hazard. However, the physical pathway from rejuvenation to eruption of silicic magma is unclear, particularly because the time between reheating of a subvolcanic intrusion and eruption is poorly quantified. This study uses nanometer-scale trace element diffusion in sanidine crystals to reveal that rejuvenation of a near-solidus or subsolidus silicic intrusion occurred in ∼10 mo or less following a protracted period (220 k.y.) of volcanic repose, and resulted in effusion of ∼3 km3 of high-silica rhyolite lava at the onset of Yellowstone’s last volcanic interval. The future renewal of effusive silicic volcanism at Yellowstone will likely require a comparable energetic intrusion of magma that remelts the shallow subvolcanic reservoir and generates eruptible rhyolite on month to annual time scales. You do not have access to this content, please speak to your institutional administrator if you feel you should have access.