Timing of the Cenozoic “Great Hydration” event beneath the Colorado Plateau: Th-Pb dating of monazite in Navajo volcanic field metamorphic eclogite xenoliths

Abstract

Th-Pb dating of monazite in xenoliths of low-temperature metamorphic eclogite facies rocks from diatremes of the Navajo volcanic field in the center of the Colorado Plateau (southwest United States) yields ages of ca. 28 Ma. Because monazite is not a primary phase in basic igneous or metamorphic rocks, but introduced during metasomatism, we suggest that the fluid responsible for monazite growth was derived from prograde metamorphic dehydration reactions in serpentinites and related rocks in the subducted Farallon plate. These fluids hydrated the overlying sub-plateau lithospheric mantle, consuming garnet (thus mobilizing rare earth elements) and lowering mantle density and increasing volume, contributing to the uplift of the Colorado Plateau in early Oligocene time.