Volcanology and petrology of Mathews Tuya, northern British Columbia, Canada: glaciovolcanic constraints on interpretations of the 0.730 Ma Cordilleran paleoclimate

Abstract

Petrological, volcanological and geochronological data collected at Mathews Tuya together provide constraints on paleoclimate conditions during formation of the edifice. The basaltic tuya was produced via Pleistocene glaciovolcanism in northern British Columbia, Canada, and is located within the Tuya volcanic field (59.195°N/130.434°W), which is part of the northern Cordilleran volcanic province (NCVP). The edifice comprises a variety of lithofacies, including columnar-jointed lava, pillow lava, massive dikes, and volcaniclastic rocks. Collectively these deposits record the transition from an explosive subaqueous to an effusive subaerial eruption environment dominated by Pleistocene ice. As is typical for tuyas, the volcaniclastic facies record multiple fragmentation processes including explosive, quench and mechanical fragmentation. All samples from Mathews Tuya are olivine-plagioclase porphyritic alkali olivine basalts. They are mineralogically and geochemically similar to nearby glaciovolcanic centers from the southeastern part of the Tuya volcanic field (e.g., Ash Mountain, South Tuya, Tuya Butte) as well as the dominant NCVP rock type. Crystallization scenarios calculated with MELTS account for variations between whole rock and glass compositions via low pressure fractionation. The presence of olivine microphenocrysts and the absence of pyroxene phenocrysts constrain initial crystallization pressures to less than 0.6 GPa. The eruption of Mathews Tuya occurred between 0.718 ± 0.054 Ma and 0.742 ± 0.081 Ma based on 40Ar/39Ar geochronology (weighted mean age of 0.730 Ma). The age determinations provide the first firm documentation for large (>700 m thick), pre-Fraser/Wisconsin glaciers in north-central British Columbia ~0.730 Ma, and correlate in age with glaciovolcanic deposits in Russia (e.g., Komatsu et al. Geomorph 88: 352-366, 2007) and with marine isotopic evidence for large global ice volumes ~0.730 Ma.