Galapagos Rift Research Articles

Geología del cuadrante Tapantí (1:50 000), Costa Rica

Se presenta un mapa geológico, escala 1:50 000 del cuadrante Tapantí, el cual se encuentra en la región central de Costa Rica y forma parte del Cinturón Deformado del Centro de Costa Rica (CDCCR), producto de la interacción de la cordillera de Coco y la región W de la microplaca Panamá. Las rocas más antiguas cartografiadas son miocenas y están representadas por las formaciones sedimentarias Pacacua, Peña Negra, San Miguel y Coris, que forman el borde oriental de la cuenca Candelaria. Se distinguieron 3 eventos magmáticos; el arco volcánico Mioceno, representando por la Formación La Cruz y clastos volcánicos de la Formación Pacacua; un nuevo periodo de actividad ígnea entre 6 Ma y 4,2 Ma, representado por las Formaciones Grifo Alto, Doán y el Intrusivo de Tapantí y, finalmente, se desarrolla el arco volcánico actual, representado por las formaciones Paraíso y Cervantes, con un rango de edad entre los 0,6 Ma y 0,02 Ma. Desde el punto de vista geoquímico, se observa un fuerte cambio entre los 10 y 6 Ma, lo cual se expresa por medio del enriquecimiento de K y Si, y los cambios en la concentración de U, Sr, Ba, La. Dicho cambio corresponde temporalmente con el arribo de la cordillera de Coco a la Fosa Mesoamericana y es reflejado en la región por medio del arco magmático del Plioceno y el arco volcánico actual. El modelo estructural sugiere la existencia de 2 episodios de deformación, el primero ocurrió durante el periodo comprendido entre el Mioceno Superior y el Plioceno y produjo la Zona de Plegamiento Orosi-Patarrá mientras que el segundo corresponde con la instauración del CDCCR, desde el Plioceno hasta la actualidad, conformado por fallas sinestrales con orientación ENE y dextrales con orientación NW.

Thallium isotopes as tracers of recycled materials in subduction zones: Review and new data for lavas from Tonga-Kermadec and Central America

Sediment is actively being subducted in every convergent margin worldwide. Yet, geochemical data for arc lavas from several subduction zones, such as Northern Tonga and Costa Rica have revealed either attenuated or limited evidence for sediment in their mantle source regions. Here we use thallium (Tl) isotopes to trace slab components in lavas from the Tonga-Kermadec and Central American arcs. In general, both arcs display Tl isotope data that are most compatible with addition of sediment to the sub-arc mantle from the subducting slab. This evidence is particular strong in the Tonga-Kermadec arc where pelagic clays dominate the Tl budget along the entire arc. Contributions from altered oceanic crust as well as the Louisville Seamount chain that subducts underneath Northern Tonga are not visible in Tl isotopes, which is likely due to the very high Tl concentrations found in pelagic sediments outboard of the Tonga-Kermadec arc. Lavas from Central America reveal variable and systematic Tl isotope compositions along-strike. In particular, lavas from Nicaragua are dominated by contributions from sediments, whereas Costa Rican samples reveal a significant altered oceanic crust component with little influence from sediments on thallium isotope composition. The absence of a sediment signature in Costa Rica corresponds with the Cocos Ridge and the seamount province subduction, which results in a thinner sediment cover. Furthermore, the subducted sediment is dominated by carbonates with very low Tl concentrations and, therefore, small amounts of carbonate sediment added to the mantle wedge do not contribute significantly to the overall Tl budget.A review of Tl isotope and concentration data from the Aleutians, Marianas, Tonga-Kermadec and Central American arcs demonstrate that pelagic sediments are detectable in most arcs, whereas altered oceanic crust components only become appreciable when sediment Tl concentrations are very low (e.g. carbonate) or if sediments are no longer a significant component of the subducting slab (e.g. slab melting in Western Aleutians). As such, Tl isotopes are a promising tool to trace sediment subduction although this requires at least some pelagic sediment is present in the subducted sediment package.We suggest that thallium partitioning between the slab and mantle wedge is most likely controlled by retention in phengite or by partitioning into fluids. Residual phengite likely produces high Cs/Tl ratios because Tl should be more compatible in phengite than is Cs, however, this conclusion needs experimental verification. The stability of phengite is lower at higher fluid contents, which results in hyperbolic relationships between Cs/Tl and possible indicators of fluids such as Sr/Nd and Ba/Th. Thus, combined Tl isotopic and elemental systematics not only provide detailed information about the specific slab components that contribute to arc lavas, but also potentially shed light on the mineralogy and physical conditions of subducting slabs.

Marco geológico y tectónico de la Isla del Coco y la región marítima circunvecina, Costa Rica

La Isla del Coco es la única isla oceánica y el único afloramiento subaéreo de la Cordillera Volcánica del Coco, el rasgo geográfico y geológico más extenso en aguas territoriales costarricenses. Desde el punto de vista geológico, está conformada por rocas volcánicas, predominantemente coladas de lavas basálticas y traquíticas en menor cantidad, con rocas piroclásticas y epiclásticas subordinadas. Posee suelos, coluvios y depósitos de playas (arenas y cantos) superficiales; su topografía es muy variable pero predomina el relieve quebrado y rugoso. La Isla del Coco es la parte emergida de un volcán submarino de evolución compleja, desarrollado a partir y durante el Pleistoceno Inferior (entre 2.2 y 1.5 millones de años, Ma), producto de una anomalía térmica en el manto a través de varias fisuras, que originaron varios alineamientos de volcanes submarinos. La Isla del Coco se encuentra en un estadio de erosión activo, y sus arcos y plataformas sumergidas (90-110m y 183m) son probablemente el producto de una erosión subaérea durante las dos últimas máximas glaciaciones, combinados quizás con la subsidencia debida al enfriamiento del escudo volcánico y de la corteza oceánica. Al ser la isla geológicamente joven, posee importantes implicaciones para la comprensión de la evolución y el endemismo de su biodiversidad. Las amenazas en la geodinámica principales identificadas son los deslizamientos, los tsunamis y, en menor grado, la sismicidad, poco frecuente y con magnitudes moderadas (≤ 5.8 Mw hasta la fecha) dentro de un radio de alrededor de 300km, predominantemente asociada con fallas dextrales de rumbo N-S. Los pocos datos obtenidos hasta el momento indican que hay un cierto grado de actividad sísmica en los alrededores de la Isla del Coco, relacionados con las fallas locales. Algunos pequeños tsunamis históricos y prehistóricos han afectado a la Isla del Coco y los sismos así como la precipitación pluvial elevada han generado deslizamientos. La licuefacción está restringida a las dos playas arenosas (bahías Chatham y Wafer).

Paleocene-earliest Eocene Larger Benthic Foraminifera and Ranikothalia-bearing carbonate paleo-environments of Costa Rica (South Central America)

Here we present a biostratigraphic and systematic revision of American Ranikothalia, based on outcrop collections form Costa Rica end westernmost Panama and on type collections of the Naturhistorisches Museum Basel. Paleocene-lowermost Eocene Ranikothalia-bearing shallow-water limestones occur in three distinct palaeogeographic settings along the Southern Central American convergent margin: 1. The Barra Honda Limestone (Tempisque Basin, Costa Rica) is, according to 87Sr/86Sr-ratios and biostratigraphy of mid Selandian to late Thanetian (? earliest Ypresian) age. Tectonic uplift and temporary demise of a Middle American Arc segment during the Selandian allowed the formation of the pure carbonates of the Barra Honda Limestone. The upper well-bedded subunit exposes a higher energy facies, in which Neodiscocyclina spp. and Ranikothalia catenula group (redefined here) are locally abundant. Open marine facies with Morozovella velascoensis interfinger in a small scaled facies pattern in the topmost part. Tectonic subsidence and resumed arc activity resulted in rapid eutrophication/drowning. 2. Herradura – Quepos carbonate shoals on oceanic seamounts. The Herradura and Quepos terranes may represent the earliest seamounts formed by the Galapagos hotspot plume tail activity, >1000km to the SW of their present-day position. Pillowed lava flows and subaerial volcanic breccias occur with Upper Palaeocene-lowermost Eocene shallow-water limestones rich in Ranikothalia gr. catenula, Neodiscocyclina spp. and coralline algae. 3. Burica Peninsula – carbonate shoal on an accreted oceanic plateau. An Upper Paleocene carbonate shoal established on part of the Inner Osa Igneous Complex after its accretion to the western edge of the CLIP (Caribbean Large Igneous Province) and its possible emersion. In situ rhodoid limestones of the Río Palo Blanco (W-Panama) contrast with redeposited material in turbidites and debris flow breccias, interbedded with siliceous pelagic limestones and arc-derived mudstones. A morphometric study on 150 axial sections of Ranikothalia spp. from all studied settings reveals a morphologic continuum between megalospheric (A) forms and microspheric (B) forms previously described as several species, here grouped as the R. gr. catenula. We conceive that these co-occurring morphotypes belong to one biological species. The separation of this group into 2 or 3 genera seems highly artificial, since many samples contain transitional forms between the “sub-evolute” microsphreric forms “Caudrina†soldadensis (R. catenula soldadensis herein) and the involute “Chordoperculinoides†bermudezi (R. c. bermudezi herein). Neither from previous studies nor from our material we can conclude on a biostratigraphic relevance of the various morphotypes. In particular, we cannot confirm a stratigraphic succession from flatter (R. c. soldadensis) to more robust (R. c. bermudezi) forms. Shape and shell thickness distribution of morphotypes of the Ranikothalia gr. catenula can be interpreted in terms of hydrodynamic energy and light availability in their habitat, in comparison with observations made on living LBF. This interpretation matches the hydrodynamic energy deduced from the microfacies and the abundance of photosynthetic red algae in our thin sections. Flat lenticular delicate A-forms (R. c. catenula) occur together with delicate B-forms (R. c. soldadensis) both in shallow protected and deeper off-shore calm water areas. The most robust B-form R.c. bermudezi may be a good indicator of shallow, high energy palaeo-environments. Possible Paleoceme dispersal routes for Amerucan Ranikothalia are discussed.

Two deep-living rhodaliids (Cnidaria, Siphonophora) from the Mid-Atlantic Ridge

ABSTRACTRhodaliids are a semi-benthic family of 14 physonect siphonophore species found in all oceans, except the Mediterranean and Arctic. They inhabit species-specific depth ranges in isolated locations and records are mostly sparse. Here, the first ever observations of rhodaliids from the Mid-Atlantic Ridge are given, from three images of two putative species. They come from depths of 3482 and 3667–3670 metres, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge (MAR) at 23°N and 26°N, near two hydrothermal vents. Rhodaliids are very delicate animals and extremely hard to sample, particularly from such great depths, and the only comparable deep-living species so far described is the Galapagos Dandelion (Thermopalia taraxaca) from 2480–2938 metres on the Galapagos Rift and East Pacific Rise. This species inhabits the outer zone of certain hydrothermal vents where there is no hydrogen sulphide in the water, but connectivity with the MAR species is unlikely, since the latter inhabit a different ocean basin. Two, or possibly three, rhodaliid species have so far been collected in the North Atlantic, and all occurred near continental margins. These new observations are therefore important, and the images included here will hopefully alert future expeditions to hunt for, and perhaps even collect, more specimens. Rhodaliids are mostly observed individually adhering to a variety of substrata with their long tentacles, but very occasionally abundances of from 1 to 11 individuals m−2 have been noted. Rhodaliids feed on copepods, other small pelagic crustaceans and fish larvae, and can thus represent important members of deep-sea ecosystems. This paper provides a distribution map of all species with an accompanying table showing coordinates, depths and number of specimens collected, and a second table of comparative diagnostic rhodaliid characters, which is used to suggest possible identities for the two putative new MAR species.

Curie point depth in the SW Caribbean using the radially averaged spectra of magnetic anomalies

We have estimated the Curie Point Depth (CPD) using the average radial power spectrum in a tectonically complex area located in the SW Caribbean basin. Data analyzed came from the World Digital Magnetic Anomaly Map, and three methods have been used to compare results and evaluate uncertainties: Centroid, Spectral Peak, and Forward Modeling. Results show a match along the three methods, suggesting that the CPD values in the area ranging between 6km and 50km. The results share the following characteristics: A) High values (>30km) are in continental regions; B) There is a trend of maximum CPD values along the SW-NE direction, starting from the Central Cordillera in Colombia to the Maracaibo Lake in Venezuela; C) There is a maximum CPD at the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta (Colombia) as well as between Costa Rica - Nicaragua and Nicaragua - Honduras borders. The lowest CPD values (<20km) are associated with the coastal regions and offshore. We also tested results by estimating the geothermal gradient and comparing measured observations of the study area. Our results suggest at least five thermal terrains in the SW Caribbean Basin: A) The area that is comprising the Venezuela Basin, the Beata Ridge and the Colombia Basin up to longitude parallel to the Providencia Throat. B) The area that includes zones to the north of the Cocos Ridge and Panam Basin up to the trench. C) The orogenic region of the northern Andes and including areas of the Santa Marta Massif. D) The continental sector that encompasses Nicaragua, northern Costa Rica and eastern of Honduras. E) Corresponds to areas of the northern Venezuela and Colombia, NW of Colombia, the Panamanian territory and the transition zones between the Upper and Lower Nicaragua Rise.

Late Cenozoic tephrostratigraphy offshore the southern Central American Volcanic Arc: 2. Implications for magma production rates and subduction erosion

AbstractPacific drill sites offshore Central America provide the unique opportunity to study the evolution of large explosive volcanism and the geotectonic evolution of the continental margin back into the Neogene. The temporal distribution of tephra layers established by tephrochonostratigraphy in Part 1 indicates a nearly continuous highly explosive eruption record for the Costa Rican and the Nicaraguan volcanic arc within the last 8 Myr. The widely distributed marine tephra layers comprise the major fraction of the respective erupted tephra volumes and masses thus providing insights into regional and temporal variations of large‐magnitude explosive eruptions along the southern Central American Volcanic Arc (CAVA). We observe three pulses of enhanced explosive volcanism between 0 and 1 Ma at the Cordillera Central, between 1 and 2 Ma at the Guanacaste and at &gt;3 Ma at the Western Nicaragua segments. Averaged over the long‐term the minimum erupted magma flux (per unit arc length) is ∼0.017 g/ms. Tephra ages, constrained by Ar‐Ar dating and by correlation with dated terrestrial tephras, yield time‐variable accumulation rates of the intercalated pelagic sediments with four prominent phases of peak sedimentation rates that relate to tectonic processes of subduction erosion. The peak rate at &gt;2.3 Ma near Osa particularly relates to initial Cocos Ridge subduction which began at 2.91 ± 0.23 Ma as inferred by the 1.5 Myr delayed appearance of the OIB geochemical signal in tephras from Barva volcano at 1.42 Ma. Subsequent tectonic re‐arrangements probably involved crustal extension on the Guanacaste segment that favored the 2–1 Ma period of unusually massive rhyolite production.

Alkalic marine tephra layers at ODP Site 1241 - Major explosive eruptions from an oceanic volcano in a pre-shield stage?

We report a series of fourteen marine tephra layers that are the products of large explosive eruptions of Subplinian to Plinian intensities and magnitudes (VEI >4) from Cocos Island, Costa Rica. Cocos Island is a volcanic island in the eastern Central Pacific Ocean ~500km offshore Costa Rica, and is situated on the northwestern flank of the aseismic Cocos Ridge. Geochemical fingerprinting of Pleistocene (~2.4–1.4Ma) marine tephra layers from Ocean Drilling Project (ODP) Leg 202 Site 1241 using major and trace element compositions of volcanic glass shards demonstrates unequivocally their origin from Cocos Island rather than the Galápagos Archipelago or the Central American Volcanic Arc (CAVA). Cocos Island and the adjacent seamounts of the Cocos Island Province have alkalic compositions and formed on young (≤3Ma) oceanic crust from an extinct spreading ridge bounded by a transform fault against the older and thicker crust of the aseismic Cocos Ridge. Cocos Island has six times the average volume of the adjacent seamounts although all appear to have formed during the 3–1.4Ma time period. Cocos Island lies closest to the transform fault and we explain its excessive growth by melts rising from garnet-bearing mantle being deflected from the thick Cocos Ridge lithosphere toward the thinner lithosphere on the other side of the transform, thus enlarging the melt catchment area for Cocos Island compared to the seamounts farther away from the transform. This special setting favored growth above sea level and subaerial explosive eruptions even though the absence of appropriate compositions suggests that the entirely alkalic Cocos Island (and seamounts) never evolved through the productive tholeiitic shield stage typical of other Pacific Ocean islands, possibly because melt production rates remained too small. Conditions of magma generation and ascent resembled Hawaiian pre-shield volcanoes but persisted for much longer (<1m.y.) and formed evolved, trachytic magmas. Therefore Cocos Island may be a unique example for a volcanic ocean island that did not pass through the typical growth stages.

A new deep-sea genus and species of the family Ecbathyriontidae (Copepoda: Siphonostomatoida) from the Gorda Ridge (North Pacific Ocean)

Adult females of Bathygordion cliffus new gen. and new sp. belonging to the family Ecbathyriontidae Humes, 1987 are described from the Gorda Ridge of the North Pacific Ocean. The copepods were found at depth of 2701 m on the margin of a hydrothermal vent field (Sea Cliff, GR-14) among invertebrates colonizing wood blocks deployed for 2 years. The new genus differs from the only monotypic genus Ecbathyrion Humes, 1987 reported from hydrothermal vents of the Galapagos Rift and the East Pacific Rise in a number of morphological features (such as three articulating abdominal somites, mandible with 1 palp bearing setae, base of leg 1 with inner seta, distal exopodal segment of leg 4 with four inner setae, leg 5 2-segmented), suggesting long evolutionary history of the deep-sea family endemic to hydrothermal vents of the East Pacific. The derived feature of the new genus is the presence of one terminal spine on the distal endopodal segment of leg 3 (instead of bearing two terminal setae in Ecbathyrion). The diagnosis of the family Ecbathyriontidae is emended.

Evidence from accreted seamounts for a depleted component in the early Galapagos plume

The existence of an intrinsic depleted component in mantle plumes has previously been proposed for several hotspots in the Pacific, Atlantic, and Indian Oceans. However, formation of these depleted basalts is often associated with unusual tectonomagmatic processes such as plume-ridge interaction or multistage melting at plume initiation, where depleted basalts could reflect entrainment and melting of depleted upper mantle. Late Cretaceous to middle Eocene seamounts that accreted in Costa Rica and are part of the early Galapagos hotspot track provide new insights into the occurrence and nature of intrinsic depleted components. The Paleocene (ca. 62 Ma) seamounts include unusually depleted basalts that erupted on the Farallon plate far from a mid-ocean ridge. These basalts closely resemble Gorgona komatiites in terms of trace element and radiogenic isotope composition, suggesting formation from a similar, refractory mantle source. We suggest that this source may be common to plumes, but is only rarely sampled due to excessive extents of melting required to extract melts from the most refractory parts of a heterogeneous mantle plume.

Fluid inclusion petrology and microthermometry of the Cocos Ridge hydrothermal system, IODP Expedition 344 (CRISP 2), Site U1414.

In this study, we present new data from microthermometry of fluid inclusions entrapped in hydrothermal veins along the Cocos Ridge from the IODP Expedition 344 Site U1414. The results of our study concern a primary task of IODP Expedition 344 to evaluate fluid/rock interaction linked with the tectonic evolution of the incoming Cocos Plate from the Early Miocene up to recent times. Aqueous, low saline fluids are concentrated within veins from both the Cocos Ridge basalt and the overlying lithified sediments of Unit III. Mineralization and crosscutting relationships give constraints for different vein generations. Isochores from primary, reequilibrated, and secondary fluid inclusions crossed with litho/hydrostatic pressures indicate an anticlockwise PT evolution during vein precipitation and modification by isobaric heating and subsequent cooling at pressures between ∼210 and 350 bar. Internal over and underpressures in the inclusions enabled decrepitation and reequilibration of early inclusions but also modification of vein generations in the Cocos Ridge basalt and in the lithified sediments. We propose that lithification of the sediments was accompanied with a first stage of vein development (VU1 and VC1) that resulted from Galapagos hotspot activity in the Middle Miocene. Heat advection, either related to the Cocos‐Nazca spreading center or to hotspot activity closer to the Middle America Trench, led to subsequent vein modification (VC2, VU2/3) related to isobaric heating. The latest mineralization (VC3, VU3) within aragonite and calcite veins and some vesicles of the Cocos Ridge basalt occurred during crustal cooling up to recent times. Fluid inclusion analyses and published isotope data show evidence for communication with deeper sourced, high‐temperature hydrothermal fluids within the Cocos Plate. The fluid source of the hydrothermal veins reflects aqueous low saline pore water mixed with invaded seawater.

Seamount, ridge, and transform subduction in southern Central America

Understanding the factors that control subduction zone processes is a first-order goal in the study of convergent margins. In southern Central America, a growing body of research reveals strong links between the character of the subducting slab and the mechanics of important processes that include subduction erosion, fluid flow, deformation, and seismogenesis. In this paper, I evaluate the role that seamount, ridge, and transform subduction have in the development of upper plate deformation and volcanism by summarizing previous work across a >500 km long region of Central America where each of these three scenarios are present along strike. The data show that the subduction of short-wavelength bathymetry (e.g., seamounts and faults on the seafloor) produces short-wavelength deformation that persists for relatively short timescales (104–105 years), whereas the subduction of longer-wavelength bathymetry (e.g., the aseismic Cocos Ridge) results in longer-wavelength deformation that endures over a longer time scale (106 years). The timing and distribution of upper plate deformation are consistent with subhorizontal Cocos Ridge subduction driving upper plate deformation, and the increased crustal thickness (>20 km) of the subducting Cocos Ridge is likely one of the most important factors in the production of upper plate contraction and crustal thickening. The data illustrate a fundamental connection between lower plate properties and upper plate deformation and highlight the profound influence that bathymetry and crustal thickness have in the localization and kinematics of upper plate strain and volcanism in Middle America.

Horizontal principal stress orientation in the Costa Rica Seismogenesis Project (CRISP) transect from borehole breakouts

AbstractThe Costa Rica Seismogenesis Project (CRISP) drilled the Pacific margin of the Middle America Trench just north of where the Cocos Ridge enters the subduction zone, resulting in basal erosion of the upper plate. Here we report the orientations of the maximum horizontal principal stress (SHmax) from borehole breakouts detected by logging‐while‐drilling and wireline downhole measurements. All SHmax directions were estimated in the sediment cover of the margin, above the deeper rocks of the deformed margin wedge. We observe three overall SHmax orientations: NNE‐SSW (25° azimuth) in the deepest interval drilled at the upper slope Site U1379; ENE‐WSW (82°) in the rest of Site U1379 and in Site U1413, also drilled in the upper slope; and NNW‐SSE (157°) in the mid‐slope Site U1378. Our preferred interpretation is that the deepest interval of Site U1379 records the stress conditions in the underlying margin wedge, as SHmax is parallel to the direction of the Cocos‐Caribbean plate convergence and of the compressional axes of plate boundary fault earthquakes. The variable SHmax directions observed elsewhere are likely due to the effect of a network of normal faults that subdivide the sediment cover into a number of independently deforming blocks. In addition, the observed SHmax directions may be influenced by the subducting Cocos Ridge, which acts as an indenter causing oblique deformation, and by the transition to seismogenic subduction along the plate boundary fault.

Comparison of eastern tropical Pacific TEX86 and Globigerinoides ruber Mg/Ca derived sea surface temperatures: Insights from the Holocene and Last Glacial Maximum

The use of the TEX86 temperature proxy has thus far come to differing results as to whether TEX86 temperatures are representative of surface or subsurface conditions. In addition, although TEX86 temperatures might reflect sea surface temperatures based on core-top (Holocene) values, this relationship might not hold further back in time. Here, we investigate the TEX86 temperature proxy by comparing TEX86 temperatures to Mg/Ca temperatures of multiple species of planktonic foraminifera for two sites in the eastern tropical Pacific (on the Cocos and Carnegie Ridges) across the Holocene and Last Glacial Maximum. Core-top and Holocene TEX86H temperatures at both study regions agree well, within error, with the Mg/Ca temperatures of Globigerinoides ruber, a surface dwelling planktonic foraminifera. However, during the Last Glacial Maximum, TEX86H temperatures are more representative of upper thermocline temperatures, and are offset from G. ruber Mg/Ca temperatures by 5.8 °C and 2.9 °C on the Cocos Ridge and Carnegie Ridge, respectively. This offset between proxies cannot be reconciled by using different TEX86 temperature calibrations, and instead, we suggest that the offset is due to a deeper export depth of GDGTs at the LGM. We also compare the degree of glacial cooling at both sites based on both temperature proxies, and find that TEX86H temperatures greatly overestimate glacial cooling, especially on the Cocos Ridge. This study has important implications for applying the TEX86 paleothermometer in the eastern tropical Pacific.

Paleomagnetic constraints on the tectonic evolution of the Costa Rican subduction zone: New results from sedimentary successions of IODP drill sites from the Cocos Ridge

AbstractThe near‐flat subduction of the Cocos Ridge (CR) along the Middle American Trench (MAT) plays a pivotal role in governing the geodynamic evolution of the central American convergent margin. Elucidating the onset of its subduction is essential to understand the tectonic evolution and seismogenesis of the Costa Rican convergent margin, a typical erosive convergent margin and modern example of a flat‐slab subduction. Initial subduction of the CR has been previously investigated by examining upper plate deformation that was inferred to have resulted from the initial CR subduction. However, little attention has been paid to the extensive sedimentary archives on the CR that could hold important clues to the initial CR subduction. Drilling on the CR during IODP Expedition 344 discovered a pronounced sedimentary hiatus at Site U1381. Here we present paleomagnetic and rock magnetic results of the Cenozoic sedimentary sequences at this site that bracket the hiatus between ca. 9.61 and 1.52 Ma. We also examine the areal extent, timing, and geologic significance of the hiatus by analyzing sedimentary records from five other ODP/IODP sites on CR and Cocos plate. The analyses show that the hiatus appears to be regional and the presence/absence of the sedimentary hiatus at different locations on CR implies a link to the onset of CR shallow subduction, as a result of either bottom current erosion or CR buckling upon its initial collision at the MAT. Records directly from CR thus provide a new window to unraveling the geodynamic evolution of the central American margin.

Density structure and geometry of the Costa Rican subduction zone from 3-D gravity modeling and local earthquake data

Abstract. The eastern part of the oceanic Cocos Plate presents a heterogeneous crustal structure due to diverse origins and ages as well as plate-hot spot interactions which originated the Cocos Ridge, a structure that converges with the Caribbean Plate in southeastern Costa Rica. The complex structure of the oceanic plate directly influences the dynamics and geometry of the subduction zone along the Middle American Trench. In this paper an integrated interpretation of the slab geometry in Costa Rica is presented based on 3-D density modeling of combined satellite and surface gravity data, constrained by available geophysical and geological data and seismological information obtained from local networks. The results show the continuation of steep subduction geometry from the Nicaraguan margin into northwestern Costa Rica, followed by a moderate dipping slab under the Central Cordillera toward the end of the Central American Volcanic Arc. Contrary to commonly assumed, to the southeast end of the volcanic arc, our preferred model shows a steep, coherent slab that extends up to the landward projection of the Panama Fracture Zone. Overall, a gradual change in the depth of the intraplate seismicity is observed, reaching 220 km in the northwestern part, and becoming progressively shallower toward the southeast, where it reaches a maximum depth of 75 km. The changes in the terminal depth of the observed seismicity correlate with the increased density in the modeled slab. The absence of intermediate depth (&gt; 75 km) intraplate seismicity in the southeastern section and the higher densities for the subducted slab in this area, support a model in which dehydration reactions in the subducted slab cease at a shallower depth, originating an anhydrous and thus aseismic slab.

Late Miocene to recent plate tectonic history of the southern Central America convergent margin

AbstractNew plate reconstructions constrain the tectonic evolution of the subducting Cocos and Nazca plates across the southern Central American subduction zone from late Miocene to recent. Because of the strong relationships between lower and upper (Caribbean) plate dynamics along this margin, these constraints have wide‐ranging implications for the timing and growth of upper plate deformation and volcanism in southern Central America. The reconstructions outline three important events in the Neogene history of this margin: (1) the coeval development of the Panama Triple Junction with the initiation of oblique subduction of the Nazca plate at ∼8.5 Ma; (2) the initiation of seamount and rough crust subduction beginning at ∼3–4 Ma; and (3) Cocos Ridge subduction from ∼2 to 3 Ma. A comparison of these events with independent geologic, geomorphic, volcanic, and stratigraphic data sets reveals that the timing, rates, and origin of subducting crust directly impacted the Neogene growth of upper plate deformation and volcanism in southern Central America. These analyses constrain the timing, geometry, and causes of a number of significant tectonic and volcanic processes, including rapid Plio‐Quaternary arc‐fore arc contraction due to Cocos Ridge subduction, the detachment of the Panama microplate at ∼1–3 Ma, and the late Miocene cessation of mantle‐wedge‐derived volcanism across ∼300 km of the subduction zone.

The Miocene Galápagos ash layer record of Integrated Ocean Drilling Program Legs 334 and 344: Ocean-island explosive volcanism during plume-ridge interaction

Drilling at Integrated Ocean Drilling Program Site U1381 on the Cocos Ridge offshore Costa Rica recovered 67 primary Miocene (ca. 8 Ma to ca. 16.5 Ma) marine fallout ash layers. Geochemical, volcanological, and geological criteria link these ashes to Plinian eruptions that carried ash to at least 50–450 km from the Galapagos hotspot. These ash layers are the first documentation of highly explosive Miocene Galapagos hotspot volcanism. This volcanism is bimodal with two-thirds of the tephra layers generated by basaltic magmas (glass compositions <57 wt% SiO2) and one-third by rhyolitic magmas. The temporal distribution of the tephra layers, inferred from sediment accumulation rates calibrated by 40Ar/39Ar and biostratigraphic ages, reveals a distinct increase in eruption frequency and hence increased volcanic activity of the Galapagos hotspot after 14 Ma which we interpret in the context of dynamic interaction between the Galapagos plume and spreading ridge.

An outlet for Pacific mantle: The Caribbean Sea?

The Pacific Ocean is surrounded by subduction zone systems leading to a decreasing surface area as well as sub-surface mantle domain. In contrast, the Atlantic realm is characterized by passive margins and growing in size. To maintain global mass balance, the Caribbean and the Scotia Sea have been proposed as Pacific-to-Atlantic transfer channels for sub-lithospheric shallow mantle. We concentrate on the Caribbean here and test this idea by calculating the present-day regional dynamic topography in search of a gradual decrease from west to east that mirrors the pressure gradient due to the shrinkage of the Pacific. To calculate the dynamic topography, we isostatically correct the observed topography for sediments and crustal thickness variations, and compare the result with those predicted by lithospheric cooling models. The required age-grid was derived from our recently published reconstruction model. Our results confirm previous geochemical and shear-wave splitting studies and suggest some lateral asthenosphere flow away from the Galapagos hotspot. However, they also indicate that this flow is blocked in the Central Caribbean. This observation suggests that rather than through large scale Pacific-to-Atlantic shallow mantle flow, the global mass balance is maintained through some other process, possibly related to the deep mantle underneath Africa.

Geomorfología, zonas de erosión y sedimentación costera de la Península de Burica, Costa Rica

Se efectuó una evaluación geomorfológica y de zonas de erosión y sedimentación del sector oeste de la Península, desde punta Banco hasta punta El Mangle, con el fin de determinar aspectos relevantes desde el punto de vista geológico. El estudio se llevo a cabo durante 9 días en enero del 2008, tiempo en el cual, se realizó el estudio geológico, geomorfológico y de zonas de erosión-sedimentación costera, presentándose en este trabajo solamente los resultados relevantes de los últimos dos aspectos. Geomorfológicamente, se reconocen una predominancia de morfologías de origen estructural, y en menor grado de origen marino, fluvial y denudacional. Se definieron cuatro zonas de erosión-sedimentación, zonas de erosión intensa, de erosión moderada a leve, de erosión y sedimentación y zonas de depositación. Los procesos geológicos más importantes son los deslizamientos, la erosión costera y la alta sismicidad del área, factores que deben ser tomados en cuenta para una adecuada planificación rural de la península.