Hualalai Volcano Research Articles

Silica-rich melts originating from melt-hydrated peridotite reactions

Interactions between melts and hydrated peridotite may control production of silica-rich melts, fluids and magmas in the upper mantle and may be predominant mechanism for producing felsic crust in shallow ultramafic settings of rocky planets. This research investigated composition of olivine-hosted mineral, melt and multi-phase inclusions in dunite xenoliths from the 1800–1801 Kaupulehu flow of Hualalai Volcano. The host olivine (forsterite Fo 82–89 , mol. %) appears with mineral inclusions of crystalline chromite having compositions similar to those found in alkaline series rocks. Abundant silica-rich glasses (SiO 2 = 63 ± 2.9 wt%, Al 2 O 3 = 21 ± 1.2 wt%; K 2 O = 4.3 ± 0.5 wt%, Na 2 O = 3.6 ± 0.7 wt%, 38 analyses) found in the olivine-hosted melt and multiphase inclusions are interpreted as quenched silicate liquids entrapped due to nephelinite melt percolation in hydrated harzburgite in the presence of free aqueous fluid at pressures of 0.7 to 0.1 GPa and a melt-to-peridotite mass ratio of 0.2 to 0.3. This work also re-interprets the metasomatic origin of global examples of silica-rich glass inclusions in peridotite xenolith minerals according to results from recent experiments on melt-hydrated peridotite interaction processes. As a planetary process, production of silica-rich melts and fluids within series of associated magmas and their crystallized differentiates can occur due to reaction of primitive mafic (e.g., ocean island basalt, OIB) melts with hydrated peridotite (or serpentinite) in the presence of aqueous fluids at pressures below 1 GPa. • Si-rich glasses are produced due to reaction of mafic melts with hydrated peridotite.

Geometry of the Magma Chamber and Curie Point Depth Beneath Hawaii Island: Inferences From Magnetic and Gravity Data

This study used land gravity and airborne magnetic data to investigate the depth to the magmatic chamber and map the heat flow distribution beneath the active volcanoes of Hawaii Island using the Curie point depth (CPD) and gravity modeling. Obtaining some of the ground-based geophysical measurements was problematic due to accessibility limitations; therefore, this study used available data. The CPD and magnetic data were used to map the depth to the bottom of the magnetic layer by calculating the depth to the Curie isotherm (540°C) beneath Hawaii Island. The spectral peak method was used to calculate the depths to the shallow and deep magnetic sources for the entire island, and the CPD was calculated using the centroid method. A two-dimensional density model for two Earth layers was constructed using forward modeling of the gravity data. A large plume of dense intrusive material was observed beneath the three adjacent volcanoes of Mauna Loa, Mauna Kea, and Kilauea, and two small chambers were found to be located beneath the Kohala and Hualalai volcanoes. Based on the gravity modeling results, the depth to the magma layer varied from 0.5 to 10 km, and the heat flow was higher close to the volcanic eruption zones. The current study is informative and cost effective for the world’s most active volcanic areas.

Geochemical investigation of Gabbroic Xenoliths from Hualalai Volcano: Implications for lower oceanic crust accretion and Hualalai Volcano magma storage system

The patterns of axial hydrothermal circulation at mid-ocean ridges both affect and are influenced by the styles of magma plumbing. Therefore, the intensity and distribution of hydrothermal alteration in the lower oceanic crust (LOC) can provide constraints on LOC accretion models (e.g., “gabbro glacier” vs. “multiple sills”). Gabbroic xenoliths from Hualalai Volcano, Hawaii include rare fragments of in situ Pacific lower oceanic crust. Oxygen and strontium isotope compositions of 16 LOC-derived Hualalai gabbros are primarily within the range of fresh MORB, indicating minimal hydrothermal alteration of the in situ Pacific LOC, in contrast to pervasive alteration recorded in LOC xenoliths from the Canary Islands. This difference may reflect less hydrothermal alteration of LOC formed at fast ridges than at slow ridges. Mid-ocean ridge magmas from slow ridges also pond on average at greater and more variable depths and undergo less homogenization than those from fast ridges. These features are consistent with LOC accretion resembling the “multiple sills” model at slow ridges. In contrast, shallow magma ponding and limited hydrothermal alteration in LOC at fast ridges are consistent with the presence of a long-lived shallow magma lens, which limits the penetration of hydrothermal circulation into the LOC. Most Hualalai gabbros have geochemical and petrologic characteristics indicating derivation from Hualalai shield-stage and post-shield-stage cumulates. These xenoliths provide information on the evolution of Hawaiian magmas and magma storage systems. MELTS modeling and equilibration temperatures constrain the crystallization pressures of 7 Hualalai shield-stage-related gabbros to be ∼2.5–5 kbar, generally consistent with inferred local LOC depth. Therefore a deep magma reservoir existed within or at the base of the LOC during the shield stage of Hualalai Volcano. Melt–crust interaction between Hawaiian melts and in situ Pacific crust during magma storage partially overprinted clinopyroxene Sr and Nd isotope compositions of LOC-derived gabbros. Although minor assimilation of Pacific crust by Hawaiian melts cannot be excluded, the range of oxygen isotope compositions recorded in Hawaiian lavas and cumulates cannot be generated by assimilation of the in situ LOC gabbros, which have relatively uniform and MORB-like δ18O values. To first order, the isotopic heterogeneity observed in Hawaiian melts appears to derive from the heterogeneous plume source(s), rather than assimilation of local oceanic crust.

Tumulus development on lava flows: insights from observations of active tumuli and analysis of formation models

Here, we use observations of active flows along with detailed morphometric field measurements of more than 70 tumuli on flows at Mount Etna (Italy), Kilauea, and Hualalai (US) volcanoes to constrain a previously published model that estimates the pressure needed to form tumuli. In an attempt to discover the nature and magnitude of pressure variations within active lava flow interiors, we then consider how tumuli differ from idealized circular plates. We incorporate observations of active tumuli and find that they may grow asymmetrically yet produce a symmetrical tumulus and can form where the flow path significantly changes direction. Bending models of clamped edges provide the most reasonable head estimates for the tumuli in our study. Tumulus formation requires the proper combination of cooling and effusion rate. If cooling is too extensive and effusion rate too low, the crust will provide too much resistance to bending. If cooling is too limited and effusion rates too high, crusts will not develop or have insufficient strength to resist fracture and subsequent breakouts. We do not find it surprising that tumuli are rarely found over well-established lava tubes that typically have rigid, walls/overlying crusts that exceed 2 m in thickness and provide too much resistance to bending. Silicic flows lack tumuli because the viscosity gradients within the flow are insufficient to concentrate stress in a localized area.

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

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.

Plutonic xenoliths reveal the timing of magma evolution at Hualalai and Mauna Kea, Hawaii

238 U- 230 Th and U-Pb dating of zircons from leucocratic plutonic xenoliths indicating that lava stratigraphy is an incomplete monitor of magmatic evolution within subsurface res- ervoirs. Our results indicate that diorites from Mauna Kea record postshield evolution over tens of thousands of years when the depth of magma storage increased and highly evolved lavas began erupting. In contrast, diorites and syenogabbros from Hualalai record generation of evolved alkalic magma during the shield stage, and growth of a deep composite pluton ABSTRACT Hawaiian volcanoes evolve through stages that have been delimited by the compositions of their erupted lavas. New in situ 238 U- 230 Th and U-Pb dating of single zircons from leucocratic plutonic xenoliths erupted at Mauna Kea and Hualalai volcanoes, Hawaii, reveals that impor- tant episodes of magmatic evolution are not necessarily refl ected in the stratigraphy or com- positions of erupted lavas. Zircons from Mauna Kea diorites form a heterogeneous population with apparently bimodal ages of ca. 125 ka and ca. 65 ka, suggesting fractionation, intrusion, and crystal recycling about the time of transition of postshield volcanism from basaltic to hawaiitic compositions. Hualalai syenogabbros and diorites record extreme fractionation and generation of alkalic magma at 41 ± 9 ka and 261 ± 28 ka, indicating that alkalic magma was generated ~130,000 yr before the shield to postshield transition inferred from lava stra- tigraphy, and that coeval evolution of chemically distinct magma reservoirs at shallow and deep levels may have characterized the shield stage. These episodes at Hualalai did not cause eruption of evolved lavas, indicating that extreme differentiation in Hawaiian volcanoes is not necessarily followed by eruption of highly evolved magma.

Palaeomagnetic intensities from 14C-dated lava flows on the Big Island, Hawaii: 0–21 kyr

Thellier–Thellier experiments were carried out on 216 lava samples collected by the USGS on the Big Island. 35 individual flows from the Kilauea, Mauna Loa and Hualalai volcanoes are represented and independent radiocarbon dating of the flows yields absolute ages ranging from 290 to 20,240 yrs old. The palaeomagnetic analysis was carried out at the Laboratoire des Sciences du Climat et de l'Environnement in Gif-sur-Yvette, France, in two custom built, large capacity furnaces that have been specifically designed to minimise oxidation. The temperature steps were adapted to accommodate the characteristic loss of magnetisation at low temperatures seen in the Curie balance results and the use of half-size samples allowed secondary experiments to be carried out where necessary. The strict PICRIT-03 selection criteria were rigorously applied to the data and a high success rate of 53% has been achieved on a sample level. The flow averaged results almost double the existing 14C-dated palaeointensity dataset for this time window and confirm a period of high intensity over the past 4 kyr preceded by a period in which the dipole moment was weaker. However, the values attained in this study are on average higher than previously published data; reliability of these values is discussed.

Submarine sliver in North Kona: A window into the early magmatic and growth history of Hualalai Volcano, Hawaii

Two manned submersible dives examined the Hualalai Northwest rift zone and an elongate ridge cresting at 3900 mbsl during a 2002 JAMSTEC cruise. The rift zone flank at dive site S690 (water depth 3412–2104 m) is draped by elongated and truncated pillow lavas. These olivine-rich tholeiitic lavas are compositionally indistinguishable from those examined further south along the bench, except that they span a wider range in dissolved sulfur content (200–1400 ppm). The elongate ridge investigated in dive S692, located at the base of the bench, is a package of distinct lithologic units containing volcaniclastic materials, glassy pillow breccias, and lava blocks; these units contain a range of compositions including tholeiitic basalt, transitional basalt, and hawaiite. The textures, compositions, and stratigraphic relationships of materials within the elongate ridge require that a variety of transport mechanisms juxtaposed materials from multiple eruptions into individual beds, compacted them into a coherent package of units, and brought the package to its present depth 10 km from the edge of the North Kona slump bench. Sulfur-rich hawaiite glasses at the base of the elongate ridge may represent the first extant representatives of juvenile alkalic volcanism at Hualalai. They are geochemically distinct from shield tholeiite and post-shield alkalic magmas, but may be related to transitional basalt by high-pressure crystal fractionation of clinopyroxene. Tholeiitic glasses that compose the majority of the exposed outcrop are similar to Mauna Kea tholeiites and other Hualalai tholeiites, but they differ from younger basalts in having greater incompatible element enrichments and higher CaO for a given MgO. These differences could arise from small extents of partial melting during the transition from alkalic to shield stage magmatism. Low sulfur contents of most of the volcaniclastic tholeiites point to early emergence of Hualalai above sea level relative to the development of the midslope slump bench.

North Kona slump: Submarine flank failure during the early(?) tholeiitic shield stage of Hualalai Volcano

The North Kona slump is an elliptical region, about 20 by 60 km (1000-km 2 area), of multiple, geometrically intricate benches and scarps, mostly at water depths of 2000–4500 m, on the west flank of Hualalai Volcano. Two dives up steep scarps in the slump area were made in September 2001, using the ROV Kaiko of the Japan Marine Science and Technology Center (JAMSTEC), as part of a collaborative Japan–USA project to improve understanding of the submarine flanks of Hawaiian volcanoes. Both dives, at water depths of 2700–4000 m, encountered pillow lavas draping the scarp-and-bench slopes. Intact to only slightly broken pillow lobes and cylinders that are downward elongate dominate on the steepest mid-sections of scarps, while more equant and spherical pillow shapes are common near the tops and bases of scarps and locally protrude through cover of muddy sediment on bench flats. Notably absent are subaerially erupted Hualalai lava flows, interbedded hyaloclastite pillow breccia, and/or coastal sandy sediment that might have accumulated downslope from an active coastline. The general structure of the North Kona flank is interpreted as an intricate assemblage of downdropped lenticular blocks, bounded by steeply dipping normal faults. The undisturbed pillow-lava drape indicates that slumping occurred during shield-stage tholeiitic volcanism. All analyzed samples of the pillow-lava drape are tholeiite, similar to published analyses from the submarine northwest rift zone of Hualālai. Relatively low sulfur (330–600 ppm) and water (0.18–0.47 wt.%) contents of glass rinds suggest that the eruptive sources were in shallow water, perhaps 500–1000-m depth. In contrast, saturation pressures calculated from carbon dioxide concentrations (100–190 ppm) indicate deeper equilibration, at or near sample sites at water depths of − 3900 to − 2800 m. Either vents close to the sample sites erupted mixtures of undegassed and degassed magmas, or volatiles were resorbed from vesicles during flowage downslope after eruption in shallow water. The glass volatile compositions suggest that the tholeiitic lavas that drape the slump blocks were erupted either (1) early during shield-stage tholeiitic volcanism prior to emergence of a large subaerial edifice, or alternatively (2) from submarine radial vents during subaerial shield-building. Because no radial vents have been documented on land or underwater for the unbuttressed flanks of any Hawaii volcano, alternative (1) is favored. In comparison to other well-documented Hawaiian slumps and landslides, North Kona structures suggest a more incipient slump event, with smaller down-slope motions and lateral displacements.

Shield-stage alkalic volcanism on Mauna Loa Volcano, Hawaii

Alkalic lavas have been discovered at two young (∼15–20 ka) submarine radial vents on the western flank of Mauna Loa, a volcano that was thought to have produced only tholeiitic lavas for at least the last ∼240,000 years. Major and trace element data show that the lavas from only one of these eruptions have undergone lower degrees of partial melting, the assumed dominant process for creating alkalic lavas on Hawaiian volcanoes. However, major and trace element analyses also suggest that lavas from both of the alkalic eruptions are evolved and have experienced moderate-pressure (∼1.0 GPa) fractionation of pyroxene, an alternative mechanism for producing an alkalic magma from a tholeiitic parent. Pyroxene fractionation is also indicated by MELTS modeling and phase diagram projections. Although lavas with similar compositions have been erupted from neighboring Mauna Kea and Hualalai volcanoes, Pb isotope and trace element data indicate that the submarine alkalic lavas were produced from the same source generating Mauna Loa tholeiites. Thus, these are the first alkalic lavas to be identified from this volcano. Holocene eruptions of Mauna Loa have all produced tholeiitic lavas and eruption rates have remained relatively high. Thus, the volcano has probably not yet entered the postshield stage of Hawaiian volcanism, which is characterized by alkaline lavas and less frequent eruptions. The occurrence of the alkalic lavas only at radial vents may indicate that these magmas bypassed the primary conduit, which supplies the summit reservoir with predominantly tholeiitic magma.

Chronology, chemistry, and origin of trachytes from Hualalai Volcano, Hawaii

Hualalai Volcano is unique among Hawaiian volcanoes in that it possesses a relatively high proportion of evolved, trachytic lavas that were erupted at the beginning of the alkalic, postshield phase of volcanism. These evolved lavas yield insights into magma sources, magma supply rates, and the evolution of the subvolcanic magmatic plumbing system at this time. Trachyte lavas are exposed at the Puu Waawaa pumice dome and Puu Anahulu flow, as blocks in maars on the south flank of the volcano, and as flows in water wells drilled on the west flank of Hualalai. New 40Ar/39Ar dates show that the Puu Waawaa and Puu Anahulu complex is 114 ka, a block from the Waha Pele maar is 103 ka, and water well trachytes range from 107 to 92 ka in age, indicating a range for trachyte volcanism of 20 ka. Nd and Pb isotopic compositions overlap with younger alkalic basalts from Hualalai but are distinct from Hualalai tholeiitic basalts and Pacific mid‐ocean ridge basalts, linking the trachytes to alkalic parental magmas that underwent extensive crystallization to yield trachytic residual magmas. Both Sr and O isotopic ratios are higher in the trachytes than in Hualalai alkalic lavas, which is best explained by reaction with, or assimilation of, altered Hualalai shield basalts at shallow depth. Major, trace element, and isotopic variations between trachytes are consistent with their evolution by fractional crystallization from a Puu Anahulu parent. The short time gap between the end of tholeiitic volcanism (<133 ka) and the onset of trachytic, alkalic volcanism and the lack of deep‐origin xenoliths place the magma reservoir within which the trachytes evolved rapidly at shallow (<7 km) depth. Whereas Mauna Kea and Kohala volcanoes produced small volumes of highly evolved lavas as magma supply rates dwindled through the postshield stage, postshield magma intrusion rates at Hualalai were lowest during trachyte formation and increased through a more recent period of alkalic basalt eruptions. Subtle rare earth element and radiogenic isotopic distinctions between trachytes from the three localities indicate that the roof of the shallow magma reservoir may have been irregular, allowing some trachytes to evolve independently from others.

Late Quaternary geomagnetic secular variation from historical and 14C‐dated lava flows on Hawaii

A paleomagnetic record of geomagnetic paleosecular variation (PSV) is constructed for the last 4400 years based on 191 sites in historical and 14C‐dated lava flows from Mauna Loa, Kilauea, and Hualalai Volcanoes on the island of Hawaii. The features of this new record are similar to those recorded by sediments from Lake Waiau near the summit of Mauna Kea Volcano, but overall mean inclinations for the lava flows (31° to 33°, depending on window size) are nearer the expected dipole‐field value (35°) than is that for the sediments (27°). Divergence of the inclination records with increasing age suggests that the Lake Waiau values at depths below 2 m have been affected by compaction‐related inclination shallowing, although magnetic terrain effects cannot be ruled out. The rate of PSV indicated by the record presented here is highly variable (<0.5°/century to >20°/century), and a pronounced shift in inclination from 25° to 40° occurred between ∼1030 and ∼975 years B.P. Paleomagnetic directions from undated materials can be correlated with our calibrated curve, but the resolution is largely dependent on the PSV rate and data densities for both the reference and unknown directions. The upper part of the Puna Basalt (18 lava flows), previously sampled for paleomagnetism along the northern wall of Kilauea's caldera (Uwekahuna Bluff), was likely deposited sometime between 1030 and 750 years B.P., but the lowest two flows beneath the Uwekahuna Ash (∼2100 years B.P.) are correlated with an age of ∼3034 years B.P. Paleomagnetic data for 54 lava flows of the Ka'u Basalt, exposed in the northwest wall of Mauna Loa's summit caldera (Mokuaweoweo), indicate that they probably accumulated over a relatively short time interval (∼200+ years) and are assigned to a 1000 to 1199 year B.P. time window. The mean of ages within this window is ∼1030 years B.P., but mapping and other 14C dates indicate that these summit overflows are probably closer to ∼1200 years B.P. in age.

The dynamics of rapidly emplaced terrestrial lava flows and implications for planetary volcanism

The Kaupulehu 1800–1801 lava flow of Hualalai volcano and the 1823 Keaiwa flow from the Great Crack of the Kilauea southwest rift zone had certain unusual and possibly unique properties for terrestrial basaltic lava flows. Both flows apparently had very low viscosities, high effusion rates, and uncommonly rapid rates of advance. Ultramafic xenolith nodules in the 1801 flow form stacks of cobbles with lava rinds of only millimeter thicknesses. The velocity of the lava stream in the 1801 flow was extremely high, at least 10 m s−1 (more than 40 km h−1). Observations and geological evidence suggest similarly high velocities for the 1823 flow. The unusual eruption conditions that produced these lava flows suggest a floodlike mode of emplacement unlike that of most other present‐day flows. Although considerable effort has gone into understanding the viscous fluid dynamics and thermal processes that often occur in basaltic flows, the unusual conditions prevalent for the Kaupulehu and Keaiwa flows necessitate different modeling considerations. We propose an elementary flood model for this type of lava emplacement and show that it produces consistent agreement with the overall dimensions of the flow, channel sizes, and other supporting field evidence. The reconstructed dynamics of these rapidly emplaced terrestrial lava flows provide significant insights about the nature of these eruptions and their analogs in planetary volcanism.

Emplacement of xenolith nodules in the Kaupulehu lava flow, Hualalai Volcano, Hawaii

The basaltic Kaupulehu 1800–1801 lava flow of Hualalai Volcano, Hawaii contains abundant ultramafix xenoliths. Many of these xenoliths occur as bedded layers of semi-rounded nodules, each thinly coated with a veneer (typically 1 mm thick) of lava. The nodule beds are analogous to cobble deposits of fluvial sedimentary systems. Although several mechanisms have been proposed for the formation of the nodule beds, it was found that, at more than one locality, the nodule beds are overbank levee deposits. The geological occurrence of the nodules, certain diagnostic aspects of the flow morphology and consideration of the inferred emplacement process indicate that the Kaupulehu flow had an exceptionally low viscosity on eruption and that the flow of the lava stream was extremely rapid, with flow velocities of at least 10 m s-1 (more than 40 km h-1). This flow is the youngest on Hualalai Volcano and future eruptions of a similar type would pose considerable hazard to life as well as property.

Emplacement of xenolith nodules in the Kaupulehu lava flow, Hualalai Volcano, Hawaii

The basaltic Kaupulehu 1800-1801 lava flow of Hualalai Volcano, Hawaii contains abundant ultramafic xenoliths. Many of these xenoliths occur as bedded layers of semi-rounded nodules, each thinly coated with a veneer (typically 1 mm thick) of lava. The nodule beds are analogous to cobble deposits of fluvial sedimentary systems. Although several mechanisms have been proposed for the formation of the nodule beds, it was found that, at more than one locality, the nodule beds are overbank levee deposits. The geological occurrence of the nodules, certain diagnostic aspects of the flow morphology and consideration of the inferred emplacement process indicate that the Kaupulehu flow had an exceptionally low viscosity on eruption and that the flow of the lava stream was extremely rapid, with flow velocities of at least 10 m/s (more than 40 km/h. This flow is the youngest on Hualalai Volcano and future eruptions of a similar type would pose considerable hazard to life as well as property.

Petrogenesis of Ultramafic Xenoliths from the 1800 Kaupulehu Flow, Hualalai Volcano, Hawaii

The 1800 Kaupulehu flow on Hualalai Volcano, Hawaii, contains abundant xenoliths of dunite, wehrlite, and olivine clinopyroxenite with minor gabbro, troctolite, anorthosite, and websterite. The petrography and mineral compositions of 41 dunite, wehrlite, and olivine clinopyTOxenite xenoliths have been studied, and clinopyroxene separates from eight of these have been analyzed for Ba, K, Rb, Sr, rare earth elements, 87Sr/*6Sr, and 143Nd/14*Nd. Temperatures of equilibration obtained by olivine-spinel and pyroxene geothermometry range from 1000 to 1200 °C. Mineralogical data combined with published fluid inclusion data indicate depths of origin in the range of 8-30 km. The rarity of orthopyroxene, the presence of Fe-rich olivine (Fog, _89) and clinopyroxene (Fs3 _,2X and the occurrence of high TiO2 in spinel (0-9-2-8 wt.%) and clinopyroxene (0-35—1-33 wt.%) all indicate that the xenoliths are cumulates, not residues from partial fusion. The separated clinopyroxenes have 87Sr/*6Sr (0-70348-0-70367) and 'Nd/'^Nd (O-51293-O-51299) values that are different from Sr and Nd isotope ratios of Pacific abyssal basalts ( 0-5130, respectively). Also, clinopyroxenes and spinels in the xenoliths have generally higher TiO2 contents (>O-35 and >0-91 wt.%, respectively) than their counterparts in abyssal cumulates (<0-40 and <0-70wt%, respectively). These differences indicate that the xenoliths are not a normal component of oceanic crust Because the xenoliths and alkalic to transitional Hualalai lavas have similar values for Cr/(Cr +Al)

Carbonaceous matter in peridotites and basalts studied by XPS, SALI, and LEED

Carbonaceous matter in peridotite xenoliths and basalt from the Hualalai Volcano, in a basalt glass collected directly from an active lava lake on the east rift of Kilauea, in garnet and diopside megacrysts from the Jagersfontein kimberlite, and in gabbros from the Stillwater and Bushveld Complexes has been studied by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), thermal-desorption surface analysis by laser ionization (SALI), and low-energy electron diffraction (LEED). The basalt and two of the four xenoliths from Hualalai and both Jagersfontein megacrysts yielded trace quantities (≤ 10 nanomoles) of organic compounds on heating to 700°C. Organics were not detected in the rocks from the layered intrusions, and neither carbonaceous matter nor organics were detected in the glass from the lava lake. Where detected, organics appear to be associated with carbonaceous films on microcrack surfaces. Carbonaceous matter exists as films less than a few nm thick and particles up to 20 μm across, both of which contain elements expected to be present in significant quantities in magmatic vapors, namely Si, alkalis, halogens, N, and transition metals. LEED studies suggest that the carbonaceous films are amorphous. The data suggest two possible mechanisms for the formation of the organics. One is that they are a product of abiotic heterogeneous catalysis of volcanic gas on new, chemically active mineral surfaces formed by fracturing during cooling. Alternatively, organics may have been assimilated into the volcanic gases prior to eruption and then deposited on cracks formed during eruption and cooling. In any case, there is no evidence to suggest that the organics represent laboratory or field biogenic contamination.

Origin of xenoliths in the trachyte at Puu Waawaa, Hualalai Volcano, Hawaii

Rare dunite and 2-pyroxene gabbro xenoliths occur in banded trachyte at Puu Waawaa on Hualalai Volcano, Hawaii. Mineral compositions suggest that these xenoliths formed as cumulates of tholeiitic basalt at shallow depth in a subcaldera magma reservoir. Subsequently, the minerals in the xenoliths underwent subsolidus reequilibration that particularly affected chromite compositions by decreasing their Mg numbers. In addition, olivine lost CaO and plagioclase lost MgO and Fe2O3 during subsolidus reequilibration. The xenoliths also reacted with the host trachyte to form secondary mica, amphibole, and orthopyroxene, and to further modify the compositions of some olivine, clinopyroxene, and spinel grains. The reaction products indicate that the host trachyte melt was hydrous. Clinopyroxene in one dunite sample and olivine in most dunite samples have undergone partial melting, apparently in response to addition of water to the xenolith. These xenoliths do not contain CO2 fluid inclusions, so common in xenoliths from other localities on Hualalai, which suggests that CO2 was introduced from alkalic basalt magma between the time CO2-inclusion-free xenoliths erupted at 106±6 ka and the time CO2-inclusion-rich xenoliths erupted within the last 15 ka.

Geology and petrology of Mahukona Volcano, Hawaii

The submarine Mahukona Volcano, west of the island of Hawaii, is located on the Loa loci line between Kahoolawe and Hualalai Volcanoes. The west rift zone ridge of the volcano extends across a drowned coral reef at about-1150 m and a major slope break at about-1340 m, both of which represent former shoreines. The summit of the volcano apparently reached to about 250 m above sea level (now at-1100 m depth) did was surmounted by a roughly circular caldera. A econd rift zone probably extended toward the east or sutheast, but is completely covered by younger lavas from the adjacent subaerial volcanoes. Samples were vecovered from nine dredges and four submersible lives. Using subsidence rates and the compositions of flows which drape the dated shoreline terraces, we infer that the voluminous phase of tholeiitic shield growth ended about 470 ka, but tholeiitic eruptions continued until at least 435 ka. Basalt, transitional between tholeiitic and alkalic basalt, erupted at the end of tholeiitic volcanism, but no postshield-alkalic stage volcanism occurred. The summit of the volcano apparently subcided below sea level between 435 and 365 ka. The tholeiitic lavas recovered are compositionally diverse.

Organic compounds on crack surfaces in olivine from San Carlos, Arizona and Hualalai Volcano, Hawaii

Organic compounds associated with thin carbonaceous films on crack surfaces have been detected by thermal-desorption photoionization mass spectrometry in large single crystals of olivine from San Carlos, Arizona and Hualalai Volcano, Hawaii. Alkalis, silicon, aluminum and halogens are also present in the 3–4 nm thick carbonaceous films. The organics probably were not derived from the upper mantle or lower crust or from environmental biogenic contamination after eruption and cooling. It is likely that the carbonaceous films and organics were deposited or formed on crack surfaces created during eruption and cooling of the host alkali basalts. Whether the organics were produced abiotically by FischerTropsch-like reactions involving volcanic gases and fresh-fractured surfaces where reduced carbon was deposited, or whether the organics represent biogenic material that was assimilated into the magmatic system prior to or during magma ascent, cannot be ascertained at this time due to their low abundance.