scholarly journals Argon constraints on the early growth of felsic continental crust

2020 ◽  
Vol 6 (21) ◽  
pp. eaaz6234 ◽  
Author(s):  
Meng Guo ◽  
Jun Korenaga
Keyword(s):  
Continental Crust ◽  
Mantle Convection ◽  
Thermal Evolution ◽  
Early Growth ◽  
Early Earth ◽  
Crustal Growth ◽  
Crustal Recycling ◽  
Consistent Manner ◽  
History Of ◽  
Surface Environment

The continental crust is a major geochemical reservoir, the evolution of which has shaped the surface environment of Earth. In this study, we present a new model of coupled crust-mantle-atmosphere evolution to constrain the growth of continental crust with atmospheric 40Ar/36Ar. Our model is the first to combine argon degassing with the thermal evolution of Earth in a self-consistent manner and to incorporate the effect of crustal recycling and reworking using the distributions of crustal formation and surface ages. Our results suggest that the history of argon degassing favors rapid crustal growth during the early Earth. The mass of continental crust, highly enriched in potassium, is estimated to have already reached >80% of the present-day level during the early Archean. The presence of such potassium-rich, likely felsic, crust has important implications for tectonics, surface environment, and the regime of mantle convection in the early Earth.

Growth of Cratons and their Post-Stabilization Histories

2004 ◽  
Author(s):  
John J. W. Rogers ◽  
M. Santosh
Keyword(s):  
Continental Crust ◽  
Evolutionary Process ◽  
Major Elements ◽  
Tectonic Activity ◽  
Crustal Recycling ◽  
The Earth ◽  
History Of ◽  
Superior Craton ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Comparative Stability

As we have seen in chapter 3, continental crust evolved from regions of the mantle that contained higher concentrations of LIL elements than regions that underlie typical ocean basins. The most complete record of this evolutionary process is in cratons, which passed through periods of rapid crust production to times of comparative stability over intervals of several hundred million years. After the cratons became stable enough to accumulate sequences of undeformed platform sediments, they moved about the earth without being subjected to further compressive tectonic activity. Because many of the cratons are also partly covered by sediments that are unmetamorphosed or only slightly metamorphosed, they appear to have undergone very little erosion since the sediments were deposited. Thus, a craton may be considered as a large block of continental crust that has been permanently removed from the crustal recycling process. This chapter starts with a discussion of the history of cratons as interpreted from studies of the upper part of the crust. We describe the Superior craton of the Canadian shield and the Western Dharwar craton of southern India within the chapter and use appendix E for brief summaries of other typical cratons. These cratons and numerous others elsewhere developed at different times during earth history, and we look for similarities and differences that may have been caused by progressive cooling of the earth (chapter 2). This section concludes with a summary of the general evolution of cratons and the meaning of the terms “Archean” and “Proterozoic.” The following section is an investigation of processes that occurred following stabilization, all of which take place in the presence of fluids that permeate the crust. We include a summary of these fluids and their effects on anorogenic magmatism and separation of the lower and upper crust. The final section discusses the relationship between cratons and their underlying subcontinental lithospheric mantle (SCLM). Continual metasomatism and metamorphism of the SCLM after cratons develop above it apparently has not destroyed the relationship between the ages of the cratons and the concentrations of major elements in the SCLM. This provides us with an opportunity to determine whether cratons evolved from the mantle beneath them or by depletion of much larger volumes of mantle. The discussions in this chapter are based partly on information summarized in appendices B (heat flow) and D (isotopes).

scholarly journals Hf-Nd Isotopes in Archean Marine Chemical Sediments: Implications for the Geodynamical History of Early Earth and Its Impact on Earliest Marine Habitats

Geosciences ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 8 (7) ◽  
pp. 263 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sebastian Viehmann
Keyword(s):  
Continental Crust ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Early Earth ◽  
Nd Isotopes ◽  
Nd Isotope ◽  
Erosion Processes ◽  
Marine Habitats ◽  
Isotope Record ◽  
History Of ◽  
Chemical Sediments

The Hf-Nd isotope systems are coupled in magmatic systems, but incongruent Hf weathering (‘zircon effect’) of the continental crust leads to a decoupling of the Hf-Nd isotope systems in low-temperature environments during weathering and erosion processes. The Hf-Nd isotope record was recently dated back from the Cenozoic oceans until the Archean, showing that both isotope systems were already decoupled in seawater 2.7 Ga ago and potentially 3.4 Ga and 3.7 Ga ago. While there might have existed a hydrothermal pathway for Hf into Archean seawater, incongruent Hf weathering of more evolved, zircon-bearing uppermost continental crust that was emerged and available for subaerial weathering accounts for a significant decoupling of Hf-Nd isotopes in the dissolved (<0.2 µm) and suspended (>0.2 µm) fractions of Early Earth’s seawater. These findings contradict the consensus that uppermost Archean continental crust was (ultra)mafic in composition and predominantly submerged. Hence, Hf-Nd isotopes in Archean marine chemical sediments provide the unique potential for future research to trace the emergence of evolved continental crust, which in turn has major implications for the geodynamical evolution of Early Earth and the nutrient flux into the earliest marine habitats on Earth.

scholarly journals Crustal evolution and mantle dynamics through Earth history

2018 ◽  
Vol 376 (2132) ◽  
pp. 20170408 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jun Korenaga
Keyword(s):  
Continental Crust ◽  
Mantle Convection ◽  
Plate Tectonics ◽  
Indirect Evidence ◽  
Quantitative Model ◽  
Early Earth ◽  
Mantle Dynamics ◽  
Earth History ◽  
Geological Processes ◽  
Earth Dynamics

Resolving the modes of mantle convection through Earth history, i.e. when plate tectonics started and what kind of mantle dynamics reigned before, is essential to the understanding of the evolution of the whole Earth system, because plate tectonics influences almost all aspects of modern geological processes. This is a challenging problem because plate tectonics continuously rejuvenates Earth's surface on a time scale of about 100 Myr, destroying evidence for its past operation. It thus becomes essential to exploit indirect evidence preserved in the buoyant continental crust, part of which has survived over billions of years. This contribution starts with an in-depth review of existing models for continental growth. Growth models proposed so far can be categorized into three types: crust-based, mantle-based and other less direct inferences, and the first two types are particularly important as their difference reflects the extent of crustal recycling, which can be related to subduction. Then, a theoretical basis for a change in the mode of mantle convection in the Precambrian is reviewed, along with a critical appraisal of some popular notions for early Earth dynamics. By combining available geological and geochemical observations with geodynamical considerations, a tentative hypothesis is presented for the evolution of mantle dynamics and its relation to surface environment; the early onset of plate tectonics and gradual mantle hydration are responsible not only for the formation of continental crust but also for its preservation as well as its emergence above sea level. Our current understanding of various material properties and elementary processes is still too premature to build a testable, quantitative model for this hypothesis, but such modelling efforts could potentially transform the nature of the data-starved early Earth research by quantifying the extent of preservation bias.This article is part of a discussion meeting issue ‘Earth dynamics and the development of plate tectonics’.

‘Importunity Which Mocked All Denial’: The Amherst Charity Fund and the Foundation of Amherst College

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carl I Hammer
Keyword(s):  
Early Growth ◽  
Historical Record ◽  
Williams College ◽  
Education Society ◽  
Amherst College ◽  
History Of ◽  
Noah Webster

This chapter discusses the complex history of the Amherst Charity Fund and Amherst College, located in western Massachusetts. The story of the Charity Fund, an independent fund which financed the foundation and early growth of Amherst College through designated scholarships and loans, incorporates many elements of the larger American myth. This chapter offers an alternative story based on the surviving historical record. In particular, it draws on the accounts of Noah Webster and Rufus Graves. It also cites the founding in 1815 of the Hampshire Education Society, whose aims contrast sharply with those embraced by the trustees of Amherst Academy, and how Amherst’s history was intertwined with that of Williams College. Finally, it highlights the important roles played by such men as Pastor David Parsons and Samuel F. Dickinson.

scholarly journals Origin of Life on Mars: Suitability and Opportunities

Life ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (6) ◽  
pp. 539
Author(s):  
Benton C. Clark ◽  
Vera M. Kolb ◽  
Andrew Steele ◽  
Christopher H. House ◽  
Nina L. Lanza ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Origin Of Life ◽  
Energy Sources ◽  
Early Earth ◽  
Sediment Samples ◽  
Life On Mars ◽  
Eventual Return ◽  
History Of ◽  
Early Mars ◽  
Chemical Conditions ◽  
Physical And Chemical

Although the habitability of early Mars is now well established, its suitability for conditions favorable to an independent origin of life (OoL) has been less certain. With continued exploration, evidence has mounted for a widespread diversity of physical and chemical conditions on Mars that mimic those variously hypothesized as settings in which life first arose on Earth. Mars has also provided water, energy sources, CHNOPS elements, critical catalytic transition metal elements, as well as B, Mg, Ca, Na and K, all of which are elements associated with life as we know it. With its highly favorable sulfur abundance and land/ocean ratio, early wet Mars remains a prime candidate for its own OoL, in many respects superior to Earth. The relatively well-preserved ancient surface of planet Mars helps inform the range of possible analogous conditions during the now-obliterated history of early Earth. Continued exploration of Mars also contributes to the understanding of the opportunities for settings enabling an OoL on exoplanets. Favoring geochemical sediment samples for eventual return to Earth will enhance assessments of the likelihood of a Martian OoL.

Zircon U–Pb geochronology and Hf isotope analyses of the Wulian complex in the Sulu orogenic belt, eastern China: tectonic affinity and implications for early Precambrian crustal growth and recycling in the South China Craton

2020 ◽  
pp. 1-16
Author(s):  
Jian-Hui Liu ◽  
Fu-Lai Liu ◽  
Zheng-Jiang Ding ◽  
Hong Yang ◽  
Ping-Hua Liu ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Continental Crust ◽  
South China ◽  
Orogenic Belt ◽  
Detrital Zircons ◽  
Crustal Growth ◽  
Gneissic Granite ◽  
Early Precambrian ◽  
The North ◽  
South China Craton ◽  
Sulu Orogenic Belt

Abstract The Wulian complex is located on the northern margin of the Sulu orogenic belt, and was formed by collision between the North China Craton (NCC) to the north and South China Craton (SCC) to the south. It consists of the metasedimentary Wulian Group, gneissic granite and meta-diorite. The U–Pb analyses for the detrital zircons from the Wulian Group exhibit one predominant age population of 2600–2400 Ma with a peak at c. 2.5 Ga and several secondary age populations of > 3000, 3000–2800, 2800–2600, 2200–2000, 1900–1800, 1500–1300 and 1250–950 Ma; some metamorphic zircons have metamorphic ages of c. 2.7, 2.55–2.45, 2.1–2.0 and 1.95–1.80 Ga, which are consistent with magmatic-metamorphic events in the SCC. Additionally, the Wulian Group was intruded by the gneissic granite and meta-diorite at c. 0.76 Ga, attributed to Neoproterozoic syn-rifting bimodal magmatic activity in the SCC and derived from partial melting of Archaean continental crust and depleted mantle, respectively. The Wulian Group therefore has tectonic affinity to the SCC and was mainly sourced from the SCC. The detrital zircons have positive and negative ϵHf(t) values, indicating that their source rocks were derived from reworking of both ancient and juvenile crustal rocks. The major early Precambrian crustal growth took place during c. 3.4–2.5 Ga with a dominant peak at 2.96 Ga and several secondary peaks at 3.27, 2.74 and 2.52 Ga. The two oldest zircons with ages of 3307 and 3347 Ma record the recycling of ancient continental crust (> 3.35 Ga) and crustal growth prior to c. 3.95 Ga in the SCC.

Nutrient cycling in a Carex lacustris wetland

1977 ◽  
Vol 55 (6) ◽  
pp. 630-638 ◽  
Author(s):  
John M. Bernard ◽  
Betsy A. Solsky
Keyword(s):  
Life History ◽  
Nutrient Cycling ◽  
Seasonal Changes ◽  
Early Growth ◽  
Total Production ◽  
Belowground Production ◽  
Aboveground Production ◽  
History Of ◽  
Phosphorus And Potassium ◽  
Carex Lacustris

Seasonal changes in aboveground and belowground life history of Carex lacustris were determined and used to study primary production and nutrient cycling in the ecosystem. Seasonal aboveground production was estimated to be about 965 g/m2 per year, with a peak rate of 20.9 g/m2 per day reached in late July. Belowground production was estimated to be 208 g/m2 per year for a total production estimate of 1173 g/m2 per year.Nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium begin the season with high percentage concentrations in green overwintering shoots but the percentages decline to only about one-third of the original at death in December. Early growth in spring is characterized by a redistribution of these nutrients in the shoots, some translocation from belowground tissues, and uptake from the soil. Calciumand magnesium do not show any important translocation patterns during the year.The yearly budget of uptake and loss of nutrients during a year is estimated to be 15.9 g/m2 nitrogen, 1.9 g/m2 phosphorus, 16.6 g/m2 potassium, 2.9 g/m2 calcium, and 1.5 g/m2 magnesium.

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