Reconciling seismic structures and Late Cretaceous kimberlite magmatism in northern Alberta, Canada

Geology ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 48 (9) ◽  
pp. 872-876
Author(s):  
Yunfeng Chen ◽  
Yu Jeffrey Gu ◽  
Larry M. Heaman ◽  
Lei Wu ◽  
Erdinc Saygin ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Late Cretaceous ◽  
Source Region ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Plate Motion ◽  
Mountain Lake ◽  
Low Velocity ◽  
Age Progression ◽  
Plate Reconstructions ◽  
Competing Models ◽  
Northern Alberta

Abstract The Late Cretaceous kimberlites in northern Alberta, Canada, intruded into the Paleoproterozoic crust and represent a nonconventional setting for the discovery of diamonds. Here, we examined the origin of kimberlite magmatism using a multidisciplinary approach. A new teleseismic survey reveals a low-velocity (−1%) corridor that connects two deep-rooted (>200 km) quasi-cylindrical anomalies underneath the Birch Mountains and Mountain Lake kimberlite fields. The radiometric data, including a new U-Pb perovskite age of 90.3 ± 2.6 Ma for the Mountain Lake intrusion, indicate a northeast-trending age progression in kimberlite magmatism, consistent with the (local) plate motion rate of North America constrained by global plate reconstructions. Taken together, these observations favor a deep stationary (relative to the lower mantle) source region for kimberlitic melt generation. Two competing models, mantle plume and slab subduction, can satisfy kinematic constraints and explain the exhumation of ultradeep diamonds. The plume hypothesis is less favorable due to the apparent age discrepancy between the oldest kimberlites (ca. 90 Ma) and the plume event (ca. 110 Ma). Alternatively, magma generation may have been facilitated by decompression of hydrous phases (e.g., wadsleyite and ringwoodite) within the mantle transition zone in response to thermal perturbations by a cold slab. The three-dimensional lithospheric structures largely controlled melt migration and intrusion processes during the Late Cretaceous kimberlite magmatism in northern Alberta.

A review of the tectonics of the northern Middle East region

1984 ◽  
Vol 121 (6) ◽  
pp. 577-587 ◽  
Author(s):  
P. E. R. Lovelock
Keyword(s):  
Late Cretaceous ◽  
Kinematic Model ◽  
Continental Collision ◽  
Dead Sea ◽  
Plate Motion ◽  
Arabian Plate ◽  
Southern Boundary ◽  
The North ◽  
The Dead ◽  
Two Stages

AbstractThe structure of the northern part of the Arabian platform is reviewed in the light of hitherto unpublished exploration data and the presently accepted kinematic model of plate motion in the region. The Palmyra and Sinjar zones share a common history of development involving two stages of rifting, one in the Triassic–Jurassic and the other during late Cretaceous to early Tertiary times. Deformation of the Palmyra zone during the Mio-Pliocene is attributed to north–south compression on the eastern block of the Dead Sea transcurrent system which occurred after continental collision in the north in southeast Turkey. The asymmetry of the Palmyra zone is believed to result from northward underthrusting along the southern boundary facilitated by the presence of shallow Triassic evaporites. An important NW-SE cross-plate shear zone has been identified, which can be traced for 600 km and which controls the course of the River Euphrates over long distances in Syria and Iraq. Transcurrent motion along this zone resulted in the formation of narrow grabens during the late Cretaceous which were compressed during the Mio-Pliocene. To a large extent, present day structures in the region result from compressional reactivation of old lineaments within the Arabian plate by the transcurrent motion of the Dead Sea fault zone and subsequent continental collision.

scholarly journals Seismic Structure of Local Crustal Earthquakes beneath the Zipingpu Reservoir of Longmenshan Fault Zone

2011 ◽  
Vol 2011 ◽  
pp. 1-6 ◽  
Author(s):  
Haiou Li ◽  
Xiwei Xu ◽  
Wentao Ma ◽  
Ronghua Xie ◽  
Jingli Yuan ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Fault Zone ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
P Wave ◽  
The Tibetan Plateau ◽  
Seismic Structure ◽  
Infiltration Depth ◽  
Low Velocity ◽  
Longmenshan Fault Zone ◽  
Velocity Models ◽  
Longmenshan Fault

Three-dimensional P wave velocity models under the Zipingpu reservoir in Longmenshan fault zone are obtained with a resolution of 2 km in the horizontal direction and 1 km in depth. We used a total of 8589 P wave arrival times from 1014 local earthquakes recorded by both the Zipingpu reservoir network and temporary stations deployed in the area. The 3-D velocity images at shallow depth show the low-velocity regions have strong correlation with the surface trace of the Zipingpu reservoir. According to the extension of those low-velocity regions, the infiltration depth directly from the Zipingpu reservoir itself is limited to 3.5 km depth, while the infiltration depth downwards along the Beichuan-Yingxiu fault in the study area is about 5.5 km depth. Results show the low-velocity region in the east part of the study area is related to the Proterozoic sedimentary rocks. The Guanxian-Anxian fault is well delineated by obvious velocity contrast and may mark the border between the Tibetan Plateau in the west and the Sichuan basin in the east.

The Effect of Bench Arrangements on the Natural Ventilation of a Multispan Greenhouse

2013 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sunita Kruger ◽  
Leon Pretorius
Keyword(s):  
Fluid Dynamics ◽  
Natural Ventilation ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Two Dimensional ◽  
Low Velocity ◽  
Lower Velocity ◽  
Cfd Models ◽  
Temperature Distributions ◽  
Computational Fluid Dynamics Cfd ◽  
Plant Level

In this paper, the influence of various bench arrangements on the microclimate inside a two-span greenhouse is numerically investigated using three-dimensional Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) models. Longitudinal and peninsular arrangements are investigated for both leeward and windward opened roof ventilators. The velocity and temperature distributions at plant level (1m) were of particular interest. The research in this paper is an extension of two-dimensional work conducted previously [1]. Results indicate that bench layouts inside the greenhouse have a significant effect on the microclimate at plant level. It was found that vent opening direction (leeward or windward) influences the velocity and temperature distributions at plant level noticeably. Results also indicated that in general, the leeward facing greenhouses containing either type of bench arrangement exhibit a lower velocity distribution at plant level compared to windward facing greenhouses. The latter type of greenhouses has regions with relatively high velocities at plant level which could cause some concern. The scalar plots indicate that more stagnant areas of low velocity appear for the leeward facing greenhouses. The windward facing greenhouses also display more heterogeneity at plant level as far as temperature is concerned.

scholarly journals Development of three-dimensional basement structure in Taiwan deduced from past plate motion: Consistency with the present seismicity

Tectonics ◽  
2007 ◽  
Vol 26 (3) ◽  
pp. n/a-n/a ◽  
Author(s):  
Youichiro Takada ◽  
Yukitoshi Fukahata ◽  
Akinori Hashima ◽  
Toshiko Terakawa ◽  
Kenji Fukui ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Plate Motion ◽  
Basement Structure

Preliminary results of numerical simulation of submarine landslide-generated waves

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ramtin Sabeti ◽  
Mohammad Heidarzadeh
Keyword(s):  
Numerical Simulation ◽  
Numerical Modelling ◽  
Numerical Solutions ◽  
Numerical Technique ◽  
Source Region ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Terminal Velocity ◽  
Sensitivity Analyses ◽  
Physical Experiments ◽  
Set Up

<p>Landslide-generated waves have been major threats to coastal areas and have led to destruction and casualties. Their importance is undisputed, most recently demonstrated by the 2018 Anak Krakatau tsunami, causing several hundred fatalities. The accurate prediction of the maximum initial amplitude of landslide waves (<em>η<sub>max</sub></em>) around the source region is a vital hazard indicator for coastal impact assessment. Laboratory experiments, analytical solutions and numerical modelling are three major methods to investigate the (<em>η<sub>max</sub></em>). However, the numerical modelling approach provides a more flexible and cost- and time-efficient tool. This research presents a numerical simulation of tsunamis due to rigid landslides with consideration of submerged conditions. In particular, this simulation focuses on studying the effect of landslide parameters on <em>η<sub>max</sub>.</em> Results of simulations are compared with our conducted physical experiments at the Brunel University London (UK) to validate the numerical model.</p><p>We employ the fully three-dimensional computational fluid dynamics package, FLOW-3D Hydro for modelling the landslide-generated waves. This software benefit from the Volume of Fluid Method (VOF) as the numerical technique for tracking and locating the free surface. The geometry of the simulation is set up according to the wave tank of physical experiments (i.e. 0.26 m wide, 0.50 m deep and 4.0 m). In order to calibrate the simulation model based on the laboratory measurements, the friction coefficient between solid block and incline is changed to 0.41; likewise, the terminal velocity of the landslide is set to 0.87 m/s. Good agreement between the numerical solutions and the experimental results is found. Sensitivity analyses of landslide parameters (e.g. slide volume, water depth, etc.) on <em>η<sub>max </sub></em>are performed. Dimensionless parameters are employed to study the sensitivity of the initial landslide waves to various landslide parameters.</p>

Evolution of the East Africa-Arabia plume head

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chiara Civiero ◽  
Sergei Lebedev ◽  
Nicolas L. Celli
Keyword(s):  
East Africa ◽  
Basic Mechanism ◽  
Continental Lithosphere ◽  
Gulf Of Aden ◽  
Low Velocity ◽  
Velocity Anomaly ◽  
Seismic Waveform ◽  
Igneous Provinces ◽  
Lithospheric Plates ◽  
Plate Reconstructions

<p>Hot plumes rising from Earth’s deep mantle are thought to form broad plume heads beneath lithospheric plates. In continents, mantle plumes cause uplift, rifting and volcanism, often dispersed over surprisingly broad areas. Using seismic waveform tomography, we image <span>a star-shaped, low-velocity anomaly centered at Afar and composed of three narrow branches: beneath East Africa, beneath the Gulf of Aden, and beneath the Red Sea and West Arabia, extending north to Levant. We interpret this anomaly as the seismic expression of </span>interconnected corridors of hot, partially molten rock beneath the East Africa-Arabia region. The corridors underlie areas of uplift, rifting and volcanism and accommodate an integral, active plume head. Eruption ages and plate reconstructions indicate that it developed south-to-north, and tomography shows it being fed by three deep upwellings beneath Kenya, Afar and Levant. <span>These results demonstrate the complex feedbacks between the continental-lithosphere heterogeneity and plume-head evolution. </span>Star-shaped plume heads sprawling within thin-lithosphere valleys can account for the enigmatic dispersed volcanism in large igneous provinces and are likely to be a basic mechanism of plume-continent interaction.</p>

Three-dimensional seismic structure of the lithosphere under Montana Lasa

1976 ◽  
Vol 66 (2) ◽  
pp. 501-524
Author(s):  
Keiiti Aki ◽  
Anders Christoffersson ◽  
Eystein S. Husebye
Keyword(s):  
Generalized Inverse ◽  
Random Medium ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
P Wave ◽  
Seismic Structure ◽  
Low Velocity ◽  
Medium Theory ◽  
Velocity Anomaly ◽  
Inversion Techniques ◽  
Teleseismic Events

abstract Using P-wave residuals for teleseismic events observed at the Montana Large Aperture Seismic Array (LASA), we have determined the three-dimensional seismic structure of the lithosphere under the array to a depth of 140 km. The root-mean-square velocity fluctuation was found to be at least 3.2 per cent which may be compared to estimate of ca. 2 per cent based on the Chernov random medium theory. The solutions are given by both the generalized inverse and stochastic inverse methods in order to demonstrate the relative merit of different inversion techniques. The most conspicuous feature of the lithosphere under LASA is a low-velocity anomaly in the central and northeast part of the array siting area with the N60°E trend and persisting from the upper crust to depths greater than 100 km. We interpret this low-velocity anomaly as a zone of weakness caused by faulting and shearing associated with the building of the Rocky Mountains.

Opening and closure of Iranian back-arc basins: A seismic tomography view

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nalan Lom ◽  
Abdul Qayyum ◽  
Derya Gürer ◽  
Douwe G. van der Meer ◽  
Wim Spakman ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Seismic Tomography ◽  
Subduction Zones ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Plate Motion ◽  
Limited Information ◽  
Three Dimensional Model ◽  
Slab Geometry ◽  
Novel Approach ◽  
Sanandaj Sirjan Zone ◽  
Back Arc

<p>Iran is a mosaic of continental blocks that are surrounded by Tethyan oceanic relics. Remnants of these oceanic rock assemblages are exposed around the Central Iranian Microcontinent (CIM), discretely along the Sanandaj-Sirjan Zone and in Jaz-Murian. The ophiolite belts surrounding the CIM are mainly assumed to represent narrow back-arc basins that opened in Cretaceous and closed before the Eocene. Although these ophiolites are exposed as small pieces on continental crust today, they represent oceans wide enough to form supra-subduction ophiolites and arc-related magmatic rocks which suggest that their palaeogeographic width was at least some hundreds of kilometers. Current models for the palaeogeographic dimension, opening and closure of these basins are highly schematic. They usually seem plausible in two-dimensional reconstructions, however a single three-dimensional model explaining whole Iran and its surrounding regions has not been fully accomplished.  This is mostly because while the geological record provides constraints on the origin and ages of the subducted ocean floor, it provides limited information about onset and cessation of the subduction and almost no constraints on the dimension of these oceans and the subduction zones that consumed them.</p><p>In this study, we follow a novel approach in estimating the dimension and evolution of these back-arc basin by using seismic tomography. Seismic tomography has revealed that we can image and trace subducted lithosphere relics. Imaged mantle structure is now being used to link sinking slabs with sutures and to define shape of a slab. Systematic comparison of regions where the timing of subduction is reasonably well constrained by geological data showed that slabs sink gradually through the mantle at rates more or less the same. This perspective enabled us to study slab shape as a function of absolute trench motion. While mantle stationary trenches tend to create steep slabs or slab walls, the flat-lying segments are formed where the overlying trenches are mobile relative to the mantle, normal facing during roll-back, overturned during slab advance.  Under the assumption of vertical sinking after break-off, it is also possible to locate the palaeo-trenches.  When combined with absolute plate motion reconstructions, tomographically determined volume and size of the subducted lithosphere can also be used to estimate the size/width of the prehistoric oceans. To this end, we build on and further develop concepts that relate absolute trench motion during subduction to modern slab geometry to evaluate the possible range of dimensions associated with opening and closure of the Iranian back-arc basins.</p>

A Study of Three-Dimensional Mixed Convective Heat Transfer From Short Vertical Cylinders in a Horizontal Forced Flow

2000 ◽  
Author(s):  
David A. Scott ◽  
P. H. Oosthuizen
Keyword(s):  
Heat Transfer ◽  
Convective Heat Transfer ◽  
Convective Heat ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Forced Flow ◽  
Low Velocity ◽  
Buoyancy Forces ◽  
The Mean ◽  
Mixed Convective Flow ◽  
Comparison Of The Results

Abstract Heat transfer from relatively short vertical isothermal cylinders in a horizontal forced fluid flow has been considered. The flow conditions are such that the buoyancy forces resulting from the temperature differences in the flow are in general significant despite of the presence of a horizontal forced flow of air, that is, mixed convective flow exists. Because the cylinders are short and the buoyancy forces act normal to the forced flow, three-dimensional flow exists. The experiments were performed in a low velocity, open jet wind tunnel. The study involved the experimental determination of the mean heat transfer coefficient and a comparison of the results with a previous numerical analysis. Mean heat transfer rates were determined using the ‘lumped capacity’ method. The mean Nusselt number has the Reynolds number, Grashof number and the height to diameter ratio of the cylinders as parameters. The results have been used to determine the conditions under which the flow departs from purely forced convection and enters the mixed convection regime, i.e., determining the conditions for which the buoyancy effects should be included in convective heat transfer calculations for short cylinders.

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