scholarly journals On the formation of hydrothermal vents and cold seeps in the Guaymas Basin, Gulf of California

2018 ◽  
Vol 15 (18) ◽  
pp. 5715-5731 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sonja Geilert ◽  
Christian Hensen ◽  
Mark Schmidt ◽  
Volker Liebetrau ◽  
Florian Scholz ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Hydrothermal Vent ◽  
Gulf Of California ◽  
Hydrothermal Activity ◽  
Hydrothermal Fluids ◽  
Geochemical Data ◽  
Cold Seeps ◽  
Pore Fluids ◽  
Ridge Axis ◽  
Guaymas Basin ◽  
Hydrothermal Vent Field

Abstract. Magmatic sill intrusions into organic-rich sediments cause the release of thermogenic CH4 and CO2. Pore fluids from the Guaymas Basin (Gulf of California), a sedimentary basin with recent magmatic activity, were investigated to constrain the link between sill intrusions and fluid seepage as well as the timing of sill-induced hydrothermal activity. Sampling sites were close to a hydrothermal vent field at the northern rift axis and at cold seeps located up to 30 km away from the rift. Pore fluids close to the active hydrothermal vent field showed a slight imprint by hydrothermal fluids and indicated a shallow circulation system transporting seawater to the hydrothermal catchment area. Geochemical data of pore fluids at cold seeps showed a mainly ambient diagenetic fluid composition without any imprint related to high temperature processes at greater depth. Seep communities at the seafloor were mainly sustained by microbial methane, which rose along pathways formed earlier by hydrothermal activity, driving the anaerobic oxidation of methane (AOM) and the formation of authigenic carbonates. Overall, our data from the cold seep sites suggest that at present, sill-induced hydrothermalism is not active away from the ridge axis, and the vigorous venting of hydrothermal fluids is restricted to the ridge axis. Using the sediment thickness above extinct conduits and carbonate dating, we calculated that deep fluid and thermogenic gas flow ceased 28 to 7 kyr ago. These findings imply a short lifetime of hydrothermal systems, limiting the time of unhindered carbon release as suggested in previous modeling studies. Consequently, activation and deactivation mechanisms of these systems need to be better constrained for the use in climate modeling approaches.

scholarly journals Transition from hydrothermal vents to cold seeps records timing of carbon release in the Guaymas Basin, Gulf of California

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sonja Geilert ◽  
Christian Hensen ◽  
Mark Schmidt ◽  
Volker Liebetrau ◽  
Florian Scholz ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Hydrothermal Vent ◽  
Gulf Of California ◽  
Hydrothermal Systems ◽  
Hydrothermal Fluids ◽  
Fluid Composition ◽  
Cold Seeps ◽  
Pore Fluids ◽  
Guaymas Basin ◽  
Carbon Release ◽  
Magmatic Intrusions

Abstract. The Guaymas Basin in the Gulf of California is an ideal site to test the hypothesis that magmatic intrusions into organic-rich sediments can cause the release of large amounts of thermogenic methane and CO2 that may lead to climate warming. In this study pore fluids close (~ 500 m) to a hydrothermal vent field and at cold seeps up to 20 km away from the northern rift axis were studied to determine the influence of magmatic intrusions on pore fluid composition and gas migration. Pore fluids close to the hydrothermal vent area show predominantly seawater composition, indicating a shallow circulation system transporting seawater to the hydrothermal catchment area rather than being influenced by hydrothermal fluids themselves. Only in the deeper part of the sediment core, composed of hydrothermal vent debris, Sr isotopes indicate a mixture with hydrothermal fluids of ~ 3 %. Also cold seep pore fluids show mainly seawater composition. Most of the methane is of microbial origin and consumed by anaerobic oxidation in shallow sediments, whereas ethane has a clear thermogenic signature. Fluid and gas flow might have been active during sill emplacement in the Guaymas Basin, but ceased 28 to 7 thousand years ago, based on sediment thickness above extinct conduits. Our results indicate that carbon release depends on the longevity of sill-induced, hydrothermal systems which is a currently unconstrained factor.

scholarly journals Characteristics and Evolution of sill-driven off-axis hydrothermalism in Guaymas Basin – the Ringvent site

2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Andreas Teske ◽  
Luke J. McKay ◽  
Ana Christina Ravelo ◽  
Ivano Aiello ◽  
Carlos Mortera ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Gulf Of California ◽  
Sedimentary Cover ◽  
Intermediate Stage ◽  
Hydrothermal Activity ◽  
Hydrothermal Systems ◽  
Spreading Center ◽  
Cold Seeps ◽  
Guaymas Basin ◽  
Thermal Anomalies ◽  
New Type

Abstract The Guaymas Basin spreading center, at 2000 m depth in the Gulf of California, is overlain by a thick sedimentary cover. Across the basin, localized temperature anomalies, with active methane venting and seep fauna exist in response to magma emplacement into sediments. These sites evolve over thousands of years as magma freezes into doleritic sills and the system cools. Although several cool sites resembling cold seeps have been characterized, the hydrothermally active stage of an off-axis site was lacking good examples. Here, we present a multidisciplinary characterization of Ringvent, an ~1 km wide circular mound where hydrothermal activity persists ~28 km northwest of the spreading center. Ringvent provides a new type of intermediate-stage hydrothermal system where off-axis hydrothermal activity has attenuated since its formation, but remains evident in thermal anomalies, hydrothermal biota coexisting with seep fauna, and porewater biogeochemical signatures indicative of hydrothermal circulation. Due to their broad potential distribution, small size and limited life span, such sites are hard to find and characterize, but they provide critical missing links to understand the complex evolution of hydrothermal systems.

scholarly journals Why Orange Guaymas Basin Beggiatoa spp. Are Orange: Single-Filament-Genome-Enabled Identification of an Abundant Octaheme Cytochrome with Hydroxylamine Oxidase, Hydrazine Oxidase, and Nitrite Reductase Activities

2012 ◽  
Vol 79 (4) ◽  
pp. 1183-1190 ◽  
Author(s):  
Barbara J. MacGregor ◽  
Jennifer F. Biddle ◽  
Jason R. Siebert ◽  
Eric Staunton ◽  
Eric L. Hegg ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Nitrite Reductase ◽  
Pure Culture ◽  
Gulf Of California ◽  
Microbial Mats ◽  
Physiological Role ◽  
Nitrite Reduction ◽  
Cold Seeps ◽  
Single Filament ◽  
Guaymas Basin ◽  
Content Type

ABSTRACTOrange, white, and yellow vacuolatedBeggiatoaceaefilaments are visually dominant members of microbial mats found near sea floor hydrothermal vents and cold seeps, with orange filaments typically concentrated toward the mat centers. No marine vacuolateBeggiatoaceaeare yet in pure culture, but evidence to date suggests they are nitrate-reducing, sulfide-oxidizing bacteria. The nearly complete genome sequence of a single orangeBeggiatoa(“CandidatusMaribeggiatoa”) filament from a microbial mat sample collected in 2008 at a hydrothermal site in Guaymas Basin (Gulf of California, Mexico) was recently obtained. From this sequence, the gene encoding an abundant soluble orange-pigmented protein in Guaymas Basin mat samples (collected in 2009) was identified by microcapillary reverse-phase high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) nano-electrospray tandem mass spectrometry (μLC–MS-MS) of a pigmented band excised from a denaturing polyacrylamide gel. The predicted protein sequence is related to a large group of octaheme cytochromes whose few characterized representatives are hydroxylamine or hydrazine oxidases. The protein was partially purified and shown byin vitroassays to have hydroxylamine oxidase, hydrazine oxidase, and nitrite reductase activities. From what is known ofBeggiatoaceaephysiology, nitrite reduction is the most likelyin vivorole of the octaheme protein, but future experiments are required to confirm this tentative conclusion. Thus, while present-day genomic and proteomic techniques have allowed precise identification of an abundant mat protein, and its potential activities could be assayed, proof of its physiological role remains elusive in the absence of a pure culture that can be genetically manipulated.

scholarly journals Volcanic record of the arc-to-rift transition onshore of the Guaymas basin in the Santa Rosalía area, Gulf of California, Baja California

Geosphere ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 16 (4) ◽  
pp. 1012-1041
Author(s):  
Cathy Busby ◽  
Alison Graettinger ◽  
Margarita López Martínez ◽  
Sarah Medynski ◽  
Tina Niemi ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Gulf Of California ◽  
Baja California ◽  
Sedimentary Basin ◽  
Volcanic Rocks ◽  
Seafloor Spreading ◽  
Geochemical Data ◽  
Normal Faults ◽  
Guaymas Basin ◽  
The North ◽  
Santa Rosalia

Abstract The Gulf of California is an archetype of continental rupture through transtensional rifting, and exploitation of a thermally weakened arc to produce a rift. Volcanic rocks of central Baja California record the transition from calcalkaline arc magmatism, due to subduction of the Farallon plate (ca. 24–12 Ma), to rift magmatism, related to the opening of the Gulf of California (<12 Ma). In addition, a suite of postsubduction rocks (<12 Ma), referred to as “bajaites,” are enriched in light rare-earth and other incompatible elements (e.g., Ba and Sr). These are further subdivided into high-magnesian andesite (with 50%–58% SiO2 and MgO >4%) and adakite (>56% SiO2 and MgO <3%). The bajaites correlate spatially with a fossil slab imaged under central Baja and are inferred to record postsubduction melting of the slab and subduction-modified mantle by asthenospheric upwelling associated with rifting or slab breakoff. We report on volcanic rocks of all three suites, which surround and underlie the Santa Rosalía sedimentary rift basin. This area represents the western margin of the Guaymas basin, the most magmatically robust segment of the Gulf of California rift, where seafloor spreading occurred in isolation for 3–4 m.y. (starting at 6 Ma) before transtensional pull-apart basins to the north and south ruptured the continental crust. Outcrops of the Santa Rosalía area thus offer the opportunity to understand the magmatic evolution of the Guaymas rift, which has been the focus of numerous oceanographic expeditions. We describe 21 distinct volcanic and hypabyssal map units in the Santa Rosalía area, using field characteristics, petrographic data, and major- and trace-element geochemical data, as well as zircon isotopic data and ten new 40Ar-39Ar ages. Lithofacies include lavas and lava domes, block-and-ash-flow tuffs, ignimbrites, and hypabyssal intrusions (plugs, dikes, and peperites). Calcalkaline volcanic rocks (13.81–10.11 Ma) pass conformably upsection, with no time gap, into volcanic rocks with rift transitional chemistry (9.69–8.84 Ma). The onset of rifting was marked by explosive eruption of silicic ignimbrite (tuff of El Morro), possibly from a caldera, similar to the onset of rifting or accelerated rifting in other parts of the Gulf of California. Epsilon Hf zircon data are consistent with a rift transitional setting for the tuff of El Morro. Arc and rift volcanic rocks were then juxtaposed by normal faults and tilted eastward toward a north-south fault that lay offshore, likely related to the north-south normal faults documented for the early history of the Guaymas basin, prior to the onset of northwest-southeast transtenional faulting. Magmatism in the Santa Rosalía area resumed with emplacement of high-magnesian andesite lavas and intrusions, at 6.06 Ma ± 0.27 Ma, coeval with the onset of seafloor spreading in the Guaymas basin at ca. 6 Ma. The 9.69–8.84 Ma rift transitional volcanic rocks underlying the Santa Rosalía sedimentary basin provide a maximum age on its basal fill. Evaporites in the Santa Rosalía sedimentary basin formed on the margin of the Guaymas basin, where thicker evaporites formed. Overlying coarse-grained clastic sedimentary fill of the Santa Rosalía basin and its stratiform Cu-Co-Zn-Mn sulfides may have accumulated rapidly, coeval with emplacement of 6.06 Ma high-magnesian andesite intrusions and the ca. 6 Ma onset of seafloor spreading in the Guaymas basin.

Deep-water zooplankton of the Guaymas basin hydrothermal vent field

1988 ◽  
Vol 35 (6) ◽  
pp. 985-1013 ◽  
Author(s):  
Peter H. Wiebe ◽  
Nancy Copley ◽  
Cindy Van Dover ◽  
Armando Tamse ◽  
Fernando Manrique
Keyword(s):  
Deep Water ◽  
Hydrothermal Vent ◽  
Guaymas Basin ◽  
Hydrothermal Vent Field

scholarly journals Archaeal and anaerobic methane oxidizer communities in the Sonora Margin cold seeps, Guaymas Basin (Gulf of California)

2013 ◽  
Vol 7 (8) ◽  
pp. 1595-1608 ◽  
Author(s):  
Adrien Vigneron ◽  
Perrine Cruaud ◽  
Patricia Pignet ◽  
Jean-Claude Caprais ◽  
Marie-Anne Cambon-Bonavita ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Gulf Of California ◽  
Cold Seeps ◽  
Guaymas Basin ◽  
Methane Oxidizer

Gammaropsis (Podoceropsis) grasslei (Amphipoda: Photidae) a new species of commensal amphipod of the deep-water lithodid Neolithodes diomedeae from the Guaymas Basin, Gulf of California

Zootaxa ◽  
2007 ◽  
Vol 1406 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
LUIS A. SOTO ◽  
ADRIANA CORONA
Keyword(s):  
New Species ◽  
Deep Water ◽  
Hydrothermal Vent ◽  
Gulf Of California ◽  
Guaymas Basin ◽  
A New Species

A new species of commensal amphipod from the hydrothermal vent system of Guaymas Basin is described. Gammaropsis (Podoceropsis) grasslei was recovered from the carapace of the deep-water lithodid Neolithodes dioemedeae. It differs from other Gammaropsis (Podoceropsis) in exhibiting a longer palm of the second gnathopod of male, a highly ornamented entire and fleshy telson and the dense ornamentation of the maxillas.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document