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Full-Text Articles in Geology

Differentiating Fissure-Fed Lava Flow Types And Facies Using Radar And Lidar: An Example From The 2014–2015 Holuhraun Lava Flow-Field, Gavin Douglas Tolometti, Catherine D. Neish, Christopher W. Hamilton, Gordon R. Osinski, Antero Kukko, Joana R.C. Voigt Jun 2022

Differentiating Fissure-Fed Lava Flow Types And Facies Using Radar And Lidar: An Example From The 2014–2015 Holuhraun Lava Flow-Field, Gavin Douglas Tolometti, Catherine D. Neish, Christopher W. Hamilton, Gordon R. Osinski, Antero Kukko, Joana R.C. Voigt

Earth Sciences Publications

Distinguishing between lava types and facies using remote sensing data is important for interpreting the emplacement history of lava flow-fields on Earth and other planetary bodies. Lava facies typically include a mixture of lava types and record the collective emplacement history of material preserved at a particular location. We seek to determine if lava facies in the 2014–2015 Holuhraun lava flow-field are discernible using radar roughness analysis. Furthermore, we also seek to distinguish between lava types using high resolution Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) data. We extracted circular polarization ratios (CPR) from the Uninhabited Aerial Vehicle Synthetic Aperture Radar and …


Hot Rocks: Constraining The Thermal Conditions Of The Mistastin Lake Impact Melt Deposits Using Zircon Grain Microstructures, Gavin Douglas Tolometti, Timmons M. Erickson, Gordon R. Osinski, Cyril Cayron, Catherine Neish Apr 2022

Hot Rocks: Constraining The Thermal Conditions Of The Mistastin Lake Impact Melt Deposits Using Zircon Grain Microstructures, Gavin Douglas Tolometti, Timmons M. Erickson, Gordon R. Osinski, Cyril Cayron, Catherine Neish

Earth Sciences Publications

The production of superheated melt during hypervelocity impact events has been proposed to be a common occurrence on terrestrial planetary bodies. Recent direct evidence of superheated impact melt temperatures exceeding >2370°C from the Kamestastin (Mistastin Lake) impact structure, Canada, was based on a single impact glass sample. Such high superheated melt temperatures have strong implications for the evolution of crustal material, the thermal history of impact cratering events, and the rheology of impact melt. However, although widely predicted in previous studies, with the exception of the Mistastin Lake impact glass, there is little direct evidence for superheated temperatures in multiple …


Interpretations Of Lava Flow Properties From Radar Remote Sensing Data, Gavin Douglas Tolometti, Catherine Neish, Gordon R. Osinski, Scott S. Hughes, Shannon E. Kobs-Nawotniak Oct 2020

Interpretations Of Lava Flow Properties From Radar Remote Sensing Data, Gavin Douglas Tolometti, Catherine Neish, Gordon R. Osinski, Scott S. Hughes, Shannon E. Kobs-Nawotniak

Earth Sciences Publications

The surface morphology and roughness of a lava flow provides insight on its lava properties and emplacement processes. This is essential information for understanding the eruption history of lava fields, and magmatic processes beneath the surface of Earth and other planetary bodies such as the Moon. The surface morphology is influenced by lava properties such as viscosity, temperature, composition, and rate of shear. In this work, we seek to understand how we can interpret the emplacement processes and lava properties of lava flows using remote sensing data. Craters of the Moon (COTM) National Monument and Preserve in Idaho hosts a …


Stable Isotopes Of Clay Minerals From Autoclave Tests Of Oil Sands: Implications For Clay Formation During Steaming Of Alberta Clearwater Oil Sands, Shaoneng He, Fred J. Longstaffe, Zhihong Zhou Jan 2019

Stable Isotopes Of Clay Minerals From Autoclave Tests Of Oil Sands: Implications For Clay Formation During Steaming Of Alberta Clearwater Oil Sands, Shaoneng He, Fred J. Longstaffe, Zhihong Zhou

Earth Sciences Publications

In an effort to evaluate mineral-water isotopic exchange during cyclic steam stimulation (CSS), solutions and<2 μm berthierine-dominated solids from the Clearwater Formation oil sands of Alberta, Canada were analyzed for stable isotope compositions before and after reaction in autoclaves for 1008 h at 250 °C. There was no significant change in solution δ18O and δ2H, which is consistent with the high water/mineral ratio used in the experiments. The solids showed a marked decrease in both δ18O and δ2H following the experiments. Pre-run solids have δ18O of +9.5 to +12.9‰and …


Fluid-Present Anatexis Of Neoarchean Tonalite And Amphibolite In The Western Shandong Province, Chris Yakymchuk, Wenran Zhao, Yusheng Wan, Shoufa Lin, Fred Longstaffe Jan 2019

Fluid-Present Anatexis Of Neoarchean Tonalite And Amphibolite In The Western Shandong Province, Chris Yakymchuk, Wenran Zhao, Yusheng Wan, Shoufa Lin, Fred Longstaffe

Earth Sciences Publications

Metatonalite and amphibolite from the Taishan region of the Western Shandong Province in the North China Craton record c. 2.60 Ga fluid-present partial melting via the breakdown of biotite, plagioclase and quartz to produce peritectic hornblende and anatectic melt. Eight paired leucosome–melanosome samples from metatonalite and three paired samples from amphibolite were investigated to evaluate the composition of the melt. Hornblende, biotite and plagioclase in the leucosomes and hornblende and plagioclase in melanosomes from both rock types have similar compositions. Two leucosome samples from the metatonalite were influenced by the removal of heavy rare earth element-rich hornblende and the accumulation …


Stable Isotopic Characterization Of A Coastal Floodplain Forest Community: A Case Study For Isotopic Reconstruction Of Mesozoic Vertebrate Assemblages, Thomas M. Cullen, Fred Longstaffe, Ulrich G. Wortmann, Mark B. Goodwin, Li Huang, David C. Evans Jan 2019

Stable Isotopic Characterization Of A Coastal Floodplain Forest Community: A Case Study For Isotopic Reconstruction Of Mesozoic Vertebrate Assemblages, Thomas M. Cullen, Fred Longstaffe, Ulrich G. Wortmann, Mark B. Goodwin, Li Huang, David C. Evans

Earth Sciences Publications

Stable isotopes are powerful tools for elucidating ecological trends in extant vertebrate communities, though their application to Mesozoic ecosystems is complicated by a lack of extant isotope data from comparable environments/ecosystems (e.g. coastal floodplain forest environments, lacking significant C4 plant components). We sampled 20 taxa across a broad phylogenetic, body size, and physiological scope from the Atchafalaya River Basin of Louisiana as an environmental analogue to the Late Cretaceous coastal floodplains of North America. Samples were analysed for stable carbon, oxygen and nitrogen isotope compositions from bioapatite and keratin tissues to test the degree of ecological resolution that can …


An Overview Of Anorthosite-Bearing Layered Intrusions In The Archaean Craton Of Southern West Greenland And The Superior Province Of Canada: Implications For Archaean Tectonics And The Origin Of Megacrystic Plagioclase, Ali Polat, Fred J. Longstaffe, Robert Frei Jan 2018

An Overview Of Anorthosite-Bearing Layered Intrusions In The Archaean Craton Of Southern West Greenland And The Superior Province Of Canada: Implications For Archaean Tectonics And The Origin Of Megacrystic Plagioclase, Ali Polat, Fred J. Longstaffe, Robert Frei

Earth Sciences Publications

Anorthosite-bearing layered intrusions are unique to the Archaean rock record and are abundant in the Archaean craton of southern West Greenland and the Superior Province of Canada. These layered intrusions consist mainly of ultramafic rocks, gabbros, leucogabbros and anorthosites, and typically contain high-Ca (>An70) megacrystic (2–30 cm in diameter) plagioclase in anorthosite and leucogabbro units. They are spatially and temporally associated with basalt-dominated greenstone belts and are intruded by syn-to post-tectonic granitoid rocks. The layered intrusions, greenstone belts and granitoids all share the geochemical characteristics of Phanerozoic subduction zone magmas, suggesting that they formed mainly in a …


Petrology And Geochemistry Of The Tasse Mantle Xenoliths Of The Canadian Cordillera: A Record Of Archean To Quaternary Mantle Growth, Metasomatism, Removal, And Melting, Ali Polat, Robert Frei, Fred J. Longstaffe, Derek J. Thorkelson, Eyal Friedman Jan 2018

Petrology And Geochemistry Of The Tasse Mantle Xenoliths Of The Canadian Cordillera: A Record Of Archean To Quaternary Mantle Growth, Metasomatism, Removal, And Melting, Ali Polat, Robert Frei, Fred J. Longstaffe, Derek J. Thorkelson, Eyal Friedman

Earth Sciences Publications

Mantle xenoliths hosted by the Quaternary Tasse alkaline basalts in the Canadian Cordillera, southeastern British Columbia, are mostly spinel lherzolite originating from subcontinental lithospheric mantle. The xenoliths contain abundant feldspar veins, melt pockets and spongy clinopyroxene, recording extensive alkaline metasomatism and partial melting. Feldspar occurs as veins and interstitial crystal in melt pockets. Melt pockets occur mainly at triple junctions, along grain boundaries, and consist mainly of olivine, cpx, opx and spinel surrounded by interstitial feldspar. The Nd, Sr and Pb isotopic compositions of the xenoliths indicate that their sources are characterized by variable mixtures of depleted MORB mantle and …


Petrogenetic And Geodynamic Origin Of The Neoarchean Doré Lake Complex, Abitibi Subprovince, Superior Province, Canada, Ali Polat, Robert Frei, Fred J. Longstaffe, Ryan Woods Jan 2018

Petrogenetic And Geodynamic Origin Of The Neoarchean Doré Lake Complex, Abitibi Subprovince, Superior Province, Canada, Ali Polat, Robert Frei, Fred J. Longstaffe, Ryan Woods

Earth Sciences Publications

The Neoarchean (ca. 2728 Ma) anorthosite-bearing Doré Lake Complex in the northeastern Abitibi subprovince, Quebec, was emplaced into an association of intra-oceanic tholeiitic basalts and gabbros known as the Obatogamau Formation. The Obatogamau Formation constitutes the lower part of the Roy Group, which is composed of two cycles of tholeiitic-to-calc-alkaline volcanic and volcaniclastic rocks, siliciclastic and chemical sedimentary rocks, and layered mafic-to-ultramafic sills. In this study, we report major and trace element results, and Nd, Sr, Pb and O isotope data for anorthosites, leucogabbros, gabbros and mafic dykes from the Doré Lake Complex and spatially associated basalts and gabbros of …


Origin Of Graphite In The Southwestern Grenville Province, Mehmet F. Taner, Cameron Drever, Chris Yakymhuk, Fred Longstaffe Jan 2017

Origin Of Graphite In The Southwestern Grenville Province, Mehmet F. Taner, Cameron Drever, Chris Yakymhuk, Fred Longstaffe

Earth Sciences Publications

Two graphite deposits in the southwestern Grenville Province are investigated to evaluate the origin of graphitic carbon and to test if the graphite mineralization is syngenetic or epigenetic. Graphite mineralization in the Bissett Creek deposit is characterized by homogeneously distributed and disseminated graphite flakes (approximately 1 to 5 mm in size and 2 to 10 vol.%) within graphitic gneisses. The graphite flakes are intergrown with metamorphic minerals, most notably biotite. The Montpellier graphite showing in Qu´ebec contains graphite concentrations of up to 20 vol.%. In contrast to the disseminated and homogenously distributed graphite in the Bissett Creek deposit, graphite mineralization …


Climatic Cycles Recorded In Glacially Influenced Rhythmites Of The Gowganda Formation, Huronian Supergroup, Tim S. Howe, Patricia L. Corcoran, Fred Longstaffe, Elizabeth A. Webb, R Gerhard Pratt Jan 2016

Climatic Cycles Recorded In Glacially Influenced Rhythmites Of The Gowganda Formation, Huronian Supergroup, Tim S. Howe, Patricia L. Corcoran, Fred Longstaffe, Elizabeth A. Webb, R Gerhard Pratt

Earth Sciences Publications

The Gowganda Formation of the 2.45–2.2 Ga Huronian Supergroup contains glacially-induced, varve-like rhythmites that potentially preserve a detailed record of climatic conditions during the Paleoproterozoic Era. Four rhythmic couplet thickness records were measured at two outcrops near Wharncliffe, Ontario for the purpose of time-series analysis. The couplets, which range from 1 to 32 mm thick, are composed of alternating layers of siltstone and claystone. Time-series analysis of the couplet thickness records using the MTM Toolkit of Mann and Lees (1996) consistently revealed periodicities in the range of 2.2–2.9 couplets per cycle, which is consistent with climatic cycles such as the …


A Brief Account Of New Petrographic And Isotopic Insights Into The Hertfordshire And Buckinghamshire Puddingstones Of Se England, Jennifer Huggett, Fred Longstaffe Jan 2016

A Brief Account Of New Petrographic And Isotopic Insights Into The Hertfordshire And Buckinghamshire Puddingstones Of Se England, Jennifer Huggett, Fred Longstaffe

Earth Sciences Publications

Determining the process of silicification in silcretes is essential to understanding their environmental significance. For the late Paleocene silcretes of the Anglo-Paris basin this is of particular interest due to their association with the PETM (Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum). Here puddingstone samples from Hertfordshire and Buckinghamshire have been examined by optical, BSEM and CL petrography, X-ray diffraction and oxygen isotope analysis. The range of quartz sand luminescence colours indicates a diverse provenance. Flint pebbles show little variability, consistent with a single source. The oxygen isotope compositional range of the flint pebbles is consistent with chemical sedimentation at normal temperatures from Cretaceous …


Formation Of The Neoarchean Bad Vermillion Lake Anorthosite Complex And Spatially Associated Granitic Rocks At A Convergent Plate Margin, Superior Province, Western Ontario, Canada, Shuda Zhou, Ali Polat, Fred Longstaffe, Kunguang Yang, Brian J. Fryer, Crhis Weisener Jan 2016

Formation Of The Neoarchean Bad Vermillion Lake Anorthosite Complex And Spatially Associated Granitic Rocks At A Convergent Plate Margin, Superior Province, Western Ontario, Canada, Shuda Zhou, Ali Polat, Fred Longstaffe, Kunguang Yang, Brian J. Fryer, Crhis Weisener

Earth Sciences Publications

The Bad Vermilion Lake Anorthosite Complex (henceforth, the BVLA Complex) in western Ontario is one of the well-exposed, anorthosite-bearing, Archean layered intrusions in the Superior Province, Canada. This study presents new whole-rock major and trace element data for the various units of the Complex, oxygen isotope data for the anorthosite, and major and trace element data for the spatially associated granitic rocks intruding the BVLA Complex to constrain their petrogenetic and geodynamic origin. Zircons from granitic rocks have yielded a 207Pb/206Pb age of 2716 ± 18 Ma, constraining the minimum intrusion age of the Complex. Despite deformation …


Microbially Induced Sedimentary Structures In The Paleoproterozoic, Upper Huronian Supergroup, Canada, Carolyn Hill, Patricia I. Corcoran, Rohan Aranha, Fred Longstaffe Jan 2016

Microbially Induced Sedimentary Structures In The Paleoproterozoic, Upper Huronian Supergroup, Canada, Carolyn Hill, Patricia I. Corcoran, Rohan Aranha, Fred Longstaffe

Earth Sciences Publications

The Paleoproterozoic Gordon Lake and Bar River formations, Huronian Supergroup, contain a variety of sedimentary structures in the Flack Lake area of Ontario, Canada, that have been considered of debatable origin. We identify these structures as microbially induced sedimentary structures (MISS). The preserved MISS are related to microbial mat destruction and decay, and include sand cracks, mat chips, remnant gas domes, pyrite patches, and iron laminae. A biological origin for the fossil structures is supported by their similarities to modern and ancient documented examples of MISS, the sand-dominated nature of the substrate in which they are preserved, and key microtextures …