Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Trace Element Analysis Of Quartz Grains In The Wah Wah Springs Tuff And Granodiorite Intrusion, Joel Barker, Dr. Eric Christiansen

Journal of Undergraduate Research

The Wah Wah Springs tuff and cogenetic granodiorite were part of the creation of the Indian Peak-Caliente Caldera Complex, which lies on the Nevada-Utah border (Skidmore, 2013). The complex formed during the middle Cenozoic (36-18 Ma) during an episode of explosive silicic activity (Best et al., 2013). Rollback of the subducting lithosphere likely caused the silicic activity, evidenced by the migration of magmatism southward (Best et al., 2013). The dehydration of the subducting oceanic lithosphere caused mafic magmas high in water to rise and fractionate in continental crust before eruption (Skidmore, 2013). Over twenty-four different ignimbrites have been found in …