Magmas, Mushes and Mobility: Thermal Histories of Magma Reservoirs from Combined U-Series and Diffusion Ages

Abstract:

The thermal conditions of magma storage control many aspects of the dynamics of a magma reservoir system. For example, the temperature of magma storage directly relates to the crystallinity, and magmas stored at relatively low temperatures in a crystal mush (more than 40-50% crystalline) must be remobilized (e.g., by heating) before they can be erupted. A better understanding of the duration of magma storage at largely-liquid vs. largely-solid conditions is thus critical to understanding crustal magmatic processes such as magma mixing and for quantifying the hazard potential of a given volcano. Although mineral thermometry reflects the conditions of crystal growth or equilibration, these may not correspond to the thermal conditions of crystal storage. The duration of crystal storage at high temperatures can be quantified by comparing U-series crystal ages with the time scales over which disequilibrium trace-element profiles in the same crystals would be erased by diffusion. In the case of Mount Hood, OR, such a comparison for the two most recent eruptions shows that <12% of the total lifetime of plagioclase crystals (minimum 21 kyr) was spent at temperatures high enough that the magma would be easily mobilized. Partial data sets for other systems suggest such behavior is common, although the diffusion and U-series ages in these cases are from different samples and may not be directly comparable. We will present preliminary data combining U-series dating and diffusion timescales on the same samples for other volcanic systems (e.g., Lassen Volcanic Center, Mount St. Helens, Okataina Volcanic Center, New Zealand). Combining these data with numerical models offers additional insights into the controls on the conditions of storage. In addition, extension of this approach to combining U-Th ages with time scales of Li diffusion in zircon offers a promising new method to quantify thermal histories of silicic reservoir systems.