Evaluating methods used for fission track dating of tephras: examples from the Afar Depression, Ethiopia, and the Denali fault zone, Alaska

Abstract:

Although fission track geochronology has been successfully used to date volcanic glasses and tephras in several studies, a variety of approaches have been used (see Westgate et al., 2013), and no consensus for a standardized methodology has emerged. As a result, this technique is rarely employed, despite having the potential to date tephras and glasses that cannot be dated by other methods, such as K-Ar dating. We have been evaluating the various approaches used to address the technical issues in fission track dating of tephras, by applying them to standards of known ages, including Moldavite tektite, and Huckleberry and Bishop Tuffs. Some of these issues include track etching and counting protocol, and corrections for the effects of track fading at low temperatures. Track etching is generally done in 24% HF for 75 or more seconds, but the time necessary for optimal etching appears to vary according to sample composition and grain size. To correct for track fading, we are using the diameter correction technique of Sandhu and Westgate (1995). We have obtained tephra samples from two regions, the Afar Depression in Ethiopia, an area with significant early hominid fossils, and the Denali fault zone in Alaska, an area with a complicated tectonic evolution. For both of these regions, we have samples that have been dated by other methods for calibration purposes, and we will explore the application of a Zeta correction to the technique. This underutilized technique can provide powerful constraints on studies of timing in diverse geologic environments.