Groundmass Crystallinities of Proximal and Distal Lavas from Cinder Cone, Lassen Volcanic Field

Abstract:

Cinder Cone is located in the northeast corner of Lassen Volcanic Center, approximately 35 km southeast of Old Station, California. The area consists of a cinder cone constructed of loose scoria, lava flows and a 13-16 km diameter ash deposit. According to radiocarbon ages from trees affected by the lava flows and paleomagnetic data, Cinder Cone erupted in about 1650 AD (1). The youngest products of the Cinder Cone eruption are two Fantastic Lava Beds flows which are basaltic andesite and andesite with olivine (1). Samples were collected along the longest flow from Cinder Cone, the Fantastic Lava Beds Flow 2 (4.5 km) at approximately 0.5 km interval. The samples contain olivine, plagioclase and clinopyroxene phenocrysts in fine grained groundmass with varying vesicularity. Quartz xenocrysts also occur. SEM-Back Scatter Electron images are used to map and quantify groundmass crystallinities along the length of the Fantastic Lava Beds flow 2 and of tephra units. The average area of groundmass plagioclase crystals increases along the length of the lava flow from 94.7 to 292.6 µm². The number of groundmass plagioclase crystals per area (µm²) decreases from 0.0045 to 0.0018 from proximal to distal samples. Crystals also become blockier in distal samples along the lava flow. The larger number of crystals per area in near vent samples establishes a baseline from which we interpret crystal growth and nucleation to have occurred in the flow channel. Increasing crystal size and a decrease in the number of crystals per area indicates growth dominated nucleation during cooling and crystallization in the flow channel. Relative cooling rates along the length of the flow from proximal to distal samples can be inferred based on groundmass crystallinities, distance travelled and estimates of flow and crystallization rates. (1) Muffler and Clynne, 2015.