Plume Tectonics and the Development of Stable Continental Crust

R. I. Hill; I. H. Campbell; R. W. Griffiths

doi:10.1071/EG991185

ISSN: 0812-3985
E-ISSN: 1834-7533

Plume Tectonics and the Development of Stable Continental Crust
Authors R. I. Hill^a, I. H. Campbell^a and R. W. Griffiths^a
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^a Research School of Earth SciencesThe Australian National University, G.P.O. Box 4 Canberra, ACT, 2601
Publisher: Australian Society of Exploration Geophysicists
Source: Exploration Geophysics, Volume 22, Issue 1, Mar 1991, p. 185 - 188
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1071/EG991185
- Published online: 01 Mar 1991

Abstract

The early phase of a new mantle plume may result in areas of basaltic volcanism and crustal reworking 1-2 × 10³ km across. Uplift of pre-existing continental crust by up to 800 metres may be sufficient to initiate large-scale tectonic processes, particularly extension. Conduction of heat from a hot plume layer emplaced into the uppermost mantle can result in considerable anatectic reworking of pre-existing continental crust, and in the formation of a granitic upper crust; the Late Archaean reworking of the eastern Yilgarn Block of Western Australia, most of which occurred over a relatively brief time interval 2660-2690 Ma ago, provides a possible example. The magmatic development, and time and length scales inherent in plume-initiated continental reworking are similar for postulated ancient and modern examples, and it is inferred that plume-initiated magmatism and tectonics may play an important role in the development of internally differentiated continental crust.

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References

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Article Type: Research Article

Keyword(s): crustal; crustal evolution; mantle plumes; structure

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Plume Tectonics and the Development of Stable Continental Crust

Abstract

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