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Simulation of Early Earth Hydrothermal Chimneys in a Thermal Gradient Environment
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Fault-controlled deep hydrothermal flow in a back-arc tectonic setting, SE Tyrrhenian Sea
Maria Filomena Loreto1, Doğa Düşünür-Doğan2, Serkan Üner2
1Istituto di Scienze Marine, CNR, Via P. Gobetti 101, 40129, Bologna, Italy. filomena.loreto@bo.ismar.cnr.it.
Scientific Reports
|November 29, 2019
Summary
Deep hydrothermal circulation beneath arc-volcanoes, like the Capo Vaticano Ridge, is driven by magmatic intrusions and fault patterns. This circulation influences geothermal gradients and fluid discharge, offering insights into subduction zone processes.
Area of Science:
- Geophysics
- Volcanology
- Hydrogeology
Background:
- Understanding magmatic systems and deep hydrothermal circulation beneath arc-volcanoes is crucial for deciphering slab-subduction and mantle-wedge partial melting processes.
- The Capo Vaticano Ridge (CVR) offshore western Calabria is an ideal location to study these phenomena due to its geological setting.
Purpose of the Study:
- To analyze hydrothermal flow beneath the CVR, focusing on its interaction with magmatic intrusions.
- To investigate the factors controlling fluid circulation and their implications for subduction zone dynamics.
Main Methods:
- Combined geophysical data analysis with numerical fluid-flow modeling.
- Interpreted magnetic anomalies and seismic data to infer magmatic intrusions and slab presence.
- Analyzed fluid geochemistry (δ³He enrichment) to identify magmatic fluid sources.
Main Results:
- Hydrothermal circulation is the primary control on temperature distribution and geothermal gradient, influenced by heat sources, faults, permeability, topography, and sediment thickness.
- Two major faults facilitate deep hydrothermal circulation and shallow fluid discharge at the CVR.
- Seismicity patterns support the presence of a deep subducting slab, enabling mantle-wedge partial melting and shallow melt migration.
Conclusions:
- Magmatic intrusions beneath the CVR are linked to melt migration from the mantle wedge above the Ionian subducting slab.
- The study provides new insights into arc-related magmatism in the southern Tyrrhenian Sea.
- The Calabrian inner-arc tectonic setting, characterized by seismogenic faults, is further elucidated, highlighting potential earthquake hazards.
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