Geochemistry of the upper Snooks Arm Group basalts, Burlington Peninsula, Newfoundland: evidence against formation in an island arc
The Snooks Arm Group of the Newfoundland Appalachians, which includes the Betts Cove ophiolite at its base, has been interpreted as oceanic crust overlain by island arc volcanic and sedimentary rocks. The limited geochemical data available on the upper Snooks Arm Group basalts have been used as evid...
| Published in: | Canadian Journal of Earth Sciences |
|---|---|
| Main Authors: | , |
| Format: | Article in Journal/Newspaper |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Canadian Science Publishing
1980
|
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://dx.doi.org/10.1139/e80-087 http://www.nrcresearchpress.com/doi/pdf/10.1139/e80-087 |
| Summary: | The Snooks Arm Group of the Newfoundland Appalachians, which includes the Betts Cove ophiolite at its base, has been interpreted as oceanic crust overlain by island arc volcanic and sedimentary rocks. The limited geochemical data available on the upper Snooks Arm Group basalts have been used as evidence for and against their formation in an island arc environment.Reinvestigation of the chemistry of the basaltic rocks of the upper Snooks Arm Group establishes them as large ion lithophile enriched tholeiites. Similar basalts have been found in oceanic islands, on aseismic ridges, and possibly in back-arc basins. Chemically analogous rocks are notably lacking from island arc settings.The geochemistry and geology of the upper Snooks Arm Group suggest that these rocks may have formed in either an oceanic island setting or, as recently suggested by Upadhyay and Neale, as part of a marginal basin. It is not possible to distinguish between these alternate models, although the most similar basaltic rocks occur in the former environment. It is most unlikely that these rocks formed in an early island arc setting and indeed there may be no need for them to be associated with a major subduction zone. |
|---|