Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Elsevier
Résumé : International audience
During the last decade, the interaction of deep processes in the lithosphere and mantle with surface processes (erosion, climate, sea-level, subsidence, glacio-isostatic readjustment) has been the subject of heated discussion. The use of a multidisciplinary approach linking geology, geophysics, geodesy, modelling, and geotechnology has led to the awareness of coupled deep and surface processes. Deep earth dynamics (topography, erosion, tectonics) are strongly connected to natural hazards such as earthquakes, landslides, and tsunamis; sedimentary mass transfers have important consequences on isostatic movements and on georesources, geothermal energy repartitions. The ability to read and understand the link between deep Earth dynamics and surface processes has therefore important societal impacts. Ground-truthing at carefully-selected sites of investigation is imperative to better understand these connections.Due to its youth (<30 Ma) and its subsidence history, the almost land-locked Gulf of Lion–Sardinia continental margins system provides a unique record of sedimentary deposition from the Miocene to present. Due to its high subsidence rate, palaeoclimatic variations, tectonic events and vertical evolution are all recorded here at very high resolution. The late Miocene isolation and desiccation of the Mediterranean, the youngest and most catastrophic event, the Messinian Salinity Crisis (MSC), induced drastic changes in marine environments: widespread deposition of evaporite (gypsum, anhydrite and halite) in the central basin, and intense subaerial erosion along its periphery. These extraordinary mass transfers from land to sea induced strong isostatic re-adjustments that are archived in the sedimentary record and represent a window to the lithospheric rheology and the deep processes.The GOLD (Gulf of Lion Drilling) project, proposes to explore this unique sedimentary record as well as the nature of the deep crustal structure, providing valuable information about the mechanisms underlying vertical motions in basins and their margins.
ISSN: 0264-8172

insu-01197393
https://hal-insu.archives-ouvertes.fr/insu-01197393
https://hal-insu.archives-ouvertes.fr/insu-01197393/document
https://hal-insu.archives-ouvertes.fr/insu-01197393/file/Rabineau%20et%20al.-final-MPG2014_REVISED-FINAL-No-Marked_FINAL%2BFigures.pdf
DOI : 10.1016/j.marpetgeo.2015.03.018

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Elsevier
Résumé : International audience
The Demerara plateau, located offshore French Guiana and Suriname, is part of a passive transform continental margin particularly prone to develop slope instabilities, probably in relation to the presence of a free distal border along its steep continental slope. Slope failure occurred at different periods (Cretaceous to Neogene) and shows an overall retrogressive evolution through time. Upslope these failure headscarp, an enigmatic regional Mio-Pliocene unconformity has been discovered through the interpretation of new academic and industrial datasets. The aim of this work is to describe and understand the origin of this surface. Our analysis shows that this unconformity is made of a series of valleys that cross-cut sedimentary strata. Each one of these valleys has a short lateral extent and is closed along two perpendicular directions, which suggests that it could correspond to a highly meandering system, or to some sub-circular depressions. The infill of these features is equivalent to the regional stratigraphic strata found outside the structures, but in a subdued position. This seems to imply that the structures have originated by a local loss of sediments at their base or by sliding processes. Furthermore, these depressions intersect each other through time, while migrating progressively downslope.We discuss a series of hypotheses that try to explain the onset and evolution of these depressions forming the Mio-Pliocene unconformity (Canyons? Slope failures? Contourite moats? Hydrate pockmarks?). Having established that these structures are depressions formed by collapse, and have many similarities with structures recently described in the literature as pockmarks associated with gas hydrate dissolution, we favor this hypothesis.We propose that these hydrate pockmarks form with a mass failure that was triggered by fluid-overpressure development at the base of the hydrate stability zone.
ISSN: 0025-3227

hal-01365920
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01365920
DOI : 10.1016/j.margeo.2015.04.001

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Elsevier
Résumé : International audience
CMAS 3D, developed in MATLAB (R), is a program to support visualization of major element chemical data in three dimensions. Such projections are used to discuss correlations, metamorphic reactions and the chemical evolution of rocks, melts or minerals. It can also project data into 2D plots. The CMAS 3D interface makes it easy to use, and does not require any knowledge of Matlab (R) programming. CMAS 3D uses data compiled in a Microsoft Excel (TM) spreadsheet. Although useful for scientific research, the program is also a powerful tool for teaching.
ISSN: 0098-3004

hal-00413570
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-00413570
DOI : 10.1016/j.cageo.2008.07.002

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Société géologique de France
Résumé : National audience
Late Triassic submarine alkali basalts and hawaiites were collected from two superimposed tectonic slices belonging to the Kara Dere – Sayrun unit of the Middle Antalya nappes, southwestern Turkey. New determinations on conodont faunas allow to date this sequence to the Lower Carnian (Julian). The volcanic rocks show rather homogeneous compositions, with high TiO2 and relatively low MgO and Ni contents which suggest olivine fractionation. Their primitive mantle-normalised multi-elements plots show Nb and Ta enrichments relative to La, Pb negative anomalies and heavy rare earth element and Y depletions typical of intraplate ocean island basalts. These characteristics are consistent with the major and trace element compositions of their primary clinopyroxene phenocrysts, which do not show any feature ascribable to crustal contamination. The studied lavas display a restricted range of {varepsilon}Nd (+4.6 to +5.2) which falls within the range of ocean island basalts. Their initial (143Nd/144Nd)i ratios are too low to be explained by a simple mixing line between depleted MORB mantle (DMM) and HIMU components. Their Pb and Nd isotopic compositions plot along a mixing line between HIMU component and an enriched mantle, the composition of which could be the result of the addition of about 5 to 8% of an EM2 component (recycled marine sediments) to DMM. The lack of evidence for any continental crustal component in their genesis could be consistent with their emplacement in an intra-oceanic setting.
EISSN: 1777-5817

insu-00338829
https://hal-insu.archives-ouvertes.fr/insu-00338829
DOI : 10.2113/gssgfbull.179.4.397

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD
Résumé : International audience
We present a chronological (K-Ar), petrologic and geochemical study (major and trace elements, Sr-Nd isotopes) of Middle Miocene (ca. 16-14 Ma) calc-alkaline rocks (basalts to andesites) extruded in the present-day back-arc region of Central Patagonia (Zeballos Volcanic Sequence (ZVS), 47 S). This magmatism started shortly after mafic plutonism ceased in the arc region (ca. 16 Ma, 200 km west), and ended ca. 2 My before the onset of voluminous slab tear-related back-arc alkaline basaltic magmatism (ca. 12 to Pliocene). The studied calc-alkaline rocks have a typical subduction-related signature (high LILE/HFSE ratios, depletion in Nb, Ta and Ti; Ba/La >20; Ta/Hf <1.5; (Sr-87/Sr-86)(o)=0.70366-0.70402, epsilon(Nd)=+0.1-+3.8). Major and trace elements contents are consistent with their evolution by closed system fractional crystallization of a presumed parental liquid similar in composition to the most basic rock of the suite. Moreover, a strong subducted sediment imprint is recognized (increasing Th/HFSE and decreasing Ce/Pb during differentiation). However, these rocks show striking similarities with volcanic complexes emplaced above areas where a gently dipping slab occurs (high K contents; similar LREE/HREE, Nb/Zr, Ba/Nb; Th/Hf; Th/Ta, Ta/Hf<0.3), particularly the present-day Andean flat-slab region and the Neuquen Basin during the Late Miocene. A comprehensive tectono-magmatic model is here presented to explain the generation and extrusion of these calc-alkaline magmas during the Middle Miocene. The development of a transient low-angle subduction and the resulting eastward migration of the volcanic front are then proposed. Mixing between stored remnants of calc-alkaline magmatism and later primitive alkaline melts is envisioned as the most likely process accounting for the transitional signature (i.e., intermediate between calc-alkaline and alkaline, La/Nb >I; TiO2 <2 wt%) of some basalts extruded synchronously with genuine alkaline lavas in the Neogene Patagonian Plateau Lavas province.
Volcanismo calcoalcalino durante el Mioceno Medio en Patogonia Central (47°S): petrogenesis e implicaciones en la dinamica de placas. En este trabajo se presenta un estudio cronologico (K-Ar), petrologico y geoquimico (elementos mayores y trazas, isotopos de Sr-Nd) de rocas calcoalcalinas (basaltos a andesitas) del Mioceno Medio (16-14 Ma) que ocurren en una posicion de trasarco en Patagonia Central (47°S; Secuencia Volcanica Zeballos, SVZ). Este magmatismo comenzo poco despees de que el plutonismo mafico cesara en la region bajo el arco (ca. 16 Ma, 200 km al oeste), y termino ca. 2 My antes del comienzo de un voluminoso evento magmatico basaltico alcalino desarrollado en el trasarco, relacionado con ventanas astenosfericas, que continuo hasta el Pleistoceno. Las rocas calcoalcalinas estudiadas tienen una quimica tipicamente relacionada con procesos de subduccion (altas razones LILE/HFSE, empobrecimientos en Nb, Ta y Ti; Ba/La>20; Ta/Hf l,5; (87Sr/86Sr)0=0,70366-0,70402, End~O,1±3,8); y sus contenidos de elementos mayores y trazas son consistentes con una evolucion por cristalizacion fraccionada, en un sistema cerrado, desde un liquido parental de composicion similar a la de la roca mas basica del conjunto analizado. Se reconoce, ademas, la influencia de sedimentos subductados en la composicion de estos magmas (aumento de la razon Tb/HFSE y disminucion de la razon Ce/Pb durante la diferenciacion). Sin embargo, estas rocas muestran importantes similitudes composicionales con las de complejos volcanicos emplazados sobre areas donde ocurre subduccion de bajo angulo (altos contenidos de K, similares razones LREF/HREE, Nb/Zr, Ba/Nb; TblHf; TblTa, Ta/Hf O,3), particularmente rocas de la actual region de subduccion plana en Chile central-Argentina y de la cuenca de Neuquen durante el Mioceno Superior. Se propone aqui un modelo tectono-magmatico que explica la generacion y extension de magmas calcoalcalinos en una posicion de trasarco durante el Mioceno Medio en Patagonia mediante el desarrollo de un fenomeno transiente de subduccion de bajo angulo y el consiguiente desplazamiento hacia el este del frente volcanico. Ademas, la mezcla entre remanentes de este magmatismo calcoalcalino almacenados en la corteza y fundidos alcalinos posteriores, provenientes de la astenosfera, se presenta como el proceso responsable de la generacion de la signatura transicional (i.e., intermedia entre calcoalcalina y alcalina, La/Nb>1; TiO2 2 wt%) reconocida en algunos basaltos que ocurren contemporaneamente con otros puramente alcalinos en la provincia de las Lavas Neogenas de Plateau de la Patagonia.
ANDEAN GEOLOGY

insu-00561888
https://hal-insu.archives-ouvertes.fr/insu-00561888
DOI : 10.5027/andgeo2010-678

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD American Geophysical Union
Résumé : International audience
After the January 12, 2010, Haiti earthquake, we deployed a mainly offshore temporary network of seismologic stations around the damaged area. The distribution of the recorded aftershocks, together with morphotectonic observations and mainshock analysis, allow us to constrain a complex fault pattern in the area. Almost all of the aftershocks have a N‐S compressive mechanism, and not the expected left‐lateral strike‐slip mechanism. A first‐order slip model of the mainshock shows a N264°E north‐dipping plane, with a major left‐lateral component and a strong reverse component. As the aftershock distribution is sub‐parallel and close to the Enriquillo fault, we assume that although the cause of the catastrophe was not a rupture along the Enriquillo fault, this fault had an important role as a mechanical boundary. The azimuth of the focal planes of the aftershocks are parallel to the north‐dipping faults of the Transhaitian Belt, which suggests a triggering of failure on these discontinuities. In the western part, the aftershock distribution reflects the triggering of slip on similar faults, and/or, alternatively, of the south‐dipping faults, such the Trois‐Baies submarine fault. These observations are in agreement with a model of an oblique collision of an indenter of the oceanic crust of the Southern Peninsula and the sedimentary wedge of the Transhaitian Belt: the rupture occurred on a wrench fault at the rheologic boundary on top of the under‐thrusting rigid oceanic block, whereas the aftershocks were the result of the relaxation on the hanging wall along pre‐existing discontinuities in the frontal part of the Transhaitian Belt.
ISSN: 0094-8276

insu-00643489
https://hal-insu.archives-ouvertes.fr/insu-00643489
https://hal-insu.archives-ouvertes.fr/insu-00643489/document
https://hal-insu.archives-ouvertes.fr/insu-00643489/file/GRL-haiti.2011.pdf
DOI : 10.1029/2011GL049799

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Société géologique de France
Résumé : International audience
The Messinian salinity crisis (MSC) is characterized by gigantic erosion that remodels the margins while a thick, essentially evaporitic and detrital, sedimentary sequence forms in the deep basins. Based on recent (MAURESC, 2003) and earlier (MESEA 1, 1990; MAGIRAA, 1996; GEOBREST, 2002) seismic reflection data, this work brings to light the record of the MSC on the Provençal margin, which has until now been rarely explored from this perspective. Beyond its strictly regional interest, this study fits into a larger synthesis of MSC seismic markers in the Mediterranean and Black Sea marine domain [Lofi et al., 2011] and employs the new nomenclature established on this occasion. The results obtained reveal a Messinian detrital body (CU unit) of 625 metres maximum thickness at the foot of the margin, accumulating at the mouths of the principal canyons. Its form, facies and extension assimilate it to clastic fans, fed by subaerial erosion linked to the MSC. The relative geometry of CU and the Messinian units MU and UU deposited in the deep basin give indications to their chronostratigraphic relations. The deposition of the CU unit is posterior to the basal part of the mobile unit consisting of halite (MU), but contemporary to its top. These results agree with the recent scenarii, which propose that the precipitation of MU in the basin began early, during the lowering of the sea level, and ended at a low level during the MSC [Blanc, 2000; Martin et al., 2001; Sage et al., 2005; Ryan, 2009]. The UU unit surmounts MU and is subdivided into two sub-units with perceptibly different seismic facies : UU1 at the base and UU2 at the summit. UU1 could correspond to a unit containing more halite and/or more clastic material than UU2. The UU1 sub-unit could be partially contemporary to the CU unit. Concerning salt tectonics and its markers, three structural provinces have been evidenced in the sector of study, respectively : an upslope domain in extension (normal faults), an intermediary domain in translation (tabular MU) and a downslope domain in contraction (salt diapirs). These domains are directly linked to the gravity spreading and/or gliding of the brittle sedimentary cover formed by the CU, UU and Plio-Quatenary units and of the mobile level, MU. In the study area, a close relation between the distribution and thickness of CU and salt tectonics has additionally been evidenced at the mouths of the large Messinian canyons, being best expressed where CU is thick.
EISSN: 1777-5817

hal-00622998
https://hal-brgm.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-00622998
DOI : 10.2113/gssgfbull.182.2.181

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Wiley-Blackwell
Résumé : International audience
Recent field work and review of radiometric data obtained from Neogene lavas and plutonic rocks exposed in the Eastern Central Patagonian Cordillera (46–48ºS), which overlie subducted segments of the South Chile Ridge, suggest important Late Miocene to Pleistocene morphological changes in relation to base level variations and/or tectonic events. We present new field observations from a region south of Lago General Carrera-Buenos Aires, between the main Cordillera and the Meseta del Lago Buenos Aires, demonstrating that normal faulting controlled valley incisions and occurred during lava emplacement at 5–4 Ma and after 3 Ma. We also show that the 12 Ma basaltic flows of the Meseta del Lago Buenos Aires (~2000 m a.s.l.) have been subjected to deep incision, with younger lavas dated at 1.2 Ma partially filling the valleys. These incisions are thought to reflect progressive eastward tilting of the entire meseta. Our new observations, together with additional features from Central Patagonia, strongly suggest that tectonic events led to a regional widespread morphological change after 5 Ma. The coincidence in time and space between the subduction of segments of the South Chile Ridge at 6 and 3 Ma causing opening of a slab window, and strong base level variations in the studied area, suggests a cause-and-effect relationship. In Central Patagonia, compressional tectonics ended well before extensional events reported here. Causes of uplift and further extension are probably completely disconnected. The uplift is purely tectonic in origin and occurred prior to the subduction of the South Chile Ridge. Extension should be a consequence of this subduction.
ISSN: 0954-4879

insu-00272075
https://hal-insu.archives-ouvertes.fr/insu-00272075
DOI : 10.1111/j.1365-3121.2007.00766.x

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Elsevier
Résumé : International audience
The Gibraltar arc, spans a complex portion of the Africa-Eurasia plate boundary marked by slow oblique convergence and intermediate and deep focus seismicity. The seemingly contradictory observations of a young extensional marine basin surrounded by an arcuate fold-and-thrust belt, have led to competing geodynamic models (delamination and subduction). Geophysical data acquired in the past decade provide a test for these models and support a narrow east-dipping, subduction zone. Seismic refraction studies indicate oceanic crust below the western Gulf of Cadiz. Tomography of the upper mantle reveals a steep, east-dipping high P-wave velocity body, beneath Gibraltar. The anisotropic mantle fabric from SKS splitting shows arc-parallel "fast directions", consistent with toroidal flow around a narrow, westward retreating subducting slab. The accompanying WSW advance of the Rif-Betic mountain belt has constructed a thick pile of deformed sediments, an accretionary wedge, characterized by west-vergent thrust anticlines. Bathymetric swath‐mapping images an asymmetric embayment at the deformation front where a 2 km high basement ridge has collided. Subduction has slowed significantly since 5 Ma, but deformation of recent sediments and abundant mud volcanoes suggest ongoing activity in the accretionary wedge. Three possible origins for this deformation are discussed; gravitational spreading, overall NW-SE convergence between Africa and Iberia and finally a WSW tectonic push from slow, but ongoing roll-back subduction. In the absence of arc volcanism and shallow dipping thrust type earthquakes, evidence in favor of present-day subduction can only be indirect and remains the object of debate. Continued activity of the subduction offers a possible explanation for great (M > 8.5) earthquakes known to affect the area, like the famous 1755 Great Lisbon earthquake. Recent GPS studies show SW motion of stations in N Morocco at velocities of 3-6 mm/yr indicating the presence of an independent block, a "Rif-Betic-Alboran" microplate, situated between Iberia and Africa.
ISSN: 0040-1951

insu-00769762
https://hal-insu.archives-ouvertes.fr/insu-00769762
DOI : 10.1016/j.tecto.2012.08.038

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Elsevier
Résumé : International audience
The barrier reef tract of New Caledonia is the second largest in the world enclosing lagoons of variable width. The Late Quaternary evolution of these barrier reefs and lagoons is poorly known. A recent high resolution seismic and multibeam bathymetry survey was carried out in the south-western lagoon from shoreline to open ocean across the barrier reef pass systems to perform sequence stratigraphy and to better understand the Quaternary evolution of the lagoon. Two depositional sequences bounded by type-1 erosional surfaces can be identified. The bounding surfaces delineate the bottom of two generations of incised valleys. System tracts comprising a complete succession of regressive, lowstand, transgressive and highstand tracts were observed only in the upper sequence. Chronostratigraphic and sedimentological interpretations of the seismic data are based on correlations with the chronology defined in the nearby cores drilled through the reefs and in the gravity cores previously recovered in the inner lagoon. Interpretation of seismic data is also carried out on the basis of correlation with multibeam bathymetric data. Our results indicate that the history of the New Caledonian lagoon probably does not exceed 200ka marked by two or three brief episodes each of immersion of about ten thousand years. The bathymetric data reveal that during successive low sea level stands, the lagoon was dependent upon erosional fluvial networks. The deep fluvial valleys were connected to the continental slope through the passes. Seismic records reveal that upstream palaeo-channels are not connected to the modern coastal rivers. In contrast, many aggrading deposits, including numerous stacking channels, and extending across the proximal part of the outer lagoon, can be identified. Examination of drainage network morphology suggests a progressive tilt of the outer lagoon. Such evolution reveals that the Nouméa lagoon which is one of the widest in the world is an exceptional modern example of a rimmed shelf providing data to analyze the past counterparts.
ISSN: 0031-0182

insu-00338953
https://hal-insu.archives-ouvertes.fr/insu-00338953
DOI : 10.1016/j.palaeo.2008.08.012

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Elsevier
Résumé : International audience
We report preliminary results of a seismological experiment, SEISMOTANZ'07, which consisted in the deployment of a local network (35 stations) in the East African Rift System (EARS), North Tanzania, during 6 months in 2007. We compare two earthquake sequences (Gelai and Manyara) occurring respectively in the southern end of the Kenya rift and in the North Tanzanian Divergence (NTD). Only distant of 150 km, their triggering mechanisms are different. None of the sequences depicts typical swarm or mainshock-aftershock patterns. They highlight the change in the magmatic/tectonic nature of the rift where the eastern branch of the EARS enters the Tanzanian craton. The similar shape and long-axis of the elongate sequences emphasize the preferred locus of active strain release along NE-SW discontinuities which probably root at depth into steep Proterozoic shear zones. At Gelai, the deformation is dominated by aseismic process involving slow slip on normal fault and dyke intrusion within the upper crust Calais_et_al_2008. The spatial and temporal earthquake distribution indicates a possible correlation between the Gelai crisis and the eruption of the nearby Oldoinyo Lengai volcano. At Manyara, the sequence is more uncommon, revealing a long-lasting seismic activity deepely rooted (20-35 km depth) possibly related to stress loading transmitted laterally. The yield stress envelope modelled from the depth frequency distribution of earthquakes in the NTD is consistent with the presence of a mafic lower crust and further supports the strength increase of the rifted crust from south Kenya to the NTD.
ISSN: 0899-5362

hal-00420599
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-00420599
DOI : 10.1016/j.jafrearsci.2009.09.005

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Elsevier
Résumé : International audience
The Gulf of Cadiz spans the plate boundary between Africa and Eurasia west of the Betic–Rif mountain belt. A narrow east dipping subduction zone descends beneath the Gulf of Cadiz and the straits of Gibraltar. The deep crustal structure of the Gulf and the adjacent SW Iberian and Moroccan margins is constrained by numerous multi-channel seismic reflection and wide-angle seismic surveys. A compilation of these existing studies is presented in the form of depth to basement, sediment thickness, depth to Moho and crustal thickness maps. These structural maps image an E–W trending trough, with thin (< 10 km) crust beneath the Gulf of Cadiz. This trough is filled by an eastward thickening wedge of sediments, reaching a thickness of 10–15 km in the eastern Gulf. These sediments are tectonically deformed, primarily along a series of westward-vergent thrust faults and represent a 200–250 km wide accretionary wedge. The northern and especially the southern limits of the accretionary wedge are marked by sharp morphological lineaments showing evidence of recent deformation. These tectonic limits are situated in an internal position with respect to the Miocene deformation front (external Betic and Rif allocthons), which has been abandoned. At the western boundary of the accretionary wedge, near the adjacent Seine and Horseshoe abyssal plains, an E–W trending basement high (Coral Patch Ridge) can be seen indenting the deformation front in an asymmetric manner. Analog modeling is performed using granular materials accreted against a semicircular backstop (representing the basement of the Rif and Betic mountain belts). The modeling initially produces a symmetric, arcuate accretionary wedge. The ensuing collision of an oblique rigid indenter retards accretion on one side, resulting in an embayment and a locally steeper deformation front. The deformation pattern observed in morphology and high-resolution seismic profiles suggests the accretionary wedge and underlying subduction system is still active. The implications of active subduction for the source region of the 1755 Lisbon earthquake and the regional seismic hazard assessment are discussed.
ISSN: 0040-1951

hal-00424922
http://hal.univ-brest.fr/hal-00424922
http://hal.univ-brest.fr/hal-00424922/document
http://hal.univ-brest.fr/hal-00424922/file/Gutscher_09Tphys_rev.pdf
DOI : 10.1016/j.tecto.2008.11.031

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Société géologique de France
Résumé : National audience
The late Lower to Middle Permian Panjal Traps (NW Himalaya, India-Pakistan) represent the greatest magmatic province erupted on the northern Indian platform during the Neotethys opening. New geochemical and isotopic analyses were performed on basalts from the eastern borders of the traps (SE Zanskar-NW Spiti area) in order to characterize this volcanism, to discuss its compositional variations in comparison to Panjal counterparts and its relationships with the opening of Neotethys. Lavas show features of tholeiitic low-Ti (< 1.6%) continental flood basalts with LREE, Th enrichments and Nb-Ta negative anomalies. Trace element ratios combined with {varepsilon}Ndi values (–3.6 to +0.9) and high Pb isotopic ratios suggest that these tholeiitic basalts were derived from an OIB-like mantle contaminated at various degrees by a continental crust component. Previous geochemical features are broadly similar to those of the coeval Panjal volcanic sequences identified westwards (Ladakh, Kashmir and Pakistan). Present geochemical constraints obtained for the Panjal Traps basalts suggest they originated from rapid effusion of tholeiitic melts during opening of the Neotethys Ocean. Similar magmatism implying an OIB-type reservoir is contemporaneously recognized on and along the adjacent Arabian platform. Both Indian and Arabian Permian volcanics were emplaced during coeval syn-rift to post rift transition. These Lower to Middle Permian south Neotethyan continental flood magmatism are regarded as associated to a passive rifting. In this scheme, OIB-type isotopic signature would be related either to a melting episode of syn-rift up-welling mantle plumes or to a melting of a regional abnormally hot and enriched mantle.
EISSN: 1777-5817

insu-00338862
https://hal-insu.archives-ouvertes.fr/insu-00338862
DOI : 10.2113/gssgfbull.179.4.383

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Elsevier
Résumé : International audience
Intraplate deformation is most often linked to major stress applied on plate margins. When such intraplate events are accompanied by magmatism, the use of several dating methods integrated within a multidisciplinary approach can bring constraints on the age, nature and source mobilized for generating the magma and in turn on the nature of the intraplate deformation. This study focuses on the large gabbro Arrikine sill (35 km in extension) emplaced within the Silurian sediments of the western margin of the Murzuq cratonic basin in southeastern Algeria. Its emplacement is dated during the early Devonian (415-400 Ma) through the determination of a reliable paleomagnetic pole by comparison with the Gondwana Apparent Polar Wander Path (APWP). This age can be correlated with deep phreatic eruptions before Pragian time thought to be at the origin of sand injections and associated circular structures in Algeria and Libya. For the sill, the K–Ar age of 325.6 ± 7.7 Ma is related to a K-rich aplitic phase that has K-enriched by more than 20% the Devonian gabbro. Laser-ICP-MS U–Pb method dates only inherited zircons mostly at c. 2030 Ma with additional ages at c. 2700 Ma and younger ones in the 766-598 Ma age range. The Arrikine sill is a high-Ti alkaline gabbro having the geochemical composition of a hawaiite akin to several intraplate continental and oceanic provinces, including the contemporaneous Aïr ring complexes province in Niger, but also to the Mauna Loa volcano in Hawaii. This peculiar composition akin to that of the contemporaneous Aïr province is in agreement with a lower Devonian age for the Arrikine sill.The lower Devonian Arrikine sill emplacement is related to a “Caledonian” transtensive reactivation of the western metacratonic boundary of the Murzuq craton. This event also generated in the Saharan platform the so-called “Caledonian unconformity” of regional extension, the Aïr ring complexes and magmatic rocks that produced sand injections. It could be related to rifting of the Hun terranes that occurred at the plate margin to the north (Stampfli and Borel, 2002, Blackey, 2008 and references therein). The mid-Carboniferous (c. 326 Ma) reactivation corresponds to Variscan compression on NW Africa generating aplitic fluids, but also to the major “Hercynian unconformity” of regional extension. The generation of the Arrikine magma is attributed to partial melting through adiabatic pressure release of uprising asthenosphere along tectonically reactivated mega-shear zones, here bordering the relictual Murzuq craton enclosed in the Saharan metacraton.
ISSN: 0899-5362

hal-01306637
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01306637
DOI : 10.1016/j.jafrearsci.2015.11.019

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Elsevier
Résumé : International audience
This study presents new geochemical data on 26 mafic lavas from the Middle Atlas and Central Morocco volcanic provinces, including Miocene nephelinites and Pliocene-Quaternary (3.9-0.6Ma) nephelinites, basanites, alkali and subalkaline basalts. Most of them represent near-primary magmas, although some alkali basalts were derived from the minor fractionation of olivine and diopside phenocrysts. These evolved samples and the subalkaline basalt display higher 207Pb/204Pb and Zr/Nb ratios and lower εNd consistent with their contamination by lower crustal granulites during an open fractionation process. The progressive enrichment in incompatible elements observed from alkali basalts to nephelinites suggests their derivation from decreasing partial melting degrees of an enriched mantle source located at the garnet-spinel transition zone. The strong negative spikes observed for K in multielement patterns indicate that this source contained a residual pargasitic amphibole. We propose that partial melting occurred at around 2GPa, i.e. near the lithosphere-asthenosphere boundary beneath the Middle Atlas (60-80km).The trace element and isotopic Sr-Nd-Pb-Hf signature of the uncontaminated lavas displays a geochemical flavour intermediate between those of high μ (HIMU), "C", and enriched mantle components. It is very similar to that of abundant metasomatic amphibole- and clinopyroxene-rich lithospheric peridotites and pyroxenites carried by Middle Atlas lavas, which likely represent an analog of the source of these lavas. It is therefore not necessary to postulate the contribution of a "fresh" asthenospheric mantle to their genesis. We propose that they resulted from the partial melting of the base of a veined lithospheric mantle metasomatised during the late Cretaceous by alkaline melts from the Central Atlantic plume, the ancestor of the Canary plume. Melting was probably triggered by the flux of a hot mantle within a regional SW-NE sub-lithospheric channel, in response to either the Alboran slab retreat or edge-driven convection around the West African craton.
ISSN: 0024-4937

insu-01056523
https://hal-insu.archives-ouvertes.fr/insu-01056523
DOI : 10.1016/j.lithos.2014.07.009

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD
Résumé : Poster
We deployed a temporary local seismic network in the North Tanzanian Divergence (NTD) for 6 months in 2007 (35 stations, SEISMOTANZ'07 experiment). The region is characterized by major changes in the magmatic/tectonic nature of the rift, at the place where the eastern branch of the East African Rift enters the Tanzanian craton. More than 200 earthquakes were accurately located south of Lake Manyara.
Iceland in the Central Northern Atlantic : hotspot, sea currents and climate change
Plouzané, France

hal-00482059
http://hal.univ-brest.fr/hal-00482059
http://hal.univ-brest.fr/hal-00482059/document
http://hal.univ-brest.fr/hal-00482059/file/poster_albaric.pdf

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Elsevier
Résumé : International audience
The interpretation of high-resolution 2D marine seismic profiles together with the analysis of sea-bottom cores allowed a stratigraphic and structural framework of the Provence continental shelf to be proposed. The integration of onshore and offshore stratigraphy, structure and geomorphology provided new insights into Messinian paleotopography and paleohydrography. A geological map of the offshore Provence continental shelf, isobath map of the base Plio-Quaternary surface are presented for the first time in this area. The base Plio-Quaternary surface is a polyphased unconformity that is composed of deep canyons developed by fluvial erosion during the Messinian event, and wave-cut surfaces formed during post-Messinian transgressions. The study evidenced a deep, E-W-trending canyon (Bandol canyon) connected to the head of the Cassidaigne canyon, and filled with up to 600 m-thick Plio-Quaternary deposits. The development of canyons on the Provence margin during the Messinian event was dominantly controlled by the lithology and structure of pre-Messinian formations. A map of the Messinian paleo-drainage network is proposed to explain the presence of deep canyons in the Eastern area and the lack of incision in the Western area. An underground karst drainage scheme is proposed, linked with the current submarine Port-Miou spring.
ISSN: 0264-8172

insu-01009592
https://hal-insu.archives-ouvertes.fr/insu-01009592
https://hal-insu.archives-ouvertes.fr/insu-01009592/document
https://hal-insu.archives-ouvertes.fr/insu-01009592/file/Mar-Pet-Tassy.pdf
DOI : 10.1016/j.marpetgeo.2014.05.001

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Elsevier
Résumé : International audience
The present study is based on a set of lavas and crosscutting dikes collected by dives along detailed vertical transects on the northern flank of the western part of the Blanco Transform Fault, Northeast Pacific. The studied area consists of a small basin, the Western Blanco Depression (WBD), extending from the southern end of the Juan de Fuca ridge to a pseudofault trace 60 km eastward. The Northern Scarp of the WBD comprises a volcanic unit overlying a sheeted-dike complex. Major and trace element data, coupled with Sr–Nd isotope ratios, reveal a two-component mantle source, composed by an isotopically depleted matrix variably veined by more enriched material. One chemical group (NS2), indistinguishable from the other Northern Scarp samples on the basis of trace element data, has an unusually depleted isotopic composition typical of a nearly pure mantle end-member. Some cogenetic samples of the Northern Scarp have been used to constrain the differentiation modalities. Anorthite and MgO content profiles in plagioclase xenocrysts and phenocrysts reveal (i) the existence of H2O-bearing evolved melts in the mushy zones and (ii) the occurrence of mixing process between these melts and anhydrous mafic liquids. The hydration is supported by other petrographic features such as high magmatic fO2 values, calculated from Fe–Ti oxide pairs, and the presence of pyroxene inclusions in plagioclase phenocrysts. Mixing, consistent with the existence of Ni-rich ferrobasalts, is interpreted to be the consequence of the reservoir refilling by mafic liquids (Mg# = 70). These petrological and geochemical evidences are combined with the evolution of Mg# with depth to suggest a periodic open-system magma chamber evolution beneath the southern end of the Juan de Fuca ridge.
ISSN: 0024-4937

insu-00213426
https://hal-insu.archives-ouvertes.fr/insu-00213426
DOI : 10.1016/j.lithos.2007.06.009

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD
Résumé : National audience
The Lesser Antilles subduction zone has produced no recent strong thrust earthquakes, making it difficult to quantify the seismic hazard from such events. The Lesser Antilles arc has a low subduction rate and an accretionary wedge that is very wide at its southern end. To investigate the effect of the wedge on seismogenesis, numerical models of forearc thermal structure were constructed along six transects perpendicular to the arc in order to determine the thermally predicted width of the seismogenic zone. The geometry of each section is constrained by published seismic profiles and crustal models derived from gravity and seismic data and by earthquake hypocenters at depth. A major constraint on the deep part of the model is that mantle temperature beneath the volcanic arc should achieve a temperature of 1,100°C to generate partial melts. Predicted surface heat flow is compared to the available heat flow observations. Thermal modeling results indicate a systematic southward increase in the width of the seismogenic zone, more than doubling in width from north to south and corresponding to a dramatic southward increase in forearc width (distance from the arc to the deformation front of the accretionary wedge). The minimum width of the seismogenic zone (distance between the intersections of the subduction interface with the 150°C and 350°C isotherms) increases from about 80 km, north of 16°N, to 230 km, at 13°N. The maximum width (between the 100°C and 450°C isotherms) ranges from about 150 km in the north to up to 320 km in the south. This large variation in the width of the seismogenic zone is a consequence of the increasing width of the accretionary wedge to the south, caused by the increased thickness of sediment on the subducting plate. There is good agreement between the thermally predicted seismogenic limits and the sparse distribution of recorded thrust earthquakes, which are observed only in the northern portion of the arc. Possible scenarios for mega-thrust earthquakes are discussed. Depending on the segment length (along-strike) of the rupture plane, the occurrence of an event of magnitude 8-9 cannot be excluded.
Bulletin Société Géologique de France

insu-00814056
https://hal-insu.archives-ouvertes.fr/insu-00814056
DOI : 10.2113/gssgfbull.184.1-2.47

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD AGU and the Geochemical Society
Résumé : International audience
Continental rifts and passive continental margins show fundamental along-axis segmentation patterns that have been attributed to one or a number of different processes: extensional fault geometry, variable stretching along strike, preexisting lithospheric compositional and structural heterogeneities, oblique rifting, and the presence or absence of eruptive volcanic centers. The length and width scales of the rift stage fault-bounded basin systems change during the late evolution of the new plate boundary, and the role of magmatism may increase as rifting progresses to continental rupture. Along obliquely spreading ridges, first-order mid-ocean ridge geometries originate during the synrift stage, indicating an intimate relationship between magma production and transform fault spacing and location. The Gulf of Aden rift is a young ocean basin in which the earliest synrift to breakup structures are well exposed onshore and covered by thin sediment layers offshore. This obliquely spreading rift is considered magma-poor and has several large-offset transforms that originated during late stage rifting and control the first-order axial segmentation of the spreading ridge. Widely spaced geophysical transects of passive margins that produce only isolated 2-D images of crust and uppermost mantle structure are inadequate for evaluation of competing rift evolution models. Using closely spaced new geophysical and geological observations from the Gulf of Aden we show that rift sectors between transforms have a large internal variability over short distances (∼10 km): the ocean-continent transition (OCT) evolves from a narrow magmatic transition to wider zones where continental mantle is probably exhumed. We suggest that this small-scale variability may be explained (1) by the distribution of volcanism and (2) by the along-strike differences in time-averaged extension rate of the oblique rift system. The volcanism may be associated with (1) the long-offset Alula-Fartak Fracture Zone, which may enhance magma production on its younger side, or (2) channeled flow from the Afar plume material along the newly formed OCT and the spreading ridge. Oblique extension and/or hot spot interactions may thereby have a significant control on the styles of rifting and continental breakup and on the evolution of many magma-poor margins.
ISSN: 1525-2027

hal-00504866
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-00504866
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-00504866/document
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-00504866/file/G3-Leroy_al-2010.pdf
DOI : 10.1029/2009GC002963