Direct evidence for dynamic magma supply fossilized in the lower oceanic crust of the Troodos ophiolite

Abstract

Temporal and spatial variabilities of mantle upwelling and melt supply in mid-ocean ridges (MORs) have long been documented. Such variabilities span a range of scales and have a profound effect on the structure as well as the composition of the oceanic crust. Previous seismic and gravity studies have suggested that the lower oceanic crust plays a major role in accommodating these changes in melt supply. Here we report the first direct evidence for a sharp transition from coherent sub-horizontal to near vertical magma flows frozen in the lower oceanic crust of the Troodos ophiolite at the segment edge near a fossil ridge-transform intersection. We constrain the preferred petrofabric lineation directions at 13 gabbroic sites using anisotropy of magnetic susceptibility (AMS) verified by electron backscatter diffraction. Pre-emplacement accretion-related rotations were corrected using magnetic remanence directions. We identify two provinces of nearly uniform susceptibility directions (principal axes) and attribute them to two magmatic episodes. A more focused mantle upwelling and melting episode near the segment midpoint may have resulted in lower crustal lateral magma flows along the fossil segment-edge, whereas uniform mantle upwelling and melt supply along the entire axis may have resulted in vertical magma flows at the segment-edge. Overall, our data verify the vital role of the lower oceanic crust in accommodating changes in mantle upwelling and melt supply beneath MORs. Copyright 2011 by the American Geophysical Union.