Tesis sobre el tema "Volcanic oceanic islands"

Oceanic islands can be divided, according to their origin, in volcanic and tectonic. Volcanic islands are due to excess volcanism. Tectonic islands are mainly formed due to vertical tectonic motions of blocks of oceanic lithosphere along transverse ridges flanking transform faults at slow and ultraslow mid-ocean ridges. Vertical tectonic motions are due to a reorganization of the geometry of the transform plate boundary, with the transition from a transcurrent tectonics to a transtensive and/or transpressive tectonics, with the formation of the transverse ridges. Tectonic islands can be located also at the ridge–transform intersection: in this case the uplift is due by the movement of the long-lived detachment faults located along the flanks of the mid-ocean ridges. The "Vema" paleoisland (equatorial Atlantic) is at the summit of the southern transverse ridge of the Vema transform. It is now 450 m bsl and it is capped by a carbonate platform 500 m-thick, dated by 87Sr/86Sr at 10 Ma. Three tectonic paleoislands are on the summit of the transverse ridge flanking the Romanche megatrasform (equatorial Atlantic). They are now about 1,000 m bsl and they are formed by 300 m-thick carbonate platforms dated by 87Sr/86Sr, between 11 and 6 Ma. The tectonic paleoisland “Atlantis Bank" is located in the South-Western Indian Ridge, along the Atlantis II transform, and it is today 700 m bsl. The only modern example of oceanic tectonics island is the St. Paul Rocks (equatorial Atlantic), located along the St. Paul transform. This archipelago is the top of a peridotitic massif that it is now a left overstep undergoing transpression. Oceanic volcanic islands are characterized by rapid growth and subsequent thermal subsidence and drowning; in contrast, oceanic tectonic islands may have one or more stages of emersion related to vertical tectonic events along the large oceanic fracture zones.

Monogenetic volcanism is characterized by a large diversity of eruptive styles, morphologies and deposits. Monogenetic landforms are the result of a complex merging of internal (magma composition, vesiculation) and external (geological setting, fracturation, hydrogeology, substrate stratigraphy, etc) parameters that govern the physics of the eruptions. Changes in these parameters may cause variations in the eruption style several times during the course of such short-lived volcanoes. Monogenetic volcanoes may form in any type of geological environment with scoria cones being the most common volcano type and hydrovolcanic tuff rings, tuff cones, and maars as the second in abundance. These small-volume volcanoes are generally the result of short-lived eruptions but the activity in a monogenetic volcanic field might exceed the total life of composite volcanoes. The attention of this work was focused on the relation between monogenetic volcanic landforms and the external variables that influenced the dynamics of the eruptions (i.e. magmatism vs phreatomagmatism) through a multidisciplinary perspective, in marine and continental geological settings under which monogenetic volcanism may develop. Different case studies representative of this type of activity and of these different environments have been considered. The first one corresponds to the La Crosa De Sant Dalmai volcano (Garrotxa Volcanic Field, southern sector of the Catalan Volcanic Zone), a roughly circular asymmetrical maar-diatreme volcano, which is one of the most characteristic volcanic edifices of this continental monogenetic volcanic field and the largest Quaternary volcanic crater on the Iberian Peninsula. This edifice is an example of monogenetic landform, mostly composed of phreatomagmatic deposits with subordinate Strombolian phases, constructed on a mixed basement made of hard Paleozoic granites and schists rocks and soft Plio-Quaternary deposits. Here, I reconstructed the hydrogeological conditions of the substrate and the implication for the eruptive dynamics. As a second case study, I carried out detailed stratigraphic and sedimentological studies of the succession of El Golfo tuff cone (Lanzarote, Canary Islands). The main objective of the work was to describe in detail the structure and association of facies of this edifice and use this information to infer changes in eruption style and depositional processes. Another type of eruption was studied in the same archipelago at El Hierro, an island essentially characterized by basaltic volcanism with both Strombolian and Hawaiian activity. Here I reported the stratigraphic, lithological, sedimentological and petrographic characteristics of a felsic hydrovolcanic episode in order to discuss, transport/depositional mechanisms, dynamics, relative age and implications for hazard assessment on the island. Finally, the same type of methodology was applied at Deception Island (Southern Shetland Archipelago, Antarctica), determining the lithological and sedimentological characteristics, and clasts distribution (isopach and isopleth maps) of the eruption of 1970. This information was, then, used to determine depositional processes, eruption style and physical parameters (i.e. plume height, erupted volume, VEI) of the eruption in order to compare this episode with the previous 1967 episode, and to deduce their implications to conduct hazard assessment at the island. Each work represents a diverse aspect of hydrovolcanism and the results obtained helped to better understand the eruptive behavior of this type of volcanoes, which is a fundamental task in order to understand the possible future hazards associated with this type of volcanism. The results obtained can be applied to monogenetic volcanic fields worldwide and are, therefore, useful to reconstruct the evolution of a certain volcanic fields, through the study of single monogenetic volcanoes, and to evaluate the possible volcanic hazards, as similar eruptions represent a serious threat, which is often underestimated. A more systematic study is, thus, needed in order to understand the role of shallow-level conditions in the formation of specific volcano types in such complex volcanic fields.
El vulcanismo monogenético se caracteriza por una gran diversidad de estilos eruptivos, morfologías y depósitos. Los tipos de edificios que se forman son el resultado de una compleja combinación de parámetros que rigen la física de la erupción. La atención de este trabajo se centra en la relación entre los edificios volcánicos monogenéticos y las variables externas que influyen en la dinámica de las erupciones (es decir, magmatismo vs freatomagmatismo) a través de un punto de vista multidisciplinar, en ambientes continentales y marinos en los que el vulcanismo puede desarrollar. Diferentes estudios, representativos de este tipo de actividad en diferentes entornos geográficos y geológicos, se han llevado a cabo. El primer ejemplo corresponde al volcán de La Crosa de Sant Dalmai (Campo Volcánico de La Garrotxa) donde se han reconstruido las condiciones hidrogeológicas del sustrato y la implicación para la dinámica eruptiva. Como segundo caso de estudio, se ha realizado una estratigrafía de detalle del cono de toba de El Golfo (Lanzarote, Islas Canarias), donde se han estudiado los mecanismos de emplazamiento de los depósitos para inferir cambios en la interacción magma/agua. Otro tipo de erupción se ha investigado en el mismo archipiélago, en la Isla de El Hierro, determinando las características físicas de un episodio félsico de origen hidrovolcánico ocurrido en una isla que se caracteriza esencialmente por el vulcanismo basáltico tanto Estromboliano como Hawaiiano. Por último, este mismo tipo de metodología se ha aplicado a la Isla Decepción (archipiélago de las Shetland del Sur, Antártida), estableciendo los parámetros físicos de la erupción del 1970 con el fin de comparar este episodio con el evento anterior del 1967, y deducir sus consecuencias para llevar a cabo la evaluación de peligrosidad en la isla. Los resultados obtenidos pueden ser aplicados a campos volcánicos monogenéticos en todo el mundo y, por tanto, son útiles para reconstruir la evolución de ciertos campos volcánicos, a través del estudio de volcanes monogenéticos individuales, para evaluar los posibles riesgos volcánicos, teniendo en cuenta como erupciones similares representan una grave amenaza, que es a menudo subestimada.

The 1.8 to 0.7 Ma explosive eruption history of Las Cañadas volcano is recorded by the pyroclastic stratigraphy of southern Tenerife. A large pyroclastic apron is well exposed in the Bandas del Sur. It is divided into two regions, Adeje (southwest) and Abona (southeast). The lower stratigraphy of both successions is described here for the first time, and is divided into soil-bound eruption-units. The lithofacies record repeated phonolite explosive eruptions involving Plinian eruption columns and ignimbrite emplacement, with sedimentary reworking and soilification during repose intervals. The southwestern pyroclastic apron of Cañadas, around Adeje, includes eleven eruption-units, with one explosive eruption every 24,300–31,200 years. Two major unconformities are identified in this region, each representing ~0.6 myr hiatuses. The southeastern pyroclastic apron, around Abona, reveals nine newly discovered phonolitic eruption-units, eight of which are dated by 40Ar/39Ar. The eruptions span 1.6 Ma, and occurred with frequencies averaging one per 21,000 years to one per 79,556 years. The deposits include welded and non-welded ignimbrites and numerous fallout layers. Documentation of the ‘lower’ Bandas del Sur Group allows the entire pyroclastic record of southeast Tenerife to be constrained for the first time: over 18 explosive eruptions occurred during the past 1.6 myr, of which 7 may have been caldera-forming. Eruption frequencies cluster and are separated by unconformities that span from 184,000–563,000 years. A debris-avalanche deposit was discovered on the southeast flank of Cañadas. It records a catastrophic landslide, the Abona landslide, triggered by a phonolite explosive eruption 735 ± 5 ka ago. The Abona debris-avalanche deposit is enclosed between pyroclastic units of the Helecho Formation, and represents a single eruptionunit. Debris avalanche block and mixed facies, and a hummocky topography that dammed small ephemeral perched lakes, are exceptionally well-preserved. Limited disruption and mixing, and a general absence of clast segregation within the deposit, indicate that the landslide did not move as a rapid granular flow. The debris-block characteristics indicate that pervasive shattering and microbrecciation occurred progressively during transport, and were accompanied by limited shear, mixing and substrate erosion during predominantly laminar emplacement of a dilated, but essentially solid, shearing mass. The deposit is the only precisely dated giant landslide on Tenerife and provides the first unequivocal evidence of an eruption trigger on an ocean-island volcano.

The Chatham Islands are located in the SW Pacific Ocean, approximately 850 km to the east of the South Island of New Zealand. This small group of islands is situated near the eastern margin of the Chatham Rise, an elongated section of submerged continental crust that represents part of the Late Paleozoic-Mesozoic Gondwana accretionary margin. The location and much of the geology of the Chatham Islands are attributed to intra-plate basaltic volcanism, initiated during the Late Cretaceous, in association with development of a failed rifting system to the south of the Chatham Rise. Despite the volcanic nature of much of the geology, the majority of the Cenozoic sedimentary stratigraphic record on the islands comprises non-tropical skeletal carbonate deposits whose deposition was often coeval with submarine volcanics and volcaniclastic deposits. This has resulted in complex stratigraphic relationships, with the volcanic geology exerting a strong influence on the geometry and distribution of the carbonate deposits. These limestones, despite some general field descriptions, have been little studied and are especially poorly understood from a petrographic and diagenetic perspective. The carbonate geology in detail comprises eleven discrete limestone units of Late Cretaceous through to Pleistocene age which were studied during two consecutive field expeditions over the summers of 2005 and 2006. These limestone occurrences are best exposed in scattered coastal outcrops where they form prominent rugged bluffs. While many of the younger (Oligocene to Pliocene) outcrops comprise of poorly exposed, thin and eroded limestone remnants (it;5 m thick), older (Late Paleocene to Early Oligocene) exposures can be up to 100 m in thickness. The character of these limestones is highly variable. In outcrop they display a broad range of textures and skeletal compositions, often exhibit cross-bedding, display differing degrees of porosity occlusion by cementation, and may include rare silicified horizons and evidence of hardground formation. Petrographically the limestones are skeletal grainstones and packstones with a typical compositional makeup of about 70% skeletal material, 10% siliciclasts, and 20% cement/matrix. Localised increases in siliciclastics occur where the carbonates are diluted by locally-derived volcaniclastics. The spectrum of skeletal assemblages identified within the Chatham Island limestones is diverse and appears in many cases to be comparable to the bryozoan dominant types common in mainland New Zealand and mid-latitude Australian cool-water carbonates in general. However, some key departures from the expected cool-water carbonate skeletal makeup have been identified in this study. The occurrence of stromatolitic algal mats in Late Cretaceous and Early Eocene carbonate deposits indicates not cool-temperate, but certainly warm-temperate paleoclimatic conditions. A change to cool-temperate conditions is recorded in the limestone flora/fauna from the mid-Late Miocene times following the development and later northward movement of the Subtropical Front. An uncharacteristic mix of shallow-shelf (bryozoans) and deeper water fauna (planktic foraminifera), together with their highly fragmented and abraded nature, is indicative of the likely remobilisation and redistribution of carbonate, primarily during episodic storm events. The Chatham Islands limestones formed within the relative tectonic stability of an oceanic island setting, which was conducive to ongoing carbonate accumulation throughout much of the Cenozoic. This contrasts markedly with other mainland New Zealand shelf carbonates which formed over sporadic and short-lived geological periods, experiencing greater degrees of burial cementation controlled by a relatively more active tectonic setting. As a consequence of the tectonically stable setting, the Chatham Islands limestones have experienced little burial and exhibit a paucity of burial cementation effects. They remain commonly soft and friable. Detailed petrographic investigations have shown the limestones are variably cemented by rare uneven acicular spar fringes, poorly to well-developed syntaxial rim cements about echinoderm fragments, and equant/blocky microsparite. Staining of thin sections and cathodoluminescence petrography show these spar cement generations are non-ferroan and their very dull- to non-luminescent nature supports precipitation from Mn-poor oxygenated waters, likely of an either meteoric or combined marine/shallow burial origin. Micrite is the dominant intra- and inter-particle pore fill and occurs both as a microbioclastic matrix and as precipitated homogenous and/or micropeloidal cement. The rare fringing cements often seen in association with homogenous and/or micropeloidal micrite may be indicative of true early marine (seafloor) cement precipitation and localised hardground development. An interesting feature of the geology of the Chatham Islands is the occurrence of carbonate material within sedimentary dykes. The locations of the dykes are in association with volcanic and volcaniclastic deposits. Similarities between dyke characteristics at Red Bluff on Chatham Island with mainland occurrences from East Coast and Canterbury Basins (North and South Islands, respectively) on mainland New Zealand have been recognised. They show complex structures including sidewall striations, internal flow structures as revealed by grain sorting, and extra-clast inclusions of previous fill lithologies which are characteristic of carbonate injection. This is in contrast to other dykes which are known to be of a passive fill origin. Multiple phases of carbonate sediment injection can be recognised by crosscutting relationships enabling the determination of a parasequence of events. Possible injection mechanisms are most likely associated with sediment overloading or hydrothermal pressurisation associated with emplacement of submarine volcanics. The Chatham Islands provide an exciting example of a geologically unique and complex non-tropical carbonate depositional setting. The production of carbonates is controlled by volcanic and volcaniclastic sediment input with the types of carbonate deposits and water depth variations related to thermal uplift/subsidence in association with global eustatic sealevel and temperature changes associated with development of Southern Ocean water fronts from the Late Cretaceous-Cenozoic. Carbonate deposition on the Chatham Islands is considered to relate to a rather variable and small scale oceanic, high energy, cool-water carbonate ramp setting whose geometry was continually evolving/changing as a consequence of periodic volcanic episodes.

This thesis presents a new template for multidisciplinary habitat mapping that combines the analyses of seafloor geomorphology, oceanographic proxies and modelling of associated biologic features. High resolution swath bathymetry of the Faial and western Pico shelves is used to present the first state-of-the-art geomorphologic assessment of submerged island shelves in the Azores. Solid seafloor structures are described in previously unreported detail together with associated volcanic, tectonic and erosion processes. The large sedimentary expanses identified in the area are also investigated and the large bedforms identified are discussed in view of new data on the local hydrodynamic conditions. Coarse-sediment zones of types hitherto unreported for volcanic island shelves are described using swath data and in situ imagery together with sub-bottom profiles and grainsize information. The hydrodynamic and geological processes producing these features are discussed. New oceanographic information extracted from satellite imagery is presented including yearly and seasonal sea surface temperature and chlorophyll-a concentration fields. These are used as proxies to understand the spatio-temporal variability of water temperature and primary productivity in the immediate island vicinity. The patterns observed are discussed, including onshore-offshore gradients and the prevalence of colder/more productive waters in the Faial-Pico passage and shelf areas in general. Furthermore, oceanographic proxies for swell exposure and tidal currents are derived from GIS analyses and shallow-water hydrographic modelling. Finally, environmental variables that potentially regulate the distribution of benthic organisms (seafloor nature, depth, slope, sea surface temperature, chlorophyll-a concentration, swell exposure and maximum tidal currents) are brought together and used to develop innovative statistical models of the distribution of six macroalgae taxa dominant in the infralittoral (articulated Corallinaceae, Codium elisabethae, Dictyota spp., Halopteris filicina, Padina pavonica and Zonaria tournefortii). Predictive distributions of these macroalgae are spatialized around Faial island using ordered logistic regression equations and raster fields of the explanatory variables found to be statistically significant. This new approach represents a potentially highly significant step forward in modelling benthic communities not only in the Azores but also in other oceanic island shelves where the management of benthic species and biotopes is critical to preserve ecosystem health.

Evolution de l'ile de la reunion, exemple de volcanisme intraplaque, plus particulierement du piton de la fournaise ou au cours des 500 000 dernieres annees, la tectonique d'effondrement a ete sub-continue et s'est manifestee par des caldeiras. Leur migration marque un deplacement des reservoirs dans l'edifice. Le glissement du grand brule semble sub-contemporain de la phase d'effondrement de l'enclos. L'activite recente est concentree sur le cone central a sa base et le long des rifts zones. Les transferts de magma entre les zones profondes et le reservoir superficiel ne sont pas continus. Les donnees de surveillance, depuis 1980 permettent de caracteriser les phenomenes precurseurs des eruptions et les mecanismes des intrusions et de la fracturation. Les consequences volcanotectoniques des deformations remanentes associees aux intrusions frequentes dans la zone centrale sont etudiees en terme de prevision et de l'evolution du volcan a moyen terme

La croissance des volcans océaniques est fréquemment ponctuée par des effondrements latéraux géants qui peuvent générer des avalanches de débris volumineuses et engendrer des tsunamis dévastateurs. Néanmoins, les causes, les mécanismes et les conséquences de telles déstabilisations, critiques pour la caractérisation des aléas, demeurent largement incompris.L'île de Tenerife (Canaries, Espagne) constitue une cible privilégiée pour étudier ces phénomènes. Son évolution récente inclue le développement d'un volcan central différencié et d'une ride volcanique proéminente le long d'une rift-zone principale NE-SW (NERZ). Durant le dernier Myr, ces systèmes ont été tronqués par trois effondrements de flanc géants, dont la semelle est partiellement accessible à la faveur de galeries souterraines à usage hydrogéologique.Cette thèse développe une analyse systématique des relations entre construction volcanique et instabilités récurrentes le long de l’axe de la NERZ. L'approche inclut des investigations de terrain en surface et dans les galeries, afin de reconnaître et d’échantillonner les séquences volcaniques affectées par chaque effondrement et remplissant leurs structures; la datation K/Ar Cassignol-Gillot sur phases séparées pour en contraindre l’âge précisément ; des reconstructions morphologiques 3D afin d'estimer le volume des édifices et des structures gravitaires; des analyses chimiques sur roches totales, visant à caractériser l’évolution de la composition des laves avant et après chaque déstabilisation.Les nouveaux résultats montrent le fonctionnement intermittent des différents tronçons la NERZ, avec un schéma récurrent comprenant :1) la croissance rapide d'un édifice imposant, dont la charge induit la création de niveaux de stockage superficiels et l’éruption de termes différenciés visqueux, favorisant l'inflation locale de la structure et sa déstabilisation2) la rupture proprement dite, datée à environ 840 ka, 525 ka et 175 ka (glissements de Güimar, La Orotava et Icod, respectivement)3) une réponse éruptive immédiate, impliquant la vidange rapide (<50kyr) du système d’alimentation, et le comblement des loupes de glissement sous des dizaines de km3 de lave.4) Un déplacement consécutif de la construction volcanique vers les secteurs moins matures de la NERZ (moindre épaisseur de l'édifice/moindre pression lithostatique)Nous montrons que les phénomènes de charge/décharge ont une influence primordiale sur le développement des instabilités gravitaires et l'évolution des systèmes d'alimentation des îles océaniques
The growth of oceanic volcanoes is frequently punctuated by large flank collapses, which can generate voluminous debris avalanches and destructive tsunamis. The causes, the mechanisms and the consequences of such instabilities, crucial for risk assessment, remain poorly understood.Tenerife (Canary Islands, Spain) is a target of particular interest to study such phenomena. Its recent evolution includes the development of a large silicic central volcano and a prominent volcanic ridge along a main NE-SW trending rift zone (NERZ). During the last Myr, these volcanic systems have been truncated by three large flank collapses, the base of which is partly accessible through underground water mining galleries.This thesis develops a systematic analysis of the relationships between volcanic construction and recurrent flank instabilities along the NERZ. Our approach includes field investigations at the surface and in the galleries to identify and sample the volcanic units affected by each landslide and the successions filling their scar; unspiked K/Ar dating (Cassignol-Gillot technique) on fresh separated groundmass to constrain precisely the timing of the landslides; 3-D morphological reconstructions to estimate the volume of the edifices and landslides structures; and whole-rock geochemical analyses to characterize the compositional evolution of the magma prior to and after each collapse event.Our new results show the intermittent functioning of the various sections of the NERZ with a recurrent pattern comprising:(1) The rapid construction of a large volcanic edifice. The resulting load favors the creation of superficial storage levels, the associated evolution of the magma and the eruption of viscous differentiated terms, favoring local inflation of the structure and its destabilization(2) The collapse of a flank of the NERZ, dated at ca. 840 ka, 525 ka, and 175 ka (Güimar, La Orotava and Icod, events respectively)(3) An immediate eruptive response, implying the rapid emptying (<50kyr) of the feeding system and the filling of the landslide scars under tens of km3 of lava.(4) The subsequent displacement of volcanic activity towards the less mature sectors (lower thickness/lower lithostatic pressure).We show here that loading/unloading processes have a strong influence on the development of gravitational instabilities and the evolution of the magma feeding systems on such large intraplate volcanic islands

Etude du champ magnetique terrestre sur les edifices volcaniques ou dans les regions soumises a une activite sismotectonique. Trois themes de recherche sont developpes: l'acquisition des mesures de terrain, les mesures experimentales realisees en laboratoire, et les simulations numeriques. L'etude de terrain porte sur des resultats obtenus sur les volcans de la soufriere de guadeloupe, la montagne pelee de martinique et le piton de la fournaise a la reunion

A travers deux champs d'étude, nous nous intéressons au couplage mécanique entre le magma et l'encaissant, utilisant des méthodes numériques. Tout d'abord, nous étudions l'influence de perturbations de contraintes sur les réservoirs magmatiques, avec comme exemple deux volcans sous-glaciaires (Islande). Au volcan Grímsvötn, notre modèle montre que les vidanges, du lac sous-glaciaire (jökulhlaup) présent dans la caldera, peuvent déclencher une éruption comme ce fut le cas en 2004, en favorisant la rupture du réservoir magmatique. L'effet est cependant faible, ce qui implique que le système magmatique doit déjà être proche des conditions de rupture avant que le jökulhlaup se produise. Au volcan Katla, notre modèle indique que les conditions de rupture sont favorisées en été durant la fonte du glacier Mýrdalsjökull. Les changements de contrainte de Coulomb montrent aussi une plus forte probabilité de séismes durant la même période, résultats en accord avec la sismicité enregistrée sous le Mýrdalsjökull. Il existe une modulation à la fois de l'activité volcanique et sismique au Katla, en relation avec la variation saisonnière de la charge glaciaire. Dans un second temps, nous travaillons sur les écoulements de magma dans les conduits andésitiques. Améliorer nos connaissances sur la dynamique du magma durant son ascension est nécessaire, car les processus dans le conduit volcanique semblent gouverner l'évolution de l'activité éruptive de ces volcans. Des précédents modèles ont montré que la viscosité du magma augmente dans la partie supérieure du conduit lors de l'écoulement, ce qui cause la formation d'un plug visqueux. Mais la relation entre la mise en place du plug et les signaux précurseurs, telles que la déformation ou la sismicité, n'est pas totalement établie. A partir de nos modèles de plug, nous trouvons que les déplacements de surface sont contrôlés par la géométrie du conduit et du plug ainsi que le contraste de viscosité entre le plug et la colonne de magma. Nous montrons que l'évolution de la taille du plug est une hypothèse possible pour expliquer les rapides transitions inflation/subsidence observées à la surface des volcans andésitiques.

This master's thesis deals with the issue of volcanic ash as a complex and its impact on aviation, including the volcanic activity itself (conditions for its existence, for existence of eruptions and their basic products). In addition, the thesis also deals with effect of volcanic ash on aircraft and airports, possibilities of its detection or monitoring as well as mechanism of its spreading in airspace. The emphasis is laid mainly on air incidents related to volcanic ash and on danger it poses to the airspace of the Czech Republic.

La Zone Critique de la Terre désigne la fine pellicule recouvrant sa surface, à l’interface du cycle de l’eau, de lithosphère et de la biosphère. Cette couche est produite à sa base par altération chimique et détruite à son sommet par érosion mécanique. Parce que le lithium et ses isotopes ont la particularité de se partager entre la phase dissoute et la phase solide au cours des réactions d’interactions eaux-roches, nous explorons, dans cette thèse, le potentiel des isotopes du lithium dissous dans les rivières comme traceurs des processus d’altération chimique des continents. Nous nous sommes focalisés, dans un premier temps, sur le Bassin Congolais. Cette étude met en évidence le caractère équivoque de la réponse de la composition isotopique du Li (δ7Li) dissous des rivières aux topographies plates (et aux intensités d’altération élevées). Deux valeurs extrêmes de δ7Li dissous sont, en effet, produites dans le bassin du Congo, qui tracent deux styles d’altération continentale distincts, dans lesquels les processus d’altération chimique sont différents. D’autre part, nous proposons une nouvelle estimation du flux moyen de Li et de sa composition isotopique moyenne exportés à l’océan par les rivières aujourd’hui (5,5×1010 g.an−1 et 19±2‰, respectivement). Nous montrons que le δ7Li dissous dans les grands fleuves est contrôlé, au premier ordre, par la réincorporation du Li dans les minéraux secondaires (dans les sols et les plaines d’inondation) et, d’une manière équivoque, de l’intensité d’altération. En outre, l’étude des δ7Li dissous dans les rivières drainant les îles volcaniques (Islande, Java, Martinique, Sao Miguel et Réunion) montre que l’hydrothermalisme continental, générant des eaux très concentrées en Li avec une valeur basse de δ7Li (car très peu fractionnée par rapport à la roche mère basaltique), influence le δ7Li dissous des rivières des îles volcaniques et peut avoir un impact significatif sur le flux de Li (et son δ7Li) transféré(s) à l’océan à l’échelle globale. Enfin, nous proposons une interprétation de l’augmentation de l’ordre de 9‰ qu’a connue la signature isotopique du Li de l’eau de mer au cours du Cénozoïque à l’aide d’un modèle de boîtes simple de l’océan et au regard de nos résultats. Il émane de ce travail de thèse que les isotopes du Li dissous dans les rivières prouvent là encore leur capacité à être de bons traceurs des régimes d’altération des roches silicatées continentales (et ce, même en contexte anthropisé, comme le montre notre étude du bassin de l’Orgeval, en Seine-et-Marne). Le Li et ses isotopes constituent donc des traceurs prometteurs de la Zone Critique de la Terre et des paléo-processus d’altération chimique ainsi que de l’évolution géodynamique des continents voire des grands mouvements verticaux affectant la lithosphère continentale
The Critical Zone of the Earth is the layer covering its surface, at the interface between the water cycle, the lithosphere and the biosphere. This layer is produced at its base by chemical weathering and destroyed at its top by mechanical erosion. We explore the potential of lithium isotopes dissolved in rivers as tracers of continental chemical weathering processes as lithium and its isotopes are highly fractionated between the dissolved and solid phases during water-rock interaction processes. First, we are focused on the Congo Bassin. This study demonstrates the equivocal response of the isotopic composition of the riverine dissolved Li isotope compositions (δ7Li) to flat topography (and high weathering intensities). Two extreme values of dissolved δ7Li are produced in the Congo Basin, which trace two distinct continental weathering styles in which chemical weathering processes are different. On the other hand, we refined the mean flux of Li and its average isotopic signature exported to the ocean by rivers today (5.5×1010 g. an-1 et 19±2‰, respectively). We show that dissolved δ7Li in large rivers is controlled, at first-order, by the re-incorporation of Li into secondary weathering minerals (in soils and floodplains) and in, an equivocal way, of the weathering intensity. Moreover, the study of dissolved δ7Li in rivers draining volcanic islands (Iceland, Java, Martinique, Sao Miguel and Reunion) shows that continental hydrothermal activity, producing waters with high Li concentration with low value of δ7Li (as low fractionated towards the basaltic bedrock), influences the dissolved δ7Li in rivers of volcanic islands and can have an impact on the Li flux (and its δ7Li) transferred to the ocean on a global scale. Finally, by using a simple box model of the ocean and our results, we suggest an interpretation of the 9‰ increase of seawater δ7Li during the Cenozoic. This thesis highlights that riverine dissolved Li isotopes confirm once again their capacity to be powerful tracers of the weathering regimes of continental silicate rocks (even in anthropized context, as showed by our study of the Orgeval catchment, in Seine-et-Marne). Li and its isotopes are thus promising tracers of the Critical Zone of the Earth and the chemical weathering paleo-processes as well as the long-term geodynamic evolution of the continents or even the large vertical movements affecting the continental lithosphere

La structuration actuelle des terrains brioveriens resulte en grande partie de l'evolution tectono-metamorphique varisque. La chaine cadomienne accuse une vergence nord-ouest. L'identification geochimique des series volcaniques brioveriennes revele une affinite tholeitique generalisee. Une tendance calcoalcaline s'exprime en revanche au sein du batholite de la hague. L'enchainement des premieres etapes de l'evolution geodynamique cadomienne est ainsi etablie, le magmatisme du brioverien inferieur traduisant le fonctionnement d'un dispositif arcs insulaires-bassins marginaux de type marge ouest du pacifique, installe sur des lambeaux de croute pentevrienne

Le volcan Piton des Neiges (La Réunion) présente une activité hydrothermale qui pourrait potentiellement être utilisée pour générer de l'énergie géothermique. Les caractéristiques de ce système hydrothermal (température des fluides, source de chaleur, origine de la recharge, etc.) sont cependant trop mal connues pour en envisager l'exploitation à ce jour. Afin d’évaluer ce potentiel, nous avons réalisé une prospection étendue des indicateurs d'hydrothermalisme, effectué des analyses géochimiques (majeurs, traces, δ18O, δD, δ13C, 87Sr/86Sr, δ7Li, δ37Cl) sur 38 sources thermales (dont 21 nouvelles) et un suivi qualitatif de la ressource dans le temps. Nos résultats montrent que l’activité hydrothermale se concentre dans les cirques de Cilaos et de Salazie, le long de la rift zone N30° et à l'intérieur d'une caldera supposée. La recharge est météorique, locale, pluriannuelle et provient majoritairement de cyclones. Les deux cirques ne sont pas en connexion hydraulique entre eux, et quasiment pas avec l’océan. Les eaux thermales interagissent avec du CO2 d'origine mantellique, des gaz magmatiques plus superficiels (dans l'édifice ou à sa base) et avec les roches différenciées. Les géothermomètres chimiques indiquent une interaction eau-roche à plus de 210°C. Le système hydrothermal du Piton des Neiges atteint donc des températures calculées suffisantes pour la géothermie haute température. Nos travaux orientent les prochaines phases d'exploration vers les structures géologiques associées à la caldera supposée et à la rift zone. Leur géométrie, leurs propriétés hydrodynamiques et leur relation avec la source de chaleur seront déterminantes pour le choix d’un site de forage
Piton des Neiges volcano (Reunion Island) shows evidence of a hydrothermal activity that could potentially be used for geothermal energy generation. However, so far, the characteristics of this hydrothermal system (fluid temperature, heat source, recharge, etc.) remain too uncertain to consider exploiting it. To evaluate its geothermal potential, we carried out a vast prospecting campaign for markers of hydrothermal activity, performed geochemical analysis (major, trace elements, δ18O, δD, δ13C, 87Sr/86Sr, δ7Li, δ37Cl) on 38 thermal springs (including 21 new ones) and monitored the resource over time. Our results show that the hydrothermal activity is concentrated in the cirques of Cilaos and Salazie, along the N30 rift zone and inside a supposed caldera. Recharge is meteoric, local, plurennial and mainly comes from cyclones. There is no hydraulic connection between the two cirques, and barely with the ocean. Thermal waters interact with mantellic CO2, other more superficial magmatic gases (inside the edifice or at its base) and differentiated rocks. Geochemical geothermometers indicate a water-rock interaction temperature of above 210°C. The hydrothermal system of Piton des Neiges thus reaches computed temperatures compatible with high temperature geothermal use. Our work steers the next exploratory steps toward the geologic structures associated with the supposed caldera and the rift zone. Their geometry, their hydrodynamic property and their relation with the heat source will be decisive in the choice of a drilling site

Dissertação de Mestrado, Geologia do Ambiente e Sociedade, 15 de Fevereiro de 2016, Universidade dos Açores.
Fajãs detríticas costeiras com sistemas lagunares – como as Fajãs da Caldeira de Santo Cristo e dos Cubres na Ilha de São Jorge – constituem locais de elevada riqueza geológica, biológica e paisagística, tendo mesmo se tornado um ícone paisagístico do Arquipélago dos Açores. Muito embora seja do conhecimento geral que a génese de fajãs detríticas costeiras está intrinsecamente ligada à evolução das altas arribas litorais típicas de ilhas vulcânicas, e aos processos de movimentos de massa associados a esta evolução, pouco se conhece acerca dos processos que concorrem para a génese de fajãs detríticas costeiras que exibem sistemas lagunares. Em particular, dúvidas ainda subsistem acerca da possibilidade dessas fajãs serem um resultado directo e fortuito do deslizamento que lhes deu origem, ou, por oposição, serem resultado de um retrabalhamento marinho (por ondas e correntes) após a sua implantação. Um acontecimento recente, no entanto, promete revolucionar o nosso conhecimento sobre o assunto: um deslizamento ocorrido na Ilha do Corvo durante o temporal de 30 de Outubro de 2012, e o seu desenvolvimento posterior, constitui um análogo exemplar para a génese destas morfologias. O objectivo central desta tese de mestrado é precisamente documentar a evolução desta fajã, com o intuito de avançar o nosso conhecimento sobre as origens das fajãs detríticas costeiras com sistemas lagunares, e sobre os processos que concorrem para a sua formação. [...].
ABSTRACT: Coastal talus-platforms (fajãs) with pond systems - like Fajã da Caldeira de Santo Cristo and Fajã dos Cubres in São Jorge Island – constitute features of high geological, biological, and landscape value, even becoming one of the most iconic landscapes of the Azores Islands. Whilst the origin of fajãs is firmly established as being the product of landslides that develop along the high coastal cliffs that rim reefless volcanic islands, little is still known about the processes that interplay to shape the fajãs that exhibit a pond system. In particular, doubts still remain on whether fajãs featuring a pond system are a direct fortuitous product of mass wasting, or conversely result from marine reworking (by waves and currents) after emplacement. An exciting recent event, however, promises to revolutionize our knowledge of the subject: a landslide occurred on the Island of Corvo, during the storm of October 30th 2012, and its posterior evolution constitutes a perfect analogue for the generation of these iconic landscapes. The central aim of this MSc thesis is precisely to document the evolution of this fajã, in order to gain a better understanding on the origins of coastal talus platforms featuring a pond system and on the processes that concur to their formation. [...].

The realization that human activities have a major influence on ecosystems from local to global scales has given rise to the concept of the Anthropocene. However, although the influence of human activities on biodiversity is clearly significant, it remains unclear to what extent the rate and magnitude of biodiversity changes differ from pre-human dynamics. Islands are ideal model systems for understanding the relative contribution of environmental and societal variables to biodiversity change because the onset of human activities on islands can generally be clearly defined. The aim of this PhD thesis is to place human-environment interactions on islands in the context of environmental fluctuations over the Quaternary. The thesis consists of two parts. First, I quantify how island area and isolation have changed over the Quaternary as a result of climate-driven sea-level fluctuations, and analyse how these dynamics have shaped modern biodiversity patterns. Secondly, I study how human activities in the past and present have shaped island ecosystems and landscapes, and compare their rate and magnitude to pre-human dynamics. Overall, the findings of my thesis indicate that modern biodiversity patterns show legacies of past human activities but are also imprinted by environmental dynamics in deep-time. Furthermore, the rate of change following human settlement on islands can largely exceed Quaternary background rates. Therefore, my findings are in line with studies that indicate that human activities have become a major driver in shaping biodiversity across scales. Nonetheless, my comparison of islands worldwide also highlights the diverse ways in which abiotic, biotic, and anthropogenic variables have interacted across individual islands. Therefore, future studies should acknowledge that global biodiversity change can manifest differently across localities. Finally, I emphasize the importance of strengthening interdisciplinary approaches in island biogeography to enhance our understanding of biodiversity changes in the Anthropocene, and how they relate to deeptime dynamics.
A constatação de que as atividades humanas exercem uma grande influência sobre os ecossistemas, da escala local à global, originou o conceito do Antropoceno. No entanto, apesar da influência das atividades humanas ser claramente significativa, ainda não está claro até que ponto a taxa e magnitude de alterações na biodiversidade diferem da dinâmica pré-humana. As ilhas constituem sistemas modelo ideais para compreender a contribuição relativa de variáveis ambientais e sociais, porque o início das atividades humanas é em geral conhecido. O objetivo desta tese de doutoramento é enquadrar as interações homem-ambiente nas ilhas no contexto das flutuações ambientais no Quaternário. A tese consiste em duas partes. Primeiro, quantifico como a área da ilha e o isolamento mudaram no Quaternário devido às flutuações do nível do mar provocadas pelo clima e analiso como essas dinâmicas moldaram os padrões modernos de biodiversidade. Em segundo lugar, estudo como as atividades humanas passadas e presentes moldaram os ecossistemas e paisagens das ilhas e comparo a sua taxa e magnitude com a dinâmica pré-humana. As conclusões de minha tese indicam que os padrões modernos de biodiversidade mostram legados de atividades humanas passadas, mas também são afectados pela dinâmica ambiental em escalas temporais longinquas. Além disso, a taxa de alterações após o povoamento humano nas ilhas pode exceder largamente taxas quaternárias antecedentes. Os meus resultados concordam com estudos mostrando que as atividades humanas têm sido um fator importante na modelação da biodiversidade ao longo do tempo. Mas a minha comparação global de ilhas também destaca diversas maneiras pelas quais variáveis abióticas, bióticas e antropogénicas interagiram entre ilhas. Estudos futuros devem reconhecer que a mudança global da biodiversidade pode manifestarse de formas diferente entre localidades. Por fim, destaco a importância de aumentar abordagens interdisciplinares na biogeografia insular para melhor compreender as mudanças da biodiversidade no Antropoceno.

The basement of the Tonga intraoceanic forearc comprises Eocene arc volcanic crust formed during the earliest phases of subduction. Volcanic rocks recovered from the forearc include boninites and arc tholeiites, apparently erupted into and upon older mid-oceanic ridge tholeiites. Rock assemblages suggest that the forearc basement is a likely analog for large supra-subduction zone (SSZ) ophiolites not only in structure and Ethology, but also in the style of hydrothermal alteration. Dredged volcanic samples from the central Tonga forearc (20-24�� S) exhibit the effects of seafloor weathering, low (<200��C, principally <100��C) alteration, and high temperature (>200��C) alteration. Tholeiites and arc tholeiites are significantly more altered than boninites. Seafloor weathering is due to extensive interaction with cold oxidizing seawater, and is characterized by red-brown staining and the presence of Fe-oxyhydroxides. Low temperature alteration is due to circulation of evolving seawater-derived fluids through the volcanic section until fluid pathways were closed by secondary mineral precipitation. Low temperature alteration is characterized by smectites, celadonite, phillipsite, mixed-layer smectite/chlorite, carbonates, and silica. All phases fill veins and cavities; clay minerals and silica also replace the mesostasis and groundmass phases. Low temperature alteration enriches the bulk rock in K, Ba, and Na, and mobilizes other elements to varying extents. The few high temperature samples are characterized by mobilizes other elements to varying extents. The few high temperature samples are characterized by epidote, chlorite, quartz, oxides, and fibrous amphibole, which replace groundmass and phenocrysts, and fill cavities, and are presumed to have originated in zones of concentrated hydrothermal upflow.These three alteration types are similar to those seen in many ophiolites such as Troodos, where low temperatures prevailed in the volcanic section except in localized upflow zones. Alteration mineral chemistries are also broadly similar to those observed for the Troodos Ophiolite. Tonga forearc alteration differs from mid-oceanic ridge alteration in the presence of Al-rich dioctahedral smectites (not common in mid-oceanic ridge crust), the high Al content of saponite, and the predominance of K as an interlayer cation in clays. Hydrothermal alteration of the Tonga forearc is likely the product of extensive interaction with compositionally evolving seawater-derived fluids beginning at the time of emplacement. The distribution and intensity of alteration in these crustal sections depend principally on the porosity and permeability of the crust during alteration, which are influenced by the primary porosity, igneous morphology, and the presence of faults and fractures which could affect fluid flow.
Graduation date: 1999

Flood basalts on the - 6500 km² Kerguelen Archipelago in the southern Indian Ocean formed in an intraplate location on the Antarctic plate between 29-24 Ma as the Southeast Indian Ridge migrated from - 225 to - 400 km northeast relative to the Kerguelen hotspot. A - 700 m section of basalts exposed at Mt. Marion Dufresne, in the southern part of the Plateau Central, contains both transitional-tholeiitic and mildly alkalic lavas (A.I. -0.8 to 2.0) that are geochemically and isotopically variable, and captures an important period of time (-1 Myr) near the end of flood basalt volcanism on the Kerguelen Archipelago. The basal 300 m of the section consists of low-MgO (<5.2 wt. %) predominantly aphyric lavas characterized by a limited range of "enriched" isotopic compositions (¹⁷⁶Hf/¹⁷⁷Hf =.0.28282-0.28287; ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr = 0.7048-0.7050; ¹⁴³Nd / ¹⁴⁴Nd = 0.5126-0.5127; ²⁰⁷Pb / ²⁰⁴Pb = 15.54-15.56) similar to compositions observed in the enriched 24-25 Ma mildly alkalic lavas to the east and southeast (e.g. Mt. Crozier). This aphyric sequence of basalts appears to represent a "steady state" magmatic system where differentiation occurred primarily in a solid-dominated (mush or slurry) environment. Highly calcic (>An ₈₀) plagioclase compositions observed in intercalated plagioclasephyric and ultraphyric basalts from the upper part of this interval signal a change in crystallization environments to relatively shallow (-5-6 km) magma storage and relatively hydrous conditions (>3 wt.% H₂0 ). The low-MgO basaltic lavas are overlain by a thick (-400 m) succession of olivine-phyric high-MgO basalts (7.1-11.4 wt.%) that is interpreted to represent an interval of increased magma supply and eruptive flux. Olivine whole-rock Fe/Mg relations indicate that olivine phenocrysts with ~Fo ₈₀-₈₆ are in equilibrium with parental magma compositions of 8-10 wt% MgO. Unlike the low-MgO lavas, these high-MgO basalts span a range of "depleted" isotopic compositions (⁷⁶Hf/¹⁷⁷Hf = 0.28292-0.28300, ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr = 0.7040-0.7046, ¹⁴³Nd / ¹⁴⁴Nd = 0.5127-0.5128, and ²⁰⁷Pb / ²⁰⁴Pb = 15.49-15.52) and represent the first documented occurrence of a depleted mantle component in mildly alkalic basalts from the Kerguelen Archipelago. The presence of this depleted mantle component, which is compositionally similar to that observed in the older 28-29 Ma basalts in the northern part of the archipelago, reflects a short term increase in the extent of melting beneath the oceanic lithosphere and renewed interaction between Southeast Indian Ridge MORB-type asthenosphere and the enriched component of Kerguelen mantle plume at 25 Ma.
Science, Faculty of
Earth, Ocean and Atmospheric Sciences, Department of
Graduate