Back-Arc Spreading Systems Geological, Biological, Chemical, and Physical Interactions

About this book

New ocean crust is continuously created where tectonic plates diverge. A distinctive type of oceanic crust is formed by back-arc spreading systems that parallel oceanic island arcs on the side away from the subducting plate. Volatile-rich and spatially variable, back-arc spreading systems are a natural laboratory for multi-disciplinary studies of seafloor creation, the flow of magma from the deep earth, and the hydrothermal ecosystems that this flow sustains.

Derived from the prestigious Ridge 2000 InterRidge Theoretical Institute held in 2004, Back-Arc Spreading Systems: Geological, Biological, Chemical, and Physical Interactions reviews the state of the science, with select case studies.

Experienced researchers in, and students of, marine geology, biological oceanography, marine geochemistry, volcanology, petrology, and geo- and paleomagnetism will find Back-Arc Spreading Systems a significant resource now and for the near future.

Contents

Preface
      David M. Christie and Charles R. Fisher   vii
Geological, Biological, Chemical, and Physical Interactions in Back-Arc Spreading Systems— An Introduction
      David M. Christie and Charles R. Fisher  1

Synthesis Papers
Modes of Crustal Accretion in Back-Arc Basins: Inferences From the Lau Basin
      Fernando Martinez and Brian Taylor  5
Present-Day Tectonics in Four Active Island Arcs Based on GPS Observations and Forearc Stress Fields
      Teruyuki Kato and Atsuki Kubo  31
Mantle Structure and Flow Patterns Beneath Active Back-Arc Basins Inferred From Passive Seismic and Electromagnetic Methods
      Douglas A. Wiens, Nobukazu Seama, and James A. Conder  43
Origin of Back-Arc Basin Magmas: Trace Element and Isotope Perspectives
      Julian A. Pearce and Robert J. Stern   63
Chemical Systematics and Hydrous Melting of the Mantle in Back-Arc Basins
      C.H. Langmuir, A. Bézos, S. Escrig, and S.W. Parman  87
Unique Geochemistry of Submarine Hydrothermal Fluids From Arc–Back-Arc Settings of the Western Pacific
      Toshitaka Gamo, Junichiro Ishibashi, Urumu Tsunogai, Kei Okamura, and Hitoshi Chiba  147
Magmatic Fluids as a Source of Metals in Seafloor Hydrothermal Systems
      Kaihui Yang and Steven D. Scott   163
Microbial Ecology of Mid-Ocean Ridges and Back-Arc Basins
      Ken Takai, Satoshi Nakagawa, Anna-Louise Reysenbach, and Joost Hoek    185
Composition and Biogeography of Hydrothermal Vent Communities in Western Pacific Back-Arc Basins
      Daniel Desbruyères, Jun Hashimoto, and Marie-Claire Fabri   215
Physiological Ecology of Back-Arc Basin Fauna: Explorations of the Known and Unknown
      James J. Childress, Dijanna Figueroa, and Michael Henry   235
The East Scotia Sea: Mantle to Microbe
      Roy Livermore  243
Tectonic and Magmatic Evolution of the Bismarck Sea, Papua New Guinea: Review and New Synthesis
      Sang-Mook Lee and Etienne Ruellan   263
Origin of Diverse Geochemical Signatures in Igneous Rocks From the West Philippine Basin: Implications for Tectonic Models
      Rosemary Hickey-Vargas, Ivan P. Savov, Michael Bizimis, Teruaki Ishii, and Kantaro Fujioka   287

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