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1. Site U1585

    Sager, W.; Blum, P.; Carvallo, C.A.; Heaton, D.; Nelson, W.R.; Tshiningayamwe, M.; Widdowson, M. (October 2023, Proceedings of the International Ocean Discovery Program Expedition reports)

   The strategy of Expedition 391 was to core at six distributed locations on the Tristan-Gough-Walvis (TGW) hotspot track, providing new insights into the temporal, volcanologic, petrologic, geochemical and paleomagnetic evolution of the hotspot track (see Scientific objectives in the Expedition 391 summary chapter [Sager et al., 2023c]). At the youngest and westernmost of these locations, three sites were proposed as a transect across the northern Guyot Province seamounts and ridges immediately southwest of the morphologic split that occurs at about 2°E (Figure F1). Because of severe cuts to operational time on that expedition caused by COVID-19 mitigation, two proposed sites (GT-4A and TT-4A) were omitted (see Introduction in the Expedition 391 summary chapter [Sager et al., 2023c]). Only the middle site (U1578) was cored (Figures F1, F2). This omission was a major deficiency for Expedition 391, because the three holes were positioned to sample the isotopic split that first occurs farther northeast, at the location of the DSDP Leg 74 transect (Hoernle et al., 2015). By omitting the ends of the transect, only dredge samples are available to characterize the isotopic end-members, which correspond to the Tristan track (northern seamounts that connect Walvis Ridge with the Tristan Island group) and the Gough track (southern seamounts that connect Walvis Ridge to the Gough Island group). 

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2. Site U1578

    Sager, W.; Hoernle, K.; Höfig, T.W.; Avery, A.J.; Bhutani, R.; Buchs, D.M.; Carvallo, C.A.; Class, C.; Dai, Y.; Dalla Valle, G.; et al (October 2023, Proceedings of the International Ocean Discovery Program Expedition reports)

   The strategy for International Ocean Discovery Program (IODP) Expedition 391 was to drill at three distributed locations on Walvis Ridge and one in the Guyot Province, providing an age transect along the Tristan-Gough-Walvis (TGW) hotspot track. Site U1578 (proposed Site CT-5A) is located on the deep northwestern flank of an unnamed guyot that is part of the Center track, a ridge between the Tristan and Gough seamount tracks, southwest of where Walvis Ridge splits (Figures F1, F2). 

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3. Site U1584

   https://doi.org/10.14379/iodp.proc.391.107.2023  

   Sager, W.; Blum, P.; Carvallo, C.A.; Heaton, D.; Nelson, W.R.; Tshiningayamwe, M.; Widdowson, M. (October 2023, Proceedings of the International Ocean Discovery Program Expedition reports)

   The strategy of Expedition 391 was to core at six distributed locations on the Tristan-Gough-Walvis (TGW) hotspot track, providing new insights into its temporal, volcanological, petrologic, geochemical, and paleomagnetic evolution (Sager et al., 2023b). At the youngest and westernmost of these locations, three sites were proposed as a transect across the northern Guyot Province seamounts and ridges immediately southwest of the morphological split that occurs at about 2°E (Figure F1). Because of severe cuts to operational time during Expedition 391 caused by COVID-19 mitigation, two sites (proposed Sites GT-4A and TT-4A) were omitted (Sager et al., 2023b). Only the middle site (U1578) was cored (Figure F1). This omission was a major deficiency for Expedition 391 because the three sites were positioned to sample the isotopic split that first occurs farther northeast at the location of the Deep Sea Drilling Project (DSDP) Leg 74 transect (Hoernle et al., 2015). By omitting the ends of the transect, only dredge samples are available to characterize the isotopic end-members, which correspond to the Tristan track (northern seamounts) and the Gough track (southern seamounts). 

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4. Site U1575

   https://doi.org/10.14379/iodp.proc.391.103.2023  

   Sager, W.; Hoernle, K.; Höfig, T.W.; Avery, A.J.; Bhutani, R.; Buchs, D.M.; Carvallo, C.A.; Class, C.; Dai, Y.; Dalla Valle, G.; et al (October 2023, Proceedings of the International Ocean Discovery Program Expedition reports)

   The strategy for International Ocean Discovery Program (IODP) Expedition 391 (Walvis Ridge Hotspot) was to drill at three general locations on Walvis Ridge and one in Guyot Province, providing an age transect along the Tristan-Gough-Walvis (TGW) hotspot track. Site U1575 (proposed Site FR-1B), located on the lower Walvis Ridge between Valdivia Bank and Frio Ridge (Figure F1), is the easternmost and presumably the oldest site. Both hotspot models and the age progression of Homrighausen et al. (2019) predict an age of ~100 Ma (Figures F2, F3). Site U1575 is thus an important sample of the early TGW track shortly after it transitioned from the continental flood basalt to the submarine hotspot track setting. 

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5. Expedition 391 Preliminary Report: Walvis Ridge Hotspot

   https://doi.org/10.14379/iodp.pr.391.2022  

   Sager, W.; Hoernle, K.; Höfig, T.W. (May 2022, Preliminary report)

   Hotspot tracks (quasilinear chains of seamounts, ridges, and other volcanic structures) provide important records of plate motions, as well as mantle geodynamics, magma flux, and mantle source compositions. The Tristan-Gough-Walvis Ridge (TGW) hotspot track, extending from the active volcanic islands of Tristan da Cunha and Gough through a province of guyots and then along Walvis Ridge to the Etendeka flood basalt province, forms one of the most prominent and complex global hotspot tracks. The TGW hotspot track displays a tight linear age progression in which ages increase from the islands to the flood basalts (covering ~135 My). Unlike Pacific tracks, which are simple chains of seamounts that are often compared to chains of pearls, the TGW track is alternately a steep-sided narrow ridge, an oceanic plateau, subparallel linear ridges and chains of seamounts, and areas of what appear to be randomly dispersed seamounts. The track displays isotopic zonation over the last ~70 My. The zonation appears near the middle of the track just before it splits into two to three chains of ridge- and guyot-type seamounts. The older ridge is also overprinted with age-progressive late-stage volcanism, which was emplaced ~30–40 My after the initial eruptions and has a distinct isotopic composition. The plan for Expedition 391 was to drill at six sites, three along Walvis Ridge and three in the seamount (guyot) province, to gather igneous rocks to better understand the formation of track edifices, the temporal and geochemical evolution of the hotspot, and the variation in paleolatitudes at which the volcanic edifices formed. After a delay of 18 days to address a shipboard outbreak of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) virus, Expedition 391 proceeded to drill at four of the proposed sites: three sites on the eastern Walvis Ridge around Valdivia Bank, an ocean plateau within the ridge, and one site on the lower flank of a guyot in the Center track, a ridge located between the Tristan subtrack (which extends from the end of Walvis Ridge to the island of Tristan da Cunha) and the Gough subtrack (which extends from Walvis Ridge to the island of Gough). One hole was drilled at Site U1575, located on a low portion of the northeastern Walvis Ridge north of Valdivia Bank. At this location, 209.9 m of sediments and 122.4 m of igneous basement were cored. The latter comprised 10 submarine lava units consisting of pillow, lobate, sheet, and massive lava flows, the thickest of which was ~21 m. Most lavas are tholeiitic, but some alkalic basalts were recovered. A portion of the igneous succession consists of low-Ti basalts, which are unusual because they appear in the Etendeka flood basalts but have not been previously found on Walvis Ridge. Two holes were drilled at Site U1576 on the west flank of Valdivia Bank. The first hole was terminated because a bit jammed shortly after penetrating igneous basement. Hole U1576A recovered a remarkable ~380 m thick sedimentary section consisting mostly of chalk covering a nearly complete sequence from Paleocene to Late Cretaceous (Campanian). These sediments display short and long cyclic color changes that imply astronomically forced and longer term paleoenvironmental changes. The igneous basement yielded 11 submarine lava units ranging from pillows to massive flows, which have compositions varying from tholeiitic basalt to basaltic andesite, the first occurrence of this composition recovered from the TGW track. These units are separated by seven sedimentary chalk units that range in thickness from 0.1 to 11.6 m, implying a long-term interplay of sedimentation and lava eruptions. Coring at Site U1577, on the extreme eastern flank of Valdivia Bank, penetrated a 154 m thick sedimentary section, the bottom ~108 m of which is Maastrichtian–Campanian (possibly Santonian) chalk with vitric tephra layers. Igneous basement coring progressed only 39.1 m below the sediment-basalt contact, recovering three massive submarine tholeiite basalt lava flows that are 4.1, 15.5, and >19.1 m thick, respectively. Paleomagnetic data from Sites U1577 and U1576 indicate that their volcanic basements formed just before the end of the Cretaceous Normal Superchron and during Chron 33r, shortly afterward, respectively. Biostratigraphic and paleomagnetic data suggest an east–west age progression across Valdivia Bank, becoming younger westward. Site U1578, located on a Center track guyot, provided a long and varied igneous section. After coring through 184.3 m of pelagic carbonate sediments mainly consisting of Eocene and Paleocene chalk, Hole U1578A cored 302.1 m of igneous basement. Basement lavas are largely pillows but are interspersed with sheet and massive flows. Lava compositions are mostly alkalic basalts with some hawaiite. Several intervals contain abundant olivine, and some of the pillow stacks consist of basalt with remarkably high Ti content. The igneous sequence is interrupted by 10 sedimentary interbeds consisting of chalk and volcaniclastics and ranging in thickness from 0.46 to 10.19 m. Paleomagnetic data display a change in basement magnetic polarity ~100 m above the base of the hole. Combining magnetic stratigraphy with biostratigraphic data, the igneous section is inferred to span >1 My. Abundant glass from pillow lava margins was recovered at Sites U1575, U1576, and U1578. Although the igneous penetration was only two-thirds of the planned amount, drilling during Expedition 391 obtained samples that clearly will lead to a deeper understanding of the evolution of the Tristan-Gough hotspot and its track. Relatively fresh basalts with good recovery will provide ample samples for geochemical, geochronologic, and paleomagnetic studies. Good recovery of Late Cretaceous and early Cenozoic chalk successions provides samples for paleoenvironmental study. 

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