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Abstract Large igneous provinces erupt highly reactive, predominantly basaltic lavas onto Earth’s surface, which should boost the weathering flux leading to long-term CO2drawdown and cooling following cessation of volcanism. However, throughout Earth’s geological history, the aftermaths of multiple Phanerozoic large igneous provinces are marked by unexpectedly protracted climatic warming and delayed biotic recovery lasting millions of years beyond the most voluminous phases of extrusive volcanism. Here we conduct geodynamic modelling of mantle melting and thermomechanical modelling of magma transport to show that rheologic feedbacks in the crust can throttle eruption rates despite continued melt generation and CO2supply. Our results demonstrate how the mantle-derived flux of CO2to the atmosphere during large igneous provinces can decouple from rates of surface volcanism, representing an important flux driving long-term climate. Climate–biogeochemical modelling spanning intervals with temporally calibrated palaeoclimate data further shows how accounting for this non-eruptive cryptic CO2can help reconcile the life cycle of large igneous provinces with climate disruption and recovery during the Permian–Triassic, Mid-Miocene and other critical moments in Earth’s climate history. These findings underscore the key role that outgassing from intrusive magmas plays in modulating our planet’s surface environment.more » « less
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Abstract Determining the spatial relations between volcanic edifices and their underlying magma storage zones is fundamental for characterizing long‐term evolution and short‐term unrest. We compile centroid locations of upper crustal magma reservoirs at 56 arc volcanoes inferred from seismic, magnetotelluric, and geodetic studies. We show that magma reservoirs are often horizontally offset from their associated volcanic edifices by multiple kilometers, and the degree of offset broadly scales with reservoir depth. Approximately 20% of inferred magma reservoir centroids occur outside of the overlying volcano's mean radius. Furthermore, reservoir offset is inversely correlated with edifice size. Taking edifice volume as a proxy for long‐term magmatic flux, we suggest that high flux or prolonged magmatism leads to more centralized magma storage beneath arc volcanoes by overprinting upper crustal heterogeneities that would otherwise affect magma ascent. Edifice volumes therefore reflect the spatial distribution of underlying magma storage, which could help guide monitoring strategies at volcanoes.more » « less
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Volcanic provinces are among the most active but least well understood landscapes on Earth. Here, we show that the central Cascade arc, USA, exhibits systematic spatial covariation of topography and hydrology that are linked to aging volcanic bedrock, suggesting systematic controls on landscape evolution. At the Cascade crest, a locus of Quaternary volcanism, water circulates deeply through the upper 1 km of crust but transitions to shallow and dominantly horizontal flow as rocks age away from the arc front. We argue that this spatial pattern reflects a temporal state shift in the deep Critical Zone. Chemical weathering at depth, surface particulate deposition, and tectonic forcing drive landscapes away from an initial state with minimal topographic dissection, large vertical hydraulic conductivity, abundant lakes, and muted hydrographs toward a state of deep fluvial dissection, small vertical hydraulic conductivity, few lakes, and flashy hydrographs. This state shift has major implications for regional water resources. Drill hole temperature profiles imply at least km of active groundwater currently stored at the Cascade Range crest, with discharge variability a strong function of bedrock age. Deeply circulating groundwater also impacts volcanism, and Holocene High Cascades eruptions reflect explosive magma–water interactions that increase regional volcanic hazard potential. We propose that a Critical Zone state shift drives volcanic landscape evolution in wet climates and represents a framework for understanding interconnected solid earth dynamics and climate in these terrains.more » « lessFree, publicly-accessible full text available January 21, 2026
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Linear feature analysis plays a fundamental role in geospatial applications, from detecting infrastructure networks to characterizing geological formations. In this paper, we introduce linkinglines, an open-source Python package tailored for the clustering and feature extrac- tion of linear structures in geospatial data. Our package leverages the Hough Transform, commonly used in image processing, performs clustering of line segments in the Hough Space, and then provides unique feature extraction methods and visualization. linkinglines em- powers researchers, data scientists, and analysts across diverse domains to efficiently process, understand, and extract valuable insights from linear features, contributing to more informed decision-making and enhanced data-driven exploration. We have used linkinglines to map dike swarms with thousands of segments associated with Large Igneous Provinces in Kubo Hutchison et al. (2023).more » « less
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Along subduction zones, high-relief topography is associated with sustained volcanism parallel to the plate margin. However, the relationship between magmatism and mountain building in arcs is poorly understood. Here, we study patterns of surface deformation and correlated fluvial knickpoints in the Columbia River Gorge to link long-term magmatism to the uplift and ensuing topographic development of the Cascade Range. An upwarped paleochannel exposed in the walls of the Gorge constrains unsteady deep magma flux, the ratio of intrusive to extrusive magmatic contributions to topography, and the impact of magmatism on Co- lumbia River incision since 3.5 million years ago. Geophysical data indicate that deep magma influx beneath the arc axis is ongoing and not aligned with the current locations of volcanic edifices, representing a broad regional influence on arc construction.more » « less
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Dike swarms are ubiquitous on terrestrial planets and represent the frozen remnants of magma transport networks. However, spatial complexity, protracted emplacement history, and uneven surface exposure typically make it difficult to quantify patterns in dike swarms on different scales. In this study, we address this challenge using the Hough transform (HT) to objectively link dissected dike segments and analyze multiscale spatial structure in dike swarms. We apply this method to swarms of three scales: the Spanish Peaks, USA; the Columbia River Flood Basalt Group (CRBG), USA; the Deccan Traps Flood Basalts, India. First, we cluster dike segments in HT space, recognizing prevalent linearly aligned structures that represent single dikes or dike packets, with lengths up to 10 − 30x the mapped mean segment length. Second, we identify colinear and radial dike segment mesoscale structures within each data set, using the HT to segment swarms into constituent spatial patterns. We show that for both the CRBG and Deccan Traps, a single radial or circumferential swarm does not well characterize the data. Instead, multiple and sometimes overlapping mesoscale linear and radial features are prevalent suggesting a complex history of crustal stresses. The HT can provide useful insights in a variety of geologic settings where many quasi‐linear features, at any scale, are superimposed spatially.more » « less
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The morphology and distribution of volcanic edifices in volcanic terrains encodes the structure and evolution of underlying magma transport as well as surface processes that shape landforms. How magmatic construction and erosion interact on long timescales to sculpt these landscapes, however, remains poorly resolved. In the Cascades arc, distributed volcanic edifices mirror long-wavelength topography associated with underlying crustal magmatism and define the regional drainage divide. The resulting strong along- and across-arc modern precipitation gradients and extensive glaciation provide a natural laboratory for climate-volcano interactions. Here, we use 1,658 volcanic edifice boundaries to quantify volcano morphology at the arc-scale, and reconstruct primary edifice volumes to create first-order estimations of Cascades erosion throughout the Quaternary. Across-arc asymmetry in eroded volumes, mirroring similarly asymmetric spatial distribution of volcanism, suggests a coupling between magmatism and climate in which construction of topography enhances erosion by orographic precipitation and glaciers on million-year timescales. We demonstrate with a coupled landscape evolution and crustal stress model that mountain building associated with magmatism and subsequent orographically-induced erosion can redistribute surface loads and direct subsequent time-averaged magma ascent. This two-way coupling can thus contribute to Myr-scale spatial migration of volcanism observed in the Cascades and other arcs globally.more » « less
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