Temporal clustering of fissural eruption across multiple segments within the Ethiopian Rift
Temporal clustering of fissural eruption across multiple segments within the Ethiopian Rift
Magmatic continental rifts show evidence that discrete rift segments experience episodic intrusive and eruptive events, more commonly termed rifting episodes. However, whether multiple rifting episodes across adjacent rift segments are clustered in time is not well understood. To address this issue, we conduct new radiocarbon dating that constrains the timing of the most recent rifting episode at the Boset magmatic segment of the northern Ethiopian rift, and combine this with historical dating of similar rifting events in the adjacent magmatic segments. New radiocarbon dates of multiple charcoal samples from the base of the most recent fissural lava at the Boset Volcanic Complex indicate that it likely occurred between 1812 and 1919 CE. These dates are similar to those from historical accounts of fissural eruption from the neighbouring Kone (∼1810 CE), and Fantale (∼1770 to 1808 CE) magmatic segments. We conduct new analysis of major and trace element compositions from these historical fissural lavas, as well as from a fresh-looking lava flow from Beru cone near to Kone volcano. The results of the geochemistry from these flows of all three magmatic segments show compositions that vary in the basalt and trachybasalt fields, with sufficient variation to rule out them having erupted from a single dike intrusion episode. This, combined with the scatter in dates from the radiocarbon analysis and historical accounts, along with the location of each eruption in a discrete and spatially offset magmatic segment, favours an interpretation of each magmatic segment experiencing separate rifting episodes but with these being clustered in time. Mechanisms to explain the clustering of rifting episodes are more speculative but could include stress transfer from dike intrusion and deep crustal hydraulic connection in the plumbing system of multiple segments.
Boset-Bericha Volcanic Complex, Fantale Volcano, Kone Volcano, mafic fissure eruption, Main Ethiopian Rift, radiocarbon dating ( C) of charcoal, temporal clustering of volcanic eruptions
Siegburg, Melanie
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Gernon, Thomas M.
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Keir, Derek
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Bull, Jonathan M.
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Taylor, Rex N.
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Watts, Emma J.
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Greenfield, Tim
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Gebru, Ermias F.
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Siegburg, Melanie
b4801eca-cd00-401b-8cb0-a21da9754c42
Gernon, Thomas M.
658041a0-fdd1-4516-85f4-98895a39235e
Keir, Derek
5616f81f-bf1b-4678-a167-3160b5647c65
Bull, Jonathan M.
974037fd-544b-458f-98cc-ce8eca89e3c8
Taylor, Rex N.
094be7fd-ef61-4acd-a795-7daba2bc6183
Watts, Emma J.
2135079d-2472-4d7e-a05a-3f234793697e
Greenfield, Tim
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Gebru, Ermias F.
71d492b8-a8ee-48bd-bf04-fef7d95a888b
Siegburg, Melanie, Gernon, Thomas M., Keir, Derek, Bull, Jonathan M., Taylor, Rex N. and Watts, Emma J.
,
et al.
(2023)
Temporal clustering of fissural eruption across multiple segments within the Ethiopian Rift.
Frontiers in Earth Science, 11, [1169635].
(doi:10.3389/feart.2023.1169635).
Abstract
Magmatic continental rifts show evidence that discrete rift segments experience episodic intrusive and eruptive events, more commonly termed rifting episodes. However, whether multiple rifting episodes across adjacent rift segments are clustered in time is not well understood. To address this issue, we conduct new radiocarbon dating that constrains the timing of the most recent rifting episode at the Boset magmatic segment of the northern Ethiopian rift, and combine this with historical dating of similar rifting events in the adjacent magmatic segments. New radiocarbon dates of multiple charcoal samples from the base of the most recent fissural lava at the Boset Volcanic Complex indicate that it likely occurred between 1812 and 1919 CE. These dates are similar to those from historical accounts of fissural eruption from the neighbouring Kone (∼1810 CE), and Fantale (∼1770 to 1808 CE) magmatic segments. We conduct new analysis of major and trace element compositions from these historical fissural lavas, as well as from a fresh-looking lava flow from Beru cone near to Kone volcano. The results of the geochemistry from these flows of all three magmatic segments show compositions that vary in the basalt and trachybasalt fields, with sufficient variation to rule out them having erupted from a single dike intrusion episode. This, combined with the scatter in dates from the radiocarbon analysis and historical accounts, along with the location of each eruption in a discrete and spatially offset magmatic segment, favours an interpretation of each magmatic segment experiencing separate rifting episodes but with these being clustered in time. Mechanisms to explain the clustering of rifting episodes are more speculative but could include stress transfer from dike intrusion and deep crustal hydraulic connection in the plumbing system of multiple segments.
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feart-11-1169635
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Accepted/In Press date: 18 April 2023
e-pub ahead of print date: 10 May 2023
Additional Information:
Funding Information:
Gernon is supported by the Natural Environment Research Council, NERC (grant NE/R004978/1) and DK, Greenfield and MS were supported by the NERC RiftVolc project (grant NE/L013509/1). EJW is supported by NERC Spitfire studentship grant NE/L002531/1. We used LiDAR data collected by the NERC Airborne Research and Survey Facility (ARSF), grant ET12-14.
Publisher Copyright:
Copyright © 2023 Siegburg, Gernon, Keir, Bull, Taylor, Watts, Greenfield and Gebru.
Keywords:
Boset-Bericha Volcanic Complex, Fantale Volcano, Kone Volcano, mafic fissure eruption, Main Ethiopian Rift, radiocarbon dating ( C) of charcoal, temporal clustering of volcanic eruptions
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Local EPrints ID: 477823
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/477823
PURE UUID: 12d27759-95b8-4b82-ad35-31ae6bfb595c
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Date deposited: 15 Jun 2023 16:45
Last modified: 27 Apr 2024 02:22
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Author:
Melanie Siegburg
Author:
Emma J. Watts
Author:
Tim Greenfield
Author:
Ermias F. Gebru
Corporate Author: et al.
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