RUSSIAN JOURNAL OF EARTH SCIENCES VOL. 12, ES3004, doi:10.2205/2012ES000515, 2012

MORB-like mantle beneath Lanzerote Island, Canary Islands

Schmidt Joint Institute of Physics of the Earth, Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow, Russia

Abstract

Our newly obtained data on the He-Ar and Sr-Nd isotopic systematics of mantle xenolith and their host basalts suggest the absence of a mantle plume beneath Lanzerote Island. The R/R_a ratio of the xenoliths lies within the range typical of MORB. The He isotopic composition of basalts from Lanzerote Island provides evidence of the mixing of two sources: MORB and atmospheric. The He isotopic ratios of both the xenoliths and the basalts do not show any correlations with the Sr and Nd isotopic characteristics.

Received 18 April 2012; accepted 20 April 2012; published 8 May 2012.

Keywords: Lanzerote Island; mantle xenoliths; basalts; He-Ar and Sr-Nd isotopes

Citation: Grachev A. F. (2012), MORB-like mantle beneath Lanzerote Island, Canary Islands, Russ. J. Earth Sci., 12, ES3004, doi:10.2205/2012ES000515.