Gharyan volcanic field
| Gharyan volcanic field | |
|---|---|
  | |
| Highest point | |
| Elevation | 850 m (2,790 ft)[1] |
| Coordinates | 32°00′N 13°15′E / 32°N 13.25°E[1] |
Gharyan volcanic field is a
Tarhunah close by.[2]
Gharyan is one among several
Tibesti. They are linked either with crustal domes or rifts and appear to be the consequence of lithosphere-mantle processes such as mantle plumes.[3] Haruj and Wau en Namus in Libya may be still active.[4]
The field has covered an area of about 3,000 square kilometres (1,200 sq mi) with
lava flows and volcanic cones[1] such as the shield volcanoes Ras el-Mohor and Ras Tebra. Exposed laccoliths are also common in some parts of the field, such as Kaf El Khalef, Kaf El Tekut, Kaf Mantrus, Kaf el-Tuam and Ras Tuint-Rabib.[5] The location of these vents appears to be controlled by a neighbouring graben and tectonic fractures.[4] The volcanic field developed on a basement formed by Mesozoic limestones.[2]
The field has erupted
tholeiite.[6]
Potassium-argon dating has yielded an age of about 12 to 1 million years ago for the field;[1] activity commenced in the Eocene with the basaltic plateau and continued in the late Eocene and later with lava domes and individual volcanoes.[6] Volcanic activity has been subdivided in several separate cycles.[7]
References
- ^ a b c d e "Gharyan Volcanic Field". Global Volcanism Program. Smithsonian Institution.
- ^ a b Al-Hafdh & Gafeer 2015, p. 71.
- ^ Beccaluva et al. 2008, p. 253.
- ^ a b c Lustrino et al. 2012, p. 218.
- ^ Lustrino et al. 2012, p. 219.
- ^ a b Beccaluva et al. 2008, p. 254.
- ^ Al-Hafdh & Gafeer 2015, p. 72.
Sources
- Al-Hafdh, N.M.; Gafeer, A.S. (April 2015). "The petrology and geochemistry of Gharyan volcanic province of NW Libya". Journal of African Earth Sciences. 104: 71–102. ISSN 1464-343X.
- Beccaluva, L.; Bianchini, G.; Ellam, R. M.; Marzola, M.; Oun, K. M.; Siena, F.; Stuart, F. M. (1 January 2008). "The role of HIMU metasomatic components in the North African lithospheric mantle: petrological evidence from the Gharyan lherzolite xenoliths, NW Libya". Geological Society, London, Special Publications. 293 (1): 253–277. S2CID 128855016.
- Lustrino, Michele; Cucciniello, Ciro; Melluso, Leone; Tassinari, Colombo C.G.; dè Gennaro, Roberto; Serracino, Marcello (December 2012). "Petrogenesis of Cenozoic volcanic rocks in the NW sector of the Gharyan volcanic field, Libya". Lithos. 155: 218–235. ISSN 0024-4937.