Abstract
The linear Hawaiian–Emperor seamount chain is the best example of intraplate hotspot volcanism. The nature and number of sources involved in generating the Hawaiian basalts have been subjects of great interest1–11. Trace element abundances1,4,6 and Sr, Nd1–4,6,9 and He11 isotope ratios of the Hawaiian basalts are consistent with a petrogenetic model involving mixing of components from two mantle sources. However, multiple-source models2,5,7–10 were proposed to explain the heterogeneous Pb isotope ratios in the Hawaiian basalts. Here I re-evaluate the Pb isotope ratios in the Hawaiian basalts and show that the Pb isotope ratios can also be explained by the mixing of components from two mantle sources, a primitive mantle source and a mid-ocean-ridge basalt (MORB) source. The primitive mantle source is seen as a plume rising from beneath the asthenosphere with Pb, Sr, Nd and He isotope ratios similar to the bulk Earth estimates. The MORB source is envisioned as the wall rock in the lithosphere and asthenosphere which is heterogeneous and has ranges of Pb, Sr, Nd and He isotope ratios similar to those observed in the northern Pacific MORB.
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Chen, CY. Lead isotope constraints on the origin of Hawaiian basalts. Nature 327, 49–52 (1987). https://doi.org/10.1038/327049a0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/327049a0
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