The Williamson Family Colloquium Series 

MU Department of Geological Sciences 

Techniques and applications for dating young zircon from Death Valley, California to central Taupo Volcanic Zone, New Zealand

Dr. Christine Chan

Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory

Abstract: The timing and duration of magmatic events hold valuable clues to the tectonic processes responsible for mountain formation, generation of new crust at subduction zones, and the development of continental rifts. In this presentation, I explore the development and application of high-precision zircon geochronology to document the timing of magmatic processes within different levels of transcrustal magmatic systems and between contrasting tectonic settings from Death Valley, CA to the central Taupo Volcanic Zone (TVZ), New Zealand. Given zircon's exceptional resistance to alteration, ubiquity in the Earth's crust, and the ability to date a wide range of geological events makes zircon an indispensable tool for geologists seeking to unravel Earth's complex history. In Death Valley, new high-precision isotope dilution-thermal ionization mass spectrometer (ID-TIMS) U-Pb ages illustrate the temporal and spatial relationship between Cenozoic extension and magmatism. In the TVZ, we developed a novel dual ID-TIMS-ICPMS dating technique that yields higher-precision ages for 100-350 ka zircons to better quantify the timescales of melt generation and extraction in young volcanoes. High-precision zircon geochronology allows us to shed light on the complex interactions between magmatism, tectonics, and volcanism, with implications for current transcrustal magmatic models and tempos of volcanic eruption cycles.

For more information about Dr. Chan’s research, please see their Google Scholar page: 

https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=SlWondIAAAAJ&hl=en

This is a virtual talk! Join us at the Zoom link below. 

Friday April 12, 2024 at 3:30 pm 

Tiffany Rivera is inviting you to a scheduled Zoom meeting.

Join Zoom Meeting
https://umsystem.zoom.us/j/92568915933?pwd=YVBSR3hrUVkrZnhpTTlGeWJsMGhwZz09

Meeting ID: 925 6891 5933
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