Geological Association of Canada Annual Meeting, London, May 2021, Special Session SS-08
The present-day oceans provide a natural laboratory to observe the structural, kinematic and magmatic history of oceanic and arc crust, which comprise a significant proportion of greenstone belts and accreted terranes. Details of the spatial and temporal relationships of crustal growth observable in modern oceans are lost during terrane assemblage and associated deformation and metamorphism. This session will highlight studies of current processes of crustal growth in the oceans using modern marine geophysical datasets, collected during ocean-going expeditions, by regional monitoring and satellite missions, together with sampling of the seafloor, to understand the tectonic evolution of different domains of oceanic and arc crust. This includes research on rates of seafloor volcanism, controls on magmatic productivity, lithological, geochemical and isotopic variations over time and space and the transfer of heat from the mantle through the crust to seafloor hydrothermal systems. We invite contributions that use these datasets to advance our knowledge of marine geological processes and apply what is learned to ancient greenstone belts and accreted terranes. This session is a contribution to ongoing studies in the CFREF Metal Earth and the new NSERC CREATE in Marine Geodynamics and Georesources (iMAGE).
