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Kimberlites in the south-west Pacific

Nature volume 287, pages 718–720 (1980)Cite this article

Abstract

Pipe-like bodies revealed by seismic refraction surveys over the Ontong Java Plateau (OJP), south-west Pacific, have characteristics of volcanic plugs1,2. The oceanic crust is old (Lower Cretaceous, possibly Jurassic) and unusually thick3 (40 km), similar to that of some continental sections. The Island of Malaita, Solomon Islands, at the thinner periphery of the OJP contains several alnöite intrusions with suites of mantle inclusions, similar to those of the diamond-bearing rock, kimberlite, found in continental areas. Pyroxene geotherms calculated from the inclusions show alnöites to have formed in the Earth's mantle in warmer, shallower conditions compared with kimberlites4. However, by analogy with continental cratons, I suggest here that the thicker, northwestern parts of the OJP had lower geothermal gradients suitable for the formation of kimberlite pipes. These could be the bodies revealed by seismic prospecting.

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Author notes

  1. P. H. Nixon

    Present address: Department of Earth Sciences, The University, Leeds, LS2 9JT, UK

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Geology Department, University PO, Box 4820, Papua New Guinea

    P. H. Nixon

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Nixon, P. Kimberlites in the south-west Pacific. Nature 287, 718–720 (1980). https://doi.org/10.1038/287718a0

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