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Diffuse fluid flux through orogenic belts: Implications for the world ocean

Diffuse fluid flux through orogenic belts: Implications for the world ocean Fifty years ago a classic paper by W. W. Rubey (1951) Geol. Soc. Am. Bull. 62, 1111–1148 examined various hypotheses regarding the origin of sea water and concluded that the most likely hypothesis was volcanic outgassing, a view that was generally accepted by earth scientists for the next several decades. More recent work suggests that the rate of subduction of water is much larger than the volcanic outgassing rate, lending support to hypotheses that either ocean volume has decreased with time, or that the imbalance is offset by continuous replenishment of water by cometary impacts. These alternatives are required in the absence of additional mechanisms for the return of water from subducting lithosphere to the Earth's surface. Our recent work on crustal permeability suggests a large capacity for water upflow through tectonically active continental crust, resulting in a heretofore unrecognized degassing pathway that can accommodate the water subduction rate. Escape of recycled water via delivery from the mantle through zones of active metamorphism eliminates the mass-balance argument for the loss of ocean volume or extraterrestrial sources. http://www.deepdyve.com/assets/images/DeepDyve-Logo-lg.png Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences PNAS

Diffuse fluid flux through orogenic belts: Implications for the world ocean

Diffuse fluid flux through orogenic belts: Implications for the world ocean

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences , Volume 99 (14): 9113 – Jul 9, 2002

Abstract

Fifty years ago a classic paper by W. W. Rubey (1951) Geol. Soc. Am. Bull. 62, 1111–1148 examined various hypotheses regarding the origin of sea water and concluded that the most likely hypothesis was volcanic outgassing, a view that was generally accepted by earth scientists for the next several decades. More recent work suggests that the rate of subduction of water is much larger than the volcanic outgassing rate, lending support to hypotheses that either ocean volume has decreased with time, or that the imbalance is offset by continuous replenishment of water by cometary impacts. These alternatives are required in the absence of additional mechanisms for the return of water from subducting lithosphere to the Earth's surface. Our recent work on crustal permeability suggests a large capacity for water upflow through tectonically active continental crust, resulting in a heretofore unrecognized degassing pathway that can accommodate the water subduction rate. Escape of recycled water via delivery from the mantle through zones of active metamorphism eliminates the mass-balance argument for the loss of ocean volume or extraterrestrial sources.

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Publisher
PNAS
Copyright
Copyright ©2009 by the National Academy of Sciences
ISSN
0027-8424
eISSN
1091-6490
Publisher site
See Article on Publisher Site

Abstract

Fifty years ago a classic paper by W. W. Rubey (1951) Geol. Soc. Am. Bull. 62, 1111–1148 examined various hypotheses regarding the origin of sea water and concluded that the most likely hypothesis was volcanic outgassing, a view that was generally accepted by earth scientists for the next several decades. More recent work suggests that the rate of subduction of water is much larger than the volcanic outgassing rate, lending support to hypotheses that either ocean volume has decreased with time, or that the imbalance is offset by continuous replenishment of water by cometary impacts. These alternatives are required in the absence of additional mechanisms for the return of water from subducting lithosphere to the Earth's surface. Our recent work on crustal permeability suggests a large capacity for water upflow through tectonically active continental crust, resulting in a heretofore unrecognized degassing pathway that can accommodate the water subduction rate. Escape of recycled water via delivery from the mantle through zones of active metamorphism eliminates the mass-balance argument for the loss of ocean volume or extraterrestrial sources.

Journal

Proceedings of the National Academy of SciencesPNAS

Published: Jul 9, 2002

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