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Science 12 July 1991:
Vol. 253. no. 5016, pp. 176 - 179
DOI: 10.1126/science.253.5016.176
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Articles

Rapid Eruption of the Siberian Traps Flood Basalts at the Permo-Triassic Boundary

PAUL R. RENNE 1 and ASISH R. BASU 2

1 Institute of Human Origins, Geochronology Center, 2453 Ridge Road, Berkeley, CA 94709
2 Department of Geological Sciences, University of Rochester, Rochester, NY 14627

The Siberian Traps represent one of the most voluminous flood basalt provinces on Earth. Laser-heating 40Ar/39Ar data indicate that the bulk of these basalts was erupted over an extremely short time interval (900,000 ± 800,000 years) beginning at about 248 million years ago at mean eruption rates of greater than 1.3 cubic kilometers per year. Such rates are consistent with a mantle plume origin. Magmatism was not associated with significant lithospheric rifting; thus, mantle decompression resulting from rifting was probably not the primary cause of widespread melting. Inception of Siberian Traps volcanism coincided (within uncertainty) with a profound faunal mass extinction at the Permo-Triassic boundary 249 ± 4 million years ago; these data thus leave open the question of a genetic relation between the two events.

Submitted on March 11, 1991
Accepted on May 15, 1991


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