Image-based modelling of lateral magma flow: the Basement Sill, Antarctica.

ABSTRACT: The McMurdo Dry Valleys magmatic system, Antarctica, provides a world-class example of pervasive lateral magma flow on a continental scale. The lowermost intrusion (Basement Sill) offers detailed sections through the now frozen particle microstructure of a congested magma slurry. We simulated the flow regime in two and three dimensions using numerical models built on a finite-element mesh derived from field data. The model captures the flow behaviour of the Basement Sill magma over a viscosity range of 1-10⁴ Pa s where the higher end (greater than or equal to 10² Pa s) corresponds to a magmatic slurry with crystal fractions varying between 30 and 70%. A novel feature of the model is the discovery of transient, low viscosity (less than or equal to 50 Pa s) high Reynold

SUBMITTER: Petford N 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5451803 | biostudies-literature | 2017 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature