No plate tectonics necessary to explain Eoarchean rocks at Isua (Greenland)

Trace element and isotopic data for basalts from the Isua greenstone belt, West Greenland, indicate that they were derived from a range of mantle reservoirs that included depleted lower mantle, the mantle transition zone, and a primitive mantle reservoir probably located in the shallow upper mantle. Modeling of trace element compositions indicates that the Isua basalts were formed through the mixing between and refertilization of these diverse sources and their resultant melts and that this took place in the shallow upper mantle. It is proposed that the melting and mixing were driven by the heat transferred from hot deep mantle sources. This geochemical interpretation leads to a geodynamic model in which deep mantle domains rise to melt in the shallow mantle where there is mixing between a range of sources and melts. There is no evidence for material descending from the shallow to deeper mantle and no necessity for the involvement of crustal materials. These processes imply the activity of a mantle plume and/or heat pipe.

Automated summary

The basalts from the Isua greenstone belt in West Greenland are likely derived from a mixture of depleted lower mantle, mantle transition zone, and shallow upper mantle reservoirs, with the melting and mixing processes driven by heat transfer from hot deep mantle sources. This geochemical interpretation suggests the activity of a mantle plume and/or heat pipe in the geodynamic model proposed.