Magma storage and underplating beneath Cumbre Vieja volcano, La Palma (Canary Islands)

We have conducted a barometric study of basaltic lavas and mafic to ultramafic xenoliths from Cumbre Vieja volcano (La Palma) in order to reconstruct magma storage, plumbing and related intrusive island growth. The samples were collected both along the volcano's rift zone and from its subaerial and submarine flanks up to 30 km off the rift axis. Clinopyroxene-melt barometry of lavas yields a well-defined pressure range of 410-770 MPa (average 600 MPa) and shows no systematic variation with sample locality. This pressure range reflects a major fractionation level at ca. 15-26 km depth, within the uppermost mantle, where phenocrysts and melt last equilibrated. In contrast, microthermometry of CO2-dominated fluid inclusions in phenocrysts and xenoliths gives pressure estimates of 240 to 470 MPa (average 330 MPa), within the lower oceanic crust. These pressures are interpreted to reflect an underplating zone at 7-14 km depth where ascending magmas become ponded prior to eruption and where passing magmas temporarily stagnate during eruption. The underplating zone is inferred to extend to a radius of ca. 30 km at least, and its depth appears to increase slightly with distance to the rift axis. Our data thus show a remarkable pressure bimodality for long-term and short-term storage of magma that appears to be characteristic for Cumbre Vieja. By using a simple model based on the cumulative volume of material added to the crust, we have estimated uplift rates of > 0.5 m/ka due to underplating that occurs on the island scale. On a time-scale of some 10 ka, these uplift rates are of similar magnitude as global changes in sea-level. A second, more local mode of uplift and related faulting is caused by shallow intrusions into the volcanic edifice as is indicated by the highly irregular morphology of the Cumbre Vieja. We stress that intrusion-related uplift should be qualitatively considered when reconstructing the evolution of oceanic island volcanoes. Since most of the underplated material is inferred to consist of cumulate rocks being intimately mixed and juxtaposed with the lower oceanic crust and having similar densities, it is probably impossible to detect such an underplating zone seismically.