| A bimodal volcanic sequence of 230 m thickness on Skiff Bank, a western salient of the northern Kerguelen Plateau, was drilled during ODP Leg 183. The sequence comprises three main units: a mafic unit of trachybasalt flows sandwiched between two units of trachytic or rhyolitic flows and volcaniclastic rocks. Although interpretation is complicated by moderate to strong alteration of the rocks, their original chemical character can be established using the least mobile major and trace elements (Al, Th, high field strength elements and rare earth elements). High concentrations of alkalis and incompatible trace elements indicate that both mafic and felsic rocks are alkalic. The felsic rocks may have been derived by partial melting of mafic rocks, followed by... |
