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Oceanic plates are far from homogeneous, and a large number of bathymetric discontinuities such as seamounts of different sizes are transported along by plate motion towards the mid ocean trenches and beyond. Seamounts currently colliding with plate margins show a major role in shaping the forearc morphology, and several studies even suggest that they might be related with seismicity. However, it is not clear what happens after seamounts are subducted, they can be accreted to the forearc, carried down into the subduction zone and recycled into the deep mantle, or a mix of the two scenarios. Using high-resolution two-dimensional thermomechanical numerical simulations, we investigate subduction processes of oceanic plates with a heterogeneous structure marked by a series of basaltic seamounts arranged in a chain like structure. We solve the 2D momentum, continuity and energy equations with the finite differences coupled with PIC (particle-in-cell) method. Our models also incorporate a depth-dependent, realistic non-Newtonian visco-elasto-plastic rheology, and plasticity is implemented using a yield criterion which limits the creep viscosity. Preliminary results show that initially seamounts preserve they structure when impacting with the trench. Their integrity is partially conserved until they subduct to a depth of about 25-30 km when they finally start to succumb to the great deformations and stresses along the slab interface. We observed that the lower part of the seamount continuously deforms and amalgamates along the slab interface. The upper part is detached and incorporated into the forearc structure. The subsequent seamounts that trail the first seamount, follow the same deformation pattern, and the top of them are maintained in the highly deformed forearc region. Our preliminary modeling results confirm that seamount subduction represent a key tectonic process that influences on a long-term time scale the structure and evolution of subduction zones.

Massive M>8 earthquakes have repeatedly struck the coastal Chilean subduction megathrust at intervals of nearly ten years, and such tsunamigenic earthquakes have caused recurrent damage. A widely accepted mature seismic gap along the strongly coupled plate interface in northern Chile was filled unexpectedly by the occurrence of the 2014 Mw 8.2 Iquique earthquake, which occurred 130 years after the previous quake. This event revealed that our understanding of the state of seismogenesis along the Chilean margin is still poor. This study aims at investigating the temperature and water content distributions within the Nazca slab along a large portion of the Chilean margin. We employ 3-D time-dependent thermomechanical numerical models that incorporate up-to-date slab geometry and phase diagrams of hydrous minerals in the subducting plate to study the north-central Chilean (19 °S–33 °S) coupled megathrust, including the region where the slab is subhorizontal (28 °S–32 °S). Our modeling results show that most shallow off- and onshore interplate earthquakes in north-central Chile in the last decade have been mainly controlled by the phase transformation from lawsonite blueschist to amphibolite at shallow depths. On the other hand, some of the deep subduction seismicity is in good agreement with eclogitization within the oceanic crust and formation of harzburgite in the ultramafic rock in the lower slab. The M > 6 interplate earthquakes are estimated to occur where our models predict slab temperatures less than 400–600 °C and slab dehydration less than 0.03–0.05 wt%/km. Slow slip events tend to occur in regions where interplate temperatures are 400–600 °C (0.03–0.05 wt%/km). The activity level of regional interplate earthquakes and slow slip events is interpreted to be affected by the fluid release from and the temperature distribution in the Nazca slab.

The Isthmus of Tehuantepec (IT) is a tectonically active and complex physiographic province in southern Mexico marked by an anomalous volcanism with unusual location and geochemical signature, an extensional stress regime and a well-imaged high seismic-velocity anomaly in form of a slab-like structure whose origin remains still not well understood. Here we use numeric modelling, tectonic information and composition of volcanic rocks from the Los Tuxtlas Volcanic Field (LTVF) to reconstruct the geodynamic evolution of the Isthmus of Tehuantepec from the Late Miocene to the present, and propose a model that reconciles the seismic observations with the tectonic evolution of the region. Using a high-resolution thermomechanical petrological coupled model, we show that rollback of delaminated continental lithosphere and associated asthenospheric upwelling provides a plausible mechanism for generating the observed high seismic-velocity anomalies beneath the Isthmus of Tehuantepec. Our model proposes that delamination of the entire lithospheric mantle initiated some 7 Myr ago by infiltration of hot and buoyant asthenospheric material into the base of the crust, when a slab gap appeared in the subducting Cocos slab. A geodynamic model involving sub-crustal lithosphere delamination reconciles the geological and geophysical observations and explains the complex oceanic-continental tectonics of the Isthmus of Tehuantepec.

Salt diapirism is often associated with potential hydrocarbon energy resources, and detecting active diapirs can strongly affect the prospect to discover new gas and oilfields. Here we use InSAR techniques as a proxy to evaluate surface deformation in the Diapiric Fold Zone located in the East Carpathians Bend. Significant surface uplift (~ 5 mm/year) is identified in a relatively small region not previously known for the presence of an actively rising salt diapir. Using high-resolution two-dimensional thermomechanical numerical simulations of salt diapirs intrusions, we show that that the observed surface deformation can be induced by a relatively small salt diapir (1–2 km in diameter) rising from an initial salt layer located at 17 Pa s. The best fitting model reveals the presence of a relatively small salt diapir that has not pierced yet the entire sedimentary layer and is located just 1–2 km below the surface.

Significance We report the discovery of anomalously high 3He/4He in “cold” geothermal fluids of central Panama, far from any active volcanoes. Combined with independent constraints from lava geochemistry, mantle source geochemical anomalies in Central America require a Galápagos plume contribution that is not derived from hotspot track recycling. Instead, these signals likely originate from large-scale transport of Galápagos plume material at sublithospheric depths. Mantle flow modeling and geophysical observations further indicate these geochemical anomalies could result from a Galápagos plume-influenced asthenospheric “mantle wind” that is actively “blowing” through a slab window beneath central Panama. The lateral transport of plume material represents a potentially widespread yet underappreciated mechanism that scatters enriched geochemical signatures in mantle domains far from plumes., It is well established that mantle plumes are the main conduits for upwelling geochemically enriched material from Earth's deep interior. The fashion and extent to which lateral flow processes at shallow depths may disperse enriched mantle material far (>1,000 km) from vertical plume conduits, however, remain poorly constrained. Here, we report He and C isotope data from 65 hydrothermal fluids from the southern Central America Margin (CAM) which reveal strikingly high 3He/4He (up to 8.9RA) in low-temperature (≤50 °C) geothermal springs of central Panama that are not associated with active volcanism. Following radiogenic correction, these data imply a mantle source 3He/4He >10.3RA (and potentially up to 26RA, similar to Galápagos hotspot lavas) markedly greater than the upper mantle range (8 ± 1RA). Lava geochemistry (Pb isotopes, Nb/U, and Ce/Pb) and geophysical constraints show that high 3He/4He values in central Panama are likely derived from the infiltration of a Galápagos plume–like mantle through a slab window that opened ∼8 Mya. Two potential transport mechanisms can explain the connection between the Galápagos plume and the slab window: 1) sublithospheric transport of Galápagos plume material channeled by lithosphere thinning along the Panama Fracture Zone or 2) active upwelling of Galápagos plume material blown by a “mantle wind” toward the CAM. We present a model of global mantle flow that supports the second mechanism, whereby most of the eastward transport of Galápagos plume material occurs in the shallow asthenosphere. These findings underscore the potential for lateral mantle flow to transport mantle geochemical heterogeneities thousands of kilometers away from plume conduits.

Los Humeros Volcanic Field (LHVF) represents one of the key volcanic calderas in Mexico. Nowadays, LHVF is the third largest geothermal field in Mexico in terms of energy output, with an installed capacity of 94 MWe. The caldera is about 21 by 15 km wide and is located in the Serdán Oriental basin, east of the Trans- Mexican Volcanic Belt in the central-eastern part of the country, roughly 440 km away from the Middle American Trench. In this study we show results of numerical simulations of magma intrusion in order to better understand the deep origin of the caldera. For this purpose, we used high-resolution two-dimensional coupled petrological-thermomechanical numerical simulations of magma intrusion where an initial thermal anomaly was placed in the asthenosphere just below the lithospheric mantle. We performed a parametric study where we investigated the influence of several parameters such as the diameter of the thermal anomaly, the excess temperature and the regional tectonic regime. These 2D simulations were carried out using the finite difference method coupled with the cell marker technique and employing the multigrid method. The physical parameters used for the Earth’s layers (asthenosphere, lithospheric mantle, lower crust and upper crust) and for the composition of the magmatic intrusion were taken from literature and previously established models. In addition, we considered a viscoelastoplastic rheology and the simulations included erosion and surface sediment transport. Modeling results showed that only under certain conditions of temperature excess, initial diameter of the deep thermal anomalies that come in a specific chain-type sequence, it is possible to form a volcanic caldera similar with the dimensions of the LHVF. The temperature excess (ΔT = ~150K) suggested a deep origin for the thermal anomaly with an approximate depth of ~380 km, where currently the surface of the Cocos slab is located below the North American Plate. Additionally, we found that several magmatic pulses can reach the surface only if we consider in our models a small horizontal extension rate consistent with the extensional tectonic regime in the region.

Petrophysical analysis using X-ray microtomography provides key textural and compositional information, useful to investigate porous media characteristics of hydrocarbon and geothermal reservoirs. Several approaches, used for rock porosity estimation from tomography data, rely mainly on visual or mathematical segmentation algorithms that attempt to obtain thresholding values to segment a phase solved by pixel analysis resolution. Therefore, porosity is evaluated using only pores above pixel resolution (macroporosity), and dismiss pores sized less than the pixel resolution (microporosity) that can be essential to characterize permeability conditions of geothermal reservoirs. Here we propose an improved method to calculate the total effective porosity and simulate the absolute permeability of rock samples. This method combines the analysis of X-ray computed microtomography (μCT) with the interpretation of data using a powerful thresholding method that is based on the greyscale interclass variance. The 3D volume is segmented into three domains: solid, pores above resolution and, an intermediate region where each pore below resolution is linearly combined with solid matrix resulting in a grey scaled pixel equal to this combination. For the intermediate region, the microporosity was calculated employing a Matlab code that provides a new thresholding value containing pores, both above and below resolution (total porosity). Finally, by using this new calculated thresholding value the total effective porosity was obtained and an absolute permeability simulation was implemented only to the connected pores. Our results show that micropores contribute for nearly 50 percent of the total porosity and that microporosity plays a key role in estimating effective porosity, and assessing the geothermal potential of a rock reservoir.

Permeability is a key parameter in the analysis of geothermal systems, usually controlled by secondary structures such as fractures, faults or stratigraphic contacts. Contrarily, primary porosity is considered to have a negligible effect on the permeability of those systems, as it is commonly observed that there is low connectivity between macropores (conventionally defined as larger than 1μm). However, we observe that at the micrometric scale this scenario is different, and connectivity is clearly identified. In this study, an updated innovative petrophysical method is developed to calculate microporosity with high precision and simulate permeability on andesite lava flow core-samples from a geothermal production well in Los Humeros Geothermal Field (LHGF), Mexico. The method is based on high-resolution X-ray microCT and numerical post-processing algorithms, producing porosity-permeability estimates, which are in good agreement with other independent petrophysical methods such as Helium porosimetry-permeameter. Our results indicate that macropores account for an average of 3.7 ± 0.9 % of total rock volume fraction, whereas microporosity is generally higher, with a volume fraction in the order of 6.2 ± 0.6 %. Furthermore, when removing microporosity from the pore network, the permeability will account for an average of 3.50 × 10−17 m2, which is only the 17.92 % of the total average permeability for all samples. On the other hand, when microporosity is added, there is an average increment in the permeability of 82.08 %. This means that more than 80 % of the permeability of the samples is due to microporosity, and that microporous space indeed plays a major role in the permeability of these rocks. These results reveal that microporosity plays an important role on the permeability of rocks from volcanic-hosted LHGF. This approach has not been previously fully considered, and in this study, we show that a detailed microporosity analysis is essential for further estimations of permeability of volcanic-hosted geothermal systems.

Although the thermal regime of the interface between two overlapping subducting plates, such as those beneath Kanto, Japan, is thought to play an important role in affecting the distribution of interplate and intraslab earthquakes, the estimation of the thermal regime remains challenging to date. We constructed a three-dimensional (3-D) thermal convection model to simulate the subduction of the Pacific plate along the Japan Trench and Izu-Bonin Trench, including the subduction of the Philippine Sea beneath Kanto and investigated the slab thermal regime and slab water contents in this complex tectonic setting. Based on the subduction parameters tested in generic models with two flat oceanic plates, a faster or thicker plate subducting in a more trench-normal direction produces a colder slab thermal regime. The interplate temperature of the cold anomaly beneath offshore Kanto was approximately 300°C colder than that beneath offshore Tohoku at a same depth of 40 km and approximately 600°C colder at a depth of 70 km. The convergence between the two subducting plates produces an asymmetric thermal structure in the slab contact zone beneath Kanto, which is characterized by clustered seismicity in the colder southwestern half. The thermo-dehydration state of the mid-ocean ridge basalt near the upper surface of the subducted Pacific plate controls the interplate seismicity beneath the Kanto-Tohoku region according to the spatial concurrence of the thermo-dehydration and seismicity along the megathrust fault zone of the subducted Pacific plate.

Subducting plates around the globe display a large variability in terms of slab geometry, including regions where smooth and little variation in subduction parameters is observed. While the vast majority of subduction slabs plunge into the mantle at different, but positive dip angles, the end-member case of flat-slab subduction seems to strongly defy this rule and move horizontally several hundreds of kilometers before diving into the surrounding hotter mantle. By employing a comparative assessment for the Mexican, Peruvian and Chilean flat-slab subduction zones we find a series of parameters that apparently facilitate slab flattening. Among them, trench roll-back, as well as strong variations and discontinuities in the structure of oceanic and overriding plates seem to be the most important. However, we were not able to find the necessary and sufficient conditions that provide an explanation for the formation of flat slabs in all three subduction zones. In order to unravel the origin of flat-slab subduction, it is probably necessary a numerical approach that considers also the influence of surrounding plates, and their corresponding geometries, on 3D subduction dynamics.

The Middle America subduction zone (MASZ) is one of the world’ most complex convergent margins as it involves the subduction of the Rivera and Cocos young oceanic plates beneath the North American and Caribbean plates and is bounded by the Gulf of California rift and the Panama slab window. Characterized by contorted and unusual slab geometry, irregularly distributed seismicity and volcanism, exceptionally large slow slip events (SSE) and non-volcanic tremors (NVT), this subduction system represents a great natural laboratory for better understanding geodynamic processes at a fundamental level. Based on a solid observational foundation, and incorporating the latest experimental results into a coherent geodynamical framework, we shed light on the main processes controlling the subduction system evolution in this region. The tectonics, volcanism, slab geometry and segmentation along the margin are reviewed from a geodynamical perspective. We proposed and discussed a series of evolutionary scenarios for the Mexican and Central American subduction zones, providing a coherent starting base for future geodynamical modeling studies tailored to this active margin. We discuss comparatively the recently discovered SSEs and NVTs along the MASZ, and try to differentiate among the proposed mechanisms responsible for these observations. Finally we discuss the recent seismic anisotropy observations in a geodynamic context, offering an integrated view of mantle flow pattern along the entire active margin. Although the MASZ as a whole may be considered a fairly complicated region with many unusual features and sometimes controversial interpretations, its complexity and unusual characteristics can improve our knowledge about the linkage between deep and surface processes associated with subduction zone dynamics.

Presently, the Solid Earth Sciences started to move towards implementing High Performance Computational (HPC) research facilities. One of the key tenants of HPC is performance, which strongly depends on the interaction between software and hardware. In this paper, they are presented benchmark results from two HPC systems. Testing a Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) code specific for Solid Earth Sciences, the HPC system Horus, based on Gigabit Ethernet, performed reasonably well compared with its counterpart CyberDyn, based on Infiniband QDR fabric. However, the HPCC CyberDyn based on low-latency high-speed QDR network dedicated to MPI traffic outperformed the HPCC Horus. Due to the high-resolution simulations involved in geodynamic research studies, HPC facilities used in Earth Sciences should benefit from larger up-front investment in future systems that are based on high-speed interconnects.

El problema de los flujos convectivos en un fluido altamente viscoso representa una direccion comun de investigacion en Ciencias de la Tierra. Para rastrear el movimiento convectivo de un material fluido, se utiliza una fuente pasiva de particulas (o trazadores) que fluyen en el campo local de velocidades y no afectan el flujo. Es presentado un codigo paralelizado de trazadores que utiliza particulas pasivas e ingravidas cuyas posiciones estan calculadas segun su desplazamiento durante un intervalo de tiempo pequeno -para una velocidad de flujo previamente calculada. El codigo de trazadores esta integrado en el paquete de codigo abierto CitcomS, que se utiliza ampliamente en la comunidad de las Ciencias de la Tierra (www.geodynamics.org). Es comparado el codigo de trazadores en una computadora de alto rendimiento HPCC Cyberdyn, un cluster de alto rendimiento con 1 344 nudos de calculo, disponible en el Instituto de Geodinamica de la Academia Rumana

New GPS measurements in Chiapas (Mexico), Guatemala and El Salvador are used to constrain the fault kinematics in the North America (NA), Caribbean (CA) and Cocos (CO) plates triple junction area. The regional GPS velocity field is first analysed in terms of strain partitioning across the major volcano-tectonic structures, using elastic half-space modelling, then inverted through a block model. We show the dominant role of the Motagua Fault with respect to the Polochic Fault in the accommodation of the present-day deformation associated with the NA and CA relative motion. The NA/CA motion decreases from 18-22 mm yr−1 in eastern Guatemala to 14-20 mm yr−1 in central Guatemala (assuming a uniform locking depth of 14-28 km), down to a few millimetres per year in western Guatemala. As a consequence, the western tip of the CA Plate deforms internally, with ≃9 mm yr−1 of east-west extension (≃5 mm yr−1 across the Guatemala city graben alone). Up to 15 mm yr−1 of dextral motion can be accommodated across the volcanic arc in El Salvador and southeastern Guatemala. The arc seems to mark the northern boundary of an independent forearc sliver (AR), pinned to the NA plate. The inversion of the velocity field shows that a four-block (NA, CA, CO and AR) model, that combines relative block rotations with elastic deformation at the block boundaries, can account for most of the GPS observations and constrain the overall kinematics of the active structures. This regional modelling also evidences lateral variations of coupling at the CO subduction interface, with a fairly high-coupling (≃0.6) offshore Chiapas and low-coupling (≃0.25) offshore Guatemala and El Salvador.

The Trans-Mexican Volcanic Belt (TMVB) is a 1000 km long Neogene continental arc showing a large variation in composition and volcanic style, and an intra-arc extensional tectonics. It overlies the Rivera and Cocos slabs, which display marked changes in geometry. Geophysical studies indicate that lithospheric mantle is very thin or absent beneath the forearc and arc, the fluids from the slab are released in a 40 to 100 km wide belt beneath the frontal part of the arc, and the lower crust beneath the arc is partially molten. East of 101°W the TMVB is built on a Precambrian to Paleozoic crust with thickness of 50–55 km. West of 101°W the TMVB is underlain by Jurassic to Cenozoic marine and continental arcs with a 35–40 km thick crust. The evolution of the TMVB occurred in four stages: 1) from ~ 20 to 10 Ma the initial andesitic arc moved inland showing progressively drier melting and, eventually, slab melting, suggesting flattening of the subducted slab; 2) since ~ 11 Ma a pulse of mafic volcanism migrated from west to east reaching the Gulf of Mexico by 7 Ma. This mafic lavas marks the lateral propagation of a slab tear, triggered by cessation of subduction beneath Baja California; 3) thereafter, the volcanic front started moving trenchward, with a marked phase of silicic volcanism between 7.5 and 3 Ma, local emplacement of small volume intraplate-like basalts since 5 Ma, and development of extensional faulting. These features are related to slab rollback, enhancing asthenophere flux into the mantle wedge and promoting partial melting of the crust; 4) the modern arc consists of a frontal belt dominated by flux and slab melting, and a rear belt characterized by more differentiated rocks or by mafic lavas with little or no evidence of subduction fluids but higher asthenosphere fingerprint.

How flat slab geometries are generated has been long debated. It has been suggested that trenchward motion of thick cratons in some areas of South America and Cenozoic North America progressively closed the asthenospheric wedge and induced flat subduction. Here we develop time-dependent numerical experiments to explore how trenchward motion of thick cratons may result in flat subduction. We find that as the craton approaches the trench and the wedge closes, two opposite phenomena control slab geometry: the suction between ocean and continent increases, favoring slab flattening, while the mantle confined within the closing wedge dynamically pushes the slab backward and steepens it. When the slab retreats, as in the Peru and Chile flat slabs, the wedge closure rate and dynamic push are small and suction forces generate, in some cases, flat subduction. We model the past 30 m.y. of subduction in the Chilean flat slab area and demonstrate that trenchward motion of thick lithosphere, 200–300 km, currently ∼700–800 km away from the Peru-Chile Trench, reproduces a slab geometry that fits the stress pattern, seismicity distribution, and temporal and spatial evolution of deformation and volcanism in the region. We also suggest that varying trench kinematics may explain some differing slab geometries along South America. When the trench is stationary or advances, the mantle flow within the closing wedge strongly pushes the slab backward and steepens it, possibly explaining the absence of flat subduction in the Bolivian orocline.

The mobility of gravity-driven granular flows such as debris flows or pyroclastic density currents are extremely sensitive to topographic changes, such as break in slopes, obstacles, or ravine deviations. In hazard assessment, computer codes can reproduce past events and evaluate hazard zonation based on inundation limits of simulated flows over a natural terrain. Digital Elevation Model (DEM) is a common input for the simulation algorithm and its accuracy to reproduce past flows is crucial. In this work, we use TITAN2D code to reproduce past block-and-ash flows at Colima volcano (Mexico) over DEMs with different cell size (5, 10, 30, 50, and 90 m) in order to illustrate the influences of the resolution on the numeric simulations. Our results show that topographic resolution significantly affects the flow path and runout. Also, we found that simulations of past flows with the same input parameters (such as the basal friction angle) over topography with different resolutions resulted in different flow paths, areas, and thickness of the simulated flows. In particular, the simulations performed with the 5- and 10-m DEMs produced similar results. Also, we obtained consistent simulation results for the 30- and 50-m DEMs. However, for the coarser 90-m DEM results are largely different and inaccurate. We recommend generating a benchmark table in order to acquire characteristic values for the basal friction angle of studied events. In case of rugged topographies, a DEM with high resolution should be used for more confident results. © 2011 Springer Science+Business Media B.V.

We investigate the regional thermal structure of the crust in Mexico using Curie Point Depth (CPD) estimates. The top and bottom of the magnetized crust were calculated using the power-density spectra of the total magnetic field from the freely available “Magnetic Anomaly Map of North America”. We applied this method to estimate the regional crustal thermal structure in overlapping square windows of 2° × 2°. The CPD estimates range between 10 and 40 km and show several regions of relatively shallow and deep magnetic sources, with a general inverse correlation with measured heat flow. A deep CPD region (20–30 km) is located in the fore-arc area where the subducting Cocos plate has a flat-slab geometry. This deep region is bound to the NW and SE by shallow CPD areas beneath the states of Michoacan (CPD = 12–16 km) and Oaxaca (CPD = ~16 km), respectively. There is a good spatial correlation between this deep CPD area and two main fracture zones located on the incoming Cocos plate (Orozco and O’Gorman fracture zones), suggesting that subduction plays an important role in setting apart different CPD provinces along the Mexican coast. Another deep CPD (16–32 km) area corresponds to the region where the Rivera plate subducts beneath Jalisco block. The Trans-Mexican Volcanic Belt is characterized by a decrease in Curie depths from west (16–20 km) to east (10–12 km). Finally, several deep CPD areas are situated in the back-arc region where old Mesozoic terrains are present. Our results suggest that the main control on the crust’s regional thermal structure in the fore-arc and volcanic arc regions is due to the subduction of the Cocos and Rivera plates beneath Mexico.

Recent seismic and magnetotelluric experiments, aimed at better characterizing the shape and state of the subducting slab and continental crust beneath Central Mexico, exposed significant differences with conclusions of previous studies. A new slab geometry is revealed in which the subducting Cocos slab is perfectly flat between 120 to 290 km from the trench, after which it plunges into the asthenosphere at a dip angle of ~65°, in sharp contrast with the previously proposed ~20° dip angle. Seismic tomography studies show negative P-wave velocity anomalies (−2 to −4%) in the mantle wedge beneath the Mexican Volcanic Belt, and positive anomalies (+2 to +3%) for the subducted Cocos slab. Magnetotelluric experiments exposed a very low-resistivity area (1–10 Ωm) located within the continental crust just below the Mexican Volcanic Arc. Finally, several spots of non-volcanic tremors (NVTs) have been recorded inside the continental crust above the flat-slab segment. While all these experiments provide a better picture of the subduction system beneath Central Mexico, several key processes need further investigation. In this study, we take advantage of these new observations to better constrain the thermal structure beneath Central Mexico. Two different thermal models are computed for a mantle potential temperature (T p) of 1,350 and 1,450°C, respectively. The new thermal structures are then converted into P-wave velocity anomalies and compared with the observed V p anomalies. We found that a T p of 1,450°C produced larger V p anomalies that do not fit the observations. However, using a T p of only 1,350°C, our predicted V p anomalies are positive (+2 to +3%) for the cold slab and negative (−2 to −4%) in the mantle wedge. These V p estimates are consistent with the observed seismic tomography from P-wave arrivals, and therefore we conclude that a T p of 1,350°C is a better estimate for the mantle potential temperature beneath Central Mexico. The new thermal model, in conjunction with phase diagrams for sediments, hydrated basalt and lithospheric mantle, have been used to estimate the amount and location of fluids released from the subducting Cocos slab. Several dehydration pulses have been identified along the slab interface where most of the fluids stored in sediments and oceanic crust are released into the overlying continental crust above the flat-slab. We found a good correlation between the pattern of these dehydration pulses and the location of NVTs, suggesting that slab dehydration is responsible for triggering the tremors. We suggest that NVT bursts localized above the flat slab segment represent the manifestation of ongoing continental crust hydration and weakening, a process that has been going on since 15 Ma ago when the Cocos slab entered into a flat-slab regime. Such continuous weakening would have reduced the suction forces that kept the slab in a flat regime in the last 15 Ma, allowing the slab to easily roll back. The continuous low-resistivity region recorded beneath the volcanic front in Central Mexico might represent the evidence of slab dehydration and crust weakening over time.

Lahars are hazardous events that can cause serious damage to people who live close to volcanic areas; several were registered at different times in the last century, such as at Mt St Helens (USA) in 1980, Nevado del Ruiz (Colombia) in 1985 and Mt Pinatubo (Philippines) in 1990. Risk maps are currently used by decision-makers to help them plan to mitigate the hazard-risk of lahars. Risk maps are acquired based on a series of tenets that take into account the distribution and chronology of past lahar deposits, and basically two approaches have been used: (1) The use of Flow Simulation Software (FSS), which simulates flows along channels in a Digital Elevation Model and (2) The Geochronological Method (GM), in which the mapping is based on the evaluation of lahar magnitude and frequency. This study addresses the production of a lahar risk map using the two approaches (FSS and GM) for a study area located at Popocatépetl volcano – Central Mexico. Santiago Xalitzintla, a town located on the northern flank of Popocatépetl volcano, where volcanic activity in recent centuries has triggered numerous lahars that have endangered local inhabitants, has been used for the case study. Results from FSS did not provide satisfactory findings because they were not consistent with lahar sediment observations made during fieldwork. By contrast, the GM produced results consistent with these observations, and therefore we use them to assess the hazard and produce the risk map for the study area.

Although commonly attributed to a mantle plume, time-transgressive magmatism of the Snake River Plain–Yellowstone (SRPY) province differs in important ways from that associated with typical oceanic hotspots. A fundamental question concerns the relative contributions of lithosphere vs. upwelling sub-lithospheric mantle to formation of SRPY basaltic magmas. Specifically, association of this province with initially thick and cold Archean lithosphere (Wyoming craton) poses a problem in that this lid will hinder and possibly prevent melting of rising plume material. Assuming an anhydrous peridotite mantle, melting can only occur if (1) the lid can be substantially thinned over geologically reasonable time and/or (2) the upwelling material is exceptionally warm, or (3) the lid was suitably thin to begin with. Petrologic modeling indicates that SRPY primitive basalts last segregated from mantle at conditions (< 1500 °C and ~100 km depth; Leeman, W.P., Schutt, D.L., Hughes, S.S., 2009. Thermal structure beneath the Snake River Plain: implications for the Yellowstone hotspot. J. Volcanol. Geotherm. Res.) only slightly warmer than MORB-source mantle and significantly cooler than sources of many oceanic hotspot magmas. In this study, geodynamic models were developed to evaluate lithospheric thinning processes. The motivation for the modeling is the observation that if the lithosphere is initially more than 200 km thick – typical of many cratons – then thinning by at least a factor of two is required to allow decompression melting of an ascending plume, assuming low volatile content and high excess temperature (potential temperature > 1500 °C). Fully dynamic models were applied to investigate the extent and rate of lithosphere thinning assuming an initial structure representative of the Wyoming craton. We find that thermal erosion by plume impingement alone appears incapable of providing the required lithospheric thinning. Alternative models (e.g., low-angle Laramide subduction, lithospheric delamination) also conflict with geochemical evidence that SRPY basalts contain a dominant contribution of old, isotopically evolved mantle material — presumably derived from subcontinental lithospheric mantle (SCLM). We conclude that SCLM is likely to be preserved, that the thick SCLM lid prevents substantial melting of rising plume material (tomographically imaged), and that SRPY basalts are predominantly derived by melting of lithospheric mantle.

The subduction-related Michoaca¤n^Guanajuato Volcanic Field (MGVF) in central Mexico contains 900 cinder cones and numerous larger shield volcanoes of Late Pliocene to Holocene age.We present data for major, trace and volatile (H2O, CO2, S, Cl) elements in olivine-hosted melt inclusions from eight calc-alkaline cinder cones with primitive magma characteristics and one more evolved alkali basalt tuff ring.The samples span a region extending from the volcanic front to 175 km behind the front. Relationships between H2O and incompatible trace elements are used to estimate magmatic H2O contents for 269 additional volcanic centers across the MGVF and central Mexico. The results show that magmatic H2O remains high (3^575 wt %) for large distances (150 km) behind the front. Chlorine and S concentrations are strongly correlated with melt H2O and are also high across most of the arc (700^1350 ppm Cl, 1500^2000 ppm S).The alkali basalt, located far behind the front (175 km), has much lower volatile contents (515wt%H2O, 200 ppm Cl, 500 ppm S), and is compositionally similar to other melts erupted in this region. Oxygen isotope ratios of olivine phenocrysts (56^6o) from the calc-alkaline samples are higher than for typical mantle-derived magmas but do not vary systematically across the arc. Calc-alkaline samples have high large ion lithophile element concentrations relative to Nb andTa, as is typical of subduction-related magmas, but alkali basalt samples far behind the front have high Nb and Ta and lack enrichments in fluidmobile elements. Modeling based on volatiles and trace elements suggests that the calc-alkaline magmas were generated by 6^15% partial melting of a variably depleted mantle wedge that was fluxed with H2O-rich components from the subducted slab. In contrast, the alkali basalts formed by small degrees of decompression melting of an ocean island basalt source that had not been fluxed by slabderived components. Based on high d18Oolivine values and trace element characteristics, the H2O-rich subduction components added to the mantle wedge beneath the MGVF are likely to be mixtures of oceanic crust derived fluids and sediment melts. Integrating these results with new 2-D thermo-mechanical models of the subduction zone beneath the MGVF, we demonstrate that the present-day plate configuration beneath theMGVFcauses fluids to be released beneath the forearc and volcanic front, and that sediment melts can be produced beneath the volcanic front by the waning stages of fluid released from the oceanic crust percolating through already dehydrated sediments. Down-dragging of serpentine- and chloritebearing peridotite in the lowermost mantle wedge probably plays a role in fluid transport from the forearc to beneath the arc. H2O-rich magmas located more than 50 km behind the volcanic front can be explained by mantle hydration related to a shallower slab geometry that existed at 3 Ma. Rollback of the slab over the last 2 Myr has resulted in strong mantle advection that forms low-H2O, high- Nb alkali basaltic magmas by decompression melting far behind the present-day volcanic front.

The origin of El Chichon volcano is poorly understood, and we attempt in this study to demonstrate that the Tehuantepec Ridge (TR), a major tectonic discontinuity on the Cocos plate, plays a key role in determining the location of the volcano by enhancing the slab dehydration budget beneath it. Using marine magnetic anomalies we show that the upper mantle beneath TR undergoes strong serpentinization, carrying significant amounts of water into subduction. Another key aspect of the magnetic anomaly over southern Mexico is a long-wavelength (~150 km) high amplitude (~500 nT) magnetic anomaly located between the trench and the coast. Using a 2D joint magnetic-gravity forward model, constrained by the subduction P–T structure, slab geometry and seismicity, we find a highly magnetic and low-density source located at 40–80 km depth that we interpret as a partially serpentinized mantle wedge formed by fluids expelled from the subducting Cocos plate. Using phase diagrams for sediments, basalt and peridotite, and the thermal structure of the subduction zone beneath El Chichon we find that ~40% of sediments and basalt dehydrate at depths corresponding with the location of the serpentinized mantle wedge, whereas the serpentinized root beneath TR strongly dehydrates (~90%) at depths of 180-200 km comparable with the slab depths beneath El Chichon (200- 220 km). We conclude that this strong deserpentinization pulse of mantle lithosphere beneath TR at great depths is responsible for the unusual location, singularity and, probably, the geochemically distinct signature (adakitic-like) of El Chichon volcano.

During 1997 and 2001 two lahars took place in the Tenenepanco and Huiloac gorges on the northeastern sector of the Popocatepetl volcano in Mexico. These lahars were the result of volcanic activity characterized by a pyroclastic fall and flow. The lahars were triggered by the mass failures produced hours after the eruption. The well-known superelevation technique commonly used in this kind of study was applied to infer the lahar's mean velocity. Estimations show a broad flow velocity range of 1.3– 13.8 m/s depending on the following geomorphological parameters: channel depth and slope, peak discharge and distance from the initial source. These results were compared with lahar velocities from Mount St Helens (1980) and Nevado del Ruiz (1985), which were obtained by the same superelevation technique. According to the data, the lahars from Nevado del Ruiz and Popocatepetl were triggered by similar conditions, while at Mount St Helens they were the result of the conversion of a pyroclastic surge cloud. Actually, the Mount St Helens lahars were almost twice as fast as the ones at Nevado del Ruiz and Popocatepetl. This observation shows the importance of the lahars' genesis in that the pyroclastic surge clouds produce faster lahars than do pyroclastic falls. Such results should be taken into account in lahar risk assessment studies for communities located near active volcanoes. © 2007 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

We present a model of the subducting Cocos slab beneath Central Mexico, that provides an explanation for stresses causing the occurrence of the majority of the intraslab earthquakes which are concentrated in a long flat segment. Based on the recently developed thermal models for the Central Mexico subduction zone, the thermal stresses due to non-uniform temperature contrast in the subducting slab are calculated using a finite element approach. The slab is considered purely elastic but due to high temperature at its bottom the behavior is considered as ductile creep. The calculation results show a ∼ 20 km slab core characterized by a tensional state of stress with stresses up to 70 MPa. On the other hand, the top of the slab experiences high compressive thermal stresses up to 110 MPa, depending on the elastic constants used and location along the flat part of the subducting plate. These compressive stresses at the top of the slab are not consistent with the exclusive normal fault intraslab earthquakes, and two different sources of stress are proposed. The trenchward migration of the Mexican volcanic arc for the last 7 Ma indicates an increase of the slab dip through time. This observation suggests that the gravity torque might exceed the suction torque. Considering the flat slab as an embedded plate subject to an applied clockwise net torque of 0.5 × 10^(16)–1.5 × 10^(16) N m, the upper half would exhibit tensional stresses of 40–110 MPa that can actually balance the compressive thermally induced stresses. An alternative stress source might come from the slab pull force caused by the slab positive density anomaly. Based on our density anomaly estimations (75 ± 20 kg/m^3), a 350 km slab length, dipping at 20° into the asthenosphere, induces a slab pull force of 1.7 × 10^(12)–4.6 × 10^(12) N m. This force produces a tensional stress of 41–114 MPa, sufficient to balance the compressive thermal stresses at the top of the flat slab. The linear superposition of the thermally and torque or slab pull induced stresses shows tensile stresses up to 60–180 MPa inside the flat slab core. Also, our results suggest that the majority of the intraslab earthquakes inside the flat slab are situated where the resultant stresses are larger than 40–80 MPa. This study provides a reasonable explanation for the existence of exclusively normal fault intraslab earthquakes in the flat slab beneath Central Mexico, and also it shows that thermal stresses due to non-uniform reheating of subducting slabs play a considerable role in the total stress field.

The origin of the Central Mexican Volcanic Belt (CMVB) and the influence of the subducting Cocos plate on the CMVB volcanism are still controversial. In this study, the temperature and mantle wedge flow models for the Mexican subduction zone are developed using the finite element method to investigate the thermal structure below CMVB. The numerical scheme solves a system of 2D Stokes equations and 2D steady-state heat transfer equation. Two models are considered for the mantle wedge: the first one with an isoviscous mantle wedge and the second one with strong temperature-dependent viscosity. The first model reveals a maximum temperature of ∼830 ◦ C in the mantle wedge, which is not sufficient for melting of wet peridotite. Also, the geotherm of the subducting plate upper surface does not intersect the dehydration-melting solidus for mafic minerals. The second model predicts temperatures of more than 1200 ◦ C beneath the CMVB for a wide range of rheological parameters (reference viscosity and activation energy). Up to 0.6 wt.% H2O can be released down to 60 km depth through metamorphic changes in the oceanic crust of the subducting slab. The melting of this oceanic crust apparently occurs in a narrow depth range of 50–60 km and also melting of the mantle wedge hydrated peridotite is now expected to take place beneath CMVB. Considering that the melting processes on and in the vicinity of the subducting plate surface generate the most of the volcanic material, a dynamic model for the blob tracers is developed using Stokes flow at infinite Prandtl number. The blobs of 0.2–10.0 km in diameter migrate along very different trajectories only at low wrapping viscosities ( ηw =1 0 14 –5 × 10 17 Pa s). The modeling results show that the “fast” trajectories terminate at the same focus location at the base of the continental crust, while the arrival points of “slow” trajectories, which are common for the blobs of smaller size (∼0.4–0.5 km), are scattered away from the average focus location. This observation may give us a hint on a possible mechanism of strato and mono volcanoes genesis. The rise

SUMMARY Temperature is one of the most important factors that controls the extent and location of the seismogenic coupled and transition, partially coupled segments of the subduction interplate fault. The width of the coupled fault inferred from the continuous GPS observations for the steady interseismic period and the transient width of the last slow aseismic slip event (M w ∼ 7.5) that occurred in the Guerrero subduction zone in 2001‐2002 extends up to 180‐220 km from the trench. Previous thermal models do not consider this extremely wide coupled interface in Guerrero subduction zone that is characterized by shallow subhorizontal plate contact. In this study, a finite element model is applied to examine the temperature constraints on the width of the coupled area. The numerical scheme solves a system of 2-D Stokes equation and 2-D steady-state heat transfer equations. The updip limit of the coupling zone is taken between 100 and 150 ◦ C, while the downdip limit is accepted at 450 ◦ C as the transition from partial coupling to stable sliding. From the entire coupled zone, the seismogenic zone extends only up to ∼82 km from the trench (inferred from the rupture width of large subduction thrust earthquakes), corresponding to the 250 ◦ C isotherm. Only a small amount of frictional heating is needed to fit the intersection of the 450 ◦ C isotherm and the subducting plate surface at 180‐205 km from the trench. The calculated geotherms in the subducting slab and the phase diagram for MORB are used to estimate the metamorphic sequences within the oceanic subducting crust. A certain correlation exists between the metamorphic sequences and the variation of the coupling along the interplate fault.

Dual subduction represents an unusual case of subduction where one oceanic plate subducts on top of another, creating a highly complex tectonic setting. Because of the complex interaction between the two subducted plates, the origin of seismicity in such region is still not fully understood. Here we investigate the thermal structure of dual subduction beneath Kanto, central Japan formed as a consequence of a unique case of triple trench junction. Using high-resolution three-dimensional thermo-mechanical models tailored for the specific dual subduction settings beneath Kanto, we show that, compared with single-plate subduction systems, subduction of double slabs produces a strong variation of mantle flow, thermal and fluid release pattern that strongly controls the regional seismicity distribution. Here the deepening of seismicity in the Pacific slab located under the Philippine Sea slab is explained by delaying at greater depths (~150 km depth) of the eclogitization front in this region. On the other hand, the shallower seismicity observed in the Philippine Sea slab is related to a young and warm plate subduction and probably to the presence of a hot mantle flow traveling underneath the slab and then moving upward on top of the slab.

For some volcanic arcs, the geochemistry of volcanic rocks erupting above subducted oceanic fracture zones is consistent with higher than normal fluid inputs to arc magma sources. Here we use enrichment of boron (B/Zr) in volcanic arc lavas as a proxy to evaluate relative along-strike inputs of slab-derived fluids in the Aleutian, Andean, Cascades and Trans-Mexican arcs. Significant B/Zr spikes coincide with subduction of prominent fracture zones in the relatively cool Aleutian and Andean subduction zones where fracture zone subduction locally enhances fluid introduction beneath volcanic arcs. Geodynamic models of subduction have not previously considered how fracture zones may influence the melt and fluid distribution above slabs. Using high-resolution three-dimensional coupled petrological-thermomechanical numerical simulations of subduction, we show that enhanced production of slab-derived fluids and mantle wedge melts concentrate in areas where fracture zones are subducted, resulting in significant along-arc variability in magma source compositions and processes. Subduction of fracture zones is predicted to have local geochemical and physical manifestations in volcanic arcs. Here, the authors show boron enrichment near fracture zones in some arcs and infer the processes occurring there using detailed geodynamic modelling.

"Presently, the Solid Earth Sciences started to move towards implementing High Performance Computational (HPC) research facilities. One of the key tenants of HPC is performance, which strongly depends on the interaction between software and hardware. In this paper, they are presented benchmark results from two HPC systems. Testing a Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) code specific for Solid Earth Sciences, the HPC system Horus, based on Gigabit Ethernet, performed reasonably well compared with its counterpart CyberDyn, based on Infiniband QDR fabric. However, the HPCC CyberDyn based on low-latency high-speed QDR network dedicated to MPI traffic outperformed the HPCC Horus. Due to the high-resolution simulations involved in geodynamic research studies, HPC facilities used in Earth Sciences should benefit from larger up-front investment in future systems that are based on high-speed interconnects."

Lahars are a type of catastrophic event that is generated in volcanic environments. Due to the recent technological advances computer simulated models have become widely used by the scientific community to predict the distribution of catastrophic events, such as floods, debris avalanches, earth landslides or lahars, and to mitigate possible damage to populations located in a risk area. Our study risk area is located in the Popocatepetl volcano, a large and active stratovolcano in the Trans Mexican Volcanic Belt. Here, lahars have been occurring during the last century, and some of them have seriously affected nearby towns. Since one of the main input parameters into a lahar simulation is the Digital Elevation Model (DEM), this paper focuses on studying lahar simulations on Popocatepetl using DEMs obtained from various sources with the aid of a popular package known as LAHARZ. The first simulations were performed using a 1:50,000 topographic map with 20-m contours interval. The second set of tests used an enhanced DEM with profiles measured during fieldwork in the lahar channel. In the last set of tests, we added lateral artificial barriers to the channel profiles used in the previous enhanced DEM. Our results show that the use of high resolution and detailed DEMs does not necessarily guarantee a realistic lahar simulation as was previously thought, and a detailed explanation as to why the LAHARZ code computation creates ragged edges is offered. Our results also offer useful information on the level of detail necessary for an input DEM into LAHARZ in order to obtain lahar simulations closer to real lahars. The minimum resolution for the DEM used in simulations must be less than the width of the narrowest cross-section of the channel to realistically reproduce the lahars. For DEMs with lower resolution, sometimes the modeled lahars are shorter in length, and therefore underestimate real hazards to populations. Also, the results show that lateral barriers are sometimes needed to obtain more realistic inundation areas.

Based on analysis of data from a trans-Mexico temporary broadband seismic network centered on Mexico City, we report that the subducting Cocos Plate beneath central Mexico is horizontal, and tectonically underplates the base of the crust for a distance of 250 km from the trench. It is decoupled from the crust by a very thin low viscosity zone. The plate plunges into the mantle near Mexico City but is truncated at a depth of 500 km, probably due to an E-W propagating tear in the Cocos slab. Unlike the shallow slab subduction in Peru and Chile, there is active volcanism along the Trans Mexican Volcanic Belt (TMVB) that lies much further inland than regions to either side where subduction dip is not horizontal. Geodynamical modeling indicates that a thin weak layer such as imaged by the seismic experiment can explain the flat subduction geometry.

In southern Mexico, the subducting Cocos slab drastically changes its geometry: from a flat slab in central Mexico to a ∼45° dip angle beneath Chiapas. Also, the currently active volcanic arc, the modern Chiapanecan volcanic arc, is oblique and situated far inland from the Middle America trench, where the slab depth is ∼200 km. In contrast, the Central America volcanic arc is parallel to the Middle America trench, and the slab depth is ∼100 km. A two-dimensional steady-state thermomechanical model explains the calc-alkaline volcanism by high temperature (∼1300 °C) in the mantle wedge just beneath the Central America volcanic arc and the strong dehydration (∼5 wt%) of the Cocos slab. In contrast, the thermal model for the modern Chiapanecan volcanic arc shows high P-T conditions beneath the coast where the extinct Miocene Chiapanecan arc is present, and is therefore unable to offer a reasonable explanation for the origin of the modern Chiapanecan volcanic arc. We propose a model in which the origin of the modern Chiapanecan volcanic arc is related to the space-time evolution of the Cocos slab in central Mexico. The initiation of flat subduction in central Mexico in the middle Miocene would have generated a hot mantle wedge inflow from NW to SE, generating the new modern Chiapanecan volcanic arc. Because of the contact between the hot mantle wedge beneath Chiapas and the proximity of a newly formed cold, flat slab, the previous hot mantle wedge in Chiapas became colder in time, finally leading to the extinction of the Miocene Chiapanecan volcanic arc. The position and the distinct K-alkaline volcanism at El Chichon volcano are proposed to be related to the arrival of the highly serpentinized Tehuantepec Ridge beneath the modern Chiapanecan volcanic arc. The deserpentinization of Tehuantepec Ridge would have released significant amounts of water into the overlying mantle, therefore favoring vigorous melting of the mantle wedge and probably of the slab.

The Tehuantepec Ridge is one of the most prominent lithospheric structures of the Cocos Plate, yet its tectonic evolution has remained poorly constrained until now. Calculated ocean floor ages and spreading rates, morphostructural analysis of the ridge and the surrounding ocean floor are used to infer the tectonic evolution and pattern of the Tehuantepec Ridge and associated structures. The ocean floor age estimates south of the Tehuantepec Ridge suggest an age of ∼26 Ma at the Middle America trench. A mean age difference across the Tehuantepec Ridge of ∼7 Ma suggests that the Tehuantepec Ridge would be formed as a long transform fault on the Guadalupe plate, prior to 15 Ma. The full-spreading rate estimates show that there might be a differential full-spreading rate across the transform fault between 15 and 5 Ma, when the oceanic plate just south of Clipperton Fracture Zone was decelerating between 15 and 10 Ma, then accelerating for the next 5 Ma. We propose a model in which between 13 and 8 Ma temporarily transpressional intratransform-spreading centers would have been existing as a consequence of the East Pacific Rise onset with an angle of ∼10° clockwise with respect to the ceased Mathematician ridge. Our model estimates indicate that between 21 and 15 Ma a prominent pseudofault was formed south of the Tehuantepec Ridge due to an unstable offset on the Mathematician ridge that migrated northward. The Tehuantepec Ridge and the pseudofault trace bound a deeper oceanic basin than the surrounding area, with no corresponding anomalous depth on the western side of the East Pacific Rise. The complete absence of a pseudofault trace and a deeper oceanic basin on the western side of the East Pacific Rise, as well as the spreading rate changes, suggest the existence of a microplate embedded into the Cocos Plate just south of the Tehuantepec Ridge. Also, the asymmetric and sharp morphology of the Tehuantepec Ridge suggests that it may be the expression of a major transpressional structure along the former transform fault on the Guadalupe plate 15–20 Ma ago.

Abundant volcanism in the Central Kamchatka Depression (CKD) adjacent to the Kamchatka–Aleutian Arc junction occurs where the Pacific slab edge is subducting beneath Kamchatka. Here we summarize published data on CKD rocks and demonstrate a systematic south-to-north change of their compositions from moderately fractionated basalt-andesite tholeiitic series to highly fractionated basalt-rhyolite calc-alkaline series including high-magnesian andesites near the slab edge. Localized slab melting at the slab edge cannot explain these regional geochemical variations. Instead, we propose that the thermal state of the mantle wedge can be the key factor governing the composition of CKD magmas. We integrate the results from petrology and numeric modeling to demonstrate the northward decrease of the mantle wedge temperatures beneath CKD volcanoes, which correlates with decreasing slab dip, length of mantle columns, and magma flux. We envision two petrogenetic models, which relate the composition of erupted magmas to the subduction parameters beneath the CKD. The first model suggests that mantle temperature governs melt-peridotite equilibria and favors generation of andesitic primary melts in cold mantle regions above the shallowly subducting Pacific slab edge. Alternatively, mantle temperature may control magmatic productivity along the CKD, which decreases sharply toward the slab edge and thus allows more extensive magma fractionation deeper in the crust and mixing of highly evolved and mantle-derived magmas to generate Si-rich “primitive” magmas. These results point to a possible casual link between deep mantle and shallow crustal magmatic processes. Similar effects of mantle temperature on the composition and productivity of arc magmatism are expected elsewhere, particularly in volcanic regions associated with significant slab dip variation along the arc.