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SSF-Svalbard Science Forum

Geochronology, geochemistry, and geometry of igneous intrusions at Wallenbergfjellet, Svalbard

Awarded: NOK 99,999

The fieldwork in 2022 is a part of my PhD thesis, which aims to address some of the key knowledge gaps present about the High Arctic Large Igneous Province (HALIP) on Svalbard. The High Arctic Large Igneous Province is a prominent feature in the Arctic, with large volumes of magma erupted and emplaced in the Late Mesozoic. Large Igneous Provinces are widespread in the geological record and consist of significant igneous volumes emplaced or erupted over large areas in an intraplate setting within a short duration (Bryan & Ernst, 2008). The main knowledge gaps with regard to the HALIP concern the age and geochemical signature of the dolerites, as well as the extent of the intrusive bodies (Maher, 2001; Senger et al. 2014). My PhD project aims to answer some of these knowledge gaps on Svalbard, by utilizing the Arctic expertise found throughout the Nordic countries and the research laboratories available at the partner universities; the University Centre in Svalbard, University of Helsinki, University of Oslo, and Lund University. The fieldwork in 2022 will be a key part of this PhD project, as it will add much needed geological data from a previously unstudied area of Svalbard. The intrusion at Wallenbergfjellet has not previously been studied in detail, but similar methods will be used as during my AFG funded MSc thesis in Ekmanfjorden (RiS: 11397). Wallenbergfjellet is an ideal field site as several outcrops of the HALIP are within reach from the planned tent camp. Furthermore, the intrusion at Wallenbergfjellet is an inclined sheet, that has been emplaced in several different host rock lithologies, ranging from Permian limestones and sandstones to Triassic shales and sandstones. This makes it an ideal place for detailed studies of contact metamorphism in various lithologies. This project will add valuable geochemical, petrological, geochronological and spatial data of the HALIP on Svalbard.

Publications from Cristin

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Funding scheme:

SSF-Svalbard Science Forum