The formation of columnar joints produced by cooling in basalt at Staffa, Scotland
Columnar jointing in basaltic lava flows on the island of Staffa, NW Scotland, was studied using a combination of field mapping and measurement of column dimensions, sample petrology and measurements of plagioclase crystal size distributions (CSDs) interpreted using theoretical models of cooling. Fo...
| Main Authors: | , , , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Journal article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
2013
|
| _version_ | 1797066363294973952 |
|---|---|
| author | Phillips, J Humphreys, M Daniels, K Brown, R Witham, F |
| author_facet | Phillips, J Humphreys, M Daniels, K Brown, R Witham, F |
| author_sort | Phillips, J |
| collection | OXFORD |
| description | Columnar jointing in basaltic lava flows on the island of Staffa, NW Scotland, was studied using a combination of field mapping and measurement of column dimensions, sample petrology and measurements of plagioclase crystal size distributions (CSDs) interpreted using theoretical models of cooling. Four different lava flow units were measured, and column ordering was assessed using the hexagonality index and relative standard deviations of column side length, top area and internal angle. Upper and lower colonnades consist of dominantly 5-, 6- and 7-sided columns, with a hexagonality index value very similar to that of Giant's Causeway and other basaltic columnar jointed localities. CSDs from samples at different heights within one colonnade were used to infer the propagation of the solidus isotherm, which was consistent with a convective cooling mechanism within the colonnade interior. Sample petrology and CSD measurements suggest that entablature can form both by the interaction of propagating joint sets and flooding of the flow surface by water, and the most widely exposed unit on Staffa shows evidence of both mechanisms operating on the same flow. Crystal size distribution measurements can provide a useful tool for field interpretation of lava flow cooling mechanisms. © 2013 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-06T21:40:58Z |
| format | Journal article |
| id | oxford-uuid:47e846e2-3d70-46fd-95c5-85cb97ea0dde |
| institution | University of Oxford |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-06T21:40:58Z |
| publishDate | 2013 |
| record_format | dspace |
| spelling | oxford-uuid:47e846e2-3d70-46fd-95c5-85cb97ea0dde2022-03-26T15:22:42ZThe formation of columnar joints produced by cooling in basalt at Staffa, ScotlandJournal articlehttp://purl.org/coar/resource_type/c_dcae04bcuuid:47e846e2-3d70-46fd-95c5-85cb97ea0ddeEnglishSymplectic Elements at Oxford2013Phillips, JHumphreys, MDaniels, KBrown, RWitham, FColumnar jointing in basaltic lava flows on the island of Staffa, NW Scotland, was studied using a combination of field mapping and measurement of column dimensions, sample petrology and measurements of plagioclase crystal size distributions (CSDs) interpreted using theoretical models of cooling. Four different lava flow units were measured, and column ordering was assessed using the hexagonality index and relative standard deviations of column side length, top area and internal angle. Upper and lower colonnades consist of dominantly 5-, 6- and 7-sided columns, with a hexagonality index value very similar to that of Giant's Causeway and other basaltic columnar jointed localities. CSDs from samples at different heights within one colonnade were used to infer the propagation of the solidus isotherm, which was consistent with a convective cooling mechanism within the colonnade interior. Sample petrology and CSD measurements suggest that entablature can form both by the interaction of propagating joint sets and flooding of the flow surface by water, and the most widely exposed unit on Staffa shows evidence of both mechanisms operating on the same flow. Crystal size distribution measurements can provide a useful tool for field interpretation of lava flow cooling mechanisms. © 2013 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg. |
| spellingShingle | Phillips, J Humphreys, M Daniels, K Brown, R Witham, F The formation of columnar joints produced by cooling in basalt at Staffa, Scotland |
| title | The formation of columnar joints produced by cooling in basalt at Staffa, Scotland |
| title_full | The formation of columnar joints produced by cooling in basalt at Staffa, Scotland |
| title_fullStr | The formation of columnar joints produced by cooling in basalt at Staffa, Scotland |
| title_full_unstemmed | The formation of columnar joints produced by cooling in basalt at Staffa, Scotland |
| title_short | The formation of columnar joints produced by cooling in basalt at Staffa, Scotland |
| title_sort | formation of columnar joints produced by cooling in basalt at staffa scotland |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT phillipsj theformationofcolumnarjointsproducedbycoolinginbasaltatstaffascotland AT humphreysm theformationofcolumnarjointsproducedbycoolinginbasaltatstaffascotland AT danielsk theformationofcolumnarjointsproducedbycoolinginbasaltatstaffascotland AT brownr theformationofcolumnarjointsproducedbycoolinginbasaltatstaffascotland AT withamf theformationofcolumnarjointsproducedbycoolinginbasaltatstaffascotland AT phillipsj formationofcolumnarjointsproducedbycoolinginbasaltatstaffascotland AT humphreysm formationofcolumnarjointsproducedbycoolinginbasaltatstaffascotland AT danielsk formationofcolumnarjointsproducedbycoolinginbasaltatstaffascotland AT brownr formationofcolumnarjointsproducedbycoolinginbasaltatstaffascotland AT withamf formationofcolumnarjointsproducedbycoolinginbasaltatstaffascotland |