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Miocene magmatism in the Bodie Hills volcanic field, California and Nevada: A long-lived eruptive center in the southern segment of the ancestral Cascades arc

February 1, 2012

The Middle to Late Miocene Bodie Hills volcanic field is a >700 km2, long-lived (∼9 Ma) but episodic eruptive center in the southern segment of the ancestral Cascades arc north of Mono Lake (California, U.S.). It consists of ∼20 major eruptive units, including 4 trachyandesite stratovolcanoes emplaced along the margins of the field, and numerous, more centrally located silicic trachyandesite to rhyolite flow dome complexes. Bodie Hills volcanism was episodic with two peak periods of eruptive activity: an early period ca. 14.7–12.9 Ma that mostly formed trachyandesite stratovolcanoes and a later period between ca. 9.2 and 8.0 Ma dominated by large trachyandesite-dacite dome fields. A final period of small silicic dome emplacement occurred ca. 6 Ma. Aeromagnetic and gravity data suggest that many of the Miocene volcanoes have shallow plutonic roots that extend to depths ≥1–2 km below the surface, and much of the Bodie Hills may be underlain by low-density plutons presumably related to Miocene volcanism.

Compositions of Bodie Hills volcanic rocks vary from ∼50 to 78 wt% SiO2, although rocks with

Publication Year 2012
Title Miocene magmatism in the Bodie Hills volcanic field, California and Nevada: A long-lived eruptive center in the southern segment of the ancestral Cascades arc
DOI 10.1130/GES00674.1
Authors David A. John, Edward A. du Bray, Richard J. Blakely, Robert J. Fleck, Peter G. Vikre, Stephen E. Box, Barry C. Moring
Publication Type Article
Publication Subtype Journal Article
Series Title Geosphere
Index ID 70190451
Record Source USGS Publications Warehouse
USGS Organization Western Mineral and Environmental Resources Science Center
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