Fossil black smoker yields oxygen isotopic composition of Neoproterozoic seawater - INSU - Institut national des sciences de l'Univers Access content directly
Journal Articles Nature Communications Year : 2018

Fossil black smoker yields oxygen isotopic composition of Neoproterozoic seawater

Abstract

The evolution of the seawater oxygen isotopic composition (δ 18 O) through geological time remains controversial. Yet, the past δ 18 O seawater is key to assess past seawater temperatures, providing insights into past climate change and life evolution. Here we provide a new and unprecedentedly precise δ 18 O value of −1.33 ± 0.98‰ for the Neoproterozoic bottom seawater supporting a constant oxygen isotope composition through time. We demonstrate that the Aït Ahmane ultramafic unit of the ca. 760 Ma Bou Azzer ophiolite (Morocco) host a fossil black smoker-type hydrothermal system. In this system we analyzed an untapped archive for the ocean oxygen isotopic composition consisting in pure magnetite veins directly precipitated from a Neoproterozoic seawater-derived fluid. Our results suggest that, while δ 18 O seawater and submarine hydrothermal processes were likely similar to present day, Neoproterozoic oceans were 15-30°C warmer on the eve of the Sturtian glaciation and the major life diversification that followed.
Fichier principal
Vignette du fichier
s41467-018-03890-w.pdf (1.05 Mo) Télécharger le fichier
Origin : Publisher files allowed on an open archive
Loading...

Dates and versions

insu-02178803 , version 1 (10-07-2019)

Identifiers

Cite

F. Hodel, M. Macouin, R I F Trindade, A. Triantafyllou, J. Ganne, et al.. Fossil black smoker yields oxygen isotopic composition of Neoproterozoic seawater. Nature Communications, 2018, 9, pp.1453. ⟨10.1038/s41467-018-03890-w⟩. ⟨insu-02178803⟩
50 View
51 Download

Altmetric

Share

Gmail Facebook Twitter LinkedIn More