Quaternary Alkaline Basalt Geochemistry Across the Tintina Trench, Yukon

2026-03-25 updated geological study analyzes Quaternary continental alkaline basalts erupted across the Tintina Trench crustal suture in southeastern Yukon, Canada. The research compares basanites, alkaline olivine basalts, and hypersthene-normative basalts from the Rancheria region to assess lithospheric mantle composition. Compositional spectra and Nb-Zr systematics indicate a chemical contrast in the continental lithospheric mantles juxtaposed by the fault.

Use Cases

• Analyze fractionated rare earth element (REE) profiles and light rare earth element (LREE) enrichment to model progressive melting of an amphibole-bearing garnet lherzolite source.
• Compare Zr content in alkaline olivine basalts (AOB) from Watson Lake and Rancheria to identify compositional differences across the Tintina Trench.
• Use Nb-Zr systematics of Watson Lake basalts to model melt mixing between amphibole-bearing residue and an incompatible-element enriched lithospheric mantle source.
• Investigate high field strength element (HFSE) enrichment patterns to characterize the petrogenesis of lithosphere-generated alkaline magmas.

Strengths

• Data is sourced from the authoritative Government of Yukon organization.
• Study provides a specific geochemical comparison across a major crustal suture, the Tintina Trench.
• Analysis includes distinct basalt types: basanites (BASAN), alkaline olivine basalts (AOB), and hypersthene-normative basalts (HYN).

Limitations

• Dataset structure is unknown; data may be embedded in narrative HTML format without a clear tabular structure.
• Sample data and quantitative row/column counts are unavailable, limiting immediate analytical utility.
• Geographic scope is limited to a specific region in southeastern Yukon, Canada.

Provenance

Source

Government of Yukon | Gouvernement du Yukon

Collection Method

Geochemical analysis of Quaternary continental alkaline basalt samples.

Time Range

Quaternary period; includes reference to Eocene basalts for comparison.

Freshness

Updated recently on 2026-03-25.

Geography

Southeastern Yukon Territory, Canada, specifically the Rancheria and Watson Lake regions across the Tintina Trench.