Collaborative research: constraining the timing of emplacement of the caribbean large igneous province and its relationship to oceanic anoxic events

The National Science Foundation Division of Earth Sciences awarded Carnegie Institution of Washington $224,419 on September 1, 2026, under the Geosciences program (CFDA 47.050) to establish high-precision eruptive chronology for the Caribbean Large Igneous Province and determine its relationship to oceanic anoxic events.

The project combines chemical abrasion–isotope dilution–thermal ionization mass spectrometry (CA-ID-TIMS) U-Pb zircon geochronology with re-osmium isotope stratigraphy, platinum-group element geochemistry, zircon trace-element chemistry, and hafnium isotopes to constrain the timing, duration, and eruptive rates of Caribbean LIP magmatism. U-Pb dating of volcanic units, including ash layers interbedded with ocean drilling cores and Colombian field sections, will establish the chronology. Re-Os isotopes and platinum-group element systematics from associated sediments will track volcanic inputs and marine anoxia development. The integrated geochemical and geochronologic framework will test whether Caribbean LIP volcanism directly drove carbon cycle perturbations associated with Oceanic Anoxic Event 2 or exerted stronger influence during Oceanic Anoxic Event 3, and will distinguish mantle plume from arc-related magmatic sources to provide insight into tectonic evolution.

The award runs through August 31, 2029, with place of performance in Washington, DC.

Abstract

Large igneous provinces (lips) represent earth's largest volcanic events. They have fundamentally shaped the history of oceans, atmosphere and life. The caribbean large igneous province (clip) is one of the largest lips and erupted under the ocean. IT has long been proposed as a potential trigger for major episodes of widespread ocean oxygen depletion, called oceanic anoxic events (oaes). However, IT?s hard to date these large events and therefore hard to know if they have coincided with the onset of these global environmental crises. Understanding the timing, duration, and pace of clip eruptions is needed to understand the role of large-scale volcanism in driving changes in the earth's carbon cycle and marine ecosystems. This project will establish high-precision eruptive chronology for the caribbean large igneous province by combining chemical abrasion?isotope dilution?thermal ionization mass spectrometry (CA-ID-tims) u-PB zircon geochronology with RE-OS isotope stratigraphy, platinum-group element (PGE) geochemistry, zircon trace-element chemistry, and HF isotopes. U-PB dating of volcanic units, including ASH layers interbedded with ocean drilling cores and colombian field sections, will constrain the timing, duration, and eruptive rates of clip magmatism. RE-OS isotopes and PGE systematics from associated sediments will track volcanic inputs and the development of marine anoxia. Together, these datasets will test whether caribbean LIP volcanism directly drove the global carbon cycle perturbations associated with oceanic anoxic event 2 or instead exerted a stronger influence during the later more regionally developed oceanic anoxic event 3. The integrated geochemical and geochronologic framework will also distinguish mantle plume from ARC-related magmatic sources, providing new insight into the tectonic evolution of the caribbean region. The research will support the development of two early-career investigators while providing research and mentoring opportunities for graduate and undergraduate students. By leveraging legacy scientific ocean drilling cores, the project maximizes the scientific value of existing national collections. The project will strengthen international collaborations and will contribute to geoscience education through incorporation of new findings into undergraduate geology curricula and training the next generation of earth scientists. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.- subawards are not planned for this award.