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IODP Expedition 330 Louisville Seamount Trail

Daily Science Report 57 -- Sunday, 6 February 2011


Location

Site U1377 on Guyot 168.6°W 38° 10' 58.8" S, 168° 38' 15.6012" W
Region: 
Louisville Seamount Trail
Elevation: 
0 m above sea level

Cores U1377A-3R to -6R (15.1 to 53.3 mbsf) were retrieved with 22% recovery and comprise a variety of igneous lithologies. Core U1377A-3R recovered 1.4 m of relatively altered igneous rocks that could represent a dike based on the occurrence of subvertical vesicle bands but no contacts were recovered. Preliminary results of the shipboard ICP-spectrometer indicate a more evolved, silica-rich composition for this unit. Deeper in the hole is a succession of moderately ol-phyric and aphyric pillow and lava lobe stacks. Core U1377A-6R recovered light-gray volcanic rock that is highly amygdaloidal (containing numerous large vesicles filled with secondary minerals). Also present are large pyroxene and olivine phenocrysts with the latter being completely altered to spongy phyllosilicates. When retrieving the core barrel for Core U1377A-6R the hole started to collapse and eventually needed to be abandoned. The decision was made to offset the vessel to the south and to start a new “B” hole. Hole U1377B was spudded shortly before midnight.