21" x 6.5" Kane Fracture Zone is an area on the mid-Atlantic Ridge at 2. 23.5degrees North and 45 degrees West. Cruise was Nov. 14 to Dec. 17th, 2004. 2000 to 3600 meters depth, age between 1.5 and 2.5 million years. Glop from rock saws is high in manganese. It has lots of peridotite, serpentine, basalt, and olivine gabbro. It is mostly volcanic in nature. There is some carbonate in the form of forams and mudstone in the material too. C. Eben Franks said, “It has spent significant time in Hell, meaning that it is from rocks that were buried deeply within the ocean crust, under immense pressure and high temperature – the very crucible of ocean crust formation. Some of it is derived from rocks from the mantle of of the Earth, below the ocean crust . . . from the top of the magma chamber. The mantle is exposed at this location, which is called the Kane Megamullion. |