Midcontinent Rift and Remnants of Initiating Mantle Plume Imaged With Magnetotellurics

Geologic evidence has long suggested that the Midcontinent Rift (MCR) was initiated by a mantle plume 1.1 Ga in the western Lake Superior region. EarthScope magnetotelluric data has been inverted to create a 3D resistivity model that shows remnants of the plume to depths of at least 150 km. The mantle plume remnants are imaged as a body of highly conductive material in the lithosphere. It is focused below western Lake Superior and northwestern Wisconsin, and elongated in a NW-SE direction, consistent with plate motion vectors. Recent seismic velocity models from EarthScope data also show an anomaly at this location. The presence of a plume after so much time has passed invites many questions regarding the long-term stability of conductive materials, the thickness of the lithosphere, and the stability of sub-craton mantle over long time periods. The resistivity model also shows features defining the length of the MCR as well as the Grenville orogeny. New data being collected this summer is incorporated into the model, extending it southeast across Grenville.