The

Newsletter of the Task Group on Large-Volume Basaltic Provinces
International Association of Volcanology and Chemistry of the Earth's Interior (IA VCEI)

Greetings to researchers of large-volume basaltic provinces! The LIP (LargeIgneous Provinces) Reader is the newsletter of lAVCEI's Task Group onLarge-Volume Basaltic Provinces, and aims to foster communication amongscientists studying continental flood basalts, oceanic plateaus, volcanic
passive margins, submarine ridges, and seamounts. If you are interested inLIPs, please complete the enclosed questionnaire and return it to either ofus-you will then become a member of the Task Group and will receive all
future communications. Furthermore, if you know of anyone interested in
LIP~ who did not receive this newsletter, please circulate it.

Task Group on Large-Volume Basaltic Provinces

LeaderMike Coffin
Institute for Geophysics
The University of Texas at Austin
8701 Mopac Blvd.
Austin, TX 78759-8397, USA.
Tel: 1.512.471.0429
fax: 1.512.471.8844
internet:mikec@coffin. ig. u texas.edu
Secretaryjohn Mahoney
Department ofGeology and Geophysics
School of Earth and Technology
University of Hawaii
2525 Correa Rd.
Honolulu, HI 96822, USA.
Tel: 1.808.956.8705
fax: 1.808.956.2538
internet:
vgp@elepaio.soest. hawaii.edu

Recent research has documented important temporal, spatial, and compositional relationships among continental flood basalts, oceanic plateaus,
volcanic passive continental margins, submarine ridges, seamount chains,
and ocean basin flood basalts. Recognition of genetic similarities among
these large-volume basaltic provinces, coined "large igneous provinces"{LIPs), which traditionally have been studied by disparate groups within theearth science community, prompted the formation of this Task Group.
Knowledge of each different environment from a variety of geoscientificperspectives should lead to better understanding of the others. Largevolume basalt provinces are distributed world-wide, and many problems
associated with them can best be tackled through international cooperation.
Four major scientific themes will be addressed by Task Group members:
1) processes in the mantle, crust, and core related to the genesis of largevolume basaltic provinces; 2) emplacement mechanisms responsible forlarge volumes of basalt; 3) post-emplacement evolution of such provinces; 4)consequences of emplacement and evolution on the hydrosphere, atmosphere, and biosphere. The subject matter of the Task Group will thus
include volcanology, petrology, geochemistry, geophysics, oceanography,palaeontology, palaeomagnetism, climatology, geodynamics, and otherrelevant disciplines.
The primary aims of the Task Group are to encourage and promoteinterest in and research on large-volume basaltic provinces, to foster interchange of ideas and relevant data among earth scientists, and to maintainand distribute up-to-date bibliographic data bases and compendia of active
research projects. Although interests of members will vary widely, the Task
Group will endeavor to link the various disciplines relevant to LIPs research,with the goal of applying the broadest possible range of expertise to signifi-

correspondence on major research themes,announcements of forthcoming Task Group
activities, a list of relevant meetings, reports onpast meetings, inquiries from members, andother general information on large-volume
basaltic provinces.
The Task Group has commenced its work byidentifying researchers in appropriate fields. Allresearchers who are interested in any aspect oflarge-volume basaltic provinces are invited tojoin and thus contribute to our understanding oflarge-volume basaltic provinces. All membership inquiries should be directed to either Mike
Coffin or John Mahoney.

cant and focused problems. The Task Group willencourage the organization of and participationin conferences and worksh ops, which will
provide forums for education and discussion ofmajor themes and problems. Eventually, theTask Group hopes to develop recommendations
for national and international scientific organizations, with the aim of promoting enhanced
opportunities for research on large-volume
basaltic provinces.
Communication among Task Group m embers will be both p ersonal, through meetings,
symposia, workshops, short courses, and conferences, and via print, in the form of this newsletter. The LIP Reader will include articles andIAVCEIlAVCEI represents the primary international
focus for (1) research in volcanology, (2) efforts tomitigate volcanic disasters, and (3) research inclosely related disciplines, such as igneous
geochemistry and petrology, geochronology,
volcanogenic mineral deposits, and the physics
of the generation and ascent of magmas in theupper mantle and crust. It is run by an Executive
Committee whose membership changes every
four years. The Executive determines policies for
the Association, enacting them through a seriesof Commissions and Task Groups. lAVCEI aims

to be outward-looking, seeks relationships withother international scientific organizations, andparticipates in international scientific projects. It
aims also to maintain a robust publishing policy,
encouraging the presentation of high-caliber
volcanological research results, mainly throughits premier international journal, the Bulletin ofVolcanology. IAVCEI is a m ember Association ofIUGG (International Union of Geodesy andGeophysics), which is in tum a member of theInternational Council of Scientific Unions (ICSU).

Upcoming Meetings
the General Assembly include Modern Ocean
Floor Volcanism, Modeling of Magmatic and Volcanic Processes, Impact of Volcanism on the Atmosphere, and Chemical Evolution of the Mantle.
Subsequent to the lAVCEI General Assembly in Canberra, meetings and workshops will be
convened during relevant international conferences to facilitate exchange of views and experience. Furthermore, if members are interested,field workshops will be p lanned to share research results, ideas, and experience in informal
but stimulating settings.

First and foremost, the inaugural Task Group
Symposium, Continental Intraplate and Passive
Margin Volcanism, will be held during the 1993
lA VCEI General Assembly (see below). Conveners are A. Ewart (Dept. of Geology and Mineralogy, University of Queensland, St. Lucia,Queensland 4072, Australia. Telephone
61.7.3653464. Facsimile 61.7.8704993 or 3651277)
and Keith G. Cox (Dept. of Earth Sciences,
University of Oxford, Parks Rd., Oxford OX1
3RR, United Kingdom. Telephone 44.865.272000.
Facsimile 44.865.272065). Related symposia at,.,.. ,,..,.,.......,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.....

IIiJM::,::::,,,,,,>>it(',,,.,..,,,,,,,,.,,,.

:c:\c''.\·}

<:,.

..,.

'·' '':'"':'i:':':':'/:' '"'· ·,.c:c,c:c::c,c,,·:c:·:·:·:·:·:·:·:·:·:·:·:·:•:·:·:·:·:·:~'~~~.

Previous Meetings
29th International Geological Congress
Kyoto, Japan, 24 August-3 September 1992
Covering all talks involving LIPs at this meetingwas impossible for one person. Although nosessions were devoted exclusively to largevolume basaltic provinces, at least four sessions
included talks on basaltic provinces. The"Basaltic Rocks of Various Tectonic Settings"
session, organized by Rodey Batiza and Hiroaki
Sato, included talks on the Columbia River,Deccan, and Rajmahal flood basalts. "Beyond
Plate Tectonics: Tectonomagmatic Pulses andMantle Dynamics," a session organized by Paul
Hoffman, Asahiko Taira, and the late Lev
Zonenshain, included several presentations onlarge-volume basaltic volcanism globally and its
relation to mantle circulation. Overviews ofoceanic plateaus and volcanic passive margins
were presented in the "Ocean Drilling Program
Special Symposium: Summary, Highlights, andProgress of International Geoscience Programs"

session organized by James Austin and Asahiko
Taira. Finally, the "Imaging Deep Crustal Structures of Continental Margins" sessions, organizedby Kiyoshi Suyehiro and Manik Talwani, included presentations on volcanic passive margins
around the North Atlantic.
American Geophysical Union,
Fal11992 Meeting
San Francisco, California, 7-11 December 1992
A special session, Oceanic and Continental Flood
Basalt Events, was organized by Bob Duncan andMike Coffin. Abstracts of the presentations
appeared in the 1992 Fall Meeting Supplement ofEOS. Both observational and modeling results
were presented in the session; provinces covered
included the Parana, Siberian, Ontong Java,
Kerguelen, Caribbean, Wrangellian, Ferrar, East
African, Grenville, Reunion, Midcontinent Rift,
North Atlantic, Southeastern US, and Tuamotus.

UPsandODP
The largest international earth sciences research
project, the Ocean Drilling Program (ODP), andits predecessor, the Deep Sea Drilling Project,
have advanced knowledge of submarine largevolume basaltic provinces significantly bydrilling oceanic plateaus, volcanic passive
margins, submarine ridges, and seamountchains. The program is proposal-driven; guide-lines for writing and submitting drilling proposals may be obtained from the JOIDES Planning
Office, School of Oceanography, University ofWashington, WB-10, Seattle, WA 98195. Phone
1.206.543.2203." Facsimile 1.206.685.7652.
Internet: joides@ocean. washington.edu. Information on ODP's long-range thematic plans canbe obtained from the same address.

Data Bases
The Task Group is compiling a bibliography ofreferences on large-volume basaltic provinces
using EndNote software operating on Apple
Macintosh computers. At present, the list
contains approximately 1000 references.

An annu al directory of Task Group members, contact addresses and numbers, and research interests is planned for first distribution at
the lAVCEI General Assembly in Canberra.
For digital copies of the bibliography and / ordirectory, send a blank diskette to Mike Coffin.

3

The

LIP Reader
8101 Mopac Blvd.
Austin, Texas 78759-8397 USA