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Tectonic controls on the nature of large silicic calderas in volcanic arcs

¹ Department of Geological and Environmental Sciences, Stanford University, 450 Serra Mall, Building 320, Stanford, California 94305-2115, USA

Correspondence: *E-mail: gwyneth{at}stanford.edu.

Silicic magma bodies stabilize the continental margin by redistributing low-density material into the upper crust. We examined the tectonic traits of 91 young, arc-related, silicic calderas to test previous assertions that the nature of voluminous silicic arc volcanism depends on specific tectonic characteristics. We find that caldera occurrence positively correlates with convergence rate except in arcs with backarc spreading, which have few or no calderas. Calderas located on oceanic and young continental crust are predominantly dacitic, whereas rhyolitic calderas are mainly located on Mesozoic or older continental crust under extension. Occurrence does not increase with greater local subduction obliquity or duration of present arc activity. Our determination of controls on the formation and composition of silicic calderas in volcanic arcs contributes to the study of continental evolution.

Key Words: calderas • volcanism • continental margins • island arcs • Quaternary • rhyolites

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