The First Results of U–Pb Dating of the Nikolka Volcano (Central Kamchatka Depression)

Researchers have determined the age of the Nikolka shield volcano, located in Kamchatka's Central Depression, to be approximately 0.73 million years old using U–Pb dating of zircon from amphibole latite rocks. This finding marks the first age data for this volcano and places its activity at the transition period between the Brunhes and Matuyama magnetic epochs during the Pliocene volcanic stage, a time when large shield volcanoes and plateaus formed in Kamchatka. The study also highlights a unique geological feature: a gabbro–anorthosite sheet intrusion with monzonite and syenite derivatives within the volcano's central part. The dating was conducted using SIMS SHRIMP II at the Isotope Research Center, Schmidt Joint Institute of Physics of the Earth (St. Petersburg), providing valuable insights into the region's volcanic history.

Ermakov, V. A., & Bazhenova, G. N. (2018). The First Results of U–Pb Dating of the Nikolka Volcano (Central Kamchatka Depression). Doklady Earth Sciences, 480(1), 564–567. https://doi.org/10.1134/s1028334x18050124