Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Palaeomagnetism and the Deccan Trap volcanism

  • Session: « Geophysics And Economic Minerals »
  • Published:
Bulletin Volcanologique Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

The results of palacomagnetic studies made on the Deccan Traps by various workers are reviewed in the light of the recent palaeomagnetic data on these rocks and the general geological information. It is suggested that: (a) the earlier altitude-polarity classification of the Deccan Traps, suggesting that the flows below the general elevation of 2000±200 feet above mean sea level are of reversed magnetic polarity while those above this horizon are normal, is not without exceptions; (b) the geomagnetic field reversed its polarity several times during the eruption of these lavas; (c) the Deccan Trap eruptions probably consisted of several phases of volcanicity over a protracted period; and (d) the phases of Deccan Trap volcanism, the phases of Himalayan upheaval, and the northward drift of the Indian landmass were rather concrescent events.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Agashe, L. V. andGupte, R. B., 1968,Some Significant Features of the Deccan Trap. Mem. Geol. Soc. Ind., 2, p. 309–313.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ahmad, F., 1967,Current Drift in the Theory of Continental Drift. Proc. Symp. Upper Mantle Project, NGRI, Hyderabad, p. 481–511.

    Google Scholar 

  • —————, 1968,Orogeny, Geosyncline and Continental Drift. Tectonophysics, 5 (3), p. 177–189.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Akopyan, T. G., 1958,Palaeomagnetism of Volcanic Rocks of Armenia. Akad. Nayk. SSR Izv. Geophys. Ser., p. 1033–1039.

  • Bhalla, S. N. 1968,Cretaceous-Tertiary Boundary in the Pangadi Area, West Godavari District, Andhra Pradesh. Mem. Geol. Soc. Ind., 2, p. 226–233.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bhimasankaram, V. L. S., 1965,Palaeomagnetic Directions of the Deccan Traps of Rajahmundry, Andhra Pradesh, India. Geophys. J., 9 (2–3), p. 113–119.

    Google Scholar 

  • ----- andPal, P. C., 1968,Palaeogeomagnetic Polarity Transitions (?) during Deccan Trap Volcanism. J. Osm. Univ. (Sci.), Gold. Jubl. Vol., 43–61.

  • Blackett, P. M. S., Clegg, J. A. andStubbs, P. H. S., 1960,An Analysis of Rock Magnetic Data. Proc. Roy. Soc., A256, p. 291–322.

    Google Scholar 

  • -----,Bullard, E. C. andRuncorn, S. K., 1965, (Editors),Symposium on Continental Drift. Phil. Trans. Roy. Soc., A258 (1088).

  • Briden, J. C., 1967,Recurrent Continental Drift of Gondwanaland. Nature, 215 (5108), p. 1334–1339.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bullard, E. C., 1964,Continental Drift. Quart. J. Geol. Soc. London, 120 (477), 1, p. 1–33.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Carnegie Inst., Washington, Dept. Terr. Mag.,Potassium-Argon Data on some Samples from Deccan Traps. Ann. Rep. 1963–64, p. 336–337.

  • Clegg, J. A., Deutsch, E. R. andGriffiths, D. H., 1956,Rock Magnetism in India. Phil. Mag., 1, p. 419–431.

    Google Scholar 

  • Crookshank, H., 1936,Geology of the Northern Slopes of the Satpuras between Morana and Sher Rivers. Mem. Geol. Surv. Ind., 66 (2).

  • Dagley, P., Wilson, R. L., Ade-Hall, J. M., Walker, G. P. L., Haggerty, S. E., Sigurgeirsson, T., Watkins, N. D., Smith, P. J., Edwards, J. andGrasty, R. L., 1967,Geomagnetic Polarity Zones for Icelandic Lavas. Nature, 216 (5110), p. 52–32.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dalrymple, G. B., Cox, A., Doell, R. R. andGromme, C. S., 1967,Pliocene Geomagnetic Polarity Epochs. Earth & Planetary Science Letters, 2, p. 163–173.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Deutsch, E. R., Radakrishnamurty, C. andSahasrabudhe, P. W., 1958,The Remanent Magnetism of some Lavas in the Deccan Traps. Phil. Mag., 3, p. 170–184.

    Google Scholar 

  • —————, ————— and —————, 1959,Palacomagnetism of the Deccan Traps. Ann. Geophys., 15 (1), p. 39–59.

    Google Scholar 

  • Dietz, R. S., 1966,Passive Continents, Spreading Sea Floors and Collapsing Continental Rises. Am. J. Sci., 264, p. 177–193.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dutt, S. K., 1955,The Mull Lavas and their Magnetism. Ph. D. Thesis, Imperial College, London.

    Google Scholar 

  • Girdler, R. W., 1961,Some Preliminary Measurements of Anisotropy of Magnetic Susceptibility of Rocks. Geophys. J., 5, p. 197–206.

    Google Scholar 

  • Glennie, E. A., 1951,Density or Geological Corrections to Gravity Anomalies for the Deccan Trap Area in India. Mon. Not. Roy. Astr. Soc. Geophys. Supp., 6 (4), p. 179–193.

    Google Scholar 

  • Gupte, R. B., Radakrishnamurty, C. andSahasrabudhe, P. W., 1968,A Recent (?) Flow in the Deccan Traps. Bull. Geol. Soc. Ind., 5 (1), p. 26–28.

    Google Scholar 

  • Heirtzler, J. R., Dickson, G. O., Herron, E. M., Pitman, W. C. III andLe Pichon, X., 1968,Marine Magnetic Anomalies, Geomagnetic Field Reversals, and Motions of the Ocean Floor and Continents. J. Geophys. Res., 73 (6), p. 2119–2136.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hess, H. H., 1962,History of Ocean Basins. InPetrological Studies. (Ed. A.E.J.Engelet al.), Geol. Soc. Am., p. 599–620.

  • Holmes, A., 1931,Radioactivity and Earth Movements. Trans. Geol. Soc. Glasgow, 18, 599 pp.

  • Irving, E., 1956,Palaeomagnetic and Palaeoclimatological Aspects of Polar Wandering. Geofisica Pura e Applicata, 33, p. 23–41.

    Google Scholar 

  • —————, 1964,Palaeomagnetism and its Application to Geological and Geophysical Problems. John Wiley, New York, p. 352–353.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kalapesi, A. S., Chhapgar, S. K. andSukheswala, R. N., 1941,A Note on the « Lead Ratio » Method for Determining the Age of the Deccan Traps. Current Science, 10 (12), p. 526.

    Google Scholar 

  • Krishnan, M. S., 1963,Deccan Trap Volcanism. Bull. Nat. Geophys. Res. Inst., India, 1 (1), p. 4–16.

    Google Scholar 

  • —————, 1968,The Deccan Traps. InGeology of India and Burma. 5th Ed., Higginbothams, Madras, p. 405–421.

    Google Scholar 

  • —————, 1969,Continental Drift. J. Ind. Geophysics U., 6 (1), p. 1–84.

    Google Scholar 

  • La Fond, E. C. andDietz, R. S., 1964,The Lonar Crater (India): Meteorite Crater. J. Ind. Geophys. U., 1 (2), p. 91–96.

    Google Scholar 

  • Le Pichon, X. andHeirtzler, J. R., 1968,Magnetic Anomalies in the Indian Ocean Floor Spreading. J. Geophys. Res., 73 (6), p. 2101–2117.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lewis, M., 1965,Magnetic Reversal Phenomena in some Natural and Synthetic Materials. Ph. D. Thesis, Imperial College, London.

    Google Scholar 

  • Mathur, K. K., 1934,Problems of Petrogenesis in the Deccan Traps. Pres. Address (Geology & Geography), XXI Ind. Sci. Cong.

  • McElhinny, M. W., 1967,The Palaeomagnetism of the Southern Continents — a Survey and Analysis. IUGS-UNESCO Symposium on ‘Continental Drift’, Montevideo.

  • —————, 1968,Northward Drift of India — Examination of Recent Palaeomagnetic Results. Nature, 217 (5126), p. 342–344.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Nandi, N. C. andDeo, V. B., 1961,Origin of the Lonar Lake and its Alkalinity. TISCO (July), 144 pp.

  • Pal, P. C. andBhimasankaram, V. L. S., 1971,Remanent Magnetism of the Deccan Trap Flows around Sagar, Madya Pradesh, India. Bull. Volc., 35 (3).

  • Pascoe, E. H., 1964,Deccan Traps and Associated Sedimentaries, and some Possible Equivalents. InA Manual of Geology of India and Burma. (3rd Ed.), Vol. III, Govt. of India Press, p. 1345–1410.

  • Radakrishnamurthy, C. andShasrabude, P. W., 1964,On the Importance of the Palaeomagnetic Results from Rajmahal and Deccan Traps of India. Proc. Upper Mantle Symp., New Delhi, IUGS Publn.

  • Rama Rao, L., 1950,Some Aspects of the Deccan Traps — a Review. J. Mysore University, 10 (4), p. 25–39.

    Google Scholar 

  • Sahasrabudhe, P. W., 1963,Palaeomagnetism and Geology of the Deccan Traps. Proc. Semin., ‘Geophys. Invest. Peninsular Shield’, Osmania University, Hyderabad, p. 226–243.

    Google Scholar 

  • —————, 1965,The Geomagnetic Secular Variation in the Remote Past. J. Ind. Geophys. U., 2 (1), p. 17–26.

    Google Scholar 

  • Talwani, M., 1964,A Review of Marine Geophysics. Marine Geol., 2, p. 29–80.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Tomkeieff, S. I., 1964,Petrochemistry and Petrogenesis of the British Tertiary Igneous Province. InAdvancing Frontiers in Geology and Geophysics. (Ed.A. P. Subramaniam andS. Balakrishna), Ind. Geophys. U., p. 327–350.

  • Venkayya, E., 1949,Deccan Trap Outliers of the Godavari Districts. Proc. Ind. Acad. Sci., A29 (6), p. 431–441.

    Google Scholar 

  • Verma, R. K. andRao, A. A., 1963,Palaeomagnetism of Deccan Traps of Vikarabad, Chincholi and Gulbarga Areas. Proc. Semin. ‘Geophys. Invest. Peninsular Shield’, Osmania University, Hvderabad, p. 161–168.

    Google Scholar 

  • ————— andPulliah, G., 1967,Palaeomagnetism of Tirupati Sandstones from Godavari Valley, India. Earth & Planetary Science Letters, 2 (4), p. 310–316.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Vine, F. J. andMaithews, D. H., 1963,Magnetic Anomalies over Oceanic Ridges. Nature, 199, p. 947–949.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Waikins, N. D., 1968,Comments on the Interpretation of Linear Magnetic Anomalies. Pure & Appl. Geophys., 69 (1), p. 179–192.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Weaving, B., 1960,The Magnetic Properties of some (a) Deccan Trap Basalts, and (b) Meteorites. Ph. D. Thesis, Imperial College, London.

    Google Scholar 

  • West, W. D., 1959,The Source of the Deccan Trap Flows. J. Geol. Soc. Ind., 1, p. 44–52.

    Google Scholar 

  • —————, 1957,Some Problems of the Deccan Trap. J. Geol. Soc. Sagar, 3, p. 1–5.

    Google Scholar 

  • -----, 1969,Radiometric Age Determinations on some Deccan Traps. Int. Symp. on ‘Deccan Traps and other Flood Eruptions’, Sagar, India (Personal communication).

  • Wilson, J. T., 1965,A New Class of Faults and their Bearing on Continental Drift. Nature, 207, p. 343–347.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wilson, R., 1964,Magnetic Properties of Normal and Reversed Natural Magnetisation in the Mull Lavas. Geophvs. J., 8 (4), p. 424–439.

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Centre of Exploration Geophysics, Osmania University, Hyderabad-7, India

    P. C. Pal & V. L. S. Bhimasankaram

Authors
  1. P. C. Pal
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. V. L. S. Bhimasankaram
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Pal, P.C., Bhimasankaram, V.L.S. Palaeomagnetism and the Deccan Trap volcanism. Bull Volcanol 35, 766–789 (1971). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02596844

Download citation

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02596844

Keywords

Search

Navigation