Alkaline Rocks and Carbonatites of the World

Setup during HiTech AlkCarb: an online database of alkaline rock and carbonatite occurrences

Platanar/Aguas Zarcas

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Occurrence number: 
039-00-004
Country: 
Costa Rica
Region: 
Alajuela
Location: 
Longitude: -84.32863, Latitude: 10.3833
Carbonatite: 
No

Platanar is a volcanic centre located in the Cordillera Central of Costa Rica. The centre is ~330 km3 composed of the slightly N-S elongated Chocosuela Caldera enclosing two stratovolcanoes: Platanar and Porvenir. Most of the complex is dominated by rocks of a calc-alkaline, basalt-andesite-dacite-rhyolite magma series. Minor alkaline rocks can be found in both the centre of the complex near Porvenir and a cinder cone field spanning the northern flank of Platanar to the alluvial fan of the Aguas Zarcas river. The nine northern cinder cones are mafic and form part of the Aguas Zarcas subunit, the two easternmost cones are shoshonitic, and the remainder containing normative nepheline, hypersthene and are more Na-rich. Rocks of this subunit are mostly classified as LIL- and LREE-enriched transitional to alkaline basalts. The alkaline magma is believed to have mixed with the magma of the Platanar pluton resulting in some unusual hybrid rock types and geochemical properties of the main calc-alkaline series. Petrography, whole rock major and trace element data, and detailed description of rock units can be found in Alvarado & Carr (1993).

Age: 
Quaternary (?) (Alvarado & Carr, 1993)
References: 

ALVARADO, G.E. & CARR, M.J., 1993. The Platanar-Aguas Zarcas volcanic centers, Cost Rica: spatial-temporal association of Quaternary calc-alkaline and alkaline volcanism. Bulletin of Volcanology 55 pp 443-453

Fig 1. Platanar Volcanic Centre (Alvarado and Carr, 1993)
Scratchpads developed and conceived by (alphabetical): Ed Baker, Katherine Bouton Alice Heaton Dimitris Koureas, Laurence Livermore, Dave Roberts, Simon Rycroft, Ben Scott, Vince Smith