Hydrothermal circulation within the sea floor, through lithosphere older than one million years (Myr), is responsible for 30% of the energy released from plate cooling, and for 70% of the global heat flow anomaly (the difference between observed thermal output and that predicted by conductive cooling models). Hydrothermal fluids remove significant amounts of heat from the oceanic lithosphere for plates typically up to about 65 Myr old. But in view of the relatively impermeable sediments that cover most ridge flanks, it has been difficult to explain how these fluids transport heat from the crust to the ocean. Here we present results of swath mapping, heat flow, geochemistry and seismic surveys from the young eastern flank of the Juan de Fuca ridge, which show that isolated basement outcrops penetrating through thick sediments guide hydrothermal discharge and recharge between sites separated by more than 50 km. Our analyses reveal distinct thermal patterns at the sea floor adjacent to recharging and discharging outcrops. We find that such a circulation through basement outcrops can be sustained in a setting of pressure differences and crustal properties as reported in independent observations and modelling studies.

Mineralogical, chemical, and isotopic results from seven drilling legs that visited DSDP/ODP Hole 504B over 14 years are compiled here to present an integrated view of hydrothermal alteration of oceanic crust at Site 504. Hole 504B reaches to 2111 mbsf, through 274.5 m sediment, 571.5 m of volcanic rocks, a 209 m transition zone, and 1050 m into a sheeted dike complex. The volcanic section was altered through a series of processes involving interaction with seawater at low temperatures, with the effects of cold, oxidizing seawater decreasing downward. These processes and their effects on the volcanic section are generally similar to those in other oceanic upper crustal sections.The transition zone and upper dikes were altered in a subsurface mixing zone, where hydrothermal fluids upwelling through the dikes mixed with cooler seawater circulating in the overlying more permeable volcanic rocks. Alteration of the transition zone and upper dikes (down to 1500 mbsf) occurred in a series of stages, reflecting the thermal and chemical evolution of the hydrothermal system from (1) early chlorite, actinolite, albite-oligoclase, and titanite, to (2) quartz, epidote and sulfides, to (3) anhydrite, and finally to (4) zeolites and local calcite. The maximum temperature estimated for the first two stages is 350°-380°C, and the inferred mineral assemblages for these early stages are typical of the greenschist facies.The lower dikes (1500-2111 mbsf) underwent an early, high-temperature (>400°C) alteration stage, resulting in the formation of hornblende and calcic secondary plagioclase, consistent with reactions inferred to occur in deep subsurface reaction zones, where hydrothermal vent fluids acquire their final compositions. Much of the subsequent reactions produced greenschist assemblages at ~300°-400°C. The lower dikes have lost metals and sulfur and are a source of these elements to hydrothermal vent fluids and seafloor sulfide deposits. The lower dikes underwent subsequent alteration stages similar to the upper dikes, with rare epidote + quartz veins recording the presence of upwelling hydrothermal fluids, and limited late off-axis effects (zeolites and prehnite). Anhydrites in the lower dikes indicate more reacted fluid compositions than in the upper dikes.Alteration of the sheeted dikes from Hole 504B is heterogeneous, with recrystallization controlled by fracturing and access of fluids. Defining the position of the seismic Layer 2/3 transition depends upon the scale of observation, but the change at Site 504 occurs within the sheeted dikes and is correlated with progressive changes in porosity and hydrothermal alteration. However, we still do not know the nature of the transition from sheeted dikes to gabbros in in situ ocean crust, or the nature of the inferred fault at the base of Hole 504B and its role in fluid flow and alteration.

Oceanic crust comprises the largest hydrogeologic reservoir on Earth, containing fluids in thermodynamic disequilibrium with the basaltic crust. Little is known about microbial ecosystems that inhabit this vast realm and exploit chemically favorable conditions for metabolic activities. Crustal samples recovered from ocean drilling operations are often compromised for microbiological assays, hampering efforts to resolve the extent and functioning of a subsurface biosphere. We report results from the first in situ experimental observatory systems that have been used to study subseafloor life. Experiments deployed for 4 years in young (3.5 Ma) basaltic crust on the eastern flank of the Juan de Fuca Ridge record a dynamic, post-drilling response of crustal microbial ecosystems to changing physical and chemical conditions. Twisted stalks exhibiting a biogenic iron oxyhydroxide signature coated the surface of mineral substrates in the observatories; these are biosignatures indicating colonization by iron oxidizing bacteria during an initial phase of cool, oxic, iron-rich conditions following observatory installation. Following thermal and chemical recovery to warmer, reducing conditions, the in situ microbial structure in the observatory shifted, becoming representative of natural conditions in regional crustal fluids. Firmicutes, metabolic potential of which is unknown but may involve N or S cycling, dominated the post-rebound bacterial community. The archaeal community exhibited an extremely low diversity. Our experiment documented in situ conditions within a natural hydrological system that can pervade over millennia, exemplifying the power of observatory experiments for exploring the subsurface basaltic biosphere, the largest but most poorly understood biotope on Earth.

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Hydrothermal fluid circulation within the sea floor profoundly influences the physical, chemical and biological state of the crust and the oceans. Circulation within ridge flanks (in crust more than 1 Myr old) results in greater heat loss and fluid flux than that at ridge crests and persists for millions of years, thereby altering the composition of the crust and overlying ocean. Fluid flow in oceanic crust is, however, limited by the extent and nature of the rock's permeability. Here we demonstrate that the global data set of borehole permeability measurements in uppermost oceanic crust defines a trend with age that is consistent with changes in seismic velocity. This trend-which indicates that fluid flow should be greatly reduced in crust older than a few million years-would appear to be inconsistent with heat-flow observations, which on average indicate significant advective heat loss in crust up to 65 Myr old. But our calculations, based on a lateral flow model, suggest that regional-scale permeabilities are much higher than have been measured in boreholes. These results can be reconciled if most of the fluid flow in the upper crust is channelized through a small volume of rock, influencing the geometry of convection and the nature of fluid-rock interaction.