ODP Hole 801C penetrates >400 m into 170-Ma oceanic basement formed at a fast-spreading ridge. Most basalts are slightly (10–20%) recrystallized to saponite, calcite, minor celadonite and iron oxyhydroxides, and trace pyrite. Temperatures estimated from oxygen isotope data for secondary minerals are 5–100°C, increasing downward. At the earliest stage, dark celadonitic alteration halos formed along fractures and celadonite, and quartz and chalcedony formed in veins from low-temperature (<100°C) hydrothermal fluids. Iron oxyhydroxides subsequently formed in alteration halos along fractures where seawater circulated, and saponite and pyrite developed in the host rock and in zones of restricted seawater flow under more reducing conditions. Chemical changes include variably elevated K, Rb, Cs, and H2O; local increases in FeT, Ba, Th, and U; and local losses of Mg and Ni.
Secondary carbonate veins have 87Sr/86Sr = 0.706337 – 0.707046, and a negative correlation with d18O results from seawater–basalt interaction. Carbonates could have formed at any time since the formation of Site 801 crust. Variable d13C values (-11.2‰ to 2.9‰) reflect the incorporation of oxidized organic carbon from intercalated sediments and changes in the d13C of seawater over time.
Compared to other oceanic basements, a major difference at Site 801 is the presence of two hydrothermal silica–iron deposits that formed from low-temperature hydrothermal fluids at the spreading axis. Basalts associated with these horizons are intensely altered (60–100%) to phyllosilicates, calcite, K-feldspar, and titanite; and exhibit large increases in K, Rb, Cs, Ba, H2O, and CO2, and losses of FeT, Mn, Mg, Ca, Na, and Sr. These effects may be common in crust formed at fast-spreading rates, but are not ubiquitous. A second important difference is that the abundance of brown oxidation halos along fractures at Site 801 is an order of magnitude less than at some other sites (2% vs. 20–30%). Relatively smooth basement topography (<100 m) and high sedimentation rate (8 m/Ma) probably restricted the access of oxygenated seawater. Basement lithostratigraphy and early low-temperature hydrothermal alteration and mineral precipitation in fractures at the spreading axis controlled permeability and limited later flow of oxygenated seawater to restricted depth intervals.
