The Von Damm Vent Field comprises 85–90% talc, with hydrothermal fluids of unusual chemistry at 215 °C. Here, the authors show that the mineralogy results from seawater mixing with hydrothermal fluids and the heat output may represent a mode of crustal cooling not fully accounted for in global models.
- Matthew R. S. Hodgkinson
- Alexander P. Webber
- Bramley J. Murton