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Tutum Bay, Ambitle Island
Vent Sites:
Waramung
Activity:
Maximum Temperature:
98
Latitude:
-4.0833
Longitude:
153.5500
Location on map:
Ocean:
Region:
National Jurisdiction:
Maximum or Single Reported Depth (mbsl):
10
Minimum Depth (mbsl):
5
Tectonic setting:
Volcano Number (if applicable):
Host Rock:
NotProvided
Deposit Type:
LTH
Notes on Vent Field Description:
hydrothermal venting within coral reef; Waramung is one of the on-shore hot springs; Pichler et al. (1999): "Submarine hydrothermal venting occurs at Tutum Bay approximately 150 m offshore from Ambitle Island in 5-10 m water depth (Fig. 1). Two types of venting are observed. (1) Focused discharge of a clear, hydrothermal fluid occurs at discrete ports, 5-15 cm in diameter. Fluid temperatures at vent orifices are between 89 and 98 C and discharge rates are as high as 400 L/min. (2) Dispersed or diffuse discharge consists of hydrothermal fluids and streams of gas bubbles (94–98% CO2) emerging directly through the sandy to pebbly unconsolidated sediment and through fractures in volcanic rocks."; "hydrothermal fluids are of meteoric origin"; "The site is located along a fault trace that intersects several of the on-land geothermal areas."; volcanic island in rifted fore-arc
Notes Relevant to Biology:
NotProvided
Year and How Discovered (if active, visual confirmation is listed first):
1996 or earlier, likely by SCUBA
Discovery References (text):
[Licence et al. (1987) Epithermal gold mineralization, Ambitle Island, Papua New Guinea. Pacific Rim Congress '87. Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy, Gold Coast, Queensland, pp. 273-278.]
Pichler and Dix (1996) Hydrothermal venting within a coral reef ecosystem, Ambitle Island, Papua New Guinea. Geology 24: 435-438.
Other References (text):
Pichler et al. (1999) The chemical composition of shallow-water hydrothermal fluids in Tutum Bay, Ambitle Island, Papua New Guinea and their effect on ambient seawater. Marine Chemistry 64: 229-252
Price and Pichler (2005) Distribution, speciation and bioavailability of arsenic in a shallow-water submarine hydrothermal system, Tutum Bay, Ambitle Island, PNG. Chemical Geology 224:122-135.
RDF link: