An eclogite facies meta-plagiogranite from the Lanzo massif (western Alps, Italy) contains crystals of zircon intimately associated with allanite. Zircon displays different microtextures ranging from pristine, euhedral, and magmatic to fractured, porous varieties with mosaic zoning, and pervasive recrystallization into euhedral microcrystals. Fractures and voids in the recrystallized zircon microcrystals are mainly filled by high-pressure Na-rich pyroxene. Electron backscattered diffraction analysis revealed a similar crystallographic orientation for primary magmatic zircon crystals and microcrystals, with less than 2° misorientation among neighboring microdomains. The textural change is coupled with chemical and isotopic modifications: recrystallized zircon domains contain significantly less Th and light- to mid-REE, but are richer in Sr than magmatic zircon crystals. Magmatic zircon preserves the protolith U-Pb age of 163.5 ± 1.7 Ma, whereas zircon microcrystals have a mean age of 55 ± 1 Ma. The coexisting allanite also contains inclusions of Na-rich pyroxene and has chemical features (elevated Sr and Ni contents and lack of Eu anomaly) indicating formation at high pressure. Despite being associated texturally with zircon, allanite yields a younger Th-Pb age of 46.5 ± 3.0 Ma, suggesting that the Lanzo unit remained at relatively high pressure conditions for ~8 m.y. Zircon recrystallization proceeded with volume reduction and loss of material to an alkaline metamorphic fluid that acted as the agent for a coupled dissolution-reprecipitation process. Recrystallization occurred with minimum transport, in a low-strain environment, and was not significantly enhanced by metamictization. The source of the fluid for zircon recrystallization is most probably related to prograde devolatilization reactions in the surrounding serpentinite.

We have conducted ultrasonic experiments, between 0.3 and 1 MHz, to measure velocity and attenuation ($Q^{-1}$) anisotropy of P- and S-waves in dry Whitby Mudstone samples as a function of stress. We found the degree of anisotropy to be as large as 70% for velocity and attenuation. The sensitivity of P-wave anisotropy change with applied stress is more conspicuous than for S-waves. The closure of large aspect-ratio pores (and/or micro cracks) seems to be a dominant mechanism controlling the change of anisotropy. Generally, the highest attenuation is perceived for samples that have their bed layering perpendicular (${90}^{°}$) to the wave path. The observed attenuation in the samples is partly due to the scattering on the different layers, and it is partly due to the intrinsic attenuation. Changes in attenuation due to crack closure during the loading stage of the experiment are an indication of the intrinsic attenuation. The remaining attenuation can then be attributed to the layer scattering. Finally, the changes in attenuation anisotropy with applied stress are more dynamic with respect to changes in velocity anisotropy, supporting the validity of a higher sensitivity of attenuation to rock property changes.

Models for glacial isostatic adjustment (GIA) can provide constraints on rheology of the mantle if past ice thickness variations are assumed to be known. The Pleistocene ice loading histories that are used to obtain such constraints are based on an a priori 1-D mantle viscosity profile that assumes a single deformation mechanism for mantle rocks. Such a simplified viscosity profile makes it hard to compare the inferred mantle rheology to inferences from seismology and laboratory experiments. It is unknown what constraints GIA observations can provide on more realistic mantle rheology with an ice history that is not based on an a priori mantle viscosity profile. This paper investigates a model for GIA with a new ice history for Fennoscandia that is constrained by palaeoclimate proxies and glacial sediments. Diffusion and dislocation creep flow law data are taken from a compilation of laboratory measurements on olivine. Upper-mantle temperature data sets down to 400 km depth are derived from surface heatflow measurements, a petrochemical model for Fennoscandia and seismic velocity anomalies. Creep parameters below 400 km are taken from an earlier study and are only varying with depth. The olivine grain size and water content (a wet state, or a dry state) are used as free parameters. The solid Earth response is computed with a global spherical 3-D finite-element model for an incompressible, self-gravitating Earth. We compare predictions to sea level data and GPS uplift rates in Fennoscandia. The objective is to see if the mantle rheology and the ice model is consistent with GIA observations. We also test if the inclusion of dislocation creep gives any improvements over predictions with diffusion creep only, and whether the laterally varying temperatures result in an improved fit compared to a widely used 1-D viscosity profile (VM2). We find that sea level data can be explained with our ice model and with information on mantle rheology from laboratory experiments, heatflow and seismology and a pure olivine rheology above 400 km. Moreover, laterally heterogeneous models provide a significantly better fit to relative sea level data than the VM2 viscosity, for our ice model as well as for the ICE-5G model that is based on the VM2 profile. The new ice model gives different constraints on mantle rheology than the ICE-5G model, indicating a possible bias towards mantle viscosity in the latter or shortcomings in our ice model. Present-day uplift rates for a dry rheology are close to GPS observed uplift rate for certain combinations of grain size and temperature fields. Sea level data show a preference for a wet olivine rheology, but in that case uplift rates are too low for all grain sizes and temperature fields. The difficulty to fit sea level data and uplift rate data simultaneously can not be resolved by varying creep parameters below 400 km. Uncertainties in the flow law and the neglect of other materials in the upper mantle, as well as the neglect of flow in the crust could affect our conclusions.