Effects of magmatic styles on the thermal evolution of planetary interiors

Abstract

Previous studies have suggested that extrusive magmatism efficiently cools planetary interiors but the contribution by intrusive magmatism has been little investigated so far. We study the effects of the magmatic style (i.e., intrusive vs. extrusive magmatism) on the thermal evolution of Mercury-, Venus-, Moon-, and Mars-like bodies. Our results suggest that different magmatic styles strongly affect the thermal evolution of planets, where for instance intrusive magmatism allows for thinner lids, cooler melts and more melt production. In addition, for large and/or highly magmatically active planets such as Venus, an intrusive magmatism allows for more efficient cooling of the interior.