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[1] Radiogenic isotope compositions (Sr, Nd, Pb, Hf, and Os) of sediment-hosted seafloor ferromanganese crusts and sediments incrusted with ferromanganese oxyhydroxides from the Lesser Antilles island arc were measured to distinguish between hydrogenous (seawater-derived) and hydrothermal metal sources. The ages of the precipitates range between recent (last few thousand years) and a few 100 kyr as deduced from 10 Be and Co concentrations. Evidence from the presence of bladed todorokite and nontronite, together with the major element and REE composition, suggests that a significant proportion of these sediment-hosted precipitates formed at relatively low temperatures from a mixture of seawater and hydrothermal fluids associated with island arc volcanism. The radiogenic isotope compositions of all metals mentioned above, except Pb, show large differences in hydrothermal versus hydrogenous Nd of up to 0.512817 (eNd = +3.5). This is close to the signature of the nearby island arc rocks and far above the expected local seawater ratio of $0.51209 (eNd = À10.7). These crusts also show high 176 Os (up to 0.16) compared with local seawater, as expected from hydrothermal, island-arc-derived metal contributions. In contrast, the Pb isotope signatures of the crusts cannot be explained by mixing between seawater and hydrothermal sources. It is suggested that Pb was either removed from the ascending fluids within the sediment column before they reached seawater or the temperatures were too low to leach significant amounts of Pb from the rocks or sediments. External sources such as Saharan dust, particulate inputs from the Orinoco River, or even incongruent release of Pb isotopes from the island arc rock-derived particles must have contributed to the observed Pb isotope variability. Our results suggest that submarine hydrothermalism originating from intraoceanic island arc volcanism creates distinct geochemical environments for the dispersion of hydrothermal fluids and may be an important mechanism to supply metals of hydrothermal origin to seawater.

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An excess of 60Fe in 2.4-3.2 x 10(6) year old ferromanganese crust (237 KD) from the deep Pacific Ocean has been considered as evidence for the delivery of debris from a nearby supernova explosion to Earth. Extremely high ;{3}He/;{4}He (up to 6.12 x 10(-3)) and 3He concentrations (up to 8 x 10(9) atoms/g) measured in 237 KD cannot be supernova-derived. The helium is produced by galactic cosmic rays (GCR) and delivered in micrometeorites that have survived atmospheric entry to be trapped by the crust. 60Fe is produced by GCR reactions on Ni in extraterrestrial material. The maximum (3)He/(60)Fe of 237 KD (80-850) is comparable to the GCR (3)He/(60)Fe production ratio (400-500) predicted for Ni-bearing minerals in iron meteorites. The excess 60Fe can be plausibly explained by the presence of micrometeorites trapped by the crust, rather than injection from a supernova source.