Zircon xenocrysts from Easter Island (Rapa Nui) reveal hotspot activity since the middle Jurassic

The dataset deposited in the Harvard Dataverse contains key geochronological and isotopic data from zircon grains found in red soils, regoliths and beach sands from Easter Island. In our study, we report the finding of mantle-derived zircon grains that are much older than the island volcanism (0–2.5 Ma) and its underlying lithosphere (Pliocene, 3–4.8 Ma). A large population of 0–165 Ma old zircons have coherent oxygen (δ18O) and hafnium (εHf(t)) mantle isotopic signatures. These results are consistent with the crystallization of zircon from plume-related melts. In addition, a chemically diverse population with ages from the Paleozoic to the Archaean was found. These older populations are enigmatic (we still do not have a definitive answer, but they could represent remnants of ancient subducted sediments), while the ~0–165 Ma population is interpreted as plume-derived, suggesting that the Easter hotspot started at least ~165 Ma ago.