In the Late Mesozoic, the North China Craton (NCC) underwent significant lithospheric thinning and destruction, especially in the eastern part, but the mechanism and timing related to this process are still contentious. The Taihang Mountains (TH) are located in the western part of the eastern NCC and the Tan-Lu Fault (TLF) is in the eastern part, which are two essential magmatic areas that reveal deep processes of magma origin. We investigated the spatial-temporal distribution of igneous rocks from these two areas to constrain the tectonic setting and magmatic sources. SHRIMP zircon U-Pb ages of the granitoids within the Fangshan pluton in northern TH area range from 136 to 128 Ma. Their εHf(t) values and δ18O values show ranges of −27.7 to −18.5 and 6.68 to 7.26 permil, respectively. Hence, we conclude that the rocks were formed by mixing between underplating magma and the melts from the lower crust. The O-Hf isotopic compositions of six granitoid samples from the Yunmengshan complex in northern TH are also reported. In combination with previous studies, we propose that the geochemical characteristics of the magmatic rocks from the TH area had insignificant changes during late Mesozoic time, but the rocks from the TLF area varied greatly. The difference between those two areas may reflect the diverse impact of the Paleo-Pacific subduction process. The high Mg# adakitic rocks (HMA) from TLF area have higher Mg# values than the HMA rocks from TH area. Our conclusion is that the HMA rocks in the TLF area were mainly formed by delaminated lower crust interacting with mantle materials and that the Paleo-Pacific subduction had limited impact on TH magmas. Based on chronology and geochemical characteristics, we recognize three stages: 1) ∼166 to 140 Ma, multi-directional compression resulted in crustal shortening and thickening in the NCC, accompanied by regional partial melting of the crust and underplating of mafic magmas, 2) 140 to 125 Ma, the TLF underwent left-lateral strike-slip movement. Subsequent delamination of the lower crust around the fault and the NCC evolved into an extensional tectonic environment, 3) after 125 Ma, a large-scale extension of the NCC occurred likely due to stress relaxation after delamination. The TLF acted as a favorable channel for transporting mantle material and fluids, which implies that the large-scale fault zone was a key factor of the NCC lithosphere destruction.
{"title":"Chronological and geochemical variations of the late Mesozoic granitoids in the Taihang Mountains and middle-southern Tan-Lu Fault: Implications for lithosphere destruction of the North China Craton","authors":"Yuelan Kang, Yuruo Shi, J. Anderson","doi":"10.2475/06.2021.04","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.2475/06.2021.04","url":null,"abstract":"In the Late Mesozoic, the North China Craton (NCC) underwent significant lithospheric thinning and destruction, especially in the eastern part, but the mechanism and timing related to this process are still contentious. The Taihang Mountains (TH) are located in the western part of the eastern NCC and the Tan-Lu Fault (TLF) is in the eastern part, which are two essential magmatic areas that reveal deep processes of magma origin. We investigated the spatial-temporal distribution of igneous rocks from these two areas to constrain the tectonic setting and magmatic sources. SHRIMP zircon U-Pb ages of the granitoids within the Fangshan pluton in northern TH area range from 136 to 128 Ma. Their εHf(t) values and δ18O values show ranges of −27.7 to −18.5 and 6.68 to 7.26 permil, respectively. Hence, we conclude that the rocks were formed by mixing between underplating magma and the melts from the lower crust. The O-Hf isotopic compositions of six granitoid samples from the Yunmengshan complex in northern TH are also reported. In combination with previous studies, we propose that the geochemical characteristics of the magmatic rocks from the TH area had insignificant changes during late Mesozoic time, but the rocks from the TLF area varied greatly. The difference between those two areas may reflect the diverse impact of the Paleo-Pacific subduction process. The high Mg# adakitic rocks (HMA) from TLF area have higher Mg# values than the HMA rocks from TH area. Our conclusion is that the HMA rocks in the TLF area were mainly formed by delaminated lower crust interacting with mantle materials and that the Paleo-Pacific subduction had limited impact on TH magmas. Based on chronology and geochemical characteristics, we recognize three stages: 1) ∼166 to 140 Ma, multi-directional compression resulted in crustal shortening and thickening in the NCC, accompanied by regional partial melting of the crust and underplating of mafic magmas, 2) 140 to 125 Ma, the TLF underwent left-lateral strike-slip movement. Subsequent delamination of the lower crust around the fault and the NCC evolved into an extensional tectonic environment, 3) after 125 Ma, a large-scale extension of the NCC occurred likely due to stress relaxation after delamination. The TLF acted as a favorable channel for transporting mantle material and fluids, which implies that the large-scale fault zone was a key factor of the NCC lithosphere destruction.","PeriodicalId":7660,"journal":{"name":"American Journal of Science","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":2.9,"publicationDate":"2021-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"43722269","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"地球科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Simon A. Wilde, Shoujie Liu, Y. Rojas‐Agramonte, Guochun Zhao
{"title":"Preface","authors":"Simon A. Wilde, Shoujie Liu, Y. Rojas‐Agramonte, Guochun Zhao","doi":"10.2475/06.2021.10","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.2475/06.2021.10","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":7660,"journal":{"name":"American Journal of Science","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":2.9,"publicationDate":"2021-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"45999603","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"地球科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
A. Nutman, C. Friend, V. Bennett, M. V. Kranendonk, A. Chivas
The arcuate, 35 km long Isua supracrustal belt (ISB, southern West Greenland) contains the world's largest remnants of Eoarchean volcanic and sedimentary sequences. The ISB is broadly divided into: (i) the northern Inner Arc Group of 3720 to 3690 Ma rocks, and (ii) the southern Outer Arc Group of ca. 3800 Ma rocks which is bounded on its northern side by the highly tectonized ca. 3750 Ma Dividing Sedimentary Unit. The boundary between the two groups is a mylonite formed between 3685 and 3660 Ma. Despite the generally high strain, amphibolite facies metamorphism and layer-parallel dislocations that can thin or altogether excise some units, domains of lower deformation comprising ≪1% (qualitative assessment) of the Outer Arc Group contain relict sedimentary and igneous structures. Combined with zircon U-Pb geochronology and whole rock geochemistry, this enables the Outer Arc Group lithological sequence and geodynamic setting to be reconstructed. The lower part of the Outer Arc Group is dominated by metabasaltic amphibolites of the Mafic Volcanic formation in which rarely-preserved pillow structures indicate both their predominantly subaqueous eruption and also their stratigraphic facing. They erupted >3800 Ma, because they were first intruded by subconcordant sheets of fine-grained hypabyssal tonalite dated at 3803±3 Ma (Crowley, 2003) and then by coarser-grained 3795 to 3791 Ma tonalite-granodiorite, which forms a large deformed pluton along the south side of the ISB. This formation is succeeded by the Sedimentary formation whose base consists of discontinuous rare, thin fuchsitic quartzites with 3890 to 3805 Ma detrital zircons. Overlying is a diverse package of dolostones, marls and siliceous rocks. Although they are extensively modified by metamorphism and metasomatism, producing widespread growth of talc or tremolite, relict graded sedimentary layering, chemical and isotopic signatures indicate originally sedimentary protoliths. Detrital zircons in these rocks range in age from ca. 3820 to 3805 Ma. This unit shows an upwards transition from ‘pure' chemical sedimentary rocks with distinct seawater-like trace element signatures into lithologies increasingly contaminated by felsic material that is locally preserved as graded layers, which are interpreted as an increasing volcanogenic input. Succeeding the sedimentary rocks is the Felsic Volcanic formation, an extensive unit of mostly schistose 3807 to 3802 Ma felsic potassic-altered rocks with carbonate-rich interludes and veins. Locally-preserved andesitic units with graded layering, massive vesicular lavas, polymict breccias, resorbed quartz phenocrysts and fiammé, attest to volcanic and volcano-sedimentary protoliths. Whole rock geochemistry and oxygen isotope analyses on these rocks and their zircons indicate predominantly felsic volcanic protoliths that experienced massive alteration in a surficial environment, probably following subaerial eruption. Massive volcanic rocks are commonest in th
{"title":"Geodynamic Environment of the ca. 3800 Ma Outer Arc Group, Isua (Greenland)","authors":"A. Nutman, C. Friend, V. Bennett, M. V. Kranendonk, A. Chivas","doi":"10.2475/06.2021.01","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.2475/06.2021.01","url":null,"abstract":"The arcuate, 35 km long Isua supracrustal belt (ISB, southern West Greenland) contains the world's largest remnants of Eoarchean volcanic and sedimentary sequences. The ISB is broadly divided into: (i) the northern Inner Arc Group of 3720 to 3690 Ma rocks, and (ii) the southern Outer Arc Group of ca. 3800 Ma rocks which is bounded on its northern side by the highly tectonized ca. 3750 Ma Dividing Sedimentary Unit. The boundary between the two groups is a mylonite formed between 3685 and 3660 Ma. Despite the generally high strain, amphibolite facies metamorphism and layer-parallel dislocations that can thin or altogether excise some units, domains of lower deformation comprising ≪1% (qualitative assessment) of the Outer Arc Group contain relict sedimentary and igneous structures. Combined with zircon U-Pb geochronology and whole rock geochemistry, this enables the Outer Arc Group lithological sequence and geodynamic setting to be reconstructed. The lower part of the Outer Arc Group is dominated by metabasaltic amphibolites of the Mafic Volcanic formation in which rarely-preserved pillow structures indicate both their predominantly subaqueous eruption and also their stratigraphic facing. They erupted >3800 Ma, because they were first intruded by subconcordant sheets of fine-grained hypabyssal tonalite dated at 3803±3 Ma (Crowley, 2003) and then by coarser-grained 3795 to 3791 Ma tonalite-granodiorite, which forms a large deformed pluton along the south side of the ISB. This formation is succeeded by the Sedimentary formation whose base consists of discontinuous rare, thin fuchsitic quartzites with 3890 to 3805 Ma detrital zircons. Overlying is a diverse package of dolostones, marls and siliceous rocks. Although they are extensively modified by metamorphism and metasomatism, producing widespread growth of talc or tremolite, relict graded sedimentary layering, chemical and isotopic signatures indicate originally sedimentary protoliths. Detrital zircons in these rocks range in age from ca. 3820 to 3805 Ma. This unit shows an upwards transition from ‘pure' chemical sedimentary rocks with distinct seawater-like trace element signatures into lithologies increasingly contaminated by felsic material that is locally preserved as graded layers, which are interpreted as an increasing volcanogenic input. Succeeding the sedimentary rocks is the Felsic Volcanic formation, an extensive unit of mostly schistose 3807 to 3802 Ma felsic potassic-altered rocks with carbonate-rich interludes and veins. Locally-preserved andesitic units with graded layering, massive vesicular lavas, polymict breccias, resorbed quartz phenocrysts and fiammé, attest to volcanic and volcano-sedimentary protoliths. Whole rock geochemistry and oxygen isotope analyses on these rocks and their zircons indicate predominantly felsic volcanic protoliths that experienced massive alteration in a surficial environment, probably following subaerial eruption. Massive volcanic rocks are commonest in th","PeriodicalId":7660,"journal":{"name":"American Journal of Science","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":2.9,"publicationDate":"2021-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"43971817","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"地球科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Orogens that form at convergent plate boundaries typically consist of accreted rock units that form an incomplete archive of subducted oceanic and continental lithosphere, as well as of deformed lithosphere of the former upper plate. Reading the construction of orogenic architecture forms the key to decipher the pre-orogenic paleogeographic distribution of oceans and continents, as well as bathymetric and topographic features that existed thereon such as igneous plateaus, seamounts, microcontinents, or magmatic arcs. Current classification schemes of orogens divide between settings associated with termination of subduction [continent-continent collision, continent-ocean collision (obduction)] and with ongoing subduction (accretionary orogenesis), alongside intraplate orogens. Perceived diagnostic features for such classifications, particularly of collisional orogenesis, hinge on dynamic interpretations linking downgoing plate paleogeography to upper plate deformation, plate motion changes, or magmatism. Here, we show, however, that Mesozoic-Cenozoic orogens that undergo collision almost all defy these proposed diagnostic features and behave as accretionary orogens instead. To reconstruct paleogeography of subducted and upper plates, we therefore propose an alternative approach to navigating through orogenic architecture: subducted plate units comprise nappes (or mélanges) with Ocean Plate Stratigraphy (OPS) and Continental Plate Stratigraphy (CPS) stripped from their now-subducted or otherwise underthrust lower crustal and mantle lithospheric underpinnings. Upper plate deformation and paleogeography respond to the competition between absolute motions of the upper plate and the subducting slab. Our navigation approach through orogenic architecture aims to avoid a priori dynamic interpretations that link downgoing plate paleogeography to deformation or magmatic responses in the upper plate, to provide an independent basis for geodynamic analysis. From our analysis we identify ‘rules of orogenesis' that link the rules of rigid plate tectonics with the reality of plate deformation. We use these rules for a thought experiment, in which we predict orogenic architecture that will result from subducting the present-day Indian Ocean and colliding the Somali, Madagascar, and Indian margins using a published continental drift scenario for a future supercontinent as basis. We illustrate that our inferred rules (of thumb) generate orogenic architecture that is analogous to elements of modern orogens, unlocking the well-known modern geography as inspiration for developing testable hypotheses that aid interpreting paleogeography from orogens that formed since the birth of plate tectonics.
{"title":"Deciphering paleogeography from orogenic architecture: Constructing orogens in a future supercontinent as thought experiment","authors":"Douwe J. J. van Hinsbergen,Thomas L. A. Schouten","doi":"10.2475/06.2021.09","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.2475/06.2021.09","url":null,"abstract":"Orogens that form at convergent plate boundaries typically consist of accreted rock units that form an incomplete archive of subducted oceanic and continental lithosphere, as well as of deformed lithosphere of the former upper plate. Reading the construction of orogenic architecture forms the key to decipher the pre-orogenic paleogeographic distribution of oceans and continents, as well as bathymetric and topographic features that existed thereon such as igneous plateaus, seamounts, microcontinents, or magmatic arcs. Current classification schemes of orogens divide between settings associated with termination of subduction [continent-continent collision, continent-ocean collision (obduction)] and with ongoing subduction (accretionary orogenesis), alongside intraplate orogens. Perceived diagnostic features for such classifications, particularly of collisional orogenesis, hinge on dynamic interpretations linking downgoing plate paleogeography to upper plate deformation, plate motion changes, or magmatism. Here, we show, however, that Mesozoic-Cenozoic orogens that undergo collision almost all defy these proposed diagnostic features and behave as accretionary orogens instead. To reconstruct paleogeography of subducted and upper plates, we therefore propose an alternative approach to navigating through orogenic architecture: subducted plate units comprise nappes (or mélanges) with Ocean Plate Stratigraphy (OPS) and Continental Plate Stratigraphy (CPS) stripped from their now-subducted or otherwise underthrust lower crustal and mantle lithospheric underpinnings. Upper plate deformation and paleogeography respond to the competition between absolute motions of the upper plate and the subducting slab. Our navigation approach through orogenic architecture aims to avoid a priori dynamic interpretations that link downgoing plate paleogeography to deformation or magmatic responses in the upper plate, to provide an independent basis for geodynamic analysis. From our analysis we identify ‘rules of orogenesis' that link the rules of rigid plate tectonics with the reality of plate deformation. We use these rules for a thought experiment, in which we predict orogenic architecture that will result from subducting the present-day Indian Ocean and colliding the Somali, Madagascar, and Indian margins using a published continental drift scenario for a future supercontinent as basis. We illustrate that our inferred rules (of thumb) generate orogenic architecture that is analogous to elements of modern orogens, unlocking the well-known modern geography as inspiration for developing testable hypotheses that aid interpreting paleogeography from orogens that formed since the birth of plate tectonics.","PeriodicalId":7660,"journal":{"name":"American Journal of Science","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":2.9,"publicationDate":"2021-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"138504451","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"地球科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
X. Wang, Jian Zhang, C. Yin, Hai Zhou, Jin Liu, Wenxia Zhang, Shuhui Zhang, Chen Zhao, Changquan Cheng
As one of the 2.1 to 1.9 Ga orogenic belts that welded the Columbia supercontinent, the Khondalite Belt in the North China Craton is a typical continent-continent collisional orogen that formed through the collision between the Yinshan and Ordos Blocks. Previous studies mostly focused on the collisional event in the Khondalite Belt but paid little attention to how the subduction system operated before the final closure of the ocean. To address this issue, we identified a series of interlayered meta-mafic and felsic rock assemblages in the Daqingshan Complex and implemented geochemical and geochronological analyses. Petrological and geochemical studies revealed that these rocks are bimodal and include plagioclase amphibolite (Group 1) and biotite plagiogneiss (Group 2). Geochemically, Group 1 samples show tholeiitic affinity, whereas Group 2 samples belong to the high-K calc-alkaline series. Geochemical data indicate that the protolith magma of Group 1 was most likely derived from the partial melting of lithospheric mantle with minor crustal contamination, whereas Group 2 rocks represent highly differentiated magma derived from the partial melting of ancient crustal materials. All the samples show depletion of HFSEs and enrichment of LILEs, indicative of a subduction-related magmatic arc environment. Zircon U-Pb dating results show that the protoliths of Group 1 samples yield crystallization ages of ∼2.47 Ga and metamorphic ages of 1.95 to 1.85 Ga, whereas the protoliths of Group 2 samples yield crystallization ages of ∼2.40 Ga and metamorphic ages of ∼1.85 Ga. Our new results and available geochemical, petrological, and isotopic data demonstrate that the bimodal volcanic sequence of the Daqingshan Complex was developed in a 2.47 to 2.40 Ga back-arc system along the southern margin of Yinshan Block. Subsequent collision between the Ordos and Yinshan Blocks resulted in the formation of the Khondalite Belt and final amalgamation of the Western Block between 1.95 and 1.85 Ga.
{"title":"An Early Paleoproterozoic back-arc system along the southern margin of the Yinshan Block: Evidence from a newly-defined bimodal volcanic sequence in the Daqingshan Complex, Khondalite Belt","authors":"X. Wang, Jian Zhang, C. Yin, Hai Zhou, Jin Liu, Wenxia Zhang, Shuhui Zhang, Chen Zhao, Changquan Cheng","doi":"10.2475/06.2021.03","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.2475/06.2021.03","url":null,"abstract":"As one of the 2.1 to 1.9 Ga orogenic belts that welded the Columbia supercontinent, the Khondalite Belt in the North China Craton is a typical continent-continent collisional orogen that formed through the collision between the Yinshan and Ordos Blocks. Previous studies mostly focused on the collisional event in the Khondalite Belt but paid little attention to how the subduction system operated before the final closure of the ocean. To address this issue, we identified a series of interlayered meta-mafic and felsic rock assemblages in the Daqingshan Complex and implemented geochemical and geochronological analyses. Petrological and geochemical studies revealed that these rocks are bimodal and include plagioclase amphibolite (Group 1) and biotite plagiogneiss (Group 2). Geochemically, Group 1 samples show tholeiitic affinity, whereas Group 2 samples belong to the high-K calc-alkaline series. Geochemical data indicate that the protolith magma of Group 1 was most likely derived from the partial melting of lithospheric mantle with minor crustal contamination, whereas Group 2 rocks represent highly differentiated magma derived from the partial melting of ancient crustal materials. All the samples show depletion of HFSEs and enrichment of LILEs, indicative of a subduction-related magmatic arc environment. Zircon U-Pb dating results show that the protoliths of Group 1 samples yield crystallization ages of ∼2.47 Ga and metamorphic ages of 1.95 to 1.85 Ga, whereas the protoliths of Group 2 samples yield crystallization ages of ∼2.40 Ga and metamorphic ages of ∼1.85 Ga. Our new results and available geochemical, petrological, and isotopic data demonstrate that the bimodal volcanic sequence of the Daqingshan Complex was developed in a 2.47 to 2.40 Ga back-arc system along the southern margin of Yinshan Block. Subsequent collision between the Ordos and Yinshan Blocks resulted in the formation of the Khondalite Belt and final amalgamation of the Western Block between 1.95 and 1.85 Ga.","PeriodicalId":7660,"journal":{"name":"American Journal of Science","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":2.9,"publicationDate":"2021-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"47874058","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"地球科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
K. Seelos, Y. Rojas‐Agramonte, A. Kröner, T. Toulkeridis, Gillian Inderwies, Yvonne Buelow
The Galápagos Archipelago is the surface expression of an active hotspot or long-lived mantle plume. The Archipelago consists of a group of 13 main islands which are located in the eastern central Pacific Ocean about 1,000 km west of the northern edge of the South American continent, east of the East Pacific Rise and south of the Galápagos spreading center. Because of the large distance to the nearest continental land mass, Galapagos can be seen as an almost isolated sedimentary system. A provenance study conducted on samples collected from seventeen beaches on eleven islands, demonstrates that mineral grains and particles were derived from weathering of predominantly basaltic rocks and were transported within the islands, between the islands or inside the coastal area around the Archipelago. The exclusion of external sources allows advanced studies about erosion processes, transport pathways of particles and the accumulation of autochthonous sediments. The combined usage of optical particle size and shape analysis with RAMAN spectroscopy allows a successful spatial delimitation of host rocks and a reconstruction of transport pathways. The analyzed samples can be subdivided into three groups: 1) Type-A sediments: fine-grained and sampled on beaches of the oldest islands in the eastern part of Galápagos. The composition of volcanic minerals corresponds to the alkaline character of the basaltic source rocks. 2) Type-B: well sorted sediments characterized by medium-grained olivine, pyroxene, plagioclase and even a small amount of quartz grains. The islands of this group are located in the central region of the Archipelago. 3) Type-C samples: olivine and pyroxene are the predominant volcanic minerals. These samples indicate bimodal, coarse-grained size distributions and large proportions of pumice and are found in Floreana in the south and the youngest islands Isabela and Fernandina in the west of Galápagos.
{"title":"Composition and provenance analysis of beach sands in an almost isolated sedimentary system – A field study of the Galápagos Archipelago","authors":"K. Seelos, Y. Rojas‐Agramonte, A. Kröner, T. Toulkeridis, Gillian Inderwies, Yvonne Buelow","doi":"10.2475/05.2021.04","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.2475/05.2021.04","url":null,"abstract":"The Galápagos Archipelago is the surface expression of an active hotspot or long-lived mantle plume. The Archipelago consists of a group of 13 main islands which are located in the eastern central Pacific Ocean about 1,000 km west of the northern edge of the South American continent, east of the East Pacific Rise and south of the Galápagos spreading center. Because of the large distance to the nearest continental land mass, Galapagos can be seen as an almost isolated sedimentary system. A provenance study conducted on samples collected from seventeen beaches on eleven islands, demonstrates that mineral grains and particles were derived from weathering of predominantly basaltic rocks and were transported within the islands, between the islands or inside the coastal area around the Archipelago. The exclusion of external sources allows advanced studies about erosion processes, transport pathways of particles and the accumulation of autochthonous sediments. The combined usage of optical particle size and shape analysis with RAMAN spectroscopy allows a successful spatial delimitation of host rocks and a reconstruction of transport pathways. The analyzed samples can be subdivided into three groups: 1) Type-A sediments: fine-grained and sampled on beaches of the oldest islands in the eastern part of Galápagos. The composition of volcanic minerals corresponds to the alkaline character of the basaltic source rocks. 2) Type-B: well sorted sediments characterized by medium-grained olivine, pyroxene, plagioclase and even a small amount of quartz grains. The islands of this group are located in the central region of the Archipelago. 3) Type-C samples: olivine and pyroxene are the predominant volcanic minerals. These samples indicate bimodal, coarse-grained size distributions and large proportions of pumice and are found in Floreana in the south and the youngest islands Isabela and Fernandina in the west of Galápagos.","PeriodicalId":7660,"journal":{"name":"American Journal of Science","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":2.9,"publicationDate":"2021-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"45039372","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"地球科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
L. Boschman, D. Hinsbergen, C. Langereis, K. Flores, P. Kamp, D. Kimbrough, H. Ueda, S. H. Lagemaat, Erik van der Wiel, W. Spakman
The Panthalassa Ocean, which surrounded the late Paleozoic-early Mesozoic Pangea supercontinent, was underlain by multiple tectonic plates that have since been lost to subduction. In this study, we develop an approach to reconstruct plate motions of this subducted lithosphere utilizing paleomagnetic data from accreted Ocean Plate Stratigraphy (OPS). We first establish the boundaries of the Panthalassa domain by using available Indo-Atlantic plate reconstructions and restorations of complex plate boundary deformation at circum-Panthalassa trenches. We reconstruct the Pacific Plate and its conjugates, the Farallon, Phoenix, and Izanagi plates, back to 190 Ma using marine magnetic anomaly records of the modern Pacific. Then, we present new and review published paleomagnetic data from OPS exposed in the accretionary complexes of Cedros Island (Mexico), the Santa Elena Peninsula (Costa Rica), the North Island of New Zealand, and Japan. These data provide paleolatitudinal plate motion components of the Farallon, Phoenix and Izanagi plates, and constrain the trajectories of these plates from their spreading ridges towards the trenches in which they subducted. For 83 to 150 Ma, we use two independent mantle frames to connect the Panthalassa plate system to the Indo-Atlantic plate system and test the feasibility of this approach with the paleomagnetic data. For times prior to 150 Ma, and as far back as Permian time, we reconstruct relative and absolute Panthalassa plate motions such that divergence is maintained between the Izanagi, Farallon and Phoenix plates, convergence is maintained with Pangean continental margins in Japan, Mexico and New Zealand, and paleomagnetic constraints are met. The reconstruction approach developed here enables data-based reconstruction of oceanic plates and plate boundaries in the absence of marine magnetic anomaly data or mantle reference frames, using Ocean Plate Stratigraphy, paleo-magnetism, and constraints on the nature of circum-oceanic plate boundaries. Such an approach is a crucial next step towards quantitative reconstruction of the currently largely unknown tectonic evolution of the Earth's oceanic domains in deep geological time.
{"title":"Reconstructing lost plates of the panthalassa ocean through Paleomagnetic data from circum-pacific accretionary orogens","authors":"L. Boschman, D. Hinsbergen, C. Langereis, K. Flores, P. Kamp, D. Kimbrough, H. Ueda, S. H. Lagemaat, Erik van der Wiel, W. Spakman","doi":"10.2475/06.2021.08","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.2475/06.2021.08","url":null,"abstract":"The Panthalassa Ocean, which surrounded the late Paleozoic-early Mesozoic Pangea supercontinent, was underlain by multiple tectonic plates that have since been lost to subduction. In this study, we develop an approach to reconstruct plate motions of this subducted lithosphere utilizing paleomagnetic data from accreted Ocean Plate Stratigraphy (OPS). We first establish the boundaries of the Panthalassa domain by using available Indo-Atlantic plate reconstructions and restorations of complex plate boundary deformation at circum-Panthalassa trenches. We reconstruct the Pacific Plate and its conjugates, the Farallon, Phoenix, and Izanagi plates, back to 190 Ma using marine magnetic anomaly records of the modern Pacific. Then, we present new and review published paleomagnetic data from OPS exposed in the accretionary complexes of Cedros Island (Mexico), the Santa Elena Peninsula (Costa Rica), the North Island of New Zealand, and Japan. These data provide paleolatitudinal plate motion components of the Farallon, Phoenix and Izanagi plates, and constrain the trajectories of these plates from their spreading ridges towards the trenches in which they subducted. For 83 to 150 Ma, we use two independent mantle frames to connect the Panthalassa plate system to the Indo-Atlantic plate system and test the feasibility of this approach with the paleomagnetic data. For times prior to 150 Ma, and as far back as Permian time, we reconstruct relative and absolute Panthalassa plate motions such that divergence is maintained between the Izanagi, Farallon and Phoenix plates, convergence is maintained with Pangean continental margins in Japan, Mexico and New Zealand, and paleomagnetic constraints are met. The reconstruction approach developed here enables data-based reconstruction of oceanic plates and plate boundaries in the absence of marine magnetic anomaly data or mantle reference frames, using Ocean Plate Stratigraphy, paleo-magnetism, and constraints on the nature of circum-oceanic plate boundaries. Such an approach is a crucial next step towards quantitative reconstruction of the currently largely unknown tectonic evolution of the Earth's oceanic domains in deep geological time.","PeriodicalId":7660,"journal":{"name":"American Journal of Science","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":2.9,"publicationDate":"2021-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"48780446","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"地球科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
X. Wang, Jian Zhang, C. Yin, Hai Zhou, Jin Liu, Xiaoguang Liu, Chen Zhao
Located in the Western Block of the North China Craton, the Khondalite Belt is one of the three Paleoproterozoic tectonic belts that were linked to the final assembly of the craton. At present, a popular model is that the Khondalite Belt was formed by the collision between the Yinshan and Ordos blocks at ∼1.95 Ga. However, the initiation of oceanic subduction and its related arc magmatism and accretionary process before the collisional event were poorly constrained. The Daqingshan Complex is located in the middle East part of the Khondalite Belt, and contains highly deformed and metamorphosed rock assemblages, and thus represents a key area to decipher the above issue. In this study, we carried out petrological, geochemical and geochronological analysis on the TTG granitoids of the Daqingshan Complex. Zircon U-Pb results from three typical TTG samples yielded upper intercept ages of 2545 ± 50 Ma, 2484 ± 68 Ma and 2452 ± 32 Ma, indicating that the TTG granitoids were emplaced in the late Neoarchean. Metamorphic zircons from two samples gave 207Pb/206Pb weighted mean ages of 1892 ± 53 Ma and 1906 ± 27 Ma, respectively, recording the timing of a continent-to-continent collisional event. Thirteen TTG granitoid samples are geochemically low-, medium- and high-K calc-alkaline, with metaluminous to peraluminous trends and are enriched in large-ion lithophile elements (LILEs) such as Rb, Ba, La, Ce, Nd, and depleted in high field strength elements (HFSEs) such as Nb and Ta. Chondrite-normalized rare earth element (REE) patterns show fractionation with (La/Yb) N ratios ranging from 8.20 to 27.47, with weak Eu negative anomalies (δEu = 0.50 – 0.98). In addition, TTG granitoids of the Daqingshan Complex belong to I-type granitoids, and their igneous protoliths were intimately related to a subduction-related magmatic arc environment. New results of this study reveal that the initial oceanic lithosphere subduction operated since ∼2.55 Ga along the southern margin of the Yinshan Block, and generated the coeval arc-related TTG granitoids. Closure of the ocean led to the final collision between the Yinshan and Ordos blocks and the amalgamation of the Western Block at 1.95 to 1.85 Ga.
{"title":"Petrogenesis and tectonic implications of TTG granitoids from the Daqingshan Complex of the Khondalite Belt, North China Craton","authors":"X. Wang, Jian Zhang, C. Yin, Hai Zhou, Jin Liu, Xiaoguang Liu, Chen Zhao","doi":"10.2475/06.2021.02","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.2475/06.2021.02","url":null,"abstract":"Located in the Western Block of the North China Craton, the Khondalite Belt is one of the three Paleoproterozoic tectonic belts that were linked to the final assembly of the craton. At present, a popular model is that the Khondalite Belt was formed by the collision between the Yinshan and Ordos blocks at ∼1.95 Ga. However, the initiation of oceanic subduction and its related arc magmatism and accretionary process before the collisional event were poorly constrained. The Daqingshan Complex is located in the middle East part of the Khondalite Belt, and contains highly deformed and metamorphosed rock assemblages, and thus represents a key area to decipher the above issue. In this study, we carried out petrological, geochemical and geochronological analysis on the TTG granitoids of the Daqingshan Complex. Zircon U-Pb results from three typical TTG samples yielded upper intercept ages of 2545 ± 50 Ma, 2484 ± 68 Ma and 2452 ± 32 Ma, indicating that the TTG granitoids were emplaced in the late Neoarchean. Metamorphic zircons from two samples gave 207Pb/206Pb weighted mean ages of 1892 ± 53 Ma and 1906 ± 27 Ma, respectively, recording the timing of a continent-to-continent collisional event. Thirteen TTG granitoid samples are geochemically low-, medium- and high-K calc-alkaline, with metaluminous to peraluminous trends and are enriched in large-ion lithophile elements (LILEs) such as Rb, Ba, La, Ce, Nd, and depleted in high field strength elements (HFSEs) such as Nb and Ta. Chondrite-normalized rare earth element (REE) patterns show fractionation with (La/Yb) N ratios ranging from 8.20 to 27.47, with weak Eu negative anomalies (δEu = 0.50 – 0.98). In addition, TTG granitoids of the Daqingshan Complex belong to I-type granitoids, and their igneous protoliths were intimately related to a subduction-related magmatic arc environment. New results of this study reveal that the initial oceanic lithosphere subduction operated since ∼2.55 Ga along the southern margin of the Yinshan Block, and generated the coeval arc-related TTG granitoids. Closure of the ocean led to the final collision between the Yinshan and Ordos blocks and the amalgamation of the Western Block at 1.95 to 1.85 Ga.","PeriodicalId":7660,"journal":{"name":"American Journal of Science","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":2.9,"publicationDate":"2021-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"42218917","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"地球科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
H. Robertson, Fiona Whitaker, Cathy Hollis, H. Corlett
{"title":"SOLUBILITY PRODUCT CONSTANTS FOR NATURAL DOLOMITE (0-200°C) THROUGH A GROUNDWATER-BASED APPROACH USING THE USGS PRODUCED WATER DATABASE – PART A","authors":"H. Robertson, Fiona Whitaker, Cathy Hollis, H. Corlett","doi":"10.31223/x5ps42","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.31223/x5ps42","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":7660,"journal":{"name":"American Journal of Science","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":2.9,"publicationDate":"2021-05-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"69638375","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"地球科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Sebastian Jimenez-Rodriguez, M. Dettinger, J. Quade, Kendra E. Murray
Establishing the timing of surface uplift in the Central Andes is essential for evaluating the geodynamic mechanisms responsible for mountain building and their role in the development of dry conditions along the western coasts of Peru and Chile. Here, we present new stable hydrogen isotopic values from stream waters and hydration water in volcanic glass from northern Chile (18.5–19.5°S) that show that the Western Cordillera was already elevated by the early Miocene. The hydrogen isotopic values of reconstructed surface waters obtained from ancient and modern volcanic glass indicate that the Western Cordillera in northern Chile attained modern elevations by at least 22.8 Ma. When combined with paleoaltimetric records from the Altiplano and northwestern Puna, these results demonstrate that surface uplift of the Andean plateau was a time-transgressive process that varied not just from west to east but also from north and south along the strike of the orogen. Our paleoaltimetry reconstruction also suggests that the Western Cordillera has blocked moisture coming from the east since at least the early Miocene, consistent with previously published evidence of arid-semiarid conditions in the Atacama Desert. However, hyperaridity on the western Andean slope developed later and appears to correspond with the timing of uplift in the Eastern Cordillera and Altiplano. Our results suggest that the growth of the Central Andean rain shadow relied not only on the elevation of the Western Cordillera but also on the widening of the plateau.
{"title":"Paleoaltimetry of the Western Andes in Northern Chile (∼18.5–19.5°S)","authors":"Sebastian Jimenez-Rodriguez, M. Dettinger, J. Quade, Kendra E. Murray","doi":"10.2475/05.2021.01","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.2475/05.2021.01","url":null,"abstract":"Establishing the timing of surface uplift in the Central Andes is essential for evaluating the geodynamic mechanisms responsible for mountain building and their role in the development of dry conditions along the western coasts of Peru and Chile. Here, we present new stable hydrogen isotopic values from stream waters and hydration water in volcanic glass from northern Chile (18.5–19.5°S) that show that the Western Cordillera was already elevated by the early Miocene. The hydrogen isotopic values of reconstructed surface waters obtained from ancient and modern volcanic glass indicate that the Western Cordillera in northern Chile attained modern elevations by at least 22.8 Ma. When combined with paleoaltimetric records from the Altiplano and northwestern Puna, these results demonstrate that surface uplift of the Andean plateau was a time-transgressive process that varied not just from west to east but also from north and south along the strike of the orogen. Our paleoaltimetry reconstruction also suggests that the Western Cordillera has blocked moisture coming from the east since at least the early Miocene, consistent with previously published evidence of arid-semiarid conditions in the Atacama Desert. However, hyperaridity on the western Andean slope developed later and appears to correspond with the timing of uplift in the Eastern Cordillera and Altiplano. Our results suggest that the growth of the Central Andean rain shadow relied not only on the elevation of the Western Cordillera but also on the widening of the plateau.","PeriodicalId":7660,"journal":{"name":"American Journal of Science","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":2.9,"publicationDate":"2021-05-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"42959206","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"地球科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
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