Dirk Frei

Basin formation near the end of the 1.60–1.45 Ga tectonic gap in southern Laurentia: Mesoproterozoic Hess Canyon Group of Arizona and implications for ca. 1.5 Ga supercontinent configurations

Detrital zircon data from the upper parts of the Proterozoic Hess Canyon Group of southern Arizona reveal abundant 1600–1488 Ma detrital zircons, which represent ages essentially unknown from southern Laurentia. This basinal succession concordantly overlies a >2-km-thick-section of 1657 ± 3 Ma rhyolite of the Redmond Formation. The rhyolite is intercalated with and hence contemporaneous with the lower parts of the overlying White Ledges Formation, a 300-m-thick orthoquartzite unit at the base of the Hess Canyon Group. These quartzites contain a unimodal detrital zircon age probability distribution with peak ages of 1778, 1767, and 1726 Ma, supporting regional correlation with other ca. 1.65 Ga quartzite exposures in southwestern Laurentia. However, the ∼900-m-thick argillaceous Yankee Joe and minimum 600-m-thick quartzite-rich Blackjack Formations contain younger detrital zircons, with peak ages ranging from 1666 to 1494 Ma and a maximum depositional age of 1488 ± 9 Ma. Prominent age peaks at 1582–1515 Ma and 1499–1488 Ma represent detritus that is exotic and not derived from known southern Laurentian sources. The Blackjack Formation is cut by the 1436 ± 2 Ma Ruin Granite, indicating that deposition, deformation, and intrusion occurred between 1488 and 1436 Ma. This basin likely developed before or in the early stages of the 1.45–1.35 Ga intracontinental tectonism in southwestern Laurentia. Our findings necessitate the presence of an ∼170 m.y. disconformity within the Hess Canyon Group and document a previously unrecognized episode of Mesoproterozoic basin sedimentation (>1.5 km of section) between 1488 and 1436 Ma in southern Laurentia. This new record helps to fill the 1.60–1.45 Ga magmatic gap in southern Laurentia and supports hypotheses for a long-lived Proterozoic tectonic margin along southern Laurentia from 1.8 to 1.0 Ga. The 1.6–1.5 Ga detrital zircon ages offer important new constraints for ca. 1.5 Ga Nuna reconstructions and for the paleogeography of contemporaneous basins such as the Belt Basin in western Laurentia.

Palaeocene–early Eocene inversion of the Phuquoc–Kampot Som Basin: SE Asian deformation associated with the suturing of Luconia

Abstract: The little explored Cambodian and Vietnamese Phuquoc–Kampot Som Basin is a Late Jurassic to Early Cretaceous foreland basin developed in response to the build-up of a palaeo-Pacific magmatic arc. A combination of seismic data, well data and outcrop geology complemented by fission track and U/Pb analysis is used to unravel the basin history. This reveals a hitherto unknown earliest Palaeogene basin inversion associated with the Luconian suturing to SE Asia and the shutdown of palaeo-Pacific subduction underneath SE Asia. The Phuquoc–Kampot Som Basin and the Khorat Basin in Thailand constitute the erosional remnants of a larger basin that covered large parts of SE Asia in Late Mesozoic time, and subsequently became segregated during earliest Palaeogene inversion and erosion. Inversion was focused along the several hundred kilometres long Kampot and Khmer–Chanthaburi fold belts that confine the Phuquoc–Kampot Som Basin and merge with the Mae Ping and the Three Pagodas fault zones. These connections, together with local NW–SE-trending sinistral transpressional faults offshore, indicate a link between initial SE Asian left-lateral strike-slip faulting and the Luconian suturing. The separation between the once unbroken Khmer–Chanthaburi Fold Belt and the Phetchabun Fold Belt in Thailand suggests a 50–100 km Cenozoic left-lateral offset across the Mae Ping Fault Zone.

Detrital zircon U–Pb ages of Silurian–Devonian sediments from NW Svalbard: a fragment of Avalonia and Laurentia?

Abstract: Detrital zircon populations from Silurian–Devonian clastic rocks of NW Svalbard were analysed by U–Pb laser ablation inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry to investigate the pre-Caledonian provenance of Svalbards Northwestern Terrane. Changes in the resulting age spectra suggest a major shift in sources from the Laurentian–Avalonian suture in the latest Silurian to the local metasedimentary basement of the Northwestern Terrane in the Late Silurian–Early Devonian, and in the Lochkovian to Grenvillian–Sveconorwegian sources. These data, together with structural, additional geochronological and metamorphic data from Svalbard, East Greenland and Avalonia, support the amalgamation of Svalbard as the result of long-distance transport along sinistral strike-slip faults. A unifying model for the final amalgamation of Svalbard, consistent with the stratigraphical and tectonothermal history of Svalbard, involves fragments from the Grampian orogen and Avalonian crust originally accreted to the Laurentian margin being subsequently transported northward along sinistral strike-slip faults during Scandian deformation. Supplementary material: The sample preparation procedures, laser ablation ICP-MS analytical methods, and data table are available at http://www.geolsoc.org.uk/SUP18421.

The Baltoscandian margin detrital zircon signatures of the central Scandes

Abstract In central parts of the Scandinavian Caledonides, detrital zircon signatures provide evidence of the change in character of the Baltoscandian crystalline basement, from the characteristic Late Palaeoproterozoic granites of the Transscandinavian Igneous Belt (TIB, c. 1650–1850 Ma) in the foreland Autochthon to the typical, mainly Mesoproterozoic-age profile (c. 950–1700 Ma) of the Sveconorwegian Orogen of southwestern Scandinavia in the hinterland. Late Ediacaran to Early Cambrian shallow-marine Vemdal quartzites of the Jämtlandian Nappes (Lower Allochthon) provide strong bimodal signatures with TIB (1700–1800 Ma) and Sveconorwegian, sensu stricto (900–1150 Ma) ages dominant. Mid-Ordovician turbidites (Norråker Formation) of the Lower Allochthon in Sweden, sourced from the west, have unimodal signatures dominated by Sveconorwegian ages with peaks at 1000–1100 Ma, but with subordinate components of older Mesoproterozoic zircons (1200–1650 Ma). Latest Ordovician shallow-marine quartzites also yield bimodal signatures, but are more dispersed than in the Vemdal quartzites. In the greenschist facies lower parts of the Middle Allochthon, the Fuda (Offerdal Nappe) and Särv Nappe signatures are either unimodal or bimodal (950–1100 and/or 1700–1850 Ma), with variable dominance of the younger or older group, and subordinate other Mesoproterozoic components. In the overlying, amphibolite to eclogite facies lower part of the Seve Nappe Complex, where the metasediments are dominated by feldspathic quartzites, calcsilicate-rich psammites and marbles, most units have bimodal signatures similar to the Särv Nappes, but more dispersed; one has a unimodal signature very similar to the Ordovician turbidites of the Jämtlandian Nappes. In the overlying Upper Allochthon, Lower Köli (Baltica-proximal, Virisen Terrane), Late Ordovician quartzites provide unimodal signatures dominated by Sveconorwegian ages (sensu stricto). Further north in the Scandes, previously published zircon signatures in quartzites of the Lower Allochthon are similar to the Vemdal quartzites in Jämtland. Data from the Kalak Nappes at 70°N are in no way exotic to the Sveconorwegian Baltoscandian margin. They do show a Timanian influence (ages of c. 560–610 Ma), as would be expected from the palinspastic reconstructions of the nappes. Thus the detrital zircon signatures reported here and published elsewhere provide supporting evidence for a continuation northwards of the Sveconorwegian Orogen in the Neoproterozoic, from type areas in the south, along the Baltoscandian margin of Baltica into the high Arctic. Supplementary material: LA-ICP-MS U–Pb analyses are available at http://www.geolsoc.org.uk/SUP18699.

Origin of fluorapatite-monazite assemblages in a metamorphosed, sillimanite- bearing pegmatoid, Reinbolt Hills, East Antarctica

Thermobarometrical and mineral-chemical investigations by electron microprobe and LA-ICP-MS on a sillimanite-bearing pegmatoid from the Reinbolt Hills provide important constraints on the P-T-X-age relations of part of East Antarctica during Pan-African tectonism. U-Th-total Pb ages of monazite imply that the pegmatoid of originally Grenvillan age (zircon U-Pb age of ca. 900 Ma) underwent a major, late Pan-African (Cambrian) regional, granulite-facies metamorphism between 500 and 550 Ma. Most of the monazite formed during this event, as result of apatite metasomatism owing to infiltration of high-grade metamorphic fluids. Apatite-biotite and other mineral thermobarometers define the peak metamorphic temperatures and pressures with 850–950 °C and 0.8–1.0 GPa. The F-C1-OH relations in apatite and biotite, the chemistry of fluid inclusions and the presence of K-feldspar microveins suggest that the metasomatising fluid was a CO2-bearing, diluted KCI brine. The pegmatoid is the first record of monazite-(Ce) formed from fluorapatite that is rich in U (up to 2.6 wt% UO2) and possesses Th/U ratios < 1 (0.09 on average). These chemical signatures are direct reflection of the U and Th concentration patterns in the parental fluorapatite.

Paleo- to Mesoarchean polymetamorphism in the Barberton Granite-Greenstone Belt, South Africa: Constraints from U-Pb monazite and Lu-Hf garnet geochronology on the tectonic processes that shaped the belt

The Barberton Granite-Greenstone Belt (BGGB) of South Africa is an exceptionally well preserved Meso-Paleoarchean metamorphic supracrustal belt, one of only a few in the world. Studies of metamorphism in the BGGB have considerable potential to advance our understanding of tectonic processes in the Archean crust. Two current hypotheses persist to explain the origin of amphibolite-facies metamorphism in the southern BGGB. The first interprets these rocks to be the consequence of accretionary tectonics, while the second proposes a “dome-and-keel” vertical tectonic process driven by sinking of greenstone layers and the doming of the underlying granitoid crust. In this study, metamorphic pressure-temperature ( P-T ) analysis has been combined with garnet Lu-Hf and monazite U-Pb geochronology to directly date the amphibolite-facies metamorphism within the Stolzburg terrane of the BGGB. A garnet-biotite-chlorite–bearing sample yields a Lu-Hf garnet age of 3233 ± 17 Ma and a garnet-staurolite-kyanite–bearing sample produces a U-Pb monazite age of 3191 ± 9 Ma, whereas an andalusite-kyanite–bearing sample produces a U-Pb monazite age of 3436 ± 18 Ma. Phase diagrams and garnet compositional modeling produce a clockwise P-T evolution, with rocks reaching peak P-T conditions of 8.5 kbar and 640 °C for the ca. 3200 Ma event and minimum peak P-T conditions of ∼4.5 kbar and 550 °C for the ca. 3435 Ma event. The duration of metamorphism for the ca. 3200 Ma event is estimated to be ∼50–20 m.y. based on differences in age between U-Pb and Lu-Hf systems and durations needed to fit models of diffusionally modified garnet chemical zoning. Similarly shaped P-T paths over the Stolzburg terrane indicate that the metamorphism occurred in response to crustal thickening due to an accretionary tectonic process. Thus, the Stolzburg terrane constitutes an orogenic core, exhumed along the Komati fault.

Heavy-mineral, mineral-chemical and zircon-age constraints on the provenance of Triassic sandstones from the Devon coast, southern Britain

Abstract An integrated heavy-mineral, mineral-chemical and zircon-dating study of the Triassic succession exposed on the south Devon coast, in the western part of the Wessex Basin, indicates derivation from a combination of granitic and metasedimentary lithologies of ages of mostly over 550 Ma. These sources were probably located at a relatively proximal location near the southern margin of the basin. Derivation from more distal sources in the Armorican Massif or local Variscan sources to the west appears unlikely in view of the scarcity of Permo-Carboniferous (Variscan-age) zircons. The Budleigh Salterton Pebble Bed Formation was derived from a different combination of source lithologies than the Otter Sandstone Formation, the former including staurolite-grade metasediments that were absent in the catchment area of the Otter Sandstone. The Devon coast succession has provenance characteristics that differ from equivalent sandstones further east in the Wessex Basin, and from sandstones in the East Irish Sea Basin to the north. These differences indicate that sediment supply patterns to the linked Triassic basin systems in southern Britain are complex, involving multiple distinct sub-catchment areas, and that heavy-mineral studies have considerable potential for unravelling these sub- -catchment area sources.

Three episodes of crustal development in the Rehoboth Province, Namibia

Abstract The African continental crust was assembled by a series of orogenies over a period of billions of years mainly in Precambrian times. Tracing the build-up history of this stable crust is not always straightforward due to multiphase deformation and regions with poor outcrop. Episodes of metamorphism and magmatism associated with multiple Wilson cycles are recorded in zircons, which found their way into sediments derived from the hinterland. Dating of zircon populations in detrital rocks can hence provide age spectra which reflect the metamorphic and magmatic events of the region. Microbeam dating of detrital zircon is used to characterize the crustal development history of the Rehoboth Province of southern Africa. We investigated a quartzite of the Late Palaeo-Early Mesoproterozoic Billstein Formation, formed in a continental basin, and a quartz-feldspar arenite layer of the late Mesoproterozoic Langberg Formation conglomerates, immature sediments formed within a felsic volcanic system (both close to Rehoboth Town). The combined data indicate three episodes of crustal evolution in the Rehoboth Province. The oldest phase is only documented in the Billstein quartzite by three 2.98–2.7 Ga Archaean zircons. A Palaeoproterozoic phase between 2.2 and 1.9 Ga is older than any known exposures of the Rehoboth Province. The Billstein quartzite shows a main peak at 1.87 Ga, corresponding to the 1863±10 Ma Elim Formation. The Langberg sample reflects magmatism related to the entire Namaqua–Natal Wilson cycle between c. 1.32 and 1.05 Ga. The absence of zircons of that age range in the Billstein quartzite indicates a pre-Namaqua age for the Billstein Formation. Our data shows that there were at least three episodes of crustal development at 2.98–2.7 Ga, 2.05–1.75 and 1.32–1.1 Ga. We have documented the existence of a previously unrecognized 2.98–2.7 Ga Archaean crustal component, which was probably exposed in the Rehoboth Province during the Palaeoproterozoic and thus indicates a much longer geological history for the Rehoboth Province than previously known.

Detrital zircon ages from the islands of Inousses and Psara, Aegean Sea, Greece: constraints on depositional age and provenance

U–Pb LA–SF–ICP–MS analyses of detrital zircons from a metalitharenite on Inousses Island, Greece, gave major age groups of 310–350, 450–500, 550–700, 900–1050 and 1880–2040 Ma and minor peaks between 2600 and 2800 Ma. The youngest concordant zircon grains of 310–330 Ma indicate the maximum age of deposition to be Late Carboniferous, rather than Ordovician, as had been earlier assumed. The lack of zircon ages between 1.1 and 1.8 Ga, coupled with the occurrence of c. 2-Ga-old zircons, imply a northern Gondwana-derived source. Detrital zircons from a garnet–mica schist on Psara Island yielded a major age group of c. 295–325 Ma and only minor Early Palaeozoic and Late Neoproterozoic ages. The youngest grains around 270 Ma indicate the maximum age of deposition to be Late Permian. The Early Palaeozoic ages support a source from terranes at the southern margin of Laurussia during the Late Palaeozoic and hence clarify the palaeotectonic position of units from the eastern Aegean Sea within the Palaeotethyan realm.

Crustal geodynamics from the Archaean Bundelkhand Craton, India: constraints from zircon U–Pb–Hf isotope studies

A comprehensive study based on U–Pb and Hf isotope analyses of zircons from gneisses has been conducted along the western part (Babina area) of the E–W-trending Bundelkhand Tectonic Zone in the central part of the Archaean Bundelkhand Craton. 207 Pb– 206 Pb zircon ages and Hf isotopic data indicate the existence of a felsic crust at ~ 3.59 Ga, followed by a second tectonothermal event at ~ 3.44 Ga, leading to calc-alkaline magmatism and subsequent crustal growth. The study hence suggests that crust formation in the Bundelkhand Craton occurred in a similar time-frame to that recorded from the Singhbhum and Bastar cratons of the North Indian Shield.