Paleozoic glaciation in NE Africa: field and remote sensing-based evidence from the South Eastern Desert of Egypt

ABSTRACT

Exhumed Paleozoic glacial deposits and landforms of the North Gondwana are reported here for the first time from the South Eastern Desert (SED) of Egypt. Using field observations and remote sensing datasets (Advanced Land Observing Satellite [ALOS], Phased Array L-band Synthetic Aperture Radar [PALSAR] radar, multispectral Landsat TM datasets, and digital elevation models [DEMs]), we mapped the distribution of Paleozoic glacial features (i.e. deposits and landforms) in the SED. Two main glaciogenic facies were identified in three locations in the SED: (1) massive, poorly sorted, matrix supported, boulder-rich diamictites in Wadi El-Naam and Korbiai, and (2) moderately-sorted, occasionally bedded outwash deposits in Betan area. Inspection of radar, DEMs, and Landsat Operational Land Imager (OLI) images revealed previously unrecognized ENE-WSW trending glacial megalineations (MLs) over the peneplained Neoproterozoic basement rocks in the central sections of the SED, whose trends align along their projected extension with those of glacial features (tunnel valleys and striation trends) reported from Saudi Arabia. The glaciogenic features in the SED are believed to be largely eroded during the uplift associated with the Red Sea opening, except for those preserved as basal units beneath the Nubia Sandstone Formation or as remnant isolated deposits within paleo-depressions within the basement complex. The apparent spatial correlation of the SED glacial features with well-defined Late Ordovician deposits in North Africa and in Saudi Arabia, and the reported thermochronometric analyses and fossil records are consistent with a Late Ordovician age for the SED glaciogenic features and support models that call on the continuation of the Late Ordovician (Hirnantian) ice sheet from the Sahara into Arabia through the SED of Egypt.     

Ancient glaciations and hydrocarbon accumulations in North Africa and the Middle East

At least six glaciations are purported to have affected North Africa and the Middle East region over the last one billion years, including two in the Cryogenian (Neoproterozoic), Hirnantian (Late Ordovician), Silurian, Carboniferous and Early Permian events. The sedimentary record associated with these glaciations, together with the intensity to which each has been investigated, is highly variable. As hydrocarbon exploration proceeds aggressively across the North Africa and Middle East regions, we review the relationship between glaciation and hydrocarbon accumulations.With the exception of Oman, and locally Egypt, which were tectonically active both during the Neoproterozoic and Early Palaeozoic all glaciations took place along an essentially stable passive continental margin. During the Neoproterozoic, two glaciations are recognised, referred to as older and younger Cryogenian glaciations respectively. Both of these Cryogenian events are preserved in Oman; only the younger Cryogenian has been reported in North Africa in Mauritania and Mali at the flanks of the Taoudenni Basin. The process of initial deglaciation in younger Cryogenian glaciations resulted in incision, at least locally producing large-bedrock palaeovalleys in Oman, and the deposition of glacial diamictites, gravels, sandstones and mudstones. As deglaciation progressed “cap carbonates” were deposited, passing vertically into shale with evidence for deposition in an anoxic environment. Hence, younger Cryogenian deglaciation may be associated with hydrocarbon source rock deposits.Hirnantian (Late Ordovician) glaciation was short lived (< 0.5 Myr) and affected intracratonic basins of Mauritania, Morocco, Algeria, Libya, Egypt and Saudi Arabia. The organisation of the glacial sedimentary record is considered to be controlled at the basin-scale by the location of fast-flowing ice streams active during glacial maxima, and by the processes of meltwater release during glacial recession. In these latter phases, subglacial tunnel valley networks were cut at or near the ice margin. These tunnel valleys were filled in two main phases. The initial phase was characterised by debris flow release, whereas during later phases of ice retreat a range of glaciofluvial, shallow glaciomarine to shelf deposits were laid down, depending on the water depth at the ice front. Production of linear accumulations of sediment, parallel to the ice front, also occurred between tunnel valleys at the grounding line. In Arabia, the geometry of these features may have been influenced by local tectonic uplift. As glaciogenic reservoirs, Hirnantian deposits are already of great economic significance across central North Africa. Therefore, an appreciation of the processes of ice sheet growth and decay provides significant insights into the controls on large-scale heterogeneities within these sediments, and in analogue deposits produced by glaciations of different ages.Deglacial, Early Silurian black shale represents the most important Palaeozoic source rock across the region. Existing models do not adequately explain the temporal and spatial development of anoxia, and hence of black shale/deglacial source rocks. The origins of a palaeotopography previously invoked as the primary driver for this anoxia is allied to a complex configuration of palaeo-ice stream pathways, “underfilled” tunnel valley incisions, glaciotectonic deformation structures and re-activation of older crustal structures during rebound. A putative link with the development of Silurian glaciation in northern Chad is suggested. Silurian glaciation appears to have been restricted to the southern Al Kufrah Basin in the eastern part of North Africa, and was associated with the deposition of boulder beds. Equivalent deposits are lacking in shallow marine deposits in neighbouring outcrop belts.Evidence for Carboniferous–Permian glaciation is tentative in the eastern Sahara (SW Egypt) but well established on the Arabian Peninsula in Oman and more recently in Saudi Arabia. Pennsylvanian–Sakmarian times saw repeated glaciation–deglaciation cycles affecting the region, over a timeframe of about 20 Myr. Repeated phases of deglaciation produced a complex stratigraphy consisting, in part, of structureless sandstone intervals up to 50 m thick. Some of these sandstone intervals are major hydrocarbon intervals in the Omani salt basins. Whilst studies of the Hirnantian glaciation can provide lessons on the causes of large-scale variability within Carboniferous–Permian glaciogenic reservoirs, additional factors also influenced their geometry. These include the effects of topography produced during Hercynian orogenesis and the mobilisation and dissolution of the Precambrian Ara Salt. Deglacial or interglacial lacustrine shale, with abundant palynomorphs, is also important. Whilst both Cryogenian intervals and the Hirnantian–Rhuddanian deglaciation resulted in the deposition of glaciomarine deposits, Carboniferous–Permian deglaciation likely occurred within a lacustrine setting. Hence, compared to shales of other glacial epochs, the source rock potential of Carboniferous–Permian deglacial deposits is minimal.     

扬子陆块下古生界页岩发育特征与沉积模式

为了深入探讨扬子陆块下古生界页岩发育与分布特征、建立沉积模式,系统收集与整理了扬子陆块下寒武统牛蹄塘组与上奥陶统-下志留统五峰-龙马溪组两套富有机质页岩大量数据,选取贵州省三都县渣拉沟及四川省筠连县昭104井两个典型剖面与井岩芯进行了系统观察与采样,对扬子陆块范围内两套富有机质页岩岩性与沉积相发育特征进行了系统分析.研究表明,早古生代以来,扬子陆块受被动大陆边缘扩张与陆缘造山挠曲坳陷两类成盆环境影响[1-2],牛蹄塘组页岩沉积于被动大陆边缘扩张环境,缘于上升洋流与缺氧事件复合沉积模式,富有机质页岩以扬子陆块东南缘深水陆棚-斜坡相区最为发育、厚度最大、有机碳含量最高;五峰-龙马溪组页岩沉积于加里东期周缘前陆造山环境,缘于浅水陆棚-闭塞滞留海湾沉积模式,富有机质页岩以中上扬子陆块东南缘深水陆棚区最为发育、厚度最大、有机碳含量最高.     

Tectonostratigraphy of the exposed Silurian deposits in Arabia

Exposed Silurian deposits in Arabia are represented by the Qalibah Group, the Qusaiba and Sharawra formations. The Qusaiba Formation is composed of dark-gray claystones and siltstones. It is disconformably underlain by the Late Ordovician–Early Silurian? Uqlah Formation or unconformably underlain by the Late Ordovician Zarqa or Sarah formations. It is disconformably overlain by the Sharawra Formation. The Early Rhuddanian basal “hot shale” of the Qusaiba Formation represents the early stage of the early Silurian marine transgression over the Gondwana broad shelf. It is a regional marker used to outline the structural configuration of the area prior to the Silurian time. The Sharawra Formation is composed of siltstone and sandstone. It is unconformably overlain by the Late Silurian?–Early Devonian Tawil Formation. Silurian deposits show a pronounced thinning from 992 m in the Tabuk area in the west and are completely missing in the northern part of the Qusayba depression in the east. The thinning of the Qusaiba shale and Sharawra sandstone is interpreted as due to depositional and erosional features, respectively. Thinning and distribution of the Early Rhuddanian shale “hot shale” is depositional which is affected by preexisting Late Ordovician paleo-highs in central Arabia. Thinning of the Sharawra sandstones is erosional which is attributed to Late Silurian tectonic movements synchronous with the Acadian uplift phase of the Caledonian tectonic movements. The main structural elements in central Arabia are represented by the north–south trending and northerly plunging Hail arch and to a much lesser extent the northwest–southeast trending and southerly plunging Qusayba high.     

The palaeo‐valley infilling glaciogenic Sarah Formation,an example from Rahal Dhab palaeo‐valley,Saudi Arabia

The Sarah Formation is a glaciogenic sedimentary unit deposited along the Gondwana margin during the latest Ordovician ice age and represents a major hydrocarbon reservoir in northern Saudi Arabia. Large‐scale glacial palaeo‐valleys cut into the Qasim Formation and were infilled by the Sarah Formation. Post‐glacial transgression in the earliest Silurian resulted in the deposition of the Qusaiba Shale Member and associated organic‐rich basal source rocks, which cap the Sarah Formation infilled palaeo‐valleys. This unique setting makes the Sarah Formation an important emerging exploration target in Saudi Arabia. This study focuses on the facies and depositional architecture in seismic‐scale outcrops of the Sarah Formation in north‐western Saudi Arabia. The Rahal Dhab palaeo‐valley provides a 100 km long dip‐oriented cross‐section which has been covered by 24 vertical sections, sedimentary architectural analyses at metre to kilometre scale and by three cored shallow boreholes. In the Rahal Dhab palaeo‐valley, the Sarah Formation was deposited in a proglacial setting that ranged from marginal marine to offshore prodelta and is made up of three units: (i) the Sarah Sandstone; (ii) the Sarah Shale; and (iii) the Uqlah Member. This study shows the relationships between these three units and architectural controls on reservoir quality in this system. This paper contributes to the regional understanding of the Sarah Formation, and the new depositional model of the Rahal Dhab palaeo‐valley provides an outcrop‐reservoir analogue for hydrocarbon exploration in adjacent areas.     

上扬子区下古生界层序地层格架的初步研究

上扬子区下古生界在贵州及其邻区发育较为完整。在震旦纪与寒武纪之交的台地淹没事件之后,寒武系形成一个从深水盆地相黑色页岩系到大套台地碳酸盐的沉积序列,其中下寒武统包含5个三级层序而可以进一步归为一个二级层序,中上寒武统构成一个二级层序而且可以进一步划分为7个三级层序。奥陶纪艾家山世末期的都匀运动、奥陶纪末期的与冈瓦纳大陆冰期相响应的全球海平面下降事件以及志留纪末期广西运动的共同作用,造成扬子地台大幅度的古地理变迁以及残留不全的奥陶系和志留系。详尽追踪和对比的结果可以将奥陶系划分为8个三级层序且可以进一步归为一个二级层序,在残留不全的的志留系中可以划分出7个三级层序并可以进一步归为一个二级层序。层序地层格架的建立,可以大致解读许多有趣的地质现象,如寒武纪碳酸盐台地的生长过程,奥陶纪与志留纪之交的“浅海静水”型黑色页岩系的发育特点,志留纪由北而南的海侵所造成的复杂的志留系展布特征等等;同时也意味着许多有待于进一步研究的问题,早寒武世数次快速海侵事件与生物事件的关系,奥陶系顶部特殊的“观音桥灰岩”的成因,奥陶系红花园组海绵生物礁的基本沉积模式等等。     

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1674987111001113

The Rheic Ocean was one of the most important oceans of the Paleozoic Era.It lay between Laurentia and Gondwana from the Early Ordovician and closed to produce the vast Ouachita-Alleghanian -Variscan orogen during the assembly of Pangea.Rifting began in the Cambrian as a continuation of Neoproterozoic orogenic activity and the ocean opened in the Early Ordovician with the separation of several Neoproterozoic arc terranes from the continental margin of northern Gondwana along the line of a former suture.The rapid rate of ocean opening suggests it was driven by slab pull in the outboard lapetus Ocean.The ocean reached its greatest width with the closure of lapetus and the accretion of the periGondwanan arc terranes to Laurentia in the Silurian.Ocean closure began in the Devonian and continued through the Mississippian as Gondwana sutured to Laurussia to form Pangea.The ocean consequently plays a dominant role in the Appalachian-Ouachita orogeny of North America,in the basement geology of southern Europe,and in the Paleozoic sedimentary,structural and tectonothermal record from Middle America to the Middle East.Its closure brought the Paleozoic Era to an end.     

Provenance and paleogeography of the Early Paleozoic basin in the northern Yangtze Block: Constraints from detrital zircon U-Pb-Hf data

The Proto-Tethys was a significant post-Rodinia breakup ocean that eventually vanished during the Paleozoic. The closure timing and amalgamation history of numerous microblocks within this ocean remain uncertain, while the Early Paleozoic strata on the northern margin of the Yangtze Block archive valuable information about the evolution of the Shangdan Ocean, the branch of the Proto-Tethys. By comparing the detrital zircon U-Pb-Hf isotopic data from Cambrian, Ordovician, and Silurian sedimentary rocks in the northern Yangtze Block with adjacent blocks, it was found that detrital zircons in Cambrian strata exhibit a prominent age peak at ∼ 900–700 Ma, which indicates that the primary source of clastic material in the basin was the uplifted inner and margin regions of the Yangtze Block. In the Silurian, abundant detrital material from the North Qinling Block was transported to the basin due to the continuous subduction and eventual closure of the Shangdan Ocean. This process led to two distinct age peaks at ∼500–400 Ma and ∼900–700 Ma, indicating a bidirectional provenance contribution from both the North Qinling Block and the Yangtze Block. This shift demonstrates that the initial collision between these two blocks occurred no later than the Silurian. The northern Yangtze Basin transitioned from a passive continental margin basin in the Cambrian to a peripheral foreland basin in the Silurian. Major blocks in East Asia, including South Tarim, North Qilian, North Qinling, and North Yangtze, underwent peripheral subduction and magmatic activity to varying degrees during the late Early Paleozoic, signifying the convergence and rapid contraction of microplates within northern Gondwana and the Proto-Tethys Ocean. These findings provide new insights on the tectonic evolution of the Proto-Tethys Ocean.     

阿尔及利亚438 区块古生代构造演化及油气成藏特征

阿尔及利亚438 区块位于阿尔及利亚Oued Mya 盆地北部。利用石油地质理论和测试、测井解释资料,解析阿尔及利亚438 区块古生代地层和油藏特征。分析表明,438 区块所属的Oued Mya 盆地古生代属于克拉通盆地,沉积了奥陶系、志留系和泥盆系多套海相地层,发育有志留系泥页岩和奥陶系页岩两套烃源岩,具备良好的生储盖条件。根据NGS-P1 井的实探资料,裂缝在奥陶系的Hamra 石英砂岩的成藏中起主导作用,应为裂缝型圈闭; 构造和岩性在Dale de M'Kratta 砂岩和泥盆系砂岩的成藏中起主导作用,应为构造--岩性圈闭,推断本区古生代油气成藏模式为断层输导型。     

雪峰山隆起北缘热历史及其对牛蹄塘组生烃作用的影响

对于复杂构造带的古老- 深层页岩，烃类的生成过程可能是多阶段的。准确恢复页岩的成熟演化过程是研究页岩气富集机理的先决条件。本文依托雪峰山隆起北缘新钻探的地质调查井，恢复雪峰山北缘古生代以来的热历史，从热演化的角度讨论牛蹄塘组页岩的生烃潜力。元素分析显示，热液活动对牛蹄塘组黑色页岩有机质的富集产生了积极影响，特别是下部页岩热液指示指标异常高、显著的Ce负异常、Eu正异常和Y正异常，都证明了牛蹄塘组早期受热液作用的影响。古温标联合反演结果显示，雪峰山北缘自古生代以来先后经历了三次升温—降温过程。三次热演化高峰依次出现在晚奥陶世末期、中三叠世末期和早白垩世末期，所达到的最高温度依次降低。三次升温过程分别受到早古生代拉张作用和岩浆活动、晚古生代—早中生代快速沉降作用和早白垩世岩浆活动的控制。受沉积埋藏作用和早期热事件的影响，牛蹄塘组页岩在寒武纪—早志留世快速经历了生油高峰、原油裂解高峰等生烃关键时期，在晚奥陶世达到过成熟阶段。随后第一次的抬升剥蚀作用，破坏了页岩及上覆盖层的封闭性，形成有利于气体扩散的裂缝或断层通道，使得早期形成的烃类散失。     

中扬子地区下古生界海相泥-页岩含气勘探远景

利用中扬子区下古生界页岩的野外露头地质剖面、有机地球化学分析数据和钻井显示资料,分析中扬子下古生界页岩气资源勘探远景。研究表明,中扬子区下古生界海相泥-页岩主要以下寒武统水井沱组(或牛蹄塘组)和上奥陶统五峰组—下志留统龙马溪组为主。上述2套泥质岩和页岩有机质含量丰富、有机质类型好、热演化程度高,多数已达到成熟—过成熟阶段,是有效页岩气气源岩。中扬子区自加里东以来经历了多期构造运动、构造隆升和挤压作用,改善了页岩储层的储集性能,提高页岩气聚集量。湘鄂西区和江汉平原区南部下寒武统泥-页岩可作为有利页岩气勘探选区,而鄂西渝东区钻井揭示志留系见工业性气流,表明该区志留系页岩气潜力较大。     

Regional tectonic and megadepositional cycles of the Paleozoic of northwestern and central Saudi Arabia

The Paleozoic succession of the Greater Arabian basin is severely affected by series of major tectonic and climatic events which have caused major stratigraphic breaks and pronounce facies change. The major tectonic movements have resulted in dividing the succession into pronounced megatectonic and depositional cycles. In more tectonically active areas, the succession is less preserved and boundaries between the cycles are more complicated due to longer periods of erosion by later movements and/or nondeposition. Minor stratigraphic breaks within the megacycles subdivide the cycles into smaller subcycles. Following the stabilization of the Arabian–Nubian shield, the Gondwana shelf went through a gentle uplift and tilt probably related to the Assyniyc tectonic movements and thick siliciclastics of the Saq and Qasim Formations were deposited. During Late Caradocian and following the deposition of the Qasim Formation, the area went through a gentle uplift and tilt probably related to the Taconic tectonic movements. Thick succession of the Qasim and Saq Formations were eroded and deep paleovalleys incised in the two formations and underlying basement. The movements were followed by drop of sea level due to glaciation events. Glacial and periglacial deposits of the Zarqa and/or Sarah Formations filled paleovalleys and rest on older units from Ordovician to Precambrian. The third main event occurred during Late Silurian where the preexisting successions, mainly on paleohighs, were affected by tectonic movements synchronous with the Acadian tectonic phase of the Caledonian tectonic movements. The Early Devonian Tawil Formation unconformably rests on eroded Silurian and Late Ordovician deposits of the Sharawra, Qusayba (Qusaiba), and Sarah Formations in the Qusayba Depression in central Arabia. The forth main event is a regional movement contemporaneous with the Hercynian tectonic movement which has reached its maximum phase in the Late Carboniferous. Earlier successions from Carboniferous to Precambrian were affected and the Permo-Carboniferous Shajra Formation unconformably rests on all underlying Paleozoic rock units toward the central Arabia arch and other paleohighs. The Shajra rests on the Devonian Jawbah (Jubah), Jawf (Jauf) and Tawil formations, the Silurian Sharawra, Qusayba, and Uqlah formations, the Ordovician Zarqa/Sarah, and Qasim formations, the Cambro-Ordovician Saq Formation, and finally rests on Precambrian Basement complex in Central Arabia. The tectonic movements played important role in shaping the structural framework of Arabia. The Paleozoic succession included source, reservoir, and seal rocks. Oil and gas have been discovered in sandstone and limestone reservoirs in these rocks in several oilfields in the basin.     

Provenance analysis of the Paleozoic sequences of the northern Gondwana margin in NW Iberia: Passive margin to Variscan collision and orocline development

The Cantabrian Zone of NW Iberia preserves a voluminous, almost continuous, sedimentary sequence that ranges from Neoproterozoic to Early Permian in age. Its tectonic setting is controversial and recent hypotheses include (i) passive margin deposition along the northern margin of Gondwana or (ii) an active continental margin or (iii) a drifting ribbon continent. In this paper we present detrital zircon U–Pb laser ablation age data from 13 samples taken in detrital rocks from the Cantabrian Zone sequence ranging from Early Silurian to Early Permian in depositional age. The obtained results, together with previously published detrital zircon ages from Ediacaran–Ordovician strata, allow a comprehensive analysis of changing provenance through time. Collectively, these data indicate that this portion of Iberia was part of the passive margin of Gondwana at least from Ordovician to Late Devonian times. Zircon populations in all samples show strong similarities with the Sahara Craton and with zircons found in Libya, suggesting that NW Iberia occupied a paleoposition close to those regions of present-day northern Africa during this time interval. Changes in provenance in the Late Devonian are attributed to the onset of the collision between Gondwana and Laurussia.Additionally, the Middle Carboniferous to Permian samples record populations consistent with the recycling of older sedimentary sequences and exhumation of the igneous rocks formed before and during the Variscan orogeny. Late-Devonian to Permian samples yield zircon populations that reflect topographic changes produced during the Variscan orogeny and development of the lithospheric scale oroclinal buckling.     

大巴山地区早古生代黑色岩系岩相古地理及页岩气地质意义*

大巴山地区早古生代发育下寒武统水井沱组(巴山组—鲁家坪组)和上奥陶统五峰组—下志留统龙马溪组2套黑色岩系。沉积学研究表明,2套黑色岩系均发育于扬子北缘被动大陆边缘盆地之上,早期快速海侵,沉积环境以深水陆棚为主,晚期随着海平面下降逐渐变为浅水陆棚沉积,局部发育滩礁沉积。早寒武世和晚奥陶世—早志留世,研究区均处于被动大陆边缘盆地,基底不平整,陆架边缘呈现多个小岛阻隔的古地理格局,但两者的形成机制却完全不同:早寒武世的构造格局沿袭了陡山沱期的地堑和地垒分布格局,地垒处表现为局部隆起或水下潜隆;晚奥陶世—早志留世的构造格局则与扬子板块向华北板块俯冲有关,是在扬子北缘被动大陆边缘基础上发育起来的前陆隆起。这种受限的滞留海域有利于形成厚度大、有机碳含量高(2%~6%)、脆性矿物含量高(40%~65%)的富有机质页岩,虽然其是页岩气勘探的有利目标层系,但仍需加强构造保存条件的研究。     

Palynological evidence for a latest Carboniferous-Early Permian glaciation in Northern Ethiopia

Palynomorphs extracted from glacigenic sediments in Northern Ethiopia are latest Carboniferous-Early Permian in age. These sediments were hitherto thought to be either of Upper Ordovician or of Late Carboniferous-Early Permian age. The predominantly glaciolacustrine and glaciofluviatile sediments were deposited in glacial troughs and valleys that were eroded into Precambrian basement rocks and into Early Palaeozoic deposits, possibly equivalents of Upper Ordovician sediments in Eritrea. In the latest Carboniferous-Early Permian, glaciated uplands to the north of Ethiopia must have existed in Eritrea and/or in southern or central Saudi Arabia.     

The passive margin of northern Gondwana during Early Paleozoic: Evidence from the central Tibet Plateau

The central–south domain of the Tibet Plateau represents an important part of the northern segment of Gondwana during the early Paleozoic. Here we present zircon U–Pb, Lu–Hf isotope, and whole–rock geochemical data from a suite of early Paleozoic magmatic rocks from the central Tibet Plateau, with a view to gain insights into the nature and geotectonic evolution of the northern margin of Gondwana. Zircon grains in four granitic rocks yielded ages of 532−496 Ma with negative ε_Hf(t) values (−13.7 to −0.6). Zircon grains in meta–basalt and mafic gneiss yielded ages of 512 ± 5 Ma and 496 ± 6 Ma, respectively. Geochemically, the granitic rocks belong to high–K calc–alkaline and shoshonitic S–type granite suite, with the protolith derived from the partial melting of ancient crustal components. The mafic gneiss and meta–basalt geochemically resemble OIB (Oceanic Island Basalt) and E–MORB (Enriched Mid–Ocean Ridge Basalt), respectively. They were derived from low degree (∼5–10%) partial melting of an enriched mantle (garnet and spinel lherzolite) that was contaminated by upper crustal components. The parental magmas experienced orthopyroxene–dominated fractional crystallization. Sedimentological features of the Cambrian–Ordovician formations indicate that the depositional cycle transformed from marine regression to transgression leading to the formation of parallel/angular unconformities between the Cambrian and Ordovician strata. The hiatus associated with these unconformities are coupled with the peak of the early Paleozoic magmatism in Tibet Plateau, indicating a tectonic control. We conclude that the Cambrian–Ordovician magmatic suite and sedimentary rocks formed in an extensional setting, and we correlate this with the post–peak stage of the Pan–African orogeny. The post–collision setting associated with delamination, orogenic collapse or lithospheric extension along the northern margin of Gondwana, can account for the Cambrian–Ordovician magmatism and sedimentation, rather than oceanic subduction along the external margin. We thus infer a passive margin setting for the northern Gondwana during the Early Paleozoic.     

浙江早古生代孢粉型化石的研究

在浙江西北部早寒武世荷塘组、晚寒武世华严寺组、早奥陶世宁国组、晚奥陶世长坞组和文昌组、早志留世霞乡组、河沥溪组和康山组、中志留世唐家坞组中发现孢粉型化石,孢粉型化石包括疑源类,隐花(陆生)植物孢子类型等,计66属、112种、31未定种。同时讨论了这9个层位孢粉型化石的组合特征、地质时代及其沉积环境。     

关于古亚洲洋构造演化研究的几点思考

古亚洲洋不是西伯利亚陆台和华北地台间的一个简单洋盆,而是在不同时间、不同地区打开和封闭的多个大小不一的洋盆复杂活动(包括远距离运移)的综合体.其北部洋盆起始于新元古代末-寒武纪初(573~522Ma)冈瓦纳古陆裂解形成的寒武纪洋盆.寒武纪末-奥陶纪初(510~480Ma),冈瓦纳古陆裂解的碎块、寒武纪洋壳碎块和陆缘过渡壳碎块相互碰撞、联合形成原中亚-蒙古古陆.奥陶纪时,原中亚-蒙古古陆南边形成活动陆缘,志留纪形成稳定大陆.泥盆纪初原中亚-蒙古古陆裂解,裂解的碎块在新形成的泥盆纪洋内沿左旋断裂向北运动,于晚泥盆世末到达西伯利亚陆台南缘,重新联合形成现在的中亚-蒙古古陆.晚古生代时,在现在的中亚-蒙古古陆内发生晚石炭世(318~316Ma)和早二叠世(295~285Ma)裂谷岩浆活动,形成双峰式火山岩和碱性花岗岩类.蒙古-鄂霍次克带是西伯利亚古陆和中亚-蒙古古陆之间的泥盆纪洋盆,向东与古太平洋连通,洋盆发展到中晚侏罗世,与古太平洋同时结束,其洋壳移动到西伯利亚陆台边缘受阻而向陆台下俯冲,在陆台南缘形成广泛的陆缘岩浆岩带,从中泥盆世到晚侏罗世都非常活跃.古亚洲洋的南部洋盆始于晚寒武世.此时,华北古陆从冈瓦纳古陆裂解出来,在其北缘形成晚寒武世-早奥陶世的被动陆缘和中奥陶世-早志留世的沟弧盆系.志留纪腕足类生物群的分布表明,华北地台北缘洋盆与塔里木地台北缘、以及川西、云南、东澳大利亚有联系,而与上述的古亚洲洋北部洋盆没有关连,两洋盆之间有松嫩-图兰地块间隔.晚志留世-早泥盆世,华北地台北部发生弧-陆碰撞运动,泥盆纪时,在松嫩地块南缘形成陆缘火山岩带,晚二叠世-早三叠世华北地台与松嫩地块碰撞,至此古亚洲洋盆封闭.古亚洲洋的南、北洋盆最后的褶皱构造,以及与塔里木地台之间发生的直接关系,很可能是后期的构造运动所造成的.     

Geodynamic evolution of the European Variscan fold belt: palaeomagnetic and geological constraints

The Variscan fold belt of Europe resulted from the collision of Africa, Baltica, Laurentia and the intervening microplates in early Paleozoic times. Over the past few years, many geological, palaeobiogeographic and palaeomagnetic studies have led to significant improvements in our understanding of this orogenic belt. Whereas it is now fairly well established that Avalonia drifted from the northern margin of Gondwana in Early Ordovician times and collided with Baltica in the late Ordovician/early Silurian, the nature of the Gondwana derived Armorican microplate is more enigmatic. Geological and new palaeomagnetic data suggest Armorica comprises an assemblage of terranes or microblocks. Palaeobiogeographic data indicate that these terranes had similar drift histories, and the Rheic Ocean separating Avalonia from the Armorican Terrane Assemblage closed in late Silurian/early Devonian times. An early to mid Devonian phase of extensional tectonics along this suture zone resulted in formation of the relatively narrow Rhenohercynian basin which closed progressively between the late Devonian and early Carboniferous. In this contribution, we review the constraints provided by palaeomagnetic data, compare these with geological and palaeobiogeographic evidence, and present a sequence of palaeogeographic reconstructions for these circum-Atlantic plates and microplates from Ordovician through to Devonian times.     

Unraveling a distal segment of the West African Craton Paleozoic margin: Stratigraphy of the Mougueur inlier of the eastern High Atlas,Morocco

Because of its location in the boundary zone between the Anti-Atlas and the Atlas–Meseta crustal domains of Morocco, the Mougueur Paleozoic Massif is a key area to decipher the evolution of the Gondwana NW margin during the Paleozoic. In this work, we report for the first time the occurrence of Hirnantian sandstones, Silurian (Gorstian) graptolitic shales and probable Lower Devonian turbidites in the Massif. Comparison of our observations with regional stratigraphic data from literature allows us to suggest that the area was included in the distal part of the West African Craton passive margin during Cambrian-Devonian times.