Holocene glacial history and sea-level changes on James Ross Island,Antarctic Peninsula

A reconstruction of deglaciation and associated sea-level changes on northern James Ross Island, Antarctic Peninsula, based on lithostratigraphical and geomorphological studies, shows that the initial deglaciation of presently ice-free areas occurred slightly before 7400 ¹⁴C yr BP. Sea-level in connection with the deglaciation was around 30 m a.s.l. A glacier readvance in Brandy Bay, of at least 7 km, with the initial 3 km over land, reached a position off the present coast at ca. 4600 yr BP. The culmination of the advance was of short duration, and by 4300 yr BP the coastal lowlands again were ice-free. A distinct marine level at 16–18 m a.s.l. was contemporaneous with or slightly post-dates the Brandy Bay advance, thus indicating the relative sea-level around 4600–4500 yr BP. Our results from James Ross Island confirm that over large areas in this part of Antarctica the last deglaciation occurred late. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

下扬子独立地块与中生代改造型残留盆地

下扬子地块在古纬度、火山岩和花岗岩时空发育、区域成矿专属性、沉积建造和构造变形等方面具独特性,与扬子地块有显著差异,是一个晚古生代——中生代早期的独立地块。受燕山期苏鲁板间造山作用影响,下扬子地块直至燕山中期才“楔入”在印支期已拼合的扬子与华北地块,从而演化成独特的下扬子改造型残留叠合盆地。这种改造型叠合盆地的基本特点是:晚印支-早燕山同造山期前陆盆地沉积层和上叠的中燕山期陆相沉积层遭受大量剥蚀,并与古生-中生界海相沉积层一起被卷入强烈的多期次的燕山造山运动,晚白垩世——古近纪又强烈反转成为断陷盆地,形成鲜明的上部地壳的双层结构。这是造成下扬子地区海相古生-中生界油气地质勘探高复杂性、高难度性和高风险性的根本原因,也造就了下扬子区海相烃源岩的二次生烃和晚期成藏的优势。     

Structural control on gold mineralization at Walhalla,Victoria

Gold mineralization associated with quartz reefs is related to the structural history of the Early Devonian, Walhalla Group. These reefs are situated in the Walhalla Synclinorium, developed during the Middle to Late Devonian Tabberabberan Orogeny. A pervasive north‐south‐trending axial planar cleavage and two styles of folding were produced during regional east‐west compression. The first are upright, open to close folds with sub‐horizontal fold axes. The second are plunging inclined, close to tight folds with fold axes that plunge steeply to the north and south. An extensional event is associated with the emplacement of the Woods Point Dyke swarm and a set of normal faults that offset all earlier structures. High‐angle reverse faults, which post‐date the folding and the emplacement of the dykes, were utilized as conduits for hydrothermal fluids and preferentially localize mineralization to laminated quartz veins. En echelon vein arrays formed during initial stages of reverse faulting became deformed during prolonged shearing to produce ptygmatic veins. Laminated quartz veins within high‐angle reverse faults contain arsenopyrite and pyrite in vein margins and gold in fractures that cross‐cut continuous quartz crystals. Gold, galena, chalcopyrite and sphalerite may also be deposited adjacent to and within fractured arsenopyrite and pyrite. Late‐stage, cross faults developed in a regime of north‐south compression and post‐date the laminated quartz veins and mineralization.     

Cosmogenic 10Be insights into the extent and chronology of the last deglaciation in Wester Ross,northwest Scotland

Cosmogenic ¹⁰Be surface exposure ages for bedrock sites around Torridon and the Applecross Peninsula in Wester Ross, northwest Scotland, provide new insights into the Lateglacial transition. Accounting for postglacial weathering, six statistically comparable exposure ages give a late Younger Dryas (G‐1) exposure age of 11.8 ± 1.1 ka. Two further outliers are tentative pre‐Younger Dryas exposure ages of 13.4 ± 0.5 ka in Torridon, and 17.5 ± 1.2 ka in Applecross. The Younger Dryas exposure ages have compelling implications for the deglaciation of marginal Loch Lomond Stadial ice fields in Torridon and Applecross. Firstly, they conflict with predictions of restricted ice cover and rapid retreat based on modelling experiments and climate proxies, instead fitting a model of vertically extensive and prolonged ice coverage in Wester Ross. Secondly, they indicate that >2 m of erosion took place in the upper valleys of Torridon and Applecross during the Younger Dryas, implying a dominantly warm‐based glacial regime. Finally, the exposure ages have clarified that corrie (cirque) glaciers did not readvance in Wester Ross, following final deglaciation. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Nature and origin of Mesozoic granitoids and associated mineralization in the Sanjiang Tethys Orogeny,SW China: the Xiuwacu complex example

ABSTRACT

The magmatic generation for the Late Triassic–Early Jurassic (~215–200 Ma) and Early Cretaceous–Late Cretaceous (~108–79 Ma) post-collisional granites in the Sanjiang Tethys orogeny remain enigmatic. The Xiuwacu complex, located in the southern Yidun Terrane, consists of biotite granite with a weight mean ²⁰⁶Pb/²³⁸U age of 199.8 ± 2.5 Ma, aplite granite of 108.2 ± 2.3 Ma, monzogranite porphyry of 80.8 ± 1.0 Ma, and diorite enclaves of 79.2 ± 0.9 Ma and 77.9 ± 0.8 Ma. The Late Triassic biotite granites show I-type granite affinities, with high SiO₂ contents, high Mg^# values, high zircon δ¹⁸O values, and negative whole-rock ?Nd(t) values, indicating a predominant ancient crustal source with the input of juvenile materials. Their fractionated REE patterns and concave-upward middle-to-heavy REE patterns require garnet-bearing amphibolite as the melt source. The Cretaceous highly fractionated aplite granites and monzogranite porphyries have relatively high SiO₂ contents, high (Na₂O + K₂O)/CaO ratios, high zircon δ¹⁸O values, and enriched whole-rock Sr–Nd isotopic signatures, suggesting that their parent magmas were likely originated from the ancient middle- to lower crust. Their significant negative Eu anomalies and obvious depletions in Nb, Sr, and Ti demonstrate that the Cretaceous granitic magmas had experienced more fractionation than the Late Triassic felsic magmas. The Late Cretaceous diorite enclaves show low SiO₂ contents, high Mg^# values, and high zircon δ¹⁸O values, suggesting that they were probably derived from the partial melting of subcontinental lithospheric mantle enriched by the Late Triassic subduction. The Late Triassic–Early Jurassic and Early Cretaceous–Late Cretaceous magmatism witnessed the post-collisional setting and intraplate extensional setting in response to the slab break-off and lithospheric-scale transtensional faulting, respectively. The partial melting of subduction-modified lithospheric mantle or/and residual sulphide cumulates within the lower crust during the origination of Late Cretaceous magmas could have provided metals for the formation of Xiuwacu deposit.     

东天山-北山造山带中大型韧性剪切带属性及形成演化时限与过程

塔里木盆地北缘的东天山-北山造山带中发育多条近E-W走向的大型韧性剪切带,它们构成了造山带中不同地体单元的主要边界,是碰撞造山及造山后的产物。本文在野外调查基础上,通过微观/宏观构造、几何学/运动学/动力学/年代学相结合的研究、厘定了东天山北山造山带中的7条大型韧性剪切带,阐述了剪切带的延伸、规模、剪切变形特征、变形条件以及形成与演化时限。并讨论了这7条不同类型韧性剪切带的形成过程以及东天山和北山古生代造山过程中所起的重要作用。     

新疆博格达—哈尔里克山晚新生代压扭性变形与隆起成山

压扭性走滑变形是陆内变形的最主要构造样式之一,并且是陆内造山系统得以形成的最基本构造样式。位于天山东部的博格达—哈尔里克山链,横亘在吐哈盆地和准噶尔盆地之间,是研究新生代山脉形成理想的野外实验室。本文结合压扭造山带的研究,通过野外地质填图、遥感解译和DEM分析,裂变径迹测试等研究,确认博格达—哈尔里克山与山脉隆起相关的断裂构造主要为北东东向和北西西向压扭性走滑断裂,认为它是晚新生代压扭造山带(transpressional orogen)。主要证据是:首先博格达—哈尔里克山与山脉隆起相关的构造变形为北东东70°走向和北西西290°走向,山脉两侧呈现向盆地方向的逆冲冲断构造,体现了近南北向为构造主压应力场特点;其次天池河床砂岩屑AFT分析出的年龄峰值集中在42.8 Ma(62.8%)、18.8 Ma(29.0%)、3.2 Ma(8.2%),表明样品所代表的流域地质体在42.8 Ma、18.8Ma、3.2 Ma经历了3次冷却事件。依据裂变径迹等年龄投影圈闭图显示博格达山裂变径迹年龄存在中间新,两边老的特点。基于相同的大地构造背景,压扭造山模式也可以解释整个天山晚新生代山脉强烈隆升。     

Exhumation of the lower crust during crustal shortening: an Alice Springs (380 Ma) age for a prograde amphibolite facies shear zone in the Strangways Metamorphic Complex (central Australia)

Foliated garnet-bearing amphibolites occur within the West Bore Shear Zone, cutting through granulite facies gneisses of the Strangways Metamorphic Complex. In the amphibolites, large euhedral garnet (up to 3 cm) occurs within fine-grained recrystallized leucocratic diffusion haloes of plagioclase–quartz. The garnet and their haloes include a well-developed vertical foliation, also present in the matrix. This foliation is the same as that cutting through the unconformably overlying Neoproterozoic Heavitree Quartzite. The textures indicate syn- to late kinematic growth of the amphibolite facies mineral assemblages.
All mineral assemblages record an arrested prograde reaction history. Noteworthy is the growth of garnet at the expense of hornblende and plagioclase, and the breakdown of staurolite–hornblende to give plagioclase–gedrite. These dehydration reactions indicate increasing P – T  conditions during metamorphism, and suggest heating towards the end of a period of intense deformation. Temperature estimates for the garnet–amphibolite and related staurolite–hornblende assemblages from the shear zone are about 600 °C. Pressure is estimated at about 5 kbar.
An Sm–Nd isochron gives an age of 381±7 Ma for the peak metamorphism and associated deformation. This age determination confirms that amphibolite facies conditions prevailed during shear zone development within the Strangways Metamorphic Complex during the Alice Springs Orogeny. These temperature conditions are significantly higher than those expected at this depth assuming a normal geothermal gradient. The Alice Springs Orogeny was associated with significant crustal thickening, allowing exhumation of the granulite facies, Palaeoproterozoic, lower crust. Along-strike variations of the tectonic style suggest a larger amount of crustal shortening in the eastern part of the Alice Springs Orogeny.     

Genesis of the Jurassic Carbonate‐Hosted Pb–Zn Deposits of Jebel Ressas (North‐Eastern Tunisia): Evidence from Mineralogy,Petrography and Trace Metal Contents and Isotope (O,C, S,Pb) Geochemistry

The Jebel Ressas Pb–Zn deposits in North‐Eastern Tunisia occur mainly as open‐space fillings (lodes, tectonic breccia cements) in bioclastic limestones of the Upper Jurassic Ressas Formation and along the contact of this formation with Triassic rocks. The galena–sphalerite association and their alteration products (cerussite, hemimorphite, hydrozincite) are set within a calcite gangue. The Triassic rocks exhibit enrichments in trace metals, namely Pb, Co and Cd enrichment in clays and Pb, Zn, Cd, Co and Cr enrichment in carbonates, suggesting that the Triassic rocks have interacted with the ore‐bearing fluids associated with the Jebel Ressas Pb–Zn deposits. The δ¹⁸O content of calcite associated with the Pb–Zn mineralization suggests that it is likely to have precipitated from a fluid that was in equilibrium with the Triassic dolostones. The δ³⁴S values in galenas from the Pb–Zn deposits range from ?1.5 to +11.4‰, with an average of 5.9‰ and standard deviation of 3.9‰. These data imply mixing of thermochemically‐reduced heavy sulfur carried in geothermal‐ and fault‐stress‐driven deep‐seated source fluid with bacterially‐reduced light sulfur carried in topography‐driven meteoric fluid. Lead isotope ratios in galenas from the Pb–Zn deposits are homogenous and indicate a single upper crustal source of base‐metals for these deposits. Synthesis of the geochemical data with geological data suggests that the base‐metal mineralization at Jebel Ressas was formed during the Serravallian–Tortonian (or Middle–Late Miocene) Alpine compressional tectonics.     

秦岭的大地构造演化

一项中瑞合作研究成果表明,中国秦岭属碰撞型造山带。秦岭是在中生代造山运动早期由华北大陆板块与扬子大陆板块碰撞而成。原存于两大板块之间的古特提斯洋在泥盆纪时即已开始消减,仅部分洋壳残余于碰撞混杂岩中。