先存薄弱带对帕米尔弧形构造带形成的影响：来自构造物理模拟实验的制约

帕米尔弧形构造带的形成与先存弧形薄弱带密切相关,这些先存薄弱带如何在印度-欧亚板块碰撞初期就被活化是地学界关注的科学问题。本文利用构造物理模拟实验,研究先存弧形构造薄弱带如何影响帕米尔弧形构造带的形成。本文依据相似性准则,设计了两组构造物理模拟实验,包括先存弧形薄弱带(对比模型)和先存弧形薄弱带加地壳滑脱层。实验结果表明:①先存弧形构造带上继承性发育从而形成帕米尔弧形构造带是完全可能的;②在先存弧形薄弱带而无滑脱层的情况下,变形逐渐由南向北传递,呈现典型的前展式的变形过程,最终变形到达先存弧形薄弱带的时间较晚;构造样式上主要表现为一系列南倾断裂控制的变形带不断向北增宽;所造成的地形格局总体上呈现向北单调递减的地形楔形态;③在先存弧形薄弱带而有地壳滑脱层的情况下,先存弧形薄弱带在变形初期就立即活化,之后变形带才表现出从推板向北逐渐传递的过程,最终当变形量足够大时,会在弧形薄弱带前缘形成前锋断裂;构造样式上,表现为一系列的冲起构造;所造成的地形格局总体上为山-谷相间的形态;④帕米尔北缘的先存薄弱带如果在新生代印度-欧亚板块碰撞初期就开始活化,必须存在滑脱层(解耦层)。该新生代早期的滑脱层是否存在、位于什么深度和界面仍有待于进一步研究。     

The relationship of the Cocos and Carnegie ridges: age constraints from paleogeographic reconstructions

Paleogeographic restorations for the oceanic crust formed by the Cocos-Nacza spreading center and its precursors were performed to reconstruct the history and ages of the submarine aseismic ridges in the Eastern Pacific Basin, the Carnegie, Coiba, Cocos, and Malpelo ridges. The bipartition of the Carnegie ridge reflects the shift from a precursor to the presently active Cocos-Nazca spreading center. The Cocos ridge is partly composed of products from the Galápagos hotspot but may also contain material from a second center of volcanic activity which is located approximately 600 km NE of Galápagos. The Malpelo ridge is a product of this second hotspot center, whereas the Coiba ridge probably formed at the Galápagos hotspot. The geometric relationship of the Cocos and Carnegie ridges indicates symmetric spreading and a constant northward shift of the presently active Cocos-Nazca spreading center.     

岩浆通道系统与岩浆硫化物成矿研究新进展

大型-超大型岩浆硫化物矿床的形成需要满足3个基本条件:(1)大量幔源岩浆参与成矿;(2)岩浆演化导致硫化物熔离;(3)硫化物在有限空间聚集。然而,除Sudbury矿床外,全球与镁铁质岩浆有关的超大型铜镍硫化物矿床都发现于小的镁铁-超镁铁岩体中。近10年来的研究表明这些含矿岩体实际上都是岩浆通道系统的一部分,中国金川、杨柳坪、喀拉通克、红旗岭等大型和超大型Ni-Cu-(PGE)硫化物矿床都形成于岩浆通道系统中,正是岩浆通道这样特殊的开放系统为大规模岩浆硫化物矿床提供了成矿条件。总结国内外最新研究结果,可以发现与成矿有关的岩浆通道系统都分布在深大断裂附近,大规模的幔源岩浆补充与地幔柱、大陆裂谷、碰撞造山后伸展等地质事件有密切的关系。尽管研究证明硫化物熔离都与地壳物质的混染有关,但矿石各种元素的品位却受母岩浆性质、硫化物熔离强度、与新注入镁铁质岩浆反应、以及硫化物本身结晶分异等多重因素的影响;含矿岩体和硫化物矿体的形态和大小都强烈地受围岩地质特征的控制。进一步明确这类矿床的地质特征、形成机制、成矿背景和成矿标志,对未来的研究和找矿工作都是非常必要的。     

Symplectite formation in the presence of a reactive fluid: insights from hydrothermal experiments

This study describes the microstructural and chemical development of symplectites, obtained in fluid‐mediated mineral replacement experiments. During the experiments polymineralic feldspar‐rich samples were exposed to aqueous Na–SiO₂ solution at 600 °C and 2 kbar confining pressures for durations of 12 h to 20 days. The resulting reaction rims display high mineralogical and structural complexity and contain two varieties of symplectites, represented by nanometre‐scale intergrowths of gehlenite–zeolite and grossular–zeolite grains. The experimental fluid was enriched in ¹⁸O isotope in order to trace oxygen redistribution during the reaction. The elevated ¹⁸O concentration in the reaction products and the heterogeneity in its distribution suggest that symplectite formation was controlled by dissolution–precipitation mechanisms rather than volume‐diffusion processes. Microstructural and chemical observations suggest that symplectite formation occurred in multiple stages in response to spatially heterogeneous and temporarily evolving fluid composition at the reaction interfaces. Hence, our results shed light on the fundamental processes involved in symplectite formation improving our ability to interpret symplectite microstructures.     

Duplex style and triangle zone formation: insights from physical modeling

Duplexes are a common feature in thrust belts at many scales. Their geometries vary significantly from antiformal stacks with significant forethrusting in the cover (e.g. southern Pyrennes, Spain) to triangle zones (e.g. foreland Canadian Rockies) to low-displacement individually spaced ramp-anticlines (e.g. Sub-Andean thrust belt, Bolivia). We present a series of physical experiments demonstrating that the strength of the décollements relative to that of the intervening and overlying rock layers plays a significant role in controlling the duplex style. The models comprise brittle layers made of dry quartz sand and décollements made of two types of viscous silicone polymers. The strength of the décollements in the models is a function of the shortening rate applied to the model. The relative strength of the décollements and surrounding rocks affects the development of active- or passive-roof duplexes (triangle zones). It also affects the amount of translation of individual thrust blocks and the spacing of thrust ramps, which in turn determine if a duplex evolves into an antiformal stack or into individually spaced ramp-anticlines. Model results indicate that specific associations of structural features form systematically under similar rheological and boundary conditions. The presence of relatively strong décollements promotes local underthrusting of the cover, individual ramp-anticlines, internal deformation of thrust sheets, low early layer-parallel shortening, and sequential towards-the-foreland propagation of structures. Weak décollements promote forethrusting of the cover, antiformal stacks, coeval growth of structures, and low internal strain, with the exception of significant early layer-parallel shortening. No underthrusting at a regional scale occurred in any model.     

Geochemistry and geochronology of multi-generation garnet: New insights on the genesis and fluid evolution of prograde skarn formation

Origin of garnet in skarn (magmatic vs. hydrothermal) and the prograde skarn fluid evolution are still controversial. Two generations of garnet (Grt1, Grt2) were identified at the Tongshankou deposit: Grt1 is anisotropic with oscillatory zoning and resorbed boundary, whilst Grt2 grew around Grt1 and formed oscillatory rims. In-situ LA-ICP-MS U-Pb dating of Grt1 and Grt2 yielded a lower intercept ²⁰⁶Pb/²³⁸U age of 142.4 ± 2.8 Ma (n = 57; MSWD = 1.16) and 142.3 ± 9.6 Ma (n = 60; MSWD = 1.06), respectively, coeval with the ore formation and ore-related granodiorite emplacement. Positive Eu anomaly, non-CHARAC Y/Ho value and low TiO₂ content, together with the mineral assemblages indicate that both Grt1 and Grt2 have a hydrothermal origin. The existence of melt and melt-fluid inclusions in Grt1, together with similar LREE-enriched patterns to the granodiorite, further indicate that Grt1 may have formed in the magmatic-hydrothermal transition. Higher U contents and LREE-enriched patterns of Grt1 indicate that fluid I is mildly acidic pH and low fO₂. The inner gray Grt2 rims (Grt2A) is HREE-enriched with low U contents, indicating that fluid II has nearly neutral pH and high fO₂. The wider Y/Ho range and LREE-enriched patterns of the outer light-gray Grt2 rims (Grt2B) show that the evolved magmatic fluid II had mixed with an external fluid, characterized by being mildly acidic pH and with high fO₂. Our results suggest that the prograde skarn-forming fluids can be multistage at Tongshankou, and the mixing of meteoric water may have been prominent in the prograde skarn stage.     

A modern oceanic hardground on the Carnegie Ridge in the eastern Equatorial Pacific

Fossil surfaces of erosion and non-deposition are common in limestone sequences from the Mesozoic in western Europe and in the Tethys and have been described under the name ‘hardgrounds’. They are of shallow water as well as of oceanic origin. A modern example in the Pacific is described in this paper. The Carnegie Ridge, an east-west trending shallow ridge between South America and the Galapagos Islands, has a central, deeper saddle where erosion has removed most of the sediment cover down to a hard chalk and chert bed (acoustic basement), and has cut intricate channel patterns on the south flank and two deep canyons on the north. The erosion has produced a karst-like relief of steep-walled channels, cliffs, and corroded chalk remnants. The floors of the channels are covered with ferromanganese oxide crusts or crust fragments over which loose sediment is being transported. In the two canyons on the north flank, this sediment consists of foraminiferal sand travelling downslope in the form of barchan dunes. All sediment down to acoustic basement has been stripped from the Carnegie Ridge crest except where it is protected behind basement ridges and pinnacles. Surface features of the eroded chalk are strongly reminiscent of features observed in Mesozoic hardgrounds. Current measurements over several days indicate a net northward movement, slow but possibly adequate to keep the sea floor free of fresh deposits. The rates, however, seem inadequate to explain the formation of the deep channels, and there is no evidence for the southward flow which is implied by the southern channel system. A process of combined carbonate dissolution and removal by the current of fresh sediment and dissolution residues can account for the required erosion in about two million years. Regional unconformities identifiable in seismic reflection profiles and dated in cores are of middle to late Pliocene age, suggesting that the formation of the erosion surface began 2-3 million years ago. Buried Miocene unconformities of local extent show that the present erosion period had minor precursors possibly related to short-lived increases in current action and carbonate dissolution.     

The Cocos and Carnegie Aseismic Ridges: a Trace Element Record of Long-term Plume-Spreading Center Interaction

The aseismic Cocos and Carnegie Ridges, two prominent bathymetricfeatures in the eastern Pacific, record 20 Myr of interactionbetween the Galápagos hotspot and the adjacent GalápagosSpreading Center. Trace element data determined by inductivelycoupled plasma-mass spectrometry in >90 dredged seamountlavas are used to estimate melt generation conditions and mantlesource compositions along the ridges. Lavas from seamount provinceson the Cocos Ridge are alkalic and more enriched in incompatibletrace elements than any in the Galápagos archipelagotoday. The seamount lavas are effectively modeled as small degreemelts of a Galápagos plume source. Their eruption immediatelyfollows the failure of a rift zone at each seamount province'slocation. Thus the anomalously young alkalic lavas of the CocosRidge, including Cocos Island, are probably caused by post-abandonmentvolcanism following either a ridge jump or rift failure, andnot the direct activity of the Galápagos plume. The seamountshave plume-like signatures because they tap underlying mantlepreviously infused with Galápagos plume material. Whereasplume heterogeneities appear to be long-lived, tectonic rearrangementsof the ridge plate boundary may be the dominant factor in controllingregional eruptive behavior and compositional variations. KEY WORDS: mantle plume; mid-ocean ridge; Galápagos; abandoned rift; partial melting of the mantle     

Experimental insights into the formation of high-Mg basaltic andesites in the trans-Mexican volcanic belt

High-Mg basaltic andesites and andesites occur in the central trans-Mexican volcanic belt, and their primitive geochemical characteristics suggest equilibration with mantle peridotite. These lavas may represent slab melts that reequilibrated with overlying peridotite or hydrous partial melts of a peridotite source. Here, we experimentally map the liquidus mineralogy for a high-Mg basaltic andesite (9.6 wt% MgO, 54.4 wt% SiO₂, Mg# = 75.3) as a function of temperature and H₂O content over a range of mantle wedge pressures. Our results permit equilibration of this composition with a harzburgite residue at relatively high water contents (>7 wt%) and low temperatures (1,080–1,150°C) at 11–14 kbar. However, in contrast to the high Ni contents characteristic of olivine phenocrysts in many such samples from central Mexico, those of olivine phenocrysts in our sample are more typical of mantle melts that have fractionated a small amount of olivine. To account for this and the possibility that the refractory mantle source may have had olivine more Fo-rich than Fo₉₀, we numerically evaluated alternative equilibration conditions, using our starting bulk composition adjusted to be in equilibrium with Fo₉₂ olivine. This shifts equilibration conditions to higher temperatures (1,180–1,250°C) at mantle wedge pressures (11–15 kbar) for H₂O contents (>3 wt%) comparable to those analyzed in olivine-hosted melt inclusions from this region. Comparison with geodynamic models shows that final equilibration occurred shallower than the peak temperature of the mantle wedge, suggesting that basaltic melts from the hottest part of the wedge reequilibrated with shallower mantle as they approached the Moho.     

Phase equilibria constraints on melting of stromatic migmatites from Ronda (S. Spain): insights on the formation of peritectic garnet

Stromatic metatexites occurring structurally below the contact with the Ronda peridotite (Ojén nappe, Betic Cordillera, S Spain) are characterized by the mineral assemblage Qtz+Pl+Kfs+Bt+Sil+Grt+Ap+Gr+Ilm. Garnet occurs in low modal amount (2–5 vol.%). Very rare muscovite is present as armoured inclusions, indicating prograde exhaustion. Microstructural evidence of melting in the migmatites includes pseudomorphs after melt films and nanogranite and glassy inclusions hosted in garnet cores. The latter microstructure demonstrates that garnet crystallized in the presence of melt. Re‐melted nanogranites and preserved glassy inclusions show leucogranitic compositions. Phase equilibria modelling of the stromatic migmatite in the MnO–Na₂O–CaO–K₂O–FeO–MgO–Al₂O₃–SiO₂–H₂–O₂–C (MnNCaKFMASHOC) system with graphite‐saturated fluid shows P–T conditions of equilibration of 4.5–5 kbar, 660–700 °C. These results are consistent with the complete experimental re‐melting of nanogranites at 700 °C and indicate that nanogranites represent the anatectic melt generated immediately after entering supersolidus conditions. The P–T estimate for garnet and melt development does not, however, overlap with the low‐temperature tip of the pure melt field in the phase diagram calculated for the composition of preserved glassy inclusions in garnet in the Na₂O–CaO–K₂O–FeO–MgO–Al₂O₃–SiO₂–H₂O (NCKFMASH) system. A comparison of measured melt compositions formed immediately beyond the solidus with results of phase equilibria modelling points to the systematic underestimation of FeO, MgO and CaO in the calculated melt. These discrepancies are present also when calculated melts are compared with low‐T natural and experimental melts from the literature. Under such conditions, the available melt model does not perform well. Given the presence of melt inclusions in garnet cores and the P–T estimates for their formation, we argue that small amounts (<5 vol.%) of peritectic garnet may grow at low temperatures (≤700 °C), as a result of continuous melting reactions consuming biotite.     

Role of hydrodynamic factors in controlling the formation and location of unconformity-related uranium deposits: insights from reactive-flow modeling

The role of hydrodynamic factors in controlling the formation and location of unconformity-related uranium (URU) deposits in sedimentary basins during tectonically quiet periods is investigated. A number of reactive-flow modeling experiments at the deposit scale were carried out by assigning different dip angles and directions to a fault and various permeabilities to hydrostratigraphic units). The results show that the fault dip angle and direction, and permeability of the hydrostratigraphic units govern the convection pattern, temperature distribution, and uranium mineralization. A vertical fault results in uranium mineralization at the bottom of the fault within the basement, while a dipping fault leads to precipitation of uraninite below the unconformity either away from or along the plane of the fault, depending on the fault permeability. A more permeable fault causes uraninite precipitates along the fault plane, whereas a less permeable one gives rise to the precipitation of uraninite away from it. No economic ore mineralization can form when either very low or very high permeabilities are assigned to the sandstone or basement suggesting that these units seem to have an optimal window of permeability for the formation of uranium deposits. Physicochemical parameters also exert an additional control in both the location and grade of URU deposits. These results indicate that the difference in size and grade of different URU deposits may result from variation in fluid flow pattern and physicochemical conditions, caused by the change in structural features and hydraulic properties of the stratigraphic units involved.     

被动陆缘盆地陆隆斜坡对盐构造形成的影响 ——来自物理模拟实验的启示

被动陆缘盆地盐构造形成的影响因素及时空演化分析受到了国内外学者的高度重视.丰富的油气资源促进了被动陆缘盆地地震资料品质的不断提升,高精度地震数据的解译结果表明,被动陆缘盆地盐层下的地形往往具有大型的起伏特征,而前人在基底构造形态对盐构造形成影响方面的研究并未取得共识,仍需要深入研究和探讨.为此,本文基于前人的研究认识,...     

The petrogenesis of L-6 chondrites: insights from the chemistry of minerals

Major, minor and trace element concentrations have been measured in all the volumetrically significant minerals from the L-6 chondrites Alfianello, Colby (WI) and Leedey. Most of the elements show the compositional uniformity observed in other studies. However, REE, Co and Ni are distinctly different in their abundances and their phase distributions in each of the three meteorites. Such differences must manifest differing physical and chemical conditions involved in the formation of each of the three rocks. The distributions of REE and Ni between various phases are compatible with models which assume equilibrium between presently coexisting minerals. Such a model demonstrates how plausible differences in temperature and Ni content of metallic minerals could produce the observed differences in Ni abundances in olivine and clinopyroxene from each of the three chondrites.REE are too abundant in the minerals to have been produced by crystal-liquid fractionation from a magma of whole rock composition.Alkali element abundances are incompatible with a model of closed system equilibration of the meteorites. Rb is underabundant in feldspar relative to Na when compared to the equilibrium model predictions. A portion of the Cs seems to be included in feldspar by diadochic substitution, however, significant amounts are randomly associated with other minerals, perhaps by incorporation into lattice defects and at interstices. Partial loss of this nonfeldspathic Cs may be responsible for the large range of Cs abundances observed in chondrites.     

青藏高原西南部南北向构造研究的新见解

广泛分布在青藏高原西南部的南北向构造,是高原新生代陆内汇聚变形的重要组成部分。经过中外学者40余年研究,至今已取得许多重要进展并形成了一些共识,也存在若干分歧。作者对南北向构造研究及某些共识的不同意见是：①南北向构造不仅有伸展构造形迹,还有褶皱、逆断、叠加等挤压构造形迹;②不能用裂谷系代表所有的伸展构造,也不能用裂谷系、地堑系等伸展构造名称代表高原西南部的全部南北向构造形迹。建议采用＂南北向构造＂这一包容性强的中性名称;③南北向构造最早产生于始新世-渐新世;④首先产生南北向伸展构造的是藏北羌塘-青南地区而非喜马拉雅地区;⑤大致在渐新世末-中新世初,青藏高原曾出现过一次短暂的东西挤压应力场,生成了各式挤压构造变形形迹。本文的新见解既丰富了南北向构造的成份与内涵,又可以此将南北向构造划分为早期（E2-3）伸展、中期（E3末-N1初）挤压、晚期（中新世及以后）再伸展3个发生、发展期。     

The redox state of subduction zones: insights from arc-peridotites

Spinel peridotites from a variety of island arcs have been utilised to calculate the redox state of the mantle wedge above subduction zones. Oxygen fugacities (f_O2 values) calculated from the ferric iron content of spinels, measured by Electron Microprobe (EMP) using secondary standards [Wood, B.J., Virgo, D., 1989. Upper mantle oxidation state: ferric iron contents of lherzolite spinels by ⁵⁷Fe Mössbauer spectroscopy and resultant oxygen fugacities. Geochim. Cosmochim. Acta, 53, 1277–1291.], yield values which range from 0.3 to 2.0 above the fayalite–magnetite–quartz (FMQ) buffer. These data provide further evidence that the mantle wedge is ubiquitously oxidised relative to oceanic and ancient cratonic mantle. There is no correlation between f_O2 values and the presence of hydrous phases and, in fact, the most oxidised samples contain no hydrous phases. Within individual suites there is no correlation between f_O2 and degree of depletion as indicated by spinel Cr#, except for a suite of reacted forearc-peridotites. However, when the data is viewed as a whole there is broad a positive correlation between f_O2 and spinel Cr# suggesting that partial melting processes may influence the redox state of the mantle wedge. We suggest that the ultimate source of the oxygen which oxidises the mantle wedge is from the subducted slab. It is not clear whether this oxidising agent is a solute-rich hydrous fluid or a water-bearing silicate melt. However, our data does indicate that silicate melts are effective oxidisers of the depleted shallow upper mantle. Simple mass balance calculations based on the ferric iron content of primitive subduction zone magmas indicates that the source region must contain 0.6–1.0 wt.% Fe₂O₃. This amount of Fe₂O₃ in a fertile spinel peridotite yields an oxygen fugacity of 0.5–1.7 log units above FMQ in the IAB source. If water is the sole oxidising agent in the mantle wedge then 0.030–0.075 wt.% H₂O is required which is considerably less than the 0.25% H₂O envisaged by Stolper and Newman [Stolper, E.M., Newman, S., 1994. The role of water in the petrogenesis of Mariana trough magmas. Earth Planet. Sci. Lett., 121, 293–325.], suggesting water is not necessarily an efficient oxidising agent. Alternatively, ferric iron may be added to the mantle wedge by addition of a ferric iron-rich sediment melt or more likely as a solute-rich hydrous fluid. This model would produce spinel, orthopyroxene or amphibole in the wedge with only a slight increase in f_O2 of the source region. Although it is unclear which model is correct the maximum f_O2 of the fertile mantle wedge is unlikely to be above FMQ+2 and therefore some decompression melting in the mantle wedge is required to explain the higher f_O2 values of primitive arc lavas than arc-peridotites.     

Sedimentary processes in the Selvage sediment-wave field, NE Atlantic: new insights into the formation of sediment waves by turbidity currents

An integrated geophysical and sedimentological investigation of the Selvage sediment-wave field has revealed that the sediment waves are formed beneath unconfined turbidity currents. The sediment waves occur on the lower continental rise and display wavelengths of up to 1 km and wave heights of up to 6 m. Wave sediments consist of interbedded turbidites and pelagic/hemipelagic marls and oozes. Nannofossil-based dating of the sediments indicates a bulk sedimentation rate of 2·4 cm 1000 years^–1, and the waves are migrating upslope at a rate of 0·28 m 1000 years^–1. Sediment provenance studies reveal that the turbidity currents maintaining the waves are largely sourced from volcanic islands to the south. Investigation of existing models for sediment-wave formation leads to the conclusion that the Selvage sediment waves form as giant antidunes. Simple numerical modelling reveals that turbidity currents crossing the wave field have internal Froude numbers of 0·5–1·9, which is very close to the antidune existence limits. Depositional flow velocities range from <6 to 125 cm^–1. There is a rapid increase in wavelength and flow thickness in the upper 10 km of the wave field, which is unexpected, as the slope angle remains relatively constant. This anomaly is possibly linked to a topographic obstacle just upslope of the sediment waves. Flows passing over the obstacle may undergo a hydraulic jump at its boundary, leading to an increase in flow thickness. In the lower 15 km of the wave field, flow thickness decreases downslope by 60%, which is comparable with results obtained for other unconfined turbidity currents undergoing flow expansion.     

Advances in understanding calcite varve formation: new insights from a dual lake monitoring approach in the southern Baltic lowlands

We revise the conceptual model of calcite varves and present, for the first time, a dual lake monitoring study in two alkaline lakes providing new insights into the seasonal sedimentation processes forming these varves. The study lakes, Tiefer See in NE Germany and Czechowskie in N Poland, have distinct morphology and bathymetry, and therefore, they are ideal to decipher local effects on seasonal deposition. The monitoring setup in both lakes is largely identical and includes instrumental observation of (i) meteorological parameters, (ii) chemical profiling of the lake water column including water sampling, and (iii) sediment trapping at both bi-weekly and monthly intervals. We then compare our monitoring data with varve micro-facies in the sediment record. One main finding is that calcite varves form complex laminae triplets rather than simple couplets as commonly thought. Sedimentation of varve sub-layers in both lakes is largely dependent on the lake mixing dynamics and results from the same seasonality, commencing with diatom blooms in spring turning into a pulse of calcite precipitation in summer and terminating with a re-suspension layer in autumn and winter, composed of calcite patches, plant fragments and benthic diatoms. Despite the common seasonal cycle, the share of each of these depositional phases in the total annual sediment yield is different between the lakes. In Lake Tiefer See calcite sedimentation has the highest yields, whereas in Lake Czechowskie, the so far underestimated re-suspension sub-layer dominates the sediment accumulation. Even in undisturbed varved sediments, re-suspended material becomes integrated in the sediment fabric and makes up an important share of calcite varves. Thus, while the biogeochemical lake cycle defines the varves’ autochthonous components and micro-facies, the physical setting plays an important role in determining the varve sub-layers’ proportion.     

The Messinian Sicilian stratigraphy revisited: new insights for the Messinian salinity crisis

Controversies around the Messinian salinity crisis (MSC) are because of the difficulties in establishing genetic and stratigraphic relationships between its deep and shallow‐water record. Actually, the Sicilian foreland basin shows both shallow and deep‐water Messinian records, thus offering the chance to reconstruct comprehensive MSC scenarios. The Lower Gypsum of Sicily comprises primary and resedimented evaporites separated in space and time by the intra‐Messinian unconformity. A composite unit including halite, resedimented gypsum and Calcare di Base accumulated between 5.6 and 5.55 Ma in the main depocentres; it records the acme of the Messinian Salinity Crisis during a tectonic phase coupled with sea‐level falls at glacials TG14‐TG12. These deposits fully post‐date primary gypsum, which precipitated in shallow‐water wedge‐top and foreland ramp basins between 5.96 and 5.6 Ma. This new stratigraphic framework results in a three‐stage MSC scenario characterized by different primary evaporite associations: selenite in the first and third stages, carbonate, halite and potash salt in the second one associated with hybrid resedimented evaporites.     

Thermal evolution of the Hengshan extensional dome in central South China and its tectonic implications: New insights into low-angle detachment formation

The Hengshan massif is an exhumed, mid-crustal, plutonic–metamorphic dome formed during Cretaceous crustal extension in the Jiangnan orogenic belt, central South China. Multiple thermochronometers (mica ⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar, apatite fission track and zircon (U–Th)/He) are applied to its footwall along a slip-parallel transect to quantify its thermal history and cooling rate, and the slip magnitude, rate, initial geometry and kinematic evolution of the low-angle Hengshan detachment fault. Our thermochronological data, in conjunction with previous ages, indicate that (1) footwall rocks cooled from ~ 700 °C to ~ 60 °C in less than 60 Myr (136–80 Ma) at variable rates ranging from ~ 50 °C/Myr to ~ 13 °C/Myr, (2) the Hengshan detachment fault accommodated ~ 8–12 km of total slip at variable slip rates from 0.14 to 1 mm/yr during tectonic exhumation, (3) the footwall has been tilted ~ 26°–50° to the east since slip began, indicating that the low-angle Hengshan detachment fault initiated at a steep dip and was passively rotated to a more gentle orientation during subsequent normal slip. This study provides compelling evidence supporting that the low-angle detachment fault in the extensional dome can be generated by the reactivation and passive rotation of an initially steep reverse fault during normal slip. In addition, our thermochronological data constrain the time of extension in the Hengshan dome between 136 and 80 Ma, which implies that the back-arc extension within South China associated with the rollback of the Paleo-Pacific slab might have lasted until at least 80 Ma.