Metamorphic evolution of the Sesia-Lanzo Zone,Western Alps: time constraints from multi-system geochronology

 The Sesia-Lanzo Zone is a polymetamorphic unit containing Hercynian granulite relics overprinted by eclogite and greenschist facies metamorphism and deformation during the Alpine orogeny. Different parts of the unit record different stages on the P-T-deformation evolution, allowing multi-system isotopic studies to unravel the precise timing of the metamorphic history. New Rb–Sr white mica and U–Pb sphene data constrain the age of eclogite facies metamorphism and deformation to 60–70 Ma. This substantially alters the common view of early- to mid-Cretaceous eclogite facies metamorphism in this unit. The new results are more consistent with the established geotectonic framework for the Alpine orogeny, since they do not require a prolonged period of depressed geothermal gradient at a time when the region was in extension. It is also more concordant with recent studies of other units that demonstrate post-Cretaceous high-pressure metamorphism. Step-heated ⁴⁰Ar–³⁹Ar analysis of phengites yields good plateaux giving ages older than the corresponding Rb–Sr age. Such anomalously high ages indicate the presence of radiogenic argon-rich fluids in the grain boundary network under the fluid/pressure conditions acting during this high-pressure metamorphic event. The U–Pb sphene ages are variable in polymetamorphic rocks, and show inheritance of older Pb or sphene crystals into the high-pressure event. Two monometamorphic assemblages yield concordant ages at 66±1 Ma, reflecting crystallisation of the eclogite facies assemblage. The Gneiss Minuti Complex (GMC) lies structurally below the Eclogitic Micaschists, and its pervasive greenschist facies fabric yields tightly clustered Rb–Sr white mica ages at 38–39 Ma. This greenschist event did not affect the majority of the EMC. The ⁴⁰Ar–³⁹Ar ages of micas formed at this time were very disturbed, whereas micas surviving from an earlier higher pressure assemblage had their ⁴⁰Ar–³⁹Ar system reset. The greenschist event did not strongly affect U–Pb systematics in Hercynian age sphenes, suggesting that the GMC did not uniformly suffer an eclogite facies metamorphism during the Alpine cycle, but was juxtaposed against the EMC later in the orogeny. This model still requires that the locus of deformation and metamorphism (and possibly fluid flux) moved outboard with time, leaving the Sesia-Lanzo basement as a shear-bounded unreactive block within the orogenic wedge. Received: 12 October 1995/Accepted:25 June 1996     

Eocene high pressure metamorphism in the Penninic units of the Tauern Window (Eastern Alps): evidence from40Ar−39Ar dating and petrological investigations

The⁴⁰Ar-³⁹Ar degassing spectra of white micas and amphiboles from three tectonic units of the central Tauern Window (Pennine basement and cover in the Eastern Alps) have been measured. White micas are classified as (1) pre-Alpine low-Si relic micas with an age value of 292 Ma, variously disturbed by the Alpine metamorphism; (2) Alpine phengitic micas of variable composition with an age between 32 and 36 Ma; (3) Alpine low-Si micas with a maximum age of 27 Ma. We attribute the higher Alpine ages to a blueschist facies event, whereas the lower age reflects the late cooling of the nappe pile. Blueschist facies phengites from the basement (Lower Schieferhülle) and the tectonic cover (Upper Schieferhülle) crystallized at a temperature below the closure temperature (T _c) for argon diffusion in white mica and record ages of 32 to 36 Ma. At the same time a thin, eclogite facies unit (Eclogite Zone) was thrust between the Lower and the Upper Schieferhülle and cooled from eclogite facies conditions at about 600°C at 20 kbar to blueschist facies conditions at 450°C or even 300°C at >10 kbar. Eclogite facies phengites closed for argon diffusion and record cooling ages, coinciding with the crystallization ages in the hanging and the footwall unit. Amphibole age spectra (actinolite, glaucophane, barroisite) are not interpretable in terms of geologically meaningful ages because of excess argon.     

Syn‐metamorphic folding in the Tauern Window,Austria dated by Th–Pb ages from individual allanite porphyroblasts

High‐precision ²³²Th–²⁰⁸Pb dates have been obtained from allanite porphyroblasts that show unambiguous microstructural relationships to fabrics in a major syn‐metamorphic fold in the SE Tauern Window, Austria. Three porphyroblasts were analysed from a single garnet mica schist from the Peripheral Schieferhülle in the core of the Ankogel Synform, one of a series of folds which developed shortly before the thermal peak of Alpine epidote–amphibolite facies metamorphism: allanite grain 1 provided two analyses with a combined age of 27.7 ± 0.7 Ma; grain 2, which was slightly bent and fractured during crenulation, provided two analyses with a combined age of 27.7 ± 0.4 Ma; a single analysis from grain 3, which overgrew an already crenulated fabric, gave an age of 28.0 ± 1.4 Ma. The five ²³²Th–²⁰⁸Pb ages agree within error and define an isochron with an age of 27.71 ± 0.36 Ma (95% confidence level; MSWD = 0.46). The results imply that the crenulation event was in progress in a short interval (<1 Ma) c. 28 Ma, and that the Ankogel Synform was forming at this time. The thermal peak of regional metamorphism in the SE Tauern Window was probably attained shortly after 28 Ma, only c. 5 Ma after eclogite facies metamorphism in the central Tauern Window. Metasediment may contain allanite porphyroblasts with clear‐cut microstructural relationships to fabric development and metamorphic crystallization; for such rocks, ²³²Th–²⁰⁸Pb dating on microsamples offers a powerful geochronological tool.     

Thermal history of the Sonnblick Dome,south-east Tauern Window,Austria: Implications for heterogeneous uplift within the Pennine basement

The Sonnblick Dome is one of several domal structures affecting the interface between basement and cover within the Pennine Zone of the Tauern Window in the eastern Alps. Rb-Sr isotopic data, comprising 19 biotite and 22 white mica ages from variably deformed granitic gneisses, provide new evidence of the thermal and tectonic history of the dome and its relationships with other parts of the south-east Tauern Window. White mica ages generally cluster between 26 and 30 Ma although there are values up to 82 Ma, which appear to reflect incomplete equilibration during Tertiary metamorphism under low amphibolite facies conditions; six closely spaced samples from an intensely sheared gneiss lamella are more tightly grouped between 26 and 27.6 Ma and provide the best estimate of the age of syntectonic crystallization. Biotite ages are systematically younger, ranging from 19 to 23.5 Ma, reflecting closure during post-metamorphic cooling. Sonnblick Dome and the Hochalm Dome approximately 20 km further east, where closure of Rb-Sr in biotite did not occur until 16.5 Ma; the metamorphic peak here is also probably younger, possibly as late as 22 Ma. The Sonnblick Dome was formed before 27 Ma and the deformation style had changed to extension before biotite closure by 19 Ma. In contrast, rapid updoming in the Hochalm Dome was previously dated at 16.5 Ma and the differences in thermal history can be linked to differences in deformation history. Overall the geochronological data from the south-east Tauern Window demonstrate the heterogeneity of thermal history on a geographical scale of 10 km and emphasize the importance of tectonic displacements in controlling temperature within orogenic belts.     

Geochronological challenges posed by continuously developing tectonometamorphic systems: insights from Rb–Sr mica ages from the Cycladic Blueschist Belt,Syros (Greece)

Is metamorphism and its causative tectonics best viewed as a series of punctuated events or as a continuum? This question is addressed through examination of the timing of exhumation of the Cycladic Blueschist Belt (CBB). The cause of scatter beyond analytical error in Rb–Sr geochronology was investigated using a suite of 39 phengite samples. Rb–Sr ages have been measured on phengite microsamples drilled from specific microstructures in thin sections of calcschists and metabasites from the CBB on Syros. The majority are from samples that have well‐preserved blueschist facies mineral assemblages with limited greenschist facies overprint. The peak metamorphic temperatures involved are below the closure temperature for white mica so that crystallization ages are expected to be preserved. This is supported by the coexistence of different ages in microstructures of different relative age; in one sample phengite from the dominant extensional blueschist facies fabric preserves an age of 35 Ma while post‐tectonic mica, millimetres away, has an age of 26 Ma. The results suggest that micro‐sampling techniques linked to detailed microstructural analysis are critical to understanding the timing and duration of deformation in tectonometamorphic systems. North of the Serpentinite Belt in northern Syros, phengite Rb–Sr ages are generally between 53 and 46 Ma, comparable to previous dates from this area. South of the Serpentinite Belt phengite in blueschist facies assemblages associated with extensional fabrics linked to exhumation have ages that range from 42 Ma down to c. 30 Ma indicating that extensional deformation while still under blueschist facies conditions continued until 30 Ma. No age measurements on samples with unambiguous evidence of deformation under greenschist facies conditions were made; two rocks with greenschist facies assemblages gave phengite ages that overlap with the younger blueschist samples, suggesting blueschist facies phengite is preserved in these rocks. Two samples yielded ages below 27 Ma; one is from a post‐tectonic microstructure, the other from a greenschist in which the fabric developed during earlier blueschist facies conditions. These ages are consistent with previous evidence of greenschist facies conditions from c. 25 Ma onwards. The data are consistent with a model of deformation that is continuous on a regional scale.     

Glaucophane and pyroxene breakdown reactions in the Pennine units of the Eastern Alps

Abstract New occurrences of crossite and jadeitic pyroxene are described from a thick metabasite unit within the upper levels of the Peripheral Schieferhülle in the Tauern Window, Austria. Unusual textures are preserved which provide evidence for the reactions and mechanisms involved in the breakdown of crossite and jadeitic pyroxene. Zones of albite and chlorite, produced by reaction between crossite and paragonite, have been preserved due to sluggish reaction kinetics during decompression from the blueschist to the greenschist facies. The zonal sequence is interpreted in terms of chemical potential gradients in Na, Mg and Al, which have been established by overstepping the equilibrium boundary. Breakdown textures of jadeite-acmite pyroxene to a symplectite of albite + hematite + actinolite, and of crossite to talc and actinolite are also described.
The occurrence of crossite and jadeitic pyroxene at high levels within the Peripheral Schieferhülle implies that even upper levels of the structural sequence have undergone blueschist facies metamorphism with pressures in excess of 8 kbar during the Alpine collisional event.     

Crystallization and very rapid exhumation of the youngest Alpine eclogites (Tauern Window,Eastern Alps) from Rb/Sr mineral assemblage analysis

Multimineral Rb/Sr internal isochrons from eclogite facies rocks of the Eclogite Zone (Tauern Window, Eastern Alps) consistently yield an Early Oligocene age of 31.5±0.7 Ma. This age has been obtained both for late-prograde, dehydration-related eclogitic veins, and for rocks variably deformed and recrystallized under eclogite facies conditions (2.0–2.5 GPa, 600°C). Initial Sr-isotopic equilibria among all phases indicate absence of significant post-eclogitic isotope redistribution processes, therefore the ages date eclogite facies assemblage crystallization. Equilibria also prove that no prolonged pre-eclogite facies history is recorded in the rocks. Instead, subduction, prograde mineral reactions, and eclogitization proceeded rapidly. Fast exhumation immediately after eclogitization, with minimum rates >36 mm/a is inferred from a 31.5±0.5 Ma internal mineral isochron age of a post-eclogitic greenschist facies vein assemblage. Such rates equal typical subduction rates. Late Eocene to Early Oligocene subduction of the European continental margin, with subsequent rapid exhumation of high-pressure nappe complexes has previously been recognized only in the Western Alps. The new data signify synchronous continental collision all along the Alpine belt. Our results demonstrate the unique potential of Rb/Sr assemblage system analysis for precise dating of both eclogite facies and post-eclogitic events, thus for precisely constraining exhumation rates of deep-seated rocks, and for straightforward linkage of petrologic evidence with isotopic ages.     

The geometry and timing of orogenic extension: an example from the Western Italian Alps

Contacts between rocks recording large differences in metamorphic grade are indicative of major tectonic displacements. Low-P upon high-P contacts are commonly interpreted as extensional (i.e. material points on either side of the contact moved apart relative to the palaeo-horizontal), but dating of deformation and metamorphism is essential in testing such models. In the Western Alps, the Piemonte Ophiolite consists of eclogites (T ≈550–600 °C and P≈18–20 kbar) structurally beneath greenschist facies rocks (T ≈400 °C and P≈9 kbar). Mapping shows that the latter form a kilometre-wide shear zone (the Gressoney Shear Zone, GSZ) dominated by top-SE movement related to crustal extension. Rb–Sr data from micas within different GSZ fabrics, which dynamically recrystallized below their blocking temperature, are interpreted as deformation ages. Ages from different samples within the same fabric are reproducible and are consistent with the relative chronology derived from mapping. They show that the GSZ had an extensional deformation history over a period of c. 9 Myr between c. 45–36 Ma. This overlaps in time with the eclogite facies metamorphism. The GSZ operated over the entire period during which the footwall evolved from eclogite to greenschist facies and was therefore responsible for eclogite exhumation. The discrete contact zone between eclogite and greenschist facies rocks is the last active part of the GSZ and truncates greenschist facies folds in the footwall. These final movements were therefore not a major component of eclogite exhumation. Pressure estimates associated with old and young fabrics within the GSZ are comparable, indicating that during extensional deformation there was no significant unroofing of the hangingwall. Since there are no known extensional structures younger than 36 Ma at higher levels in this part of the Alps, exhumation since the final juxtaposition of the two units (at 36 Ma) seems to have been dominated by erosion. Key words: deformation age, eclogite, exhumation, Rb–Sr dating, tectonic.     

The geological significance of 40Ar/39Ar and Rb–Sr white mica ages from Syros and Sifnos,Greece: a record of continuous (re)crystallization during exhumation?

The Attic‐Cycladic crystalline belt in the central Aegean region records a complex structural and metamorphic evolution that documents Cenozoic subduction zone processes and exhumation. A prerequisite to develop an improved tectono‐metamorphic understanding of this area is dating of distinct P–T–D stages. To evaluate the geological significance of phengite ages of variably overprinted rocks, ⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar and Rb–Sr analyses were undertaken on transitional blueschist–greenschist and greenschist facies samples from the islands of Syros and Sifnos. White mica geochronology indicates a large age variability (⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar: 41–27 Ma; Rb–Sr: 34–20 Ma). Petrologically similar samples have either experienced greenschist facies overprinting at different times or variations in ages record variable degrees of greenschist facies retrogression and incomplete resetting of isotopic systematics. The ⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar and Rb–Sr data for metamorphic rocks from both islands record only minor, localized evidence for Miocene ages (c. 21 Ma) that are well documented elsewhere in the Cyclades and interpreted to result from retrogression of high‐pressure mineral assemblages during lower pressure metamorphism. Field and textural evidence suggests that heterogeneous overprinting may be due to a lack of permeability and/or limited availability of fluids in some bulk compositions and that retrogression was more or less parallel to lithological layering and/or foliation as a result of, possibly deformation‐enhanced, channelized fluid ingress. Published and new ⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar and Rb–Sr data for both islands indicate apparent age variations that can be broadly linked to mineral assemblages documenting transitional blueschist‐to‐greenschist‐ and/or greenschist facies metamorphism. The data do not record the timing of peak HP metamorphism, but may accurately record continuous (partial) resetting of isotopic systematics and/or (re)crystallization of white mica during exhumation and greenschist facies retrogression. The form of ⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar phengite age spectra are complex with the lowest temperature steps yielding Middle to Late Miocene ages. The youngest Rb–Sr ages suggest maximum ages of 20.6 ± 0.8 Ma (Syros) and 22.5 ± 0.6 Ma (Sifnos) for the timing of greenschist facies overprinting. The results of this study further accentuate the challenges of interpreting isotopic data for white mica from polymetamorphic terranes, particularly when mixing of populations and/or incomplete resetting of isotopic systematics occurs during exhumation. These data capture the full range of isotopic age variations in retrogressed HP rocks documented in previous isotopic studies, and can be interpreted in terms of the geodynamic evolution of the Aegean.     

Alpine geodynamic evolution of passive and active continental margin sequences in the Tauern Window (eastern Alps, Austria, Italy): a review

The Penninic oceanic sequence of the Glockner nappe and the foot-wall Penninic continental margin sequences exposed within the Tauern Window (eastern Alps) have been investigated in detail. Field data as well as structural and petrological data have been combined with data from the literature in order to constrain the geodynamic evolution of these units. Volcanic and sedimentary sequences document the evolution from a stable continent that was formed subsequent to the Variscan orogeny, to its disintegration associated with subsidence and rifting in the Triassic and Jurassic, the formation of the Glockner oceanic basin and its consumption during the Upper Cretaceous and the Paleogene. These units are incorporated into a nappe stack that was formed during the collision between a Penninic Zentralgneis block in the north and a southern Austroalpine block. The Venediger nappe and the Storz nappe are characterized by metamorphic Jurassic shelf deposits (Hochstegen group) and Cretaceous flysch sediments (Kaserer and Murtörl groups), the Eclogite Zone and the Rote Wand–Modereck nappe comprise Permian to Triassic clastic sequences (Wustkogel quartzite) and remnants of platform carbonates (Seidlwinkl group) as well as Jurassic volcanoclastic material and rift sediments (Brennkogel facies), covered by Cretaceous flyschoid sequences. Nappe stacking was contemporaneous to and postdated subduction-related (high-pressure) eclogite and blueschist facies metamorphism. Emplacement of the eclogite-bearing units of the Eclogite zone and the Glockner nappe onto Penninic continental units (Zentralgneis block) occurred subsequent to eclogite facies metamorphism. The Eclogite zone, a former extended continental margin, was subsequently overridden by a pile of basement-cover nappes (Rote Wand–Modereck nappe) along a ductile out-of-sequence thrust. Low-angle normal faults that have developed during the Jurassic extensional phase might have been inverted during nappe emplacement.     

Rb/Sr record of fluid-rock interaction in eclogites: The Marun-Keu complex, Polar Urals, Russia

Rb/Sr internal mineral isochrons in the eclogite facies Marun-Keu metamorphic complex, Polar Urals, Russia, date periods of fluid-rock interaction and record the metamorphic reaction history. The Marun-Keu complex consists of Late Proterozoic to Early Ordovician, mostly igneous rocks that experienced a subduction-related, non-pervasive eclogite facies metamorphism, followed by a local decompression-related amphibolite facies overprint, during the Uralian orogeny. Field observations show that metamorphic reactions as well as ductile deformation are controlled by local availability of a free fluid phase. Isotopic data reveals that availability of fluids similarly exerts control on isotope distribution. From a relic gabbro which has never been infiltrated by free fluids, a premetamorphic Rb/Sr age of 467 ± 39 Ma was obtained. Rb/Sr isochron ages for 14 samples of eclogite and amphibolite facies assemblages, sampled from within or close to metamorphic fluid veins, range from 352 ± 5 Ma to 360 ± 3 Ma. A Sm/Nd isochron for a metagranite yields an age of 354 ± 4 Ma. Taken together, the ages for both prograde and retrograde metamorphic assemblages overlap within analytical uncertainty and yield an average value of 355.5 ± 1.4 Ma, indicating that the metamorphic evolution and incipient exhumation of the Marun-Keu complex proceeded rapidly. The results demonstrate that assemblages preserve their Rb/Sr isotopic signatures as long as they remain devoid of free fluids, and that only fluid-rock interaction may cause Sr isotope redistribution. In addition, the data suggest local fluid-rock equilibrium, low fluid-rock ratios with overall fluid deficiency, and limited fluid mobility at depth. However, some fluids must have been mobile on the km-scale since they can be traced into the suprasubduction zone mantle wedge. Metasomatic veins in the Rai-Iz ophiolite yield a Rb/Sr mineral isochron age of 373.1 ± 5.4 Ma. They are interpreted as evidence for suprasubduction zone metasomatism in an oceanic setting, prior to subduction of the East European margin and associated formation of eclogites in the Marun-Keu complex.We propose that Rb/Sr mineral-isochron ages provide hygrochronological rather than thermochronological constraints. They define the cooling history only in combination with zircon and apatite fission track data. The straightforward interpretation of Rb/Sr mineral ages as cooling ages is obsolete.     

Using white mica 40Ar/39Ar data as a tracer for fluid flow and permeability under high‐P conditions: Tauern Window,Eastern Alps

New single‐grain‐fusion muscovite and paragonite ⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar data from eclogite and blueschist units exposed in the Tauern Window, Eastern Alps yield a range of apparent ages from 90 to 23 Ma. These apparent ages are generally older than expected for ⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar cooling ages, given constraints from other geochronological systems such as Rb–Sr and U–Pb. Numerical Ar‐in‐muscovite diffusion models for Tauern Window nappe P–T paths in an open system suggest that ⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar ages should lie between 29 and 24 Ma, and that they should constrain cooling and decompression following the post‐high pressure Barrovian overprint. The measured ranges of apparent ⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar dates suggest that the assumption of open system behaviour is not valid for this region. The local and/or regional generation of fluid during exhumation promoted pervasive recrystallization of high pressure lithologies throughout the Tauern Window to greenschist and amphibolite facies assemblages. The old apparent ⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar white mica dates in all lithologies are therefore interpreted as being due to inefficient removal of grain boundary Ar by the grain boundary fluids during the Barrovian overprint, due to high Ar concentrations or limited connectivity or both. This caused spatially (mm‐scale) and temporally variable fluxes of Ar out of, and probably into, white mica in both metasedimentary and metabasic lithologies.     

Evolution of quartz microstructures and textures during polyphase deformation within the Tauern Window (Eastern Alps)

The interior of the Tauern Window exposes underplated Penninic continental lithosphere and the overlying obducted Penninic oceanic crust within a large antiformal dome in the internal zone of the Eastern Alps. These units have been affected by a polyphase deformation history. Generally, three deformation events are distinguished. D₁ is related to underplating of, and top-to-the-N nappe stacking within, the Penninic continental units of the Tauern Window. Deformation stage D₂ is interpreted to reflect the subsequent continent collision between the Penninic continental units and the European foreland, D₃ is related to the formation of the dome structure within the Tauern Window. During thickening of continental lithosphere and nappe stacking (D₁), and subsequent intracontinental shortening (D₂), these tectonic units have been ductilely deformed close to a plane strain geometry. Conditions for the plastic deformation of the main rock-forming mineral phases (quartz, feldspar, dolomite, calcite) have prevailed during all three phases of crustal deformation. Generally, two types of quartz microstructures that are related to D₁ are distinguished within the Tauern Window: (a) Equilibrated and annealed fabrics without crystallographic preferred orientations (CPO) have only been observed in the central part of the southeastern Tauern Window, corresponding with amphibolite-grade metamorphic conditions. (b) In the northeastern and central part of the Tauern Window microstructures are characterized by quartz grains that show equilibrated shape fabrics, but well preserved CPO with type-I cross girdle distributions, indicating a deformation geometry close to plane strain. During D₂, two types of quartz microstructures are distinguished, too: (a) Quartz grains that show equilibrated shape fabrics, but well-preserved CPO. The c-axes distributions generally are characterized by type-I cross girdles, locally by type-II cross girdles, and in places, oblique single girdle distributions. (b) A second type of quartz microstructure is characterized by highly elongated grains and fabrics typical for dislocation creep and grain-boundary migration, and strong CPO. This type is restricted to the southern sections of the western and eastern Tauern Window. The c-axis distributions show type-I cross girdles in the western part of the Tauern Window and single girdles in the southeastern part. In the western part of the Tauern Window, a continuous transition from type (b) microstructures in the south to type (a) microstructures in the north is documented. The microstructural evolution also documents that the dome formation in the southeastern and western Tauern Window has already started during D₂ and has continued subsequent to the equilibration during amphibolite to greenschist facies metamorphism. D₃ is restricted to distinct zones of localized deformation. D₃-related quartz fabrics are characterized by the formation of ribbon grains; the c-axes show small-circle distributions around the Z-axis of the finite-strain ellipsoid. During exhumation and doming (D₃), deformation occurred under continuously decreasing temperatures.     

Formation, subduction, and exhumation of Penninic oceanic crust in the Eastern Alps: time constraints from Ar/Ar geochronology

New ⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar geochronology places time constraints on several stages of the evolution of the Penninic realm in the Eastern Alps. A 186±2 Ma age for seafloor hydrothermal metamorphic biotite from the Reckner Ophiolite Complex of the Pennine–Austroalpine transition suggests that Penninic ocean spreading occurred in the Eastern Alps as early as the Toarcian (late Early Jurassic). A 57±3 Ma amphibole from the Penninic subduction–accretion Rechnitz Complex dates high-pressure metamorphism and records a snapshot in the evolution of the Penninic accretionary wedge. High-pressure amphibole, phengite, and phengite+paragonite mixtures from the Penninic Eclogite Zone of the Tauern Window document exhumation through ≤15 kbar and >500 °C at 42 Ma to 10 kbar and 400 °C at 39 Ma. The Tauern Eclogite Zone pressure–temperature path shows isothermal decompression at mantle depths and rapid cooling in the crust, suggesting rapid exhumation. Assuming exhumation rates slower or equal to high-pressure–ultrahigh-pressure terrains in the Western Alps, Tauern Eclogite Zone peak pressures were reached not long before our high-pressure amphibole age, probably at ≤45 Ma, in accordance with dates from the Western Alps. A late-stage thermal overprint, common to the entire Penninic thrust system, occurred within the Tauern Eclogite Zone rocks at 35 Ma. The high-pressure peak and switch from burial to exhumation of the Tauern Eclogite Zone is likely to date slab breakoff in the Alpine orogen. This is in contrast to the long-lasting and foreland-propagating Franciscan-style subduction–accretion processes that are recorded in the Rechnitz Complex.     

Sm-Nd isotopic evidence on the age of eclogitization in the Zermatt-Saas ophiolite

Rocks within the Zermatt-Saas ophiolite of the western Alps have undergone eclogite facies metamorphism during subduction prior to the Alpine collision. The metamorphic history of these rocks is well defined, with eclogitic assemblages being followed by the limited growth of blueschist assemblages of glaucophane and paragonite. Subsequent greenschist alteration occurs adjacent to faults, veins and metasediments. Away from such sources of water, retrogression is very limited. Sm-Nd isotopic analyses of an essentially unretrogressed eclogitic metabasalt suggest that eclogite facies metamorphism occurred at 52 ± 18 Ma. The large uncertainty is due to the presence of very small amounts of Nd-rich epidote present as inclusions within garnet. As the closure temperature of garnet to Sm & Nd is thought to be >600C, resetting due to post-high-pressure diffusion is thought to be insignificant. Given the fine-grained protolith to the sample analysed, and its extensive deformation under eclogite facies conditions, incomplete homogenization of pre-metamorphic isotopic variations is also considered unlikely to be responsible for the young age. A Tertiary age of eclogitization means that models of early Alpine evolution based on the cessation of high-pressure metamorphism in the Cretaceous need to be revised.     

Time calibration of a PT-path from the Western Tauern Window,Eastern Alps: the problem of closure temperatures

New Hornblende K-Ar and ³⁹Ar-⁴⁰Ar and mica Rb-Sr and K-Ar ages are used to place specific timemarks on a well-constrained pressure-temperature path for the late Alpine metamorphism in the Western Tauern Window. After identification of excess ⁴⁰Ar, the closure behavior of Ar in hornblende is compared with that of Sr and Ar in phengite and biotite. Samples were collected in three locations, whose maximum temperatures were 570° C (Zemmgrund), 550° C (Pfitscher Joch), and 500–540° C (Landshuter Hütte).The average undisturbed age sequence found is: Phengite Rb-Sr (20 Ma)>hornblende K-Ar (18 Ma)>phengite K-Ar (15 Ma)>biotite Rb-Sr, K-Ar (13.3 Ma)>apatite FT (7 Ma). Except for the phengite Rb-Sr age, the significance of which is debatable, all ages are cooling ages. No compositional effects are seen for closure in biotite. Additionally, Rb-Sr phengite ages from shearzones possibly indicate continuous shearing from 20 to 15 Ma, with reservations regarding the validity of the initial Sr correction and possible variations of the closure temperatures. The obviously lower closure temperature (T _c) for Ar in these hornblendes than for Sr in the unsheared phengites indicates that the T _c sequence in the Western Tauern Window is different from those observed in other terrains. In spite of this discrepancy, valuable geological conclusions can be drawn if the application of closure temperatures is limited to this restricted area with similar T, P and : (1) All ages of samples located on equal metamorphic isotherms decrease from east to west by about 1 Ma which is the result of a westward tilting of the Tauern Window during uplift. (2) In a PT-path, the undisturbed cooling ages yield constantly decreasing uplift rates from 3.6 mm/a to 0.1 mm/a. (3) Use of recently published diffusion data for Ar in hornblende (T _c=520° C) and biotite (T _c=320° C) suggests an extrapolated phengite closure temperature for Sr at 550° C. This suggests that the prograde thermal metamorphism at this tectonic level of the Tauern Window lasted until some 20 Ma ago.     

Two subduction events in a polycyclic basement: Alpine and pre-Alpine high-pressure metamorphism in the Suretta nappe, Swiss Eastern Alps

This study is essentially based on coupling macrostructures, microstructures and metamorphic petrology in polymetamorphic mafic rocks from the Swiss Eastern Alps (Suretta nappe, Penninic domain). Petrographic criteria are used in conjunction with structural analysis and microprobe work to define crystallization/deformation relationships and to establish a relative but precise sequence of tectono-metamorphic events. A first eclogite facies overprint and related exhumation occurred before emplacement of late Palaeozoic intrusives. During the Alpine cycle, the Suretta nappe was part of the thinned European continental margin. The Tertiary burial due to subduction and collision is responsible for D1 ductile thrusting and blueschist facies metamorphism. Late deformation phases, related to exhumation, are responsible for the development of extensional structures under greenschist facies conditions. Quantitative metamorphic petrology based on Gibbs free energy minimization (DOMINO by de Capitani) gives a constraint on the P–T  conditions during the polymetamorphic and polycyclic evolution. The first high- P metamorphic event related to pre-Alpine structures occurred at c . 700  °C and at least 2.0  GPa. These conditions are compatible with pre-Alpine high- P re-equilibration already described in several Alpine units. The Alpine high- P metamorphism occurred under blueschist facies conditions at c . 400–450  °C and 1.0  GPa. Similar high- P , low- T  conditions have already been described in the Mesozoic and Permian rock types. The two high- P events are clearly related to two different geothermal regimes and geodynamic environments.     

High-Si phengite records the time of greenschist facies overprinting: implications for models suggesting mega-detachments in the Aegean Sea

In the lower main unit of the Attic‐Cycladic crystalline belt (Greece), white mica geochronology (Rb–Sr, K–Ar, ⁴⁰Ar–³⁹Ar) has established the timing of at least two metamorphic events: well‐preserved high‐pressure/low‐temperature (HP/LT) rocks yielded Eocene ages (c. 53–40 Ma) and their greenschist facies counterparts provided Oligocene–Miocene dates (c. 25–18 Ma). Marbles from Tinos Island contain high‐Si phengite with Rb–Sr (phengite–calcite) and ⁴⁰Ar–³⁹Ar white mica ages between 41 and 24 Ma. All Ar age spectra are disturbed and ⁴⁰Ar–³⁹Ar total fusion ages generally are 3–6 Ma older than corresponding Rb–Sr ages. Due to the polymetamorphic history, we consider inheritance from the HP stage as the most likely cause for the complex Ar age spectra and the older ⁴⁰Ar–³⁹Ar dates. This concept also suggests that the Rb–Sr system is more sensitive to modification during overprinting than the Ar isotope system, because resetting of the Sr isotope system can be accomplished more quickly by Sr exchange with other Ca‐rich phases, whereas lack of pervasive deformation and/or restricted availability of synmetamorphic fluids has favoured partial inheritance of the Ar isotope system. On Tinos, the lowermost part of the metamorphic succession has experienced a pervasive greenschist facies overprint. Si‐rich phengite from marbles representing this lithostratigraphic level yielded Rb–Sr ages of c. 24 Ma. If the earlier metamorphic history is not taken into account, such data sets may lead to the erroneous conclusion of Miocene HP metamorphism. This study indicates that this phengite experienced pervasive rejuvenation of the Rb–Sr isotope system during overprinting, without significant changes in Si content, due to bulk‐compositional constraints. This leads to the conclusion that in the absence of critical mineral assemblages the Si value of phengite is not a reliable indicator for metamorphic pressures in impure marbles. Recent studies have reported large displacements (>100 km) for detachment faults in the Aegean Sea. A critical parameter for such models is the age of HP metamorphism as deduced from white mica dating in the basal units of the Cyclades. We question the underlying idea of Miocene HP metamorphism and suggest, instead, that this age constrains the timing of the greenschist facies overprint and that the existence of mega‐detachments in the study area requires further investigation.     

Isotopic constraints on age and duration of fluid-assisted high-pressure eclogite-facies recrystallization during exhumation of deeply subducted continental crust in the Sulu orogen

Fluid availability during high‐grade metamorphism is a critical factor in dictating petrological, geochemical and isotopic reequilibration between metamorphic minerals, with fluid‐absent metamorphism commonly resulting in neither zircon growth/recrystallization for U‐Pb dating nor Sm‐Nd isotopic resetting for isochron dating. While peak ultra‐high pressure (UHP) metamorphism is characterized by fluid immobility, high‐pressure (HP) eclogite‐facies recrystallization during exhumation is expected to take place in the presence of fluid. A multichronological study of UHP eclogite from the Sulu orogen of China indicates zircon growth at 216 ± 3 Ma as well as mineral Sm‐Nd and Rb‐Sr reequilibration at 216 ± 5 Ma, which are uniformly younger than UHP metamorphic ages of 231 ± 4 to 227 ± 2 Ma as dated by the SHRIMP U‐Pb method for coesite‐bearing domains of zircon. O isotope reequilibration was achieved between the Sm‐Nd and Rb‐Sr isochron minerals, but Hf isotopes were not homogenized between different grains of zircon. The HP eclogite‐facies recrystallization is also evident from petrography. Thus this process occurred during exhumation with fluid availability from decompression dehydration of hydrous minerals and the exsolution of hydroxyl from nominally anhydrous minerals. This provides significant amounts of internally derived fluid for extensive retrogression within the UHP metamorphosed slabs. Based on available experimental diffusion data, the consistent reequilibration of U‐Pb, Sm‐Nd, Rb‐Sr and O isotope systems in the eclogite minerals demonstrates that time‐scale for the HP eclogite‐facies recrystallization is c. 1.9–9.3 Myr or less. This provides a maximum estimate for duration of the fluid‐facilitated process in the HP eclogite‐facies regime during the exhumation of deeply subducted continental crust.     

Kinematic reworking and exhumation within the convergent Alpine Orogen

Kinematic data from the internal zones of the Western Alps indicate both top-to-SE and top-to-NW shearing during synkinematic greenschist facies recrystallisation. Rb/Sr data from white micas from different kinematic domains record a range of ages that does not represent closure through a single thermal event but reflects the variable timing of synkinematic mica recrystallisation at temperatures between 300 and 450 °C. The data indicate an initial phase of accretion and foreland-directed thrusting at ca. 60 Ma followed by almost complete reworking of thrust-related deformation by SE-directed shearing. This deformation is localised within oceanic units of the Combin Zone and the base of the overlying Austroalpine basement, and forms a regional scale shear zone that can be traced for almost 50 km perpendicular to strike. The timing of deformation in this shear zone spans 9 Ma from 45 to 36 Ma. The SE-directed shear leads to local structures that cut upwards in the transport direction with respect to tectonic stratigraphy, and such structures have been interpreted in the past as backthrusts in response to ongoing Alpine convergence. However, on a regional scale, the top-to-SE deformation is related to crustal extension, not shortening, and is coincident with exhumation of eclogites in its footwall. During this extension phase, deformation within the shear zone migrated both spatially and temporally giving rise to domains of older shear zone fabrics intercalated with zones of localised reworking. Top-NW kinematics preserved within the Combin Zone show a range of ages. The oldest (48 Ma) may reflect the final stages of emplacement of Austroalpine Units above Piemonte oceanic rocks prior to the onset of extension. However, much of the top-to-NW deformation took place over the period of extension and may reflect either continuing or episodic convergence or tectonic thinning of the shear zone.⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar data from the region are complicated due to the widespread occurrence of excess ⁴⁰Ar in eclogite facies micas and partial Ar loss during Alpine heating. Reliable ages from both eclogite and greenschist facies micas indicate cooling ages in different tectonic units of between 32 and 40 Ma. These ages are slightly younger than Rb/Sr deformation ages and suggest that cooling below ca. 350 °C occurred after juxtaposition of the units by SE-directed extensional deformation.Our data indicate a complex kinematic history involving both crustal shortening and extension within the internal zones of the Alpine Orogen. To constrain the palaeogeographic and geodynamic evolution of the Alps requires that these data be integrated with data from the more external zones of the orogen. Complexity such as that described is unlikely to be restricted to the Western Alps and spatially and temporally variable kinematic data are probably the norm in convergent orogens. Recognising such features is fundamental to the correct tectonic interpretation of both modern and ancient orogens.