Rock material from the Weddell Sea Floor of the South Ocean

This work is devoted to the results of the joint Russian-German geodynamic research carried out in the Weddell Sea and West Antarctica during cruise ANT-XXII/3 of the R/V Polarstern in 2005. The study of rock samples collected from the sea floor showed that a heterogeneous structure of the Weddell Sea was formed by spatiotemporal combination of the destruction of continental crust, progressive thalassogenesis (oceanization-taphrogenesis), and rifting, as opposed to a spreading origin. High postconsolidation mobility during the destruction stage led to the areal dismembering and high permeability of the continental crust, as well as to tectonomagmatic activation. The main mechanism of reworking of the continental crust is recognized to be the magmatic replacement by basic-ultrabasic mantle material with formation of a secondary oceanic crust and preservation of relics of the continental crust. The Earth’s endogenous activity was driven by transmagmatic fluid flows, which ascended from the melted core and caused transformation of the Earth’s crust and mantle.     

Protoliths and phase petrology of whiteschists

Whiteschists appear in numerous high- and ultrahigh-pressure rock suites and are characterized by the mineral assemblage kyanite + talc (+-quartz or coesite). We demonstrate that whiteschist mineral assemblages are well stable up to pressures of more than 4 GPa but may already form at pressures of 0.5 GPa. The formation of whiteschists largely depends on the composition of the protolith, which requires elevated contents of Al and Mg as well as low Fe, Ca, and Na contents, as otherwise chloritoid, amphibole, feldspar, or omphacite are formed instead of kyanite or talc. Furthermore, the stability field of the whiteschist mineral assemblage strongly depends on XCO₂ and fO₂: already at low values of XCO₂, CO₂ binds Mg to carbonates strongly reducing the whiteschist stability field, whereas high fO₂ enlarges the stability field and stabilizes yoderite. Thus, the scarcity of whiteschist is not necessarily due to unusual P–T conditions, but to the restricted range of suitable protolith compositions and the spatial distribution of these protoliths: (1) continental sedimentary rocks and (2) hydrothermally and metasomatically altered felsic to mafic rocks. The continental sedimentary rocks that may produce whiteschist mineral assemblages typically have been deposited under arid climatic conditions in closed evaporitic basins and may be restricted to relatively low latitudes. These rocks often contain large amounts of the clay minerals palygorskite and sepiolite. Marine sediments generally do not yield whiteschist mineral assemblages as marine shales commonly have too high iron contents. Sabkha deposits may have too high CO₂ contents. Protoliths of appropriate geochemical composition occur in and on continental crust. Therefore, whiteschist assemblages typically are only found in settings of continental collision or where continental fragments were involved in subduction. Our calculations demonstrate that whiteschists can form by closed-system metamorphism, which implies that the chemical and isotopic composition of these rocks provide constraints on the development of the protoliths.     

Sedimentary complexes of the cover of the Dzabkhan continental block: Different sedimentary basins and source areas

The geochemical and Sm–Nd isotope characteristics of Late Precambrian and Early Cambrian sandstones previously related to the sedimentary cover of the Dzabkhan continental block are reported. It is established that the Riphean and Vendian sedimentary rocks of the Ul’zitgol’skaya and Tsaganolomskaya Formations were accumulated within the Dzabkhan continental block as a result of recycling of the terrigenous deposits formed at the expense of destruction of basement rocks and younger granite. The formation of terrigenous rocks of the Bayangol’skaya Formation after a gap in sedimentation occurred in the sedimentary basin, where only the Late Riphean formations of the juvenile crust, probably of the Dzabkhan–Mandal block were the sources, without the contribution of the ancient crustal material. The Tsaganolomskaya and Bayangol’skaya Formations were formed in different sedimentary basins and cannot be related to the same complex.     

江西南部震旦—寒武纪寻乌岩组变沉积岩地球化学特征及构造意义

寻乌岩组变沉积岩发育在江西南部新元古代—早古生代南城—寻乌盆地内,时代为震旦—寒武纪。寻乌岩组的Si O2含量变化较大,除1个含量较低的样品外,平均为63.01%,具有相对较高的K2O、Al2O3及(TFe O+Mg O)值,较低的Na2O、Ca O。相容元素含量与后太古代澳大利亚页岩(PAAS)十分接近,高于中国东部上地壳,与其较高的(TFe O+Mg O)特征相吻合,说明源区具有一定数量的中基性组分。稀土元素总量高于上地壳及PAAS,但其球粒陨石标准化配分模式与典型的上地壳及PAAS相似,表现为明显向右倾斜,轻稀土富集,重稀土平坦,铕负异常显著,铈负异常不明显。岩石地球化学特征显示其原岩属于一种中等成熟度的陆源碎屑岩,物源主要为被改造的上地壳长英质和花岗质物源区,少部分物源为中基性火山岩。高场强元素及稀土元素等不活动元素地球化学特征表明其沉积环境为浅海—半深海,其构造环境属于发育有裂谷系的被动大陆边缘,该认识从沉积岩地球化学方面为华南早古生代构造属性提供了新资料。     

Continental recycling and true continental growth

Continental crust is very important for evolution of life because most bioessential elements are supplied from continent to ocean. In addition, the distribution of continent affects climate because continents have much higher albedo than ocean, equivalent to cloud. Conventional views suggest that continental crust is gradually growing through the geologic time and that most continental crust was formed in the Phanerozoic and late Proterozoic. However, the thermal evolution of the Earth implies that much amounts of continental crust should be formed in the early Earth. This is “Continental crust paradox”.Continental crust comprises granitoid, accretionary complex, and sedimentary and metamorphic rocks. The latter three components originate from erosion of continental crust because the accretionary and metamorphic complexes mainly consist of clastic materials. Granitoid has two components: a juvenile component through slab-melting and a recycling component by remelting of continental materials. Namely, only the juvenile component contributes to net continental growth. The remains originate from recycling of continental crust. Continental recycling has three components: intracrustal recycling, crustal reworking, and crust–mantle recycling, respectively. The estimate of continental growth is highly varied. Thermal history implied the rapid growth in the early Earth, whereas the present distribution of continental crust suggests the slow growth. The former regards continental recycling as important whereas the latter regarded as insignificant, suggesting that the variation of estimate for the continental growth is due to involvement of continental recycling.We estimated erosion rate of continental crust and calculated secular changes of continental formation and destruction to fit four conditions: present distribution of continental crust (no continental recycling), geochronology of zircons (intracontinental recycling), Hf isotope ratios of zircons (crustal reworking) and secular change of mantle temperature. The calculation suggests some important insights. (1) The distribution of continental crust around at 2.7 Ga is equivalent to the modern amounts. (2) Especially, the distribution of continental crust from 2.7 to 1.6 Ga was much larger than at present, and the sizes of the total continental crust around 2.4, 1.7, and 0.8 Ga became maximum. The distribution of continental crust has been decreasing since then. More amounts of continental crust were formed at higher mantle temperatures at 2.7, 1.9, and 0.9 Ga, and more amounts were destructed after then. As a result, the mantle overturns led to both the abrupt continental formation and destruction, and extinguished older continental crust. The timing of large distribution of continental crust apparently corresponds to the timing of icehouse periods in Precambrian.     

主动大陆边缘海沟-斜坡盆地沉积体系分析——以缅甸若开海岸盆地某工区为例

本文以国内少见的发育在主动大陆边缘的特殊盆地类型海沟-斜坡盆地作为研究对象,通过建立井震结合的不同沉积体系的地质-地球物理识别模板,用二维地震资料对研究区目的层的沉积体系进行了解析。结果显示,研究区发育窄的滨浅海、小规模的三角洲、浊积扇、下切谷、半深海陆坡和半深海平原等沉积体系。滨浅海、三角洲和浊积扇沉积体系发育的砂体是主要的储集体。海沟．斜坡盆地的规模较小,以生气为主,可能形成中小型断块油气藏。     

The formation of ultradeep sedimentary basins through metamorphism with rock contraction in continental crust

Sedimentary covers are up to 15–20 km thick in ultradeep sedimentary basins. Joint interpretation of seismic reflection sounding and gravimetric data indicates that eclogites are located in the basins under the Moho. In these rocks the velocities of P-waves are close to those in mantle peridotites. The basins show only moderate crustal stretching and their formation was caused primarily by the transformation of gabbroids into dense eclogites in the lower part of the continental crust. The transformation took place episodically as mantle fluids infiltrated the lower crust and it was ensured by pressure rise in the lower crust occurring with the accumulation of sediments. Moderate metamorphism developed in silicic upper crust as temperature and pressure increased under thick sedimentary covers. In iron-rich metasedimentary rocks, deep metamorphism resulted in the density increase, and P-wave velocities there increased to those characteristic of the oceanic crust.     

The Role of H2S-Contaminated Basins in Sedimentary Ore Formation

This work shows that modern H₂S-contaminated basins permanently concentrate P, Mn, and Fe. The oxidation of H₂S-contaminated waters can result in the deposition of phosphate–siliceous and ferromanganese sediments. Such associations of ore-bearing rocks are widespread in ancient sequences of the Earth's sedimentary cover.     

Abundances of chemical elements in the Earth’s crust

The evaluation of the abundances of chemical elements in the Earth’s crust is a pivotal geochemical problem. Its first solutions in the early 20th century formed the empirical groundwork for geochemistry and justified concepts about the unity of the material of the Universe, the genesis of the chemical elements, and the geochemical differentiation of the Earth. The accumulation of newly obtained data called for the revision of this problem, and a series of papers by A.P. Vinogradov, which were published in Geokhimiya in 1956–1962, presented reevaluated contents of elements in the continental crust. In these papers, A.P. Vinogradov relied on the classic idea of the geochemical balance of the sedimentary process. These generalizations provided the foundation for the quantitative characterization of the geochemical background of the biosphere and allowed Vinogradov to formulate the principles of the melting and degassing of material in the outer Earth’s shells during the geologic history, a concept that became universally acknowledged in modern geochemistry and geology. The composition of the Earth’s crust can also be evaluated based not on the principle of geochemical balance in the sedimentary process but on data on the actual abundances of major magmatic, metamorphic, and sedimentary rock types. The possibility of this solution was provided after the extensive research of A.B. Ronov, who managed to develop a quantitative model for the structure of the Earth’s sedimentary shell. Based on these data, A.B. Ronov, A.A. Yaroshevsky, and A.A. Migdisov published a series of papers in Geokhimiya in 1967–1985 that presented a model for the chemical structure of the Earth’s crust with regard for the material composing not only the upper part of the continental crust but also its deep-seated granulite-basite layer and the oceanic crust. The quantitative estimates thus obtained led the authors to important conclusions: first, it was demonstrated that the estimated abundances of elements in the granite-metamorphic layer of the continental crust presented in the classic works by A.P. Vinogradov are confirmed by independent materials, which are based on data on the actual abundance of rocks. Second, incredible as it was, the principle of geochemical balance in the sedimentary process in application to Ca and carbonates appeared to be invalid. This problem remains unsettled as of yet and awaits its resolution.     

The rift origin of the Vilyui basin (East Siberia), from reconstructions of sedimentation and mechanical mathematical modeling

Results of modeling of the formation of the Vilyui sedimentary basin are presented. We combine backstripping reconstructions of sedimentation and thermal regime during the subsidence with a numerical simulation based on the deformable solid mechanics. Lithological data and stratigraphic sections were used to “strip” the sedimentary beds successively and calculate the depth of the stratigraphic units during the sedimentation. It is the first time that the evolution of sedimentation which is nonuniform over the basin area has been analyzed for the Vilyui basin. The rift origin of the basin is proven. We estimate the spatial distribution of the parameters of crustal and mantle-lithosphere extension as well as expansion due to dike intrusion. According to the reconstructions, the type of subsidence curves for the sedimentary rocks of the basin depends on the tectonic regime of sedimentation in individual basins. The backstripping analysis revealed two stages of extension (sediments 4–5 km thick) and a foreland stage (sediments > 2 km thick). With the two-layered lithosphere model, we conclude that the subcrustal layer underwent predominant extension (by a factor of 1.2–2.0 vs. 1.1–1.4 in the crust). The goal of numerical experiments is to demonstrate that deep troughs can form in the continental crust under its finite extension. Unlike the oceanic rifting models, this modeling shows no complete destruction or rupture of the continental crust during the extension. The 2D numerical simulation shows the possibility of considerable basement subsidence near the central axis and explains why mafic dikes are concentrated on the basin periphery.     

探测大陆岩石圈的属性、相态与物质运动: 固体地球物理学的新使命

20世纪大地构造物理学取得引人瞩目的进展。本文详细评述了探测地球大陆圈层的属性、相态与物质运动取得的进展和技术路线。并且指出,大陆地壳和海洋地壳结构上的最基本区别是后者是相对均匀和整体刚性的,内部不存在明显的物质运动。前者的下地壳部分区域是不均匀和流变的,其中的物质运动使大陆板内的地壳产生比较强烈的变形和岩浆活动。因此,当前发展板块构造学说的最焦点就是对地壳不均匀性和流变岩石进行三维成像,从下到上找出大陆地壳物质运动规律。同时,一定要坚持深层油气和地震预测方面的应用基础研究,为人类社会可持续发展作出更大的贡献。     

Composition and evolution of the continental crust: Retrospect and prospect

Until the middle of the 20th century, the continental crust was considered to be dominantly granitic. This hypothesis was revised after the Second World War when several new studies led to the realization that the continental crust is dominantly made of metamorphic rocks. Magmatic rocks were emplaced at peak metamorphic conditions in domains, which can be defined by geophysical discontinuities. Low to medium-grade metamorphic rocks constitute the upper crust, granitic migmatites and intrusive granites occur in the middle crust, and the lower crust, situated between the Conrad and Moho discontinuities, comprises charnockites and granulites. The continental crust acquired its final structure during metamorphic episodes associated with mantle upwelling, which mostly occurred in supercontinents prior to their disruption, during which the base of the crust experienced ultrahigh temperatures (>1000 °C, ultrahigh temperature granulite-facies metamorphism). Heat is provided by underplating of mantle-derived mafic magmas, as well as by a massive influx of low H₂O activity mantle fluids, i.e. high-density CO₂ and high-salinity brines. These fluids are initially stored in ultrahigh temperature domains, and subsequently infiltrate the lower crust, where they generate anhydrous granulite mineral assemblages. The brines can reach upper crustal levels, possibly even the surface, along major shear zones, where granitoids are generated through brine streaming in addition to those formed by dehydration melting in upper crustal levels.     

Sources of clastic material of the Neoproterozoic metasedimentary rocks of the Baikal–Patom belt,Northern Transbaikalia: Evidence from Sm-Nd isotope data

First systematic data on the variations of ε_Nd(T) in the Neoproterozoic sedimentary sequence of the Baikal–Patom fold belt (Northern Transbaikalia) are reported. The range of obtained εNd(T) is–19.4…–2.0. It was established that the rocks of the Ballaganach and most part of the Dal’nyaya Taiga groups are characterized by ε_Nd(T) from–19.4 to–16.3. Upsection, beginning from the Khomolkha Formation, the rocks show a sharp change in the initial Nd isotope composition (ε_Nd(T)–8.3…–2.0). The results of Sm-Nd study of metasedimentary rocks of the BPB, as well as the comparison of their Sm-Nd characteristics with those of the inferred source areas suggest that the input of terrigenous material at the early stage of sedimentation in the Baikal–Patom belt was mainly related to the destruction of the Early Proterozoic crust of the Siberian craton. Owing to a change of sedimentation setting from passive continental margin to the “foreland” basin at the late stage, the terrigenous material of the Siberian craton was diluted by clastics from juvenile Neoproterozoic crust of the Baikal–Muya belt.     

Upper crustal abundances of trace elements: A revision and update

We report new estimates of abundances of rarely analyzed elements (As, B, Be, Bi, Cd, Ge, In, Mo, Sb, Sn, Te, Tl, W) in the upper continental crust based on precise ICP-MS analyses of well-characterized upper crustal samples (shales, pelites, loess, graywackes, granitoids and their composites) from Australia, China, Europe, New Zealand and North American. Obtaining a better understanding of the upper crustal abundance and associated uncertainties of these elements is important in placing better constraints on bulk crust composition and, from that, whole Earth models of element cycling and crust generation. We also present revised abundance estimates of some more commonly analyzed trace elements (Li, Cr, Ni, and Tm) that vary by > 20% compared to previous estimates. The new estimates are mainly based on significant (r² > 0.6) inter-element correlations observed in clastic sediments and sedimentary rocks, which yield upper continental crust elemental ratios that are used in conjunction with well-determined abundances for certain key elements to place constraints on the concentrations of the rarely analyzed elements. Using the well-established upper crustal abundances of La (31 ppm), Th (10.5 ppm), Al₂O₃ (15.40%), K₂O (2.80%) and Fe₂O₃ (5.92%), these ratios lead to revised upper crustal abundances of B = 47 ppm, Bi = 0.23 ppm, Cr = 73 ppm, Li = 41 ppm, Ni = 34 ppm, Sb = 0.075, Te = 0.027 ppm, Tl = 0.53 ppm and W = 1.4 ppm. No significant correlations exist between Mo and Cd and other elements in the clastic sediments and sedimentary rocks, probably due to their enrichment in organic carbon. We thus calculate abundances of these elements by assuming the upper continental crust consists of 65% granitoid rocks plus 35% clastic sedimentary rocks. The validity of this approach is supported by the similarity of SiO₂, Al₂O₃, La and Th abundances calculated in this way with their upper crustal abundances given in Rudnick and Gao [Rudnick, R., Gao, S., 2003. Composition of the continental crust. In: Rudnick, R.L. (Ed.), The Crust. In: Holland, H.D., Turekian, K.K. (Eds.), Treatise on Geochemistry, vol. 3. Elsevier–Pergamon, Oxford, pp. 1–64.]. The upper crustal abundances thus obtained are Mo = 0.6 ppm and Cd = 0.06 ppm. Our data also suggest a  20% increase of the Tm, Yb and Lu abundances reported in Rudnick and Gao [Rudnick, R., Gao, S., 2003. Composition of the continental crust. In: Rudnick, R.L. (Ed.), The Crust. In: Holland, H.D., Turekian, K.K. (Eds.), Treatise on Geochemistry, vol. 3. Elsevier–Pergamon, Oxford, pp. 1–64.].     

Evolution of the depleted mantle: Hf isotope evidence from juvenile rocks through time

The covariant behavior of Lu-Hf and Sm-Nd isotopes during most magmatic processes has long been recognized, but the details of this behavior in the depleted mantle reservoir have not been adequately examined. We report new whole-rock Hf and Nd isotope data for 1) juvenile, mantle-derived rocks, mid-Archean to Mesozoic in age, and 2) early Archean gneisses from West Greenland. Hf and Nd isotopic compositions of the juvenile rocks are well correlated, with the best fit corresponding to the equation ε_Hf = 1.40 ε_Nd + 2.1, and is similar to the collective Hf-Nd correlation for terrestrial samples of ε_Hf = 1.36 ε_Nd + 3.0. The early Archean Greenland gneisses, in contrast, have an extreme range in ε_Nd values (⁻4.4 to ⁺4.2; Bennett et al., 1993) that is not mirrored by the Hf isotopic system. The ε_Hf values for these rocks are consistently positive and have much less variation (0 to ⁺3.4) than their ε_Nd counterparts.The information from the Hf isotopic compositions of the West Greenland gneisses portrays an early Archean mantle that is relatively isotopically homogeneous at 3.8 to 3.6 Ga and moderately depleted in incompatible elements. There is no evidence that any of these gneisses have been derived from an enriched reservoir. The Hf isotopic data are in stark contrast to the Nd isotopic record and strongly imply that the picture of extreme initial isotopic heterogeneity indicated by Nd isotopes is not a real feature of the West Greenland gneisses but is rather an artifact produced by disturbances in the Sm-Nd isotope system of these rocks.Although Hf and Nd isotopic data do not uniquely constrain either the nature of the earliest crust or the timing of crustal growth, the most probable candidate for the enriched reservoir complementary to the depleted mantle in the pre-4.0 Ga Earth is a mafic, oceanic-type crust. In order to explain the predominantly positive ε_Hf and ε_Nd values for the early Archean rocks, this crust must have had a short residence time at the surface of the Earth before returning to the mantle where it was isolated from mixing with the depleted mantle for several hundred million years. The following period from 3.5 to 2.7 Ga may mark a transition during which this early formed mafic crust was mixed progressively back into the depleted mantle reservoir. While a present-day volume of continental crust at 4.0 Ga cannot be excluded on isotopic grounds, we find such a scenario unlikely based on the lack of direct isotopic and physical evidence for its existence. An important aspect of crustal growth and evolution, therefore, may be the transformation of the enriched reservoir from being predominantly mafic in the early Earth to becoming progressively more sialic through time.     

大陆碰撞过程的火山岩响应：以西藏林周林子宗火山岩为例

印度-亚洲大陆碰撞伴生有大量火山活动,其中,林子宗火山岩发育最广,遍布碰撞带北侧的冈底斯带,形成长逾1200 km的火山岩带。林周地区作为林子宗火山岩的命名地,该套火山岩发育相对齐全,为安山岩、流纹岩及相应的火山碎屑岩夹沉积碎屑岩组合,顶部发育巨厚流纹质凝灰岩,可以划分出三个火山旋回,其生成时代介于63.89~48.73 Ma。岩石学和地球化学资料显示,林子宗火山岩自下而上SiO₂和K₂O含量以及Al₂O₃饱和度增加,其岩浆从早到晚由中性、中钾和准铝质变化到酸性、高钾和过铝质,晚期喷发巨厚的火山灰流,反映区域地壳明显的加厚,由早期的30~40 km变化到晚期的50~60 km。火山岩相对富集Cs、Rb、K、U,亏损Ta、Nb、Ti、Sr、Ba、P,早期与桑日组安山岩地球化学特征相近,而中—晚期与乌郁、扎嘎等地渐新世高钾火山岩相似,表明早期岩浆具有新特提斯洋俯冲板片印迹,而中—晚期具有后碰撞作用特点。林子宗火山岩作为印度-亚洲大陆碰撞过程的响应,记录着古新世至始新世（64~48 Ma）印度-亚洲大陆之间的碰撞向碰撞后演化过程。     

Heterogeneous magnesium isotopic composition of the upper continental crust

High-precision Mg isotopic data are reported for ∼100 well-characterized samples (granites, loess, shales and upper crustal composites) that were previously used to estimate the upper continental crust composition. Magnesium isotopic compositions display limited variation in eight I-type granites from southeastern Australia (δ²⁶Mg = −0.25 to −0.15) and in 15 granitoid composites from eastern China (δ²⁶Mg = −0.35 to −0.16) and do not correlate with SiO₂ contents, indicating the absence of significant Mg isotope fractionation during differentiation of granitic magma. Similarly, the two S-type granites, which represent the two end-members of the S-type granite spectrum from southeastern Australia, have Mg isotopic composition (δ²⁶Mg = −0.23 and −0.14) within the range of their potential source rocks (δ²⁶Mg = −0.20 and +0.15) and I-type granites, suggesting that Mg isotope fractionation during crustal anatexis is also insignificant. By contrast, δ²⁶Mg varies significantly in 19 A-type granites from northeastern China (−0.28 to +0.34) and may reflect source heterogeneity.Compared to I-type and S-type granites, sedimentary rocks have highly heterogeneous and, in most cases, heavier Mg isotopic compositions, with δ²⁶Mg ranging from −0.32 to +0.05 in nine loess from New Zealand and the USA, from −0.27 to +0.49 in 20 post-Archean Australian shales (PAAS), and from −0.52 to +0.92 in 20 sedimentary composites from eastern China. With increasing chemical weathering, as measured by the chemical index of alternation (CIA), δ²⁶Mg values show a larger dispersion in shales than loess. Furthermore, δ²⁶Mg correlates negatively with δ⁷Li in loess. These characteristics suggest that chemical weathering significantly fractionates Mg isotopes and plays an important role in producing the highly variable Mg isotopic composition of sedimentary rocks.Based on the estimated proportions of major rock units within the upper continental crust and their average MgO contents, a weighted average δ²⁶Mg value of −0.22 is derived for the average upper continental crust. Our studies indicate that Mg isotopic composition of the upper crust is, on average, mantle-like but highly heterogeneous, with δ²⁶Mg ranging from −0.52 to +0.92. Such large isotopic variation mainly results from chemical weathering, during which light Mg isotopes are lost to the hydrosphere, leaving weathered products (e.g., sedimentary rocks) with heavy Mg isotopes.     

Late Vendian unfolded Molasse in the northeastern, eastern, and southwestern peripheries of the east European platform: Distinctive lithogeochemical features

The paper reports data on the lithogeochemistry of sandstones and silty mudstones from Upper Vendian sedimentary sequences in the northeastern, eastern, and southwestern peripheries of the East European Platform belonging to the so-called unfolded molasse. The sequences are dominated by wackes, arkoses, subarkoses, litharenites, and sublitharenites, i.e., chemically immature and moderately mature psammites, and can be classed with rocks produced by clastic material brought from orogens surrounding the platform. The higher TiO₂, Al₂O₃, FeO_tot, MgO, Na₂O, and K₂O concentrations of the psammites than those in the average cratonic Phanerozoic sandstone (APhSa) testify that the chemical maturing of the rocks was not completed. The silty mudstones accompanying the sandstones have a composition closer to those of the average cratonic Phanerozoic shale (APhSh), but this is likely explained by the fact that the rocks were produced of material brought from erosion territories of much greater area. The lithogeochemical data generally indicate that these territories were dominated by acid and intermediate magmatic rocks with variable fraction of sedimentary rocks when the Late Vendian sedimentary associations in question were produced. The distribution of certain indicator trace elements in the sandstones and silty mudstones show that the average composition of the eroded complexes was close to the composition of the post-Archean upper continental crust, but the erosion areas occasionally (in the Vychegorskii trough and the Shkapovsko-Shikhanskaya depression) contained relatively primitive source rocks. The data points of the great majority of the sandstones and silty mudstones plot in the SiO₂-K₂O/Na₂O and F1–F2 diagrams in the fields of sediments typical of the environments of active continental margins, which is consistent with the arrangement of the data points of these rocks in the La-Th-Sc, Th-Sc-Zr/10, and Th-Co-Zr/10 diagrams. All of these features confirm that the sedimentary rocks in question affiliate with rock associations produced at an active tectonic regime.     

Geology of the Hubert Miller seamount,Marie Byrd seamounts province,Amundsen Sea,West Antarctic

This work is dedicated to the results of joint Russian-German geodynamic studies carried out in the West Antarctic (areas of the Amundsen Sea, the Southern Ocean, the Marie Byrd seamounts, and the foot of the continental slope of Marie Byrd Land) during cruises 18/5a and 23/4 of the “R/V Polarstern” in 2001 and 2006, respectively. The material collected on the Hubert Miller seamount (Marie Byrd seamount) attests to the relict continental appearance of the rocks. This suggests the heterogeneity of the Amundsen seafloor and its formation through a spatiotemporal combination of the destruction of continental crust, progressive thalassogenesis (oceanization-taphrogenesis), and rifting, as opposed to a spreading origin. The high postconsolidation mobility during the destruction stage led to the areal dismembering and high permeability of the continental crust, as well as tectonomagmatic activation. The main process during the reworking of the continental crust is its magmatic substitution by mantle-derived basic-ultrabasic material with subsequent formation of a secondary oceanic crust and preservation of relics of the continental crust. The endogenic activity of the Earth was driven by transmagmatic fluids, which were supplied from the liquid core and caused transformation of the Earth’s crust and mantle.     

Provenance,tectonic setting and source-area weathering of the lower Cambrian sediments of the Parahio valley in the Spiti basin,India

The geochemical study of siliciclastic rocks from the Lower Cambrian of Parahio Valley has been studied to describe the provenance, chemical weathering and tectonic setting. The K₂O/Al₂O₃ ratio and positive correlation of Co (r=0.85), Ni (r=0.86), Zn (r=0.82), Rb (r=0.98) with K₂O reflects that the presence of clay minerals control the abundances of these elements and suggests a warm and humid climate for this region. The chondrite normalized REE pattern of the samples is equivalent to upper continental crust, which reflects enriched LREE and flat HREE with negative Eu anomaly. The tectonic setting discriminant diagram log[K₂O/Na₂O] vs. SiO₂; [SiO₂/Al₂O₃] vs. log[K₂O/Na₂O]; [SiO₂/20] – [K₂O+Na₂O] – [TiO₂+Fe₂O₃+MgO] indicates transitional tectonic setting from an active continental margin to a passive margin. The discriminant function plot indicates quartzose sedimentary provenance, and to some extent, the felsic igneous provenance, derived from weathered granite, gneissic terrain and/or from pre-existing sedimentary terrain. The CIA value indicates low to moderate degree of chemical weathering and the average ICV values suggests immature sediments deposited in tectonically active settings. The A–CN–K diagram indicates that these sediments were generated from source rocks of the upper continental crust.