Growing Gondwana and Rethinking Rodinia: A Paleomagnetic Perspective

The formation of Gondwana during the late Neoproterozoic to early Cambrian times (550-530 Ma) was traditionally viewed as the welding of two, more or less contiguous, Proterozoic continental masses called East and West Gondwana. The notion of a united West Gondwana is no longer tenable as a wealth of geochronologic and structural data indicate major orogenesis amongst its constituent cratons during the final stages of greater Gondwana assembly. The idea that East Gondwana may also have formed through the amalgamation of a collage of cratonic nuclei during the Cambrian is controversial. Recent paleomagnetic, geochronologic and structural data from elements of East Gondwana indicate that its formation may have extended well into Cambrian time. Thus, the terms ‘East’ and ‘West’ Gondwana may be relegated to convenient geographical terms rather than any connotation of tectonic coherence during the Proterozoic. In addition, the paleomagnetic data also challenge the conventional views of the Neoproterozoic supercontinent Rodinia and the SWEAT fit. Alternative variants including Protopangea and AUSWUS are not supported by paleomagnetic data during the interval 800–700 Ma.     

Geological Evolution of Longhushan World Geopark in Relation to Global Tectonics

The South China fold belt has experienced a complex series of tectonic events that span 1.0 billion years of earth history. Longhushan (龙虎山) World Geopark is located on the Proterozoic suture between the Yangtze craton and Cathyasia block and highlights the long history of this belt. Collision of the Cathyasia and Yangtze cratons 1.0 billion years ago was associated with the formation of the Rodinian supercontinent where most of the planet's landmasses were amalgamated into one block. Jurassic through Early...     

Deformation Pattern in the Kurnool and Nallarnalai Groups in the Northeastern Part (Palnad Area) of the Cuddapah Basin, South India and its Implication on Rodinia/Gondwana Tectonics

The Proterozoic basins of India adjoining the Eastern Ghats Granulite Belt (EGGB) in eastern and southern India contain both Mesproterozoic and Neoproterozoic successions. The intracratonic set-up and contractional deformation fo the Neoproterozoc successions in the Paland sub-basin in the northeastern part of Cuddapah basin and similar crustal shortening in contemporaneous successions lying west of the EGGB and Nellore Schist Belt (NSB) are considered in relation to the proposed geodynamic evolution of the the Rodinia and Gondwana supercontinents. Tectonic shortening in the Palnad sub-basin (northeast Cuddapah), partitioned into top-to-westnorthwest thrust shear, flexural folds and cleavage development under overall E-W contraction, suggests foreland style continental shortening within an intracratonic set-up. A thrust sheet containing the Nallamalai rocks and overlying the Kurnool rocks in the northeastern part of Palnad sub-basin exhibits early tight to isoclinal folds and slaty (phylllitic) cleavage, which can be correlated with early Mesoproterozoic deformation structures in the nothern Nallamalai Fold Belt (NFB). NNE-SSW trending folds and cleavage affect the Kurnool Group and overprint earlier structures in the thrust sheet. Thrusting of the Nallamalai rocks and the later structures may have been related to convergence of the Eastern Ghats terrane and the East-Dharwar-Bastar craton during Early Neoproterozoic (Greenvillian) and/or later rejuvenation related to Pan-African amalgamation of East and West Gondwana.     

中沙海槽盆地构造与沉积作用及其对远端裂陷盆地演化的启示

深水远端裂陷盆地演化是大陆边缘构造研究的热点.中沙海槽盆地位于西北次海盆和西南次海盆之间,是一个临近洋盆的裂陷盆地.根据最新的地球物理资料,揭示了该盆地的沉积层序和构造演化.中沙海槽盆地裂开后期地层厚度约为200～1500 m,可划分为6个地震层序.古近系分布局限,仅限于中沙海槽盆地和中沙南盆地的深凹部位;新近系一般厚...     

新疆西准噶尔额敏前陆盆地的构造特征及其演化

西准噶尔吾尔喀什尔山与额敏盆地间的"盆"–"山"耦合关系清楚,盆地边界平行于造山带呈狭长带状展布。"山"区为志留系–石炭系海相陆源碎屑岩-火山岩沉积组合,"盆"区为二叠系陆相磨拉石与新近系红色砂砾岩及第四系河流阶地堆积,具有典型的海相-陆相双层结构。盆缘被巴尔雷克前陆冲断带围限,"山"区发育铲式逆冲断层与蛇头构造、叠瓦扇构造等逆冲推覆构造。表明该"盆"–"山"组合为一典型的前陆盆地系统。额敏前陆盆地形成于早二叠世,属后期冲断变形影响较弱、早期前陆盆地结构特征较明显的"早衰型"前陆盆地。这一成果为额敏盆地乃至西准噶尔盆地分析、构造演化、沉积作用、"盆"–"山"耦合等研究提供了重要信息。     

南沙西南海域新生代构造活动特征与盆地演化

南沙海域处于已俯冲消亡的古南海和海底扩张形成的新南海洋盆之间, 其研究对于了解中生代末期以来南海北部陆缘张裂、新南海海底扩张和古南海向南俯冲消亡等构造过程具有重要意义.通过利用平衡剖面反演对该区新生代以来的构造活动和盆地演化进行研究.结果发现, 该区新生代以来的构造活动具有显著的分区性特征, 表现为以区内深大断裂为界, 所分隔的3个块体其构造活动的主导因素和活动阶段性存在差异.南沙块体构造活动的主导因素为NW向应力, 构造活动以中—晚中新世为界前张后压, 具有明显的阶段性; 万安盆地构造活动受万安断裂控制, 构造活动阶段性不明显; 曾母块体构造活动特征与南沙块体类似, 具有明显的阶段性, 但具体表现不同.在此基础上, 将该区主要盆地的演化划分为4个阶段, 即裂陷阶段、同沉积阶段、挤压阶段和区域沉降阶段.其表现又因盆地成因类型而有所不同: 北康盆地裂陷和挤压阶段突出, 沉降阶段缺失; 南薇西盆地裂陷阶段南弱北强; 万安盆地缺少挤压阶段; 曾母盆地则4个阶段均非常明显.      

Evolution of Sedimentation and Tectonics of the Youjiang Composite Basin, South China

Located at the southern margin of the South China plate, the Youjiang basin is a closely related to the NW- and NE-trending syndepositional faults in respect to the configuration and structure of the basin. The evolution of the Youjiang basin progressed through two stages. In the Hercynian period, the opening of the Ailaoshan-Honghe ocean basin gave rise to a number of NW-trending rift belts in the Youjiang area. During this period, deep-water sediments were dominant and the basin was possesed of the characteristics of the rift system of passive continental margins. In the early Indosinian after the Dongwu movement, the circum - Pacific tectonism led to a major change in the configuration and structure of the basin. In the meantime, the Ailaoshan ocean basin began to be subducted towards the northeast, thus causing the basin to be split and expand again, and then the basin developed into the stage of the back -arc basin. At the end of the Indosinian period, the basin gradually closed from east to west,     

Deglacial Control on Sedimentation and Basin Evolution of Permo-Carboniferous Talchir Formation, Talchir Gondwana Basin, Orissa, India

The Permo-Carboniferous Talchir Formation in the southeastern part of the Talchir basin is represented by about 260 m thick clastic succession resting on the Precambrian basement rocks of the Eastern Ghats Group. The succession is tentatively subdivided into four lithostratigraphic units, namely A-I, A-II, B and C from base to top. Unit A-I comprises mud-matrixed, very poorly sorted diamictites and interbedded thin sandstone and mudstone yielding dropstones. They reveal deposition in a proglacial lake environment in which ice rafting and suspension sedimentation, as well as meltwater-underflow processes, produced variety of facies. The succession of unit A-II is dominated by pebble to boulder conglomerates and sandstones. They were deposited mostly from various kinds of high-energy sediment gravity flows, both subaerial and subaqueous, and formed steep-faced fan-delta on the margin of the basin. Unit B demonstrates turbidite sedimentation in lake-margin slope and base-of-slope environments, in which a sublacustrine channel-fan system developed. The lake-margin slope was dissected by channels which were accompanied by overbank and levee deposits. Sediments delivered from the mouth of a channel were deposited at the base-of-slope, forming a fan lobe which prograded onto the lake basin floor. Unit C dominantly consists of mudstone with intercalations of siltstone and sandstone and forms a large-scale coarsening-upward deltaic sequence eventually covered by the fluvial deposits of the Karharbari Formation.Following the glacially influenced sedimentation, the Talchir succession shows a vertical facies progression suggesting gradual deepening of the lake basin and eventual filling up of it due to rapid delta progradation. Such a succession represents deglacial control on basin evolution during the Talchir time. In the initial stage of glacial recession, collapse of a glacier and failure of montane glacial lakes frequently occurred and gave rise to generation of a highly sediment-laden debris flow and a catastrophic flood, which brought abundant coarse clastics into the lake and built a fan-delta on the basin margin. The continued recession and disappearance of glacier resulted in abundant supply of ice-melt water into the graben as well as eustatic sea-level rise, being the cause of the rise in lake-level. Subsequent rapid delta progradation and eventual filling-up of the lake basin suggest rapid lake-level fall after deepening of lake basin. It was possibly caused by the regional uplift due to post-glacial isostatic rebound. Rapid draining of lake water through the graben gave rise to the establishment of an axial drainage system which rapidly filled the lake basin in form of an axially fed delta.