RbSr dating of the Yatsushiro granite and gneiss,Kyushu, Japan

RbSr measurements on the Yatsushiro granite and gneiss, which had been considered stratigraphically to be of possible Precambrian age, are reported. The whole rock isochron for the granite gives an age of 352 ± 8 my with a low initial⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr ratio of 0.7037 ± 0.0006. Data for constituent minerals of the granites are dispersed irregularly around the whole rock isochron (possibly by later tectonic events). For the gneiss, a metamorphic event around 410 my is indicated by the muscovite RbSr ages. The present results do not support the possibility that the Yatsushiro granite and gneiss are Precambrian in age.     

3600-m.y. RbSr ages from very early Archaean gneisses from Saglek Bay,Labrador

Field studies in the vicinity of Saglek Bay, Labrador, demonstrated that it was possible to subdivide the Archaean gneiss complex into distinct lithologic units and erect a geologic chronology similar to that recognized in Godthaabsfjord, West Greenland. The Uivak gneisses are the oldest quartzo-feldspathic suite in the area and are distinguished from a younger gneissic suite in the field, the undifferentiated gneisses, by the presence of porphyritic basic dykes (Saglek dykes) within the Uivak gneisses. The Uivak gneisses range in composition from tonalites to granodiorites, with the two chemically distinct suites recognized: a grey granodioritic suite and an iron-rich plutonic igneous suite which locally intrudes or grades into a grey gneiss which strongly resembles the grey Uivak gneiss. Rb-Sr isotopic studies indicate an age of 3622 ± 72 m.y. (2σ) and initial Sr isotopic composition of 0.7014 ± 0.0008 (2σ) for the Uivak gneiss suite, i.e. grey gneiss plus iron-rich suite (λ_Rb = 1.39 × 10^?11 yr^?1). The grey Uivak gneiss suite, treated independently, defines a Rb-Sr isochron with an age of 3610 ± 144 m.y. (2σ) and initial Sr isotopic composition of 0.7015 ± 0.0014 (2σ) which is indistinguishable from the age and initial ratio of the total Uivak gneiss suite, grey gneisses plus iron-rich suite. The undifferentiated gneisses define a Rb-Sr isochron with an age of 3121 ± 160 m.y. (2σ), and initial Sr isotopic composition of 0.7064 ± 0.0012 (2σ). The isotopic data support field observations suggesting the undifferentiated gneisses were derived by local remobilization of the grey Uivak gneisses. The Uivak gneisses resemble the Amitsoq gneisses of Godthaabsfjord both chemically and isotopically. The interpretation of the initial Sr isotopic composition of the Uivak gneisses is interpreted as the time of regional homogenization rather than the initial ratio of the plutonic igneous parents of the Uivak gneisses as suggested for the Amitsoq gneisses. Although the undifferentiated gneisses are contemporaneous with the Nuk gneisses of West Greenland, they do not form a well-defined calc-alkaline suite and may not be associated with major crustal thickening in the Labrador Archaean.     

RbSr radiometric age of late Precambrian fossil-bearing and associated rocks from Sinai

Six samples of metamorphic rocks from three essentially coeval stratigraphic units, two of which contain Precambrian microfossils, have been analyzed by the Rb-Sr whole-rock radiometric method. Least-squares regression of the data yields an isochron date of 934 ± 80m.y. with initial ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr= 0.7007 ± 0.0011. This date may reflect the approximate age of formation of these rocks or, alternately, a time of major metamorphism. Regardless, the date is significant in that it (a) is in agreement with the 900-m.y. date for rocks containing similar types of fossils from Bitter Springs, Australia, and (b) coupled with structural evidence, supports the time equivalence of these rocks with 1000-m.y. old rocks (“Kibaran cycle”) of Saudi Arabia.     

RbSr systematics and crustal contamination models for calc-alkaline igneous rocks

New strontium isotopic data of calc-alkaline Pliocene-to-Quaternary lavas (southern Peru) confirm their anomalous isotopic composition compared to those of calc-alkaline rocks from active margins where continental crust is not involved. Gradual enrichment of radiogenic Sr occurs during fractional crystallization of calc-alkaline magma. The variation of the isotopic composition of these lavas as well as⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr versus 1/(⁸⁶Sr) diagrams form the basis for a model involving processes of fractional crystallization combined with mixing and addition of radiogenic Sr that originated in continental crust and was transported by a fluid phase.     

RbSr whole-rock ages of Precambrian metamorphic rocks in the Kamiaso conglomerate from central Japan

Whole-rock samples of metamorphic and granitic cobbles and boulders from the Kamiaso conglomerate in central Japan yield well-defined RbSr isochron ages of 1985 ± 25 my and 1820 ± 40 my. These ages are the oldest yet obtained for rocks in the Japanese Islands, and provide key evidence for the middle Precambrian metamorphic and igneous events in the provenance of these rocks. The age of 1985 my defined by six samples of quartzo-feldspathic gneiss may be the time of emplacement of the original granitic rocks. The 1820 my age indicates the time of extensive regional metamorphism and igneous activity. Precambrian episodes in the provenance of the Kamiaso conglomerate are summarized as follows: (1) 2000 my — formation of granitic rocks, (2) 1800–1600 my — high grade metamorphism accompanied by igneous activity, (3) 1200–1000 my — some significant thermal event.Judging from rock types and geochronological data, it can be said that metamorphic rocks in the Kamiaso conglomerate are remarkably similar to those of the Matenrei and Nangnim systems in North Korea. The Precambrian complex from which the metamorphic and granitic rocks were derived, was exposed to the north not far from the present site of the Kamiaso conglomerate in the late Paleozoic time, and it was probably a part of the large Precambrian continent in East Asia.     

Zoned CaAl-rich chondrule in Bali: New evidence against the primordial condensation model

One large (8.5 mm) chondrule in the Bali carbonaceous chondrite is strongly enriched in refractory elements similarily to the white objects in Allende which are widely believed to be “primitive” condensates. However, detailed investigations show the Bali chondrule to have an element distribution opposite to that predicted by the “primitive condensation” models. Refractory elements like Ti and Al are enriched at or near the surface of the chondrule. The contents of some volatile elements, e.g. Na, Si, and Cr, are higher in the central portion. It is suggested that this chondrule - and similar objects in other C-chondrites - originated in one, or more likely several, impact events and that the element distribution is the result of volatilization-condensation.     

SmNd study of Archean alkalic rocks from the Superior Province of the Canadian Shield

The Abitibi Volcanic Belt in eastern Superior Province of the Canadian Shield is the largest continuous greenstone belt in the world and is a key example of late Archean crust. This belt has, in general, suffered a low intensity of metamorphism and deformation, and, as a result, the stratigraphy and geology are well established. Tholeiitic and calc-alkaline series of igneous rocks are present in this belt in about equal proportions. However, the undersaturated potassic and leucitic volcanics of the Timiskaming Group are a unique feature of this belt.SmNd systematics were determined for twelve Timiskaming volcanic rocks. These rocks show nepheline, diopside and/or olivine plus leucite in the norm and a highly fractionated REE pattern. Sm and Nd concentrations range from 25 to 160 and 45 to 300 times the chondritic abundance, respectively. The Sm and Nd isotopic data yield an isochron age of 2702±105Ma for these volcanic rocks with an initial ε_Nd of +1.9±1.6. This age establishes the Timiskaming alkalic rock to be one of the oldest of their kind. From stratigraphic relations, 2705 Ma is an upper limit for the age and the ε_Nd values of +1.8 to +2.2 at this age for the twelve rocks are also upper limits. Further, this small but positive ε_Nd value for the isochron, when compared to other mantle-derived Archean rocks in the Superior Province, indicates that the Archean mantle was heterogeneous beneath the Canadian Shield and that the Timiskaming alkalic lavas were derived from a depleted mantle.     

Interpretation of a discordant KAr age pattern (Capo Vaticano,Calabria)

KAr age determination on whole rocks, biotites, quartz-feldspar separates and pegmatitic muscovites from a small quartz dioritic stock give a complex discordant age pattern. KAr dates from whole rocks and mineral separates define a single 116 my isochron with positive intercept, whereas muscovites from pegmatites fit a 180 my isochron with a probable negative intercept.Both ages are younger than the probable crystallization age of the stock (around 300 my), indicating a complex post-crystallization history. The fit of different mineral phases and whole rocks to a single isochron with positive intercept suggests that a thermal event caused rehomogenization of Ar among different mineral phases.     

RbSr total rock isotope studies on Precambrian charnockitic gneisses from South Norway: evidence for isochron resetting during a low-grade metamorphic-deformational event

The quartzo-feldspathic charnockitic orthogneisses within the Bamble sector of the so-called Sveconorwegian (1.2–0.9 b.y.) zone are highly fractionated in K and Rb such that they comprise two chemically contrasting zones — one highly K, Rb-deficient and the other with values of the same order as upper crustal lithologies.Eight series of samples, each collected from single outcrops, have yielded Rb-Sr total rock apparent ages in two distinct groups, at ～1540 and ～1060 m.y. Outcrops in both the K-deficient and normal-K suites have produced examples of each age. The older age relates to the high-grade charnockite event, and the younger to a superimposed low-grade event which occurred at the same time as the intrusion of undeformed granite sheets and pegmatite dikes; one of the granites has yielded an isochron age of 1063 ± 20 m.y. The low-grade event involved only the partial alteration of orthopyroxenes to chlorite and/or serpentine, coupled with some corrosion of biotite; the alterations were initiated along narrow, irregularly spaced, cracks and it was their development which facilitated open system behaviour of the total rock isotopic systems at some localities. The degree of rehomogenisation is a function of the intensity of the secondary alterations.Confirmation of resetting at ～1060 m.y. is given by four mineral + host rock isochrons all yielding ages within error of the age for the intrusive granite; two of these are from outcrops where the rocks retain the older ～1540-m.y. age.The secondary total rock isotopic homogenisation cannot be explained adequately by Rb mobility or by simple mixing with a fluid having its own initial⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr composition. The primary mineralogy may have determined whether individual localities and/or samples suffered net increases or net decreases in⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr.An important implication of the results is that in this, or any similar geological situation, there would be a very real possibility of drawing erroneous conclusions from regionally-collected samples, particularly if the full significance of the later, relatively minor P-T event remained undetected and/or the scale of isotopic (re-)homogenisation, were unknown. It is only because of the methods adopted that it can be stated that there is no isotopic evidence for a high grade Sveconorwegian (Grenvillian) event in this part of southern Norway.     

KAr data for the age and evolution of Gettysburg Bank,North Atlantic Ocean

Gettysburg Bank forms the western end of the Gorringe Seamount which is situated in the North Atlantic 110 km west of the tip of the Iberian Peninsula, on the eastern end of the Azores/Gibraltar fracture zone.Gabbros dredged from the Gettysburg Bank record a complex history of events. K-Ar ages of separated mineral phases fall into three concordant groups (plus some discordant ages). The oldest ages are from three brown kaersutitic hornblendes and their mean age of135 ± 3Ma is taken to be that of their formation. Six plagioclase feldspars yielded concordant ages of105 ± 3Ma which is possibly a consequence of a thermal event occurring at that time. Ages from three deformed plagioclases are concordant with a mean of82 ± 3Ma which is believed to relate to a phase of shearing, perhaps occurring during transform motion at the plate boundary.     

SmNd isotopic systematics of Enderby Land granulites and evidence for the redistribution of Sm and Nd during metamorphism

Measurements of¹⁴³Nd/¹⁴⁴Nd and¹⁴⁷Sm/¹⁴⁴Nd are reported for whole rocks and mineral separates from granulites of the Napier Complex at Fyfe Hills. Charnockites, leuconorites and gabbros yield a whole rock SmNd isochron age of3060 ± 160m.y. and an initial¹⁴³Nd/¹⁴⁴Nd ratio of0.50776 ± 10 (?_Nd(3060m.y.) = ?2.0 ± 1.8). The negative ?_Nd value and the presence of geologically induced dispersion in the data suggest that the isochron age does not represent the time of primary crystallization of the complex but instead indicates a time of later redistribution of Sm and Nd and partial re-equilibration of¹⁴³Nd/¹⁴⁴Nd ratios. This probably occurred during the upper granulite facies metamorphism which has also been dated at～ 3100m.y. by RbSr and UPb zircon studies [1]. Coexisting clinopyroxene, apatite and total rock fractions in two adjacent samples define an approximately linear array corresponding to an age of 2300 ± 300 m.y. This array indicates that redistribution of Sm and Nd and re-equilibration of¹⁴³Nd/¹⁴⁴Nd ratios occurred on an intermineral scale during the upper amphibolite to lower granulite facies metamorphism at～ 2450m.y.Due to the resetting of the SmNd system on both whole rock and mineral scales, the primary crystallization age of the igneous protolith is not well constrained by the present data, although it is clearly3100m.y. If it is assumed that the complex was derived initially from a depleted mantle reservoir(?_Nd(T) ? 2), evolution of the negative ?_Nd value of ?2.0 with the observed Sm/Nd ratios requires a prehistory of～ 380m.y. This implies a primary age of～ 3480m.y. However, substantially older primary ages can be inferred if the source reservoirs had?_Nd(T) > 2 and/or substantial reductions in the Sm/Nd ratio occurred in whole rocks during the granulite facies metamorphism at 3100 m.y. Such an inferred reduction in the Sm/Nd ratio may have been the result of preferential loss of Sm relative to Nd, or introduction of a low Sm/Nd fluid with?_Nd ≥ 0 during granulite facies metamorphism.     

KAr isochron study of the Tudor Gabbro,Grenville Province,Ontario

Ten whole-rock samples from the Tudor Gabbro, Grenville Province, Ontario, Canada have been dated by the KAr method. The ages calculated by the conventional method range from 900 m.y. to 2040 m.y. On an isochron plot, three samples from a sampling site near the northern border of the gabbro lie along a 670-m.y. isochron with an initial⁴⁰Ar/³⁶Ar ratio of about 17,300 whereas all other samples lie along another 670-m.y. isochron with an initial ratio of about 5000. Although it is not certain yet as to what geological event the isochron age represents, the results clearly demonstrate that the effect of initial argon can be significant even on old samples such as these.     

SmNd constraints on early lunar differentiation and the evolution of KREEP

The Sm-Nd systematics of lunar KREEP basalt 15386 reflects two chronologically distinct events in the development of the incompatible element-rich materials of the moon. The measured Sm-Nd mineral isochron of 15386 indicates an age of 3.85 ± 0.08 AE which is consistent with the reported Rb-Sr and³⁹Ar-⁴⁰Ar ages of many other KREEP-rich samples. This age is interpreted as the time at which 15386 crystallized from a liquid on or near the lunar surface. The frequent occurrence of this age for KREEP-dominated samples, as well as the restricted location of KREEP near major lunar near-side impact basins, suggests that the eruption of these incompatible element-rich liquids was related to deep impact events during the postulated final bombardment phase of the surface of the moon. However, the lower than chrondritic initial¹⁴³Nd/¹⁴⁴Nd of 15386 and the essentially identical Sm-Nd evolution of other KREEP-rich samples require that the light REE enrichment which characterizes KREEP was established considerably before 3.85 AE. Within the limits imposed by model assumptions in the various radiometric systems, it is concluded that the extremely narrow spread of Sm-Nd model ages for these samples around 4.36 AE, and the compatibility of this age with that indicated by the U-Pb and Rb-Sr systems, indicate that the source of later KREEP volcanism was produced in the closing stages of an early global scale lunar differentiation episode.     

Metal-olivine associations and NiCo contents in two Apollo 12 mare basalts

Olivine crystals in mare basalts 12004,8 and 12022,12 are normally zoned with Cr-poor rims. The Ni content of rare 2–10-μm metal inclusions in olivine decreases markedly as Fe/Mg in their immediate olivine hosts increases. Each metal grain appears to have been enclosed by late olivine almost immediately after it crystallized. The fractionation trend for the olivine and metal contrasts with the subsolidus equilibration trend for pallasites. For the basalts, not even local equilibration of Fe, Ni and Co at metal/olivine interfaces can be detected by microprobe. Ni and Co concentrations range from about 300 ppm in olivine cores to about 70 ppm in rims. The limits of detection, at 95% confidence, are 36 ppm (Ni) and 25 ppm (Co). The distribution of Ni and Co in olivine, like that of Mg and Cr, records the depletion of these elements in the melt.Fractional solidification models, using the Ni and Co concentrations of the whole rock, and Ni and Co concentrations of the earliest formed olivine, metal and “opaques” as initial compositions, allow metal and olivine compositions to be predicted if the order of crystallization is known. Conversely the order of crystallization can be established if known olivine and metal compositions are reproduced. Calculated Ni and Co contents for metal and olivine in these basalts correspond to observed concentrations only where metal precipitation is delayed until the liquid has crystallized 4–5 wt.% olivine.     

Palaeomagnetism and KAr age of Mesozoic and Cenozoic igneous rocks from Antarctica

A new analysis of palaeomagnetic data for igneous rocks from Deception Island, 25 de Mayo Island (King George Island) and Cape Spring, are given.K-Ar age determinations indicate that most of the igneous samples from 25 de Mayo Island included in the palaeomagnetic study are of Late Mesozoic/Early Tertiary age. The significance of these palaeomagnetic-radiometric data on the hypothesis of oroclinal bending of the Antarctic Peninsula and on the apparent polar movement of Antarctica is discussed.The positions of palaeomagnetic poles for the Andean igneous complex indicate that there has not been any apparent post-Late Cretaceous/Early Tertiary oroclinal bending in the Antarctic Peninsula from 74°S to 62°S.A comparison of the positions of palaeomagnetic poles for Antarctica and Australia suggests that the direction of apparent polar movement relative to Antarctica reversed after the Miocene.     

87Rb87Sr dating of LL chondrites

⁸⁷Rb⁸⁷Sr analyses of LL chondrites have been made in 10 whole rock meteorites, chondrules from Chainpur (LL3) and Soko Banja (LL4), density separates and chondrules from Guidder (LL5) and density separates from Jelica (LL6) and Ensisheim (LL6). Whole rocks define an isochron of age 4.486±0.020 Ga (λ⁸⁷Rb=1.42×10^?11a^?1) and initial ratio (⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr)_I=0.69887±0.00012. This is in agreement with the results for H- and E-type chondrites. Analyses for chondrules from Soko Banja yield a very good isochron of age 4.452±0.020 Ga and strontium initial ratio 0.69954±0.00024, and give an interval for metamorphism of (37±10)×10⁶ a. A more poorly defined isochron is obtained for Jelica; the age is 4.423±0.041 Ga and the strontium initial ratio 0.69959±0.00029, indicating an interval for metamorphism of (70±60)×10⁶ a. No isochron could be obtained for Chainpur. This could be due to terrestrial alteration or to a late isotopic disturbance of the meteorite. The⁸⁷Rb-⁸⁷Sr system is also disturbed in Guidder and Ensisheim, probably as a consequence of shock. These results are discussed in comparison with our former studies, and in relation with thermal metamorphism in the LL chondrite parent body(ies).     

Temperature and pressure effects on40Ar39Ar systematics

The effects of thermal and compressional treatment on⁴⁰Ar-³⁹Ar systematics have been investigated on three artificially heated biotite samples (heated for 1 hour at 700°C and 860°C in air and 700°C in vacuum respectively) and uniaxially compressed granite (p = 1400bar) and basalt samples (p = 1650bar). The⁴⁰Ar-³⁹Ar results for the disturbed samples are compared with those for undisturbed samples. Except for the vacuum-heating case, the effects of the disturbances may be interpreted as the combined effect of a partial loss of radiogenic⁴⁰Ar from the sample and an incorporation of air Ar into the sample. Common diagnostic effects are (1) reduction of the total fusion age, (2) distortion of the age spectrum and, if the degree of the partial Ar loss is small, (3) approximate preservation of the isochron age, and (4) reduction of the intercept value (⁴⁰Ar/³⁶Ar) in the isochron plot.The features observed in the age spectra of artificially disturbed samples are rather common in geologically disturbed samples, suggesting that the artificial disturbances simulate the effects of geological disturbances on⁴⁰Ar-³⁹Ar systematics.     

The Palung granite (Himalaya); high-resolution UPb systematics in zircon and monazite

UPb analyses of fractions of zircon and monazite (3–8 grains each) and of single zircon grains resolve a lower Ordovician age of 470 ±4m.y. for the Palung granite which occurs in the High Himalayan nappes south of Kathmandu. Its thrusting during the Alpine orogeny under lower greenschist facies conditions did not affect the UPb systems in zircon and monazite. The granite crystallized from a magma which was mainly generated by anatexis of Precambrian continental crust. The magma was heterogeneous with respect to primary ages and/or metamorphic histories of the magma source rocks. This indicates either a derivation from (meta-) sediments or an intense mixing of different crustally derived magmas. The genesis of the Palung granite is possibly related to an orogeny which affected the Indian shield in lower Palaeozoic times. The detected inherited radiogenic lead in the Palung zircons occurs in perfectly homogeneous, transparent crystals; i.e. this radiogenic (“excess”) lead is not related to the presence of old, microscopically visible, overgrown zircon cores. The minimum ages of the inherited lead components range from about 800 to 1700 m.y.     

Oligo-Miocene rotation of Sardinia: KAr ages and paleomagnetic data of Tertiary volcanics

Conventional K-Ar dating was carried out on mineral separates, mostly plagioclases, from Middle Tertiary volcanics of Sardinia along with paleomagnetic studies. the close agreement of dates from the two methods establishes the rotation age of Sardinia relative to Europe within a rather short time span of 1.5 Ma between 20.5 and 19 Ma. From correlation of our results with the geomagnetic time scale, it is suggested that the rotation took place shortly after the magnetic anomaly 6.