Sveconorwegian crustal underplating in southwestern Fennoscandia: LAM-ICPMS U–Pb and Lu–Hf isotope evidence from granites and gneisses in Telemark, southern Norway

Laser ablation ICPMS U–Pb and Lu–Hf isotope data on granitic-granodioritic gneisses of the Precambrian Vråvatn complex in central Telemark, southern Norway, indicate that the magmatic protoliths crystallized at 1201 ± 9 Ma to 1219 ± 8 Ma, from magmas with juvenile or near-juvenile Hf isotopic composition (¹⁷⁶Hf/¹⁷⁷Hf = 0.2823 ± 11, epsilon-Hf > + 6). These data provide supporting evidence for the depleted mantle Hf-isotope evolution curve in a time period where juvenile igneous rocks are scarce on a global scale. They also identify a hitherto unknown event of mafic underplating in the region, and provide new and important limits on the crustal evolution of the SW part of the Fennoscandian Shield. This juvenile geochemical component in the deep crust may have contributed to the 1.0–0.92 Ga anorogenic magmatism in the region, which includes both A-type granite and a large anorthosite–mangerite–charnockite–granite intrusive complex. The gneisses of the Vråvatn complex were intruded by a granitic pluton with mafic enclaves and hybrid facies (the Vrådal granite) in that period. LAM-ICPMS U–Pb data from zircons from granitic and hybrid facies of the pluton indicates an intrusive age of 966 ± 4 Ma, and give a hint of ca. 1.46 Ga inheritance. The initial Hf isotopic composition of this granite (¹⁷⁶Hf/¹⁷⁷Hf = 0.28219 ± 13, epsilon-Hf = − 5 to + 6) overlaps with mixtures of pre-1.7 Ga crustal rocks and juvenile Sveconorwegian crust, lithospheric mantle and/or global depleted mantle. Contributions from ca. 1.2 Ga crustal underplate must be considered when modelling the petrogenesis of late Sveconorwegian anorogenic magmatism in the region.     

Impact melt rocks from the Late Paleocene Hiawatha impact structure,northwest Greenland

Impact melt rocks formed during hypervelocity impact events are ideal for studying impact structures. Here, we describe impact melt rock samples collected proximal to the 31 km wide 58 Ma Hiawatha impact structure, northwest Greenland, which is completely covered by the Greenland Ice Sheet. The melt rocks contain diagnostic shock indicators (e.g., planar deformation features [PDF] in quartz and shocked zircon) and form three groups based on melt textures and chemistry: (i) hypocrystalline, (ii) glassy, and (iii) carbonate-based melt rocks. The exposed foreland directly in front of the structure consists of metasedimentary successions and igneous plutons; however, the carbonate-based impactites indicate a mixed target sequence with a significant carbonate-rich component. Well-preserved organic material in some melt rocks indicates that North Greenland at the time of impact was host to abundant organic material, likely a dense high-latitude temperate forest. Geochemical signatures of platinum-group elements in selected samples indicate an extraterrestrial component and support previous identification of a highly fractionated iron impactor in glaciofluvial sand. Our results illustrate the possibility to study impact structures hidden beneath a thick ice sheet based on transported samples and this opens a new avenue for identifying other potential impact craters in Greenland and Antarctica.