Petrological evidence for stepwise accretion of metamorphic soles during subduction infancy (Semail ophiolite,Oman and UAE)

Metamorphic soles are tectonic slices welded beneath most large‐scale ophiolites. These slivers of oceanic crust metamorphosed up to granulite facies conditions are interpreted as forming during the first million years of intraoceanic subduction following heat transfer from the incipient mantle wedge towards the top of the subducting plate. This study reappraises the formation of metamorphic soles through detailed field and petrological work on three key sections from the Semail ophiolite (Oman and United Arab Emirates). Based on thermobarometry and thermodynamic modelling, it is shown that metamorphic soles do not record a continuous temperature gradient, as expected from simple heating by the upper plate or by shear heating as proposed in previous studies. The upper, high‐T metamorphic sole is subdivided in at least two units, testifying to the stepwise formation, detachment and accretion of successive slices from the down‐going slab to the mylonitic base of the ophiolite. Estimated peak pressure–temperature conditions through the metamorphic sole, from top to bottom, are 850°C and 1 GPa, 725°C and 0.8 GPa and 530°C and 0.5 GPa. These estimates appear constant within each unit but differing between units by 100–200°C and ~0.2 GPa. Despite being separated by hundreds of kilometres below the Semail ophiolite and having contrasting locations with respect to the ridge axis position, metamorphic soles show no evidence for significant petrological variations along strike. These constraints allow us to refine the tectonic–petrological model for the genesis of metamorphic soles, formed via the stepwise stacking of several homogeneous slivers of oceanic crust and its sedimentary cover. Metamorphic soles result not so much from downward heat transfer (ironing effect) as from progressive metamorphism during strain localization and cooling of the plate interface. The successive thrusts originate from rheological contrasts between the sole, initially the top of the subducting slab, and the peridotite above as the plate interface progressively cools. These findings have implications for the thickness, the scale and the coupling state at the plate interface during the early history of subduction/obduction systems.     

The June 2013 Alberta Catastrophic Flooding Event: Part 1—Climatological aspects and hydrometeorological features

In June 2013, excessive rainfall associated with an intense weather system triggered severe flooding in southern Alberta, which became the costliest natural disaster in Canadian history. This article provides an overview of the climatological aspects and large‐scale hydrometeorological features associated with the flooding event based upon information from a variety of sources, including satellite data, upper air soundings, surface observations and operational model analyses. The results show that multiple factors combined to create this unusually severe event. The event was characterized by a slow‐moving upper level low pressure system west of Alberta, blocked by an upper level ridge, while an associated well‐organized surface low pressure system kept southern Alberta, especially the eastern slopes of the Rocky Mountains, in continuous precipitation for up to two days. Results from air parcel trajectory analysis show that a significant amount of the moisture originated from the central Great Plains, transported into Alberta by a southeasterly low level jet. The event was first dominated by significant thunderstorm activity, and then evolved into continuous precipitation supported by the synoptic‐scale low pressure system. Both the thunderstorm activity and upslope winds associated with the low pressure system produced large rainfall amounts. A comparison with previous similar events occurring in the same region suggests that the synoptic‐scale features associated with the 2013 rainfall event were not particularly intense; however, its storm environment was the most convectively unstable. The system also exhibited a relatively high freezing level, which resulted in rain, rather than snow, mainly falling over the still snow‐covered mountainous areas. Melting associated with this rain‐on‐snow scenario likely contributed to downstream flooding. Furthermore, above‐normal snowfall in the preceding spring helped to maintain snow in the high‐elevation areas, which facilitated the rain‐on‐snow event. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Ordovician system

Rocks in the Brungle‐Darbalara area of the Tumut Trough form two distinct domains: basement (mainly Bullawyarra Schist), of Cambrian‐Ordovician age, and an Ordovician ‐ Early Silurian sedimentary and volcanic cover sequence. These two domains are separated by a sharp discontinuity that marks an abrupt change in rock type, structure, metamorphic grade and deformation style. Cover sequences have undergone only one major penetrative deformation during the Late Silurian, involving sub‐greenschist facies metamorphism and upright folding. In contrast, the basement also underwent at least two older deformations at greenschist facies and contains distinct high‐strain zones subconcordant with the basement‐cover contact. The high‐strain zones, characterized by a ubiquitous south‐southeast trending mineral lineation, record a discontinuous history of ductile followed by brittle behaviour, consistent with an extensional origin.

The structural and metamorphic discontinuity separating basement from Silurian cover is characterized by widespread cataclasis and alteration and is interpreted as a major detachment fault associated with lithospheric extension and the development of the Tumut Trough in the Early Silurian. During the main period of movement on the detachment, which took place prior to intrusion of the Blacks Flat Diorite into the Bullawyarra Schist, mafic and serpentinized ultramafic rocks either were tectonically emplaced or intruded into the high strain zones. This preceded and accompanied extensional faulting of the cover and deposition of Silurian trough sediments and volcanics which unconformably overlie and onlap older units.

The development of the Tumut Trough, in the Brungle‐Darbalara area, bears many similarities with that of Cordilleran metamorphic core complexes. Such a model is consistent with environments suggested for the trough by previous workers. The south‐southeast extension direction parallels the trough‐bounding faults and implies an overall strike‐slip tectonic setting.     

Multiple-Scale Pattern Recognition Applied to Faint Intergranular G-band Structures

Small-scale solar magnetic flux concentrations are studied in two-dimensional G-band images at very high spatial resolution and compared with Ca ii H enhancements. Among 970 small-sized G-band intergranular structures (IgS), 45% are co-spatial with isolated locations of Ca ii H excess and thus considered as magnetic (MIgS); they may be even twice as frequent as the known G-band bright points. The IgS are recognized in the G-band image by a new algorithm operating in four steps: (1) A set of equidistant detection levels yields a pattern of primary “cells”; (2) for each cell, the intrinsic intensity profile is normalized to its brightest pixel; (3) the cell sizes are shrunk by a unitary single-intensity clip; (4) features in contact at an appropriate reference level are merged by removal of the respective common dividing lines. Optionally, adjoining structures may be excluded from this merging process (e.g., chains of segmented IgS), referring to the parameterized number and intensity of those pixels where enveloping feature contours overlap. From the thus recognized IgS pattern, MIgS are then selected by their local Ca ii H contrast and their mean G-band-to-continuum brightness ratio.     

相山铀矿田基底变质岩原岩恢复及构造环境判别

文章通过对相山铀矿田深部变质岩开展岩石学、矿物学及地球化学等方面的研究,以探讨相山基底变质岩原岩的属性和形成环境等特征。根据铀矿科学钻孔岩心样品地球化学分析显示,基底变质岩成熟度较高,显示高镁铁、富硅、富铝,低钠钾的特征,原岩总体呈中酸性。变质岩整体表现出相对富集Ba、U、Rb、K、Th等元素,亏损Nb、Sr、P、Ti等元素;轻、重稀土元素分馏较为明显,且轻稀土相对富集、重稀土相对亏损;δEu为0.6～1.1,平均为0.7,小于1,表现为负异常;δCe为2.9～3.9,平均为3.4,表现为正异常。根据变质岩稀土元素北美页岩标准化(NASC)蛛网图显示,样品稀土元素含量与北美页岩(NASC)含量相近,推测原岩具有沉积岩的特征。主量元素分布特征表明相山铀矿田基底变质岩原岩成分复杂,推测其原岩主要为一套陆源海相沉积泥质岩、砂岩及粉砂岩系列的浅变质作用类型的陆源碎屑岩,主要有岩屑砂岩、富镁沉积岩、泥质碳质硅质岩,可能有部分火山凝灰岩。根据主微量构造判别图,推测相山基底变质岩其原岩为大陆岛弧构造环境下形成的沉积碎屑岩。     

丽江干河坝冰-岩碎屑流地貌、沉积特征与成因机制分析

2004年3月12日,云南省丽江市玉龙雪山南坡发生了较大规模的冰-岩碎屑流型高速远程滑坡。位于斜坡顶部（高程为4 337~5 350 m）的岩体和冰川块体沿着高陡岩壁向下滑动,在峡谷地形控制下于干河坝内形成体积约11.2×10⁶ m³的滑坡堆积体。本文通过遥感影像分析和现场调查,对干河坝冰-岩碎屑流的地貌与堆积特征进行了详细研究,初步阐释了干河坝冰-岩碎屑流发生的成因机制和运动过程。研究结果表明,节理裂隙发育、源区冻融作用加剧和历史地震效应是此次地震的诱发因素。地形的坡度变化特征、滑体表面“乘船石”结构及内部岩屑的定向排列表明滑坡的运动过程可分为碰撞破碎阶段和扩散堆积阶段。滑坡堆积区广泛分布的“冰川乳坑”和冰水沉积物暗示堆积体底部松散沉积物减阻或是干河坝冰-岩碎屑流具有远程效应的有利因素。深入理解干河坝冰-岩碎屑流的地貌特征及运动学过程,对揭示高速远程滑坡的超强运动机理具有重要的理论意义,同时对我国西部高寒山区大型滑坡灾害的预测预警亦具有现实意义。     

Petrological and chronological characteristics of medium-high grade metamorphic rocks in Gonjo area,southeastern margin of Qamdo block,eastern Tibet.SCIEI北大核心CSCD

青藏高原东缘的昌都地块是连接青藏高原腹地和藏东南三江-印支地区的关键区域,发育有较完整的晚古生界,以三叠系、侏罗系-白垩系广泛分布为特色;但其前寒武纪基底岩系出露较少,主要以宁多岩群(Pt_(1-2)Nd.)和草曲群(Pt_(3)C)为代表。本文针对昌都地块东南缘贡觉地区出露的一套被前人称为“宁多岩群”的中深变质岩系,开展了系统的野外地质调查、显微薄片分析、锆石U-Pb年代学等研究工作,认为该套中深变质岩系属于一套变质杂岩,其岩石组合既包括了原岩沉积时代不早于奥陶纪的片麻岩、变粒岩和大理岩等副变质岩,又包含了原岩时代分别为中二叠世的斜长角闪岩和中三叠世花岗质片麻岩等正变质岩。其原岩时代特征与昌都地块北缘的宁多岩群有较大差别,不应当归属为昌都地块的前寒武纪结晶基底。结合片麻岩的变质新生云母类矿物Ar-Ar测年数据和变质后期侵入的闪长玢岩脉锆石U-Pb年龄,认为贡觉地区出露的中深变质岩的变质时代为ca.260~244Ma(P_(2)-T_(2))。该期发生在昌都地块东南缘的角闪岩相变质作用,是金沙江古特提斯洋向西俯冲-碰撞的构造响应。     

北天山后峡盆地地质特征及形成演化*

作为北天山造山带内的中生代小型山间盆地,后峡盆地的构造属性及成因演化反映了天山造山带的构造演化历史,是认识天山地区陆块拼合、盆山耦合的重要窗口。文中综合利用野外踏勘、地震解释、平衡剖面恢复等研究手段,对北天山后峡盆地地质特征及其成因演化进行了系统研究。结果表明: (1)天山是后峡盆地侏罗纪的重要物源区,该时期石炭系基底仅为1个水下低突起,并未隆升成山而分隔盆地南、北的侏罗系,现今的后峡残留山间盆地是后期构造运动所致;(2)后峡盆地的形成经历了伸展—挤压的复合应力背景,早侏罗世—中侏罗世早期的弱伸展作用形成断陷盆地,晚侏罗世的强烈挤压作用改造了先前的伸展构造并使盆地定型,喜马拉雅构造期的强烈挤压改造主要表现为地层的抬升剥蚀和构造幅度的变化。该研究成果对明确天山造山带的构造演化及指导相邻盆地油气勘探具有重要意义。     

柴达木盆地别勒滩杂卤石矿床特征及其沉积环境研究

别勒滩是青海察尔汗盐湖固体钾矿的主要分布区段,也是企业固转液开采和生产钾盐的主要矿区,该区段分布着大面积的杂卤石矿(K₂Ca₂Mg[SO₄]₄2H₂O)。文章利用2022年察尔汗盐湖储量核查项目获得的岩芯样品和钻孔资料,通过系统的分析测试,开展别勒滩杂卤石成矿特征及沉积环境研究。文章首次查明别勒滩区段杂卤石矿床分布面积超过150 km²,平均厚度0.8 m,w(K₂SO₄)平均大于5%,计算获得K₂SO₄资源量2089.79×10⁴t。研究认为,别勒滩杂卤石形成于钾石盐、光卤石析出阶段的高浓缩盐湖相沉积环境,周期性淡化带入的大量Ca²⁺和SO₄^2-与卤水中含量较高的K⁺、Mg²⁺离子反应形成了杂卤石矿层。别勒滩杂卤石矿层具有较好渗透性和给水...     

滇西澜沧黑河地区超高压变质岩中金红石微量元素特征

为研究黑河地区金红石微量元素特征及榴辉岩型金红石矿床的成矿地质条件,本文选取滇西澜沧黑河地区榴辉岩、石榴多硅白云母片岩中的金红石进行LA-ICP-MS微量元素分析。结果表明金红石微量元素呈现阶梯式三级分布特征,最富集Nb、Ta,其次是Zr、Hf,含量较少的元素有Ba、Rb、Sr、Th、REE;榴辉岩、榴闪岩类原岩属于变质基性岩类,含蓝晶石榴闪岩原岩属于玄武质凝灰岩类,石榴多硅白云母片岩类原岩属于泥质岩类;榴辉岩中金红石Nb/Ta比值均要高于其全岩Nb/Ta比值,金红石Nb、Ta含量与变质作用过程中元素在各矿物间的分配系数有关;采用金红石Zr含量温度计获得黑河地区榴辉岩的峰期变质阶段金红石形成温度为578～605℃,峰期变质作用后的退变质流体会造成金红石中Zr的再平衡。此外,黑河地区具备榴辉岩型金红石矿床形成的成矿物源、成矿作用的物理化学条件以及成矿的物质基础,有一定的找矿潜力。