Tectono-sedimentary control on modern sand deposition on the forebulge of the Western Taiwan Foreland Basin

Whether the formation of the isolated sand body deposition in the forebulge area of a foreland basin system is structure- or deposition-controlled has puzzled geologists for decades, although sand body deposition is generally believed to be indicative of the position of the flexural forebulge in a foreland basin. The formation of a modern sand body in the forebulge area is thus examined by multi-scale geophysical observations based on combined reflection seismic profiles and compressed high-intensity radar pulse (CHIRP) profiles across the sand deposition along the forebulge of the Western Taiwan Foreland Basin (WTFB), which is a Late Miocene-present foreland basin in the overfilled stage. These profiles suggest that the accumulation of the sand deposits along the forebulge of the WTFB is not directly associated with forebulge faultings. The relief map of the forebulge deposit substratum shows a northwestward tilting slope, and the isopach of the forebulge sand body indicates that a large part of the sand body accumulated along the axis of the Taiwan Strait and the subdued forebulge of the WTFB. The difference between the prevailing directions of tidal currents between the Taiwan Strait and the East China Sea reflects the probable sedimentary influence of the cratonward migrating fold-thrust belt within a foreland shelf. We suggest that the formation and distribution of the sand deposits along the forebulge of the WTFB are generally controlled not only by the transverse downslope sedimentation but also longitudinal hydrodynamic processes at distal parts of the foreland basin. Our explanation provides a plausible tectono-sedimentary cause of the sand body deposition in the forebulge area in an overfilled foreland basin. The sedimentary dynamics of the sand body in the Taiwan Strait may be applicable for understanding the formation of isolated sand bodies in the distal part of the Cretaceous Western Interior Foreland Basin.     

Contrast in stress–strain history during exhumation between high- and ultrahigh-pressure metamorphic units in the Western Alps: Microboudinage analysis of piemontite in metacherts

Our analyses of microboudinage structures of piemontite grains embedded within six samples of metachert, one collected from an ultrahigh-pressure (UHP) metamorphic unit at Lago di Cignana in Italy of the Western Alps, and the other five from surrounding high-pressure (HP) metamorphic units in Italy and France, have revealed that the structures are all symmetrical in type, and were presumably produced in coaxial strain fields. Stress–strain analyses of the microboudinaged grains revealed significant contrasts in the stress and strain histories of the UHP and HP metamorphic units, with the differential stress recorded by the UHP sample being unequivocally lower than that recorded by the five HP samples. In addition, our analyses showed that the UHP sample underwent stress-relaxation during microboudinage, whereas the five HP samples did not. On the basis of these observations and analyses we discuss the mechanical decoupling of the UHP and HP units that led to different histories in differential stress between the units during exhumation of the Western Alps.     

Low-temperature constraints on the Alpine thermal evolution of the Western Carpathian basement rock complexes

The Cretaceous to Palaeogene Alpine exhumation of previously buried Variscan basements is recorded in the southern portion of the Western Carpathians in the Gemeric and Veporic units. The Meso-Cenozoic collisional processes resulted in basement exhumation of the Tatric Unit from Palaeogene to Neogene times. According to zircon and apatite fission track data, the Gemeric Unit, an uppermost thick-skinned thrust sheet, cooled from depth levels of ∼10 up to 2.5 km (temperature interval of ∼250–60 °C) about 88–64 Ma ago, after the collapse of overlying Meliata-Turňa-Silica Mesozoic accretionary prism. The middle and lower thick-skinned thrust sheets, Veporic and Tatric units, cooled from the depths of ∼10 up to 2.5 km ∼110–40 Ma ago. The process was controlled by unroofing of footwall from beneath the Gemeric Unit. About 50–20 Ma ago, the internal zone of Tatric Unit gradually exhumed to depth of <2 km and some parts of the unit appeared at the surface level. However, the external zone of Tatric Unit was buried beneath the Eocene to Lower Miocene sedimentary successions and exhumed to the subsurface level at ∼21–8 Ma ago, as a result of oblique collision of the Western Carpathians with the European Platform.     

The first evidence of paleo-wildfire from the Campanian (Late Cretaceous) of North Africa

Although the fossil record of plant macro- and mesofossils, including fossil charcoal, is patchy geographically and temporally, such remains play an important role for the interpretation of paleoenvironmental and paleoclimatic developments in the continental realm. In Egypt, previous palynological studies on the Upper Cretaceous (Campanian) deposits suggested presence of lush subtropical forests, dominated by angiosperms and pteridophytes, which developed under warm and wet climatic conditions. In the present study, the occurrence of paleo-wildfires during the Late Cretaceous (Campanian) is presented for the first time, based on samples from a surface exposure in the vicinity of the Baris Oasis, south Western Desert, Egypt. Macroscopic charcoal was collected and subsequently analyzed under a stereomicroscope and scanning electron microscope (SEM). The charred wood remains were identified as belonging to gymnosperms, which were important components of the North African paleoflora during the Cretaceous. These charcoal remains represent the first verified occurrence of paleo-wildfires in Africa during the Campanian.     

Mawsoniid remains (Sarcopterygii: Actinistia) from the lacustrine Missão Velha Formation (Lower Cretaceous) of the Araripe Basin,North-East Brazil

Mawsoniids are a lineage of extinct fresh/brackish water coelacanth fishes, common in Cretaceous Godwanan deposits of South America, North and West Africa and Madagascar. Here we formally describe mawsoniid remains from the fluvio-lacustrine Missão Velha Formation (Lower Cretaceous) of the Araripe Basin, North-East Brazil. The examples from the Missão Velha Formation are here described as Mawsonia cf. gigas, based mainly on elements of the lower jaw and opercular series. The occurrence of M. cf. gigas in the Missão Velha Formation expands the stratigraphic and geographical ranges of the type species.     

华北克拉通东部鲁西早白垩纪基性岩墙成因:来自锆石年龄、地球化学和Sr-Nd-Hf同位素的证据

中生代基性辉绿岩墙广泛分布于华北克拉通东部山东地区。本研究给出代表性岩墙的U-Pb锆石年龄、地球化学和Sr-Nd-Hf同位素证据,4个代表性锆石的LA-ICP-MS年龄范围处于121.9±0.6Ma和124.3±0.5Ma之间(早白垩纪)。岩石的主量元素组成变化较小,岩石富集轻稀土元素和大离子亲石元素(如,Rb、Ba、U、K和Pb),以及亏损高场强元素(如,Nb、Ta和Ti)。另外,基性岩墙具有相对一致的(⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr)_i比值(~0.7098),负的ε_Nd(t)值(-14.7~-14.5)、ε_Hf(t)值(-31.4~-26.7)和高的Hf模式年龄(t_DM1=1817~2024Ma)。研究显示基性岩墙来自富集岩石圈地幔的部分熔融作用,并在上升侵位过程中经历了一定程度的地壳混染作用影响。总体研究表明,基性岩墙的成因机制与扬子克拉通与华北克拉通的碰撞有关,岩浆源区为晚中生代前受俯冲扬子地壳沉积物交代后的富集岩石圈地幔。     

Study on the Temporal-Spatial Evolution of Prehistoric Settlements and Its Correlation with Subsistence Strategy and Climate History in the Western Liao River Area

Western Liao River area is one of the most important birthplaces of agricultural civilization in northern China. With recent works like relics survey, site excavation and environmental archaeology going further, the time sequence, cultural content and subsistence strategy history of this area are getting explicit. Questions like ancient exploiting history of natural resources, climate background and cultural impact of subsistence strategy have been paid great attention. Traditional environmental archaeology methods like plant and animal remains analysis are mostly utilized to conduct in-site investigation, current studies rarely adopt quantitative methods to examine the sites’ macro temporal-spatial distribution and aggregation pattern. Based on abundant digitized relic survey data, GIS methods like kernel density analysis are utilized to indicate the temporal-spatial distribution and aggregation pattern of prehistoric cultures in Western Liao River area. The latitudinal, longitudinal and altitudinal migrations of site distributional core are indicated by 3D perspective shift and elevation statistics. By referencing existing studies on subsistence strategy and paleoclimate history, results of spatial analysis are used to reveal the correlation among sites’ temporal-spatial distribution, subsistence strategy adopted and climate variation. This also contributes to our understanding and utilization of massive locational information of prehistoric sites in ancient man-land relationship study.     

Characteristic and Geological Significance of Microbially Induced Sedimentary Structures(MISS) in Terrestrial P-T Boundary in Xingyang,Western He’nan Province

Microbially Induced Sedimentary Structures (MISS) are primary sedimentary structures that arise syndepositionally from microbial community activity. Especially valuable are MISS for the analysis of early Archean (and extraterrestrial) deposits. However, most reports of MISS have focused on the Precambrian and Phanerozoic mass extinction marine sediments, and only a few and terrestrial MISS have been studied. The MISS presented in this paper, which mainly consists of mat growth feature, mat destruction feature and mat decay feature, are well preserved in terrestrial clastic rocks around the P-T boundary in Xiyang area, western Henan. Large U ridges, oriented sand quartz, mica grains and thin clayey laminae arranged parallel to bedding plane are the main features visible under the microscope. Several lines of evidence indicate that the Xingyang MISS are of biogenic origin. Abundant MISS in Xingyang may indicate the degradation of terrestrial ecosystems and proliferation of microbial mats immediately after the severe Permian-Triassic mass extinction. Study aiming at MISS helps to analyze their space distribution in the globe and to probe into links between microbial proliferation and environmental stresses following the end-Permian mass extinction in terrestrial ecosystems.     

西天山Muruntau金矿床地质和S-Pb同位素示踪

Muruntau金矿床位于乌兹别克斯坦卡拉库姆板块北缘,是世界规模最大的金矿床。赋矿地层为一套发生绿片岩相浅变质作用的含炭复理石建造。矿区主要经历了四期变形变质作用(D1-D4),矿体受构造控制明显,就位于桑格龙套-塔姆德套与穆龙套-道古兹套剪切带的构造交汇部位,金矿化主要产于次级韧脆性断裂中。对矿床的矿石硫化物及地层开展了系统S、Pb同位素研究,结果表明石英脉型及蚀变岩型矿石中硫化物的δ34S变化范围较大,集中于2.2‰~6.1‰,其中蚀变岩型矿石中毒砂样品δ34S值集中于2.2‰~4.6‰,含金石英脉中硫化物样品δ34S值集中于3.0‰~6.1‰,方解石-石英脉中硫化物样品δ34S值集中于3.5‰~4.0‰,表明矿石中硫主要来源于地层,可能有少量岩浆硫加入。2件黑色页岩中毒砂206Pb/~(204)Pb为19.906~20.378,~(207)Pb/~(204)Pb为15.730~15.750,208Pb/~(204)Pb为38.388~39.894;3件含金石英脉中黄铁矿206Pb/~(204)Pb为18.848~19.431,~(207)Pb/~(204)Pb为15.669~15.736,208Pb/~(204)Pb为38.346~38.879;2件方解石脉中毒砂206Pb/~(204)Pb为18.715~19.563,~(207)Pb/~(204)Pb为15.639~15.740,208Pb/~(204)Pb为38.640~39.295。6件地层岩石样品的铅同位素组成206Pb/~(204)Pb为19.416~20.600,~(207)Pb/~(204)Pb为15.675~15.746,208Pb/~(204)Pb为38.876~39.431。矿石铅与地层铅均落于上地壳与造山带之间,矿石铅显示较大的跨度,且与地层岩石铅具有部分重合,显示成矿物质具有双重来源,与赋矿地层及造山期变质流体均表现出密切成因联系。结合矿床地质特征总结分析,沉积地层的物质准备+多期构造运动驱动变质流体运移(D1-D4)+岩浆热液的后期叠加应该是Muruntau巨量金属富集的关键控制因素。