Stratigraphy, structure and geochemistry of Archaean supracrustal rocks from Oqaatsut and Naajaat Qaqqaat, north-east Disko Bugt, West Greenland

1999 ◽  
pp. 65-78
Author(s):  
Henrik Rasmussen ◽  
Lars Frimodt Pedersen
Keyword(s):  
Tectonic Setting ◽  
Trace Element Geochemistry ◽  
Element Geochemistry ◽  
West Greenland ◽  
North West ◽  
North East ◽  
Metavolcanic Rocks ◽  
Arc Setting ◽  
Area North ◽  
Back Arc

NOTE: This article was published in a former series of GEUS Bulletin. Please use the original series name when citing this article, for example: Rasmussen, H., & Frimodt Pedersen, L. (1999). Stratigraphy, structure and geochemistry of Archaean supracrustal rocks from Oqaatsut and Naajaat Qaqqaat, north-east Disko Bugt, West Greenland. Geology of Greenland Survey Bulletin, 181, 65-78. https://doi.org/10.34194/ggub.v181.5114 _______________ Two Archaean supracrustal sequences in the area north-east of Disko Bugt, c. 1950 and c. 800 m in thickness, are dominated by pelitic and semipelitic mica schists, interlayered with basic metavolcanic rocks. A polymict conglomerate occurs locally at the base of one of the sequences. One of the supracrustal sequences has undergone four phases of deformation; the other three phases. In both sequences an early phase, now represented by isoclinal folds, was followed by north-west-directed thrusting. A penetrative deformation represented by upright to steeply inclined folds is only recognised in one of the sequences. Steep, brittle N–S and NW–SE striking faults transect all rock units including late stage dolerites and lamprophyres. Investigation of major- and trace-element geochemistry based on discrimination diagrams for tectonic setting suggests that both metasediments and metavolcanic rocks were deposited in an environment similar to a modern back-arc setting.

Geodynamic setting, crustal architecture, and VMS metallogeny of ca. 2720 Ma greenstone belt assemblages of the northern Wawa subprovince, Superior Province

2015 ◽  
Vol 52 (3) ◽  
pp. 196-214 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert W.D. Lodge ◽  
Harold L. Gibson ◽  
Greg M. Stott ◽  
James M. Franklin ◽  
George J. Hudak
Keyword(s):  
Trace Element ◽  
Greenstone Belt ◽  
Tectonic Setting ◽  
Geodynamic Setting ◽  
Trace Element Geochemistry ◽  
Superior Province ◽  
Suprasubduction Zone ◽  
Greenstone Belts ◽  
Arc Setting ◽  
Back Arc

The greenstone belts along the northern margin of the Wawa subprovince of the Superior Province (Vermilion, Shebandowan, Winston Lake, Manitouwadge) formed at ca. 2720 Ma and have been interpreted to be representative of a rifted-arc to back-arc tectonic setting. Despite a common inferred tectonic setting and broad similarities, these greenstone belts have a significantly different metallogeny as evidenced by different endowments in volcanogenic massive sulphide (VMS), magmatic sulphide, and orogenic gold deposits. In this paper, we examine differences in geodynamic setting and crustal architecture as they pertain to the metallogeny of each greenstone belt by characterizing the regional-scale trace-element and isotopic (Nd and Pb) geochemistry of each belt. The trace-element geochemistry of the Vermilion greenstone belt (VGB) shows evidence for a transition from arc-like to back-arc mafic rocks in the Soudan belt to plume-driven rifted arcs in the ultramafic-bearing Newton belt. The Shebandowan greenstone belt (SGB) has a significant proportion of calc-alkalic, arc-like basalts, intermediate lithofacies, and high-Mg andesites, which are characteristic of low-angle, “hot” subduction. Extensional settings within the SGB are plume-driven and associated with komatiitic ultramafic and mid-ocean ridge basalt (MORB)-like basalts. The Winston Lake greenstone belt (WGB) is characterized by a transition from calc-alkalic, arc-like basalts to back-arc basalts upward in the strata and is capped by alkalic ocean-island basalt (OIB)-like basalts. This association is consistent with plume-driven rifting of a mature arc setting. Each of the VGB, SGB, and WGB show some isotopic evidence for the interaction with a juvenile or slightly older differentiated crust. The Manitouwadge greenstone belt (MGB) is characterized by isotopically juvenile, bimodal, tholeiitic to transitional volcanic lithofacies in a back-arc setting. The MGB is the most isotopically juvenile belt and is also the most productive in terms of VMS mineralization. The Zn-rich VMS mineralization within the WGB suggests a relatively lower-temperature hydrothermal system, possibly within a relatively shallow-water environment. The Zn-dominated and locally Au-enriched VMS mineralization, as well as mafic lithofacies and alteration assemblages, are characteristic of relatively shallower-water deposition in the VGB and SGB, and indicate that the ideal VMS-forming tectonic condition may have been compromised by a shallower-water depositional setting. However, the thickened arc crust and compressional tectonics of the SGB suprasubduction zone during hot subduction may have provided a crustal setting more favourable for the magmatic Ni–Cu sulphide and relative gold endowment of this belt.

The Archaean Atâ intrusive complex (Atâ tonalite), north-east Disko Bugt, West Greenland

1999 ◽  
pp. 103-112
Author(s):  
Feiko Kalsbeek ◽  
Lilian Skjernaa
Keyword(s):  
Intrusive Complex ◽  
The South ◽  
Original Series ◽  
Early Proterozoic ◽  
West Greenland ◽  
North East ◽  
The North ◽  
Southern Border ◽  
Area North ◽  
Igneous Layering

NOTE: This article was published in a former series of GEUS Bulletin. Please use the original series name when citing this article, for example: Kalsbeek, F., & Skjernaa, L. (1999). The Archaean Atâ intrusive complex (Atâ tonalite), north-east Disko Bugt, West Greenland. Geology of Greenland Survey Bulletin, 181, 103-112. https://doi.org/10.34194/ggub.v181.5118 _______________ The 2800 Ma Atâ intrusive complex (elsewhere referred to as ‘Atâ granite’ or ‘Atâ tonalite’), which occupies an area of c. 400 km2 in the area north-east of Disko Bugt, was emplaced into grey migmatitic gneisses and supracrustal rocks. At its southern border the Atâ complex is cut by younger granites. The complex is divided by a belt of supracrustal rocks into a western, mainly tonalitic part, and an eastern part consisting mainly of granodiorite and trondhjemite. The ‘eastern complex’ is a classical pluton. It is little deformed in its central part, displaying well-preserved igneous layering and local orbicular textures. Near its intrusive contact with the overlying supracrustal rocks the rocks become foliated, with foliation parallel to the contact. The Atâ intrusive complex has escaped much of the later Archaean and early Proterozoic deformation and metamorphism that characterises the gneisses to the north and to the south; it belongs to the best-preserved Archaean tonalite-trondhjemite-granodiorite intrusions in Greenland.

Chemistry and Differentiation of Mafic Dikes in an area near Fiskenaesset, West Greenland

1975 ◽  
Vol 12 (5) ◽  
pp. 721-730 ◽  
Author(s):  
Giorgio Rivalenti
Keyword(s):  
Trace Element ◽  
Magma Chamber ◽  
Trace Element Geochemistry ◽  
Element Geochemistry ◽  
West Greenland ◽  
Olivine Tholeiite ◽  
Three Generations ◽  
Upward Displacement ◽  
Crustal Magma

In the Fiskenaesset region (West Greenland), there are three generations of postorogenic doleritic dikes of tholeiitic affinity. Two types of differentiation are evident: (a) laterally from the contacts to center and vertically, with the upper centres of the youngest generation of dikes attaining an andesitic or rhyolitic composition; and (b) between the different generations of dikes.Major and trace element geochemistry and calculations of the cumulus composition indicate that the differentiation within dikes is due not to flow, but to a shallow crustal fractionation of an olivine tholeiite magma. The differentiation between the various generations is attributed to fractionation of an olivine tholeiite magma during its upward displacement from a deep crustal magma chamber.

scholarly journals Gold-hosting supracrustal rocks on Storø, southern West Greenland: lithologies and geological environment

2007 ◽  
Vol 13 ◽  
pp. 41-44 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christian Knudsen ◽  
Jeroen A.M. Van Gool ◽  
Claus Østergaard ◽  
Julie A. Hollis ◽  
Matilde Rink-Jørgensen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Volcanic Rocks ◽  
West Greenland ◽  
Metasedimentary Rocks ◽  
Quartz Veins ◽  
Rock Types ◽  
Minimum Age ◽  
Arc Setting ◽  
Basic Volcanic ◽  
Back Arc ◽  
Different Sources

A gold prospect on central Storø in the Nuuk region of southern West Greenland is hosted by a sequence of intensely deformed, amphibolite facies supracrustal rocks of late Mesoto Neoarchaean age. The prospect is at present being explored by the Greenlandic mining company NunaMinerals A/S. Amphibolites likely to be derived from basaltic volcanic rocks dominate, and ultrabasic to intermediate rocks are also interpreted to be derived from volcanic rocks. The sequence also contains metasedimentary rocks including quartzites and cordierite-, sillimanite-, garnet- and biotite-bearing aluminous gneisses. The metasediments contain detrital zircon from different sources indicating a maximum age of the mineralisation of c. 2.8 Ga. The original deposition of the various rock types is believed to have taken place in a back-arc setting. Gold is mainly hosted in garnet- and biotite-rich zones in amphibolites often associated with quartz veins. Gold has been found within garnets indicating that the mineralisation is pre-metamorphic, which points to a minimum age of the mineralisation of c. 2.6 Ga. The geochemistry of the goldbearing zones indicates that the initial gold mineralisation is tied to fluid-induced sericitisation of a basic volcanic protolith. The hosting rocks and the mineralisation are affected by several generations of folding.

New insights into the geologic evolution of the Grenvillian Trenton Prong inlier, Central Appalachian Piedmont, USA

2020 ◽  
Vol 57 (7) ◽  
pp. 840-854
Author(s):  
Richard A. Volkert
Keyword(s):  
Tectonic Setting ◽  
Hanging Wall ◽  
Sediment Source ◽  
Slow Cooling ◽  
Grenville Province ◽  
Magmatic Arc ◽  
Metamorphic History ◽  
Arc Setting ◽  
Appalachian Piedmont ◽  
Back Arc

New geochemical and 40Ar/39Ar hornblende and biotite data from the Grenvillian Trenton Prong inlier provide the first constraints for the identification of lithotectonic units, their tectonic setting, and their metamorphic to post-metamorphic history. Gneissic tonalite, diorite, and gabbro compose the Colonial Lake Suite magmatic arc that developed along eastern Laurentia prior to 1.2 Ga. Spatially associated low- and high-TiO2 amphibolites were formed from island-arc basalt proximal to the arc front and mid-ocean ridge basalt-like basalt in a back-arc setting, respectively. Supracrustal paragneisses include meta-arkose derived from a continental sediment source of Laurentian affinity and metagraywacke and metapelite from an arc-like sediment source deposited in a back-arc basin, inboard of the Colonial Lake arc. The Assunpink Creek Granite was emplaced post-tectonically as small bodies of peraluminous syenogranite produced through partial melting of a subduction-modified felsic crustal source. Prograde mineral assemblages reached granulite- to amphibolite-facies metamorphic conditions during the Ottawan phase of the Grenvillian Orogeny. Hornblende 40Ar/39Ar ages of 935–923 Ma and a biotite age of 868 Ma record slow cooling in the northern part of the inlier following the metamorphic peak. Elsewhere in the inlier, biotite 40Ar/39Ar ages of 440 Ma and 377–341 Ma record partial to complete thermal resetting or new growth during the Taconian and Acadian orogens. The results of this study are consistent with the Trenton Prong being the down-dropped continuation of the Grenvillian New Jersey Highlands on the hanging wall of a major detachment fault. The Trenton Prong therefore correlates to other central and northern Appalachian Grenvillian inliers and to parts of the Grenville Province proper.

Tectonic setting and regional correlation of Ordovician–Silurian rocks of the Aspy terrane, Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia

1991 ◽  
Vol 28 (11) ◽  
pp. 1769-1779 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sandra M. Barr ◽  
Rebecca A. Jamieson
Keyword(s):  
Tectonic Setting ◽  
Volcanic Rocks ◽  
Volcanic Arc ◽  
Cape Breton Island ◽  
Metasedimentary Rocks ◽  
Tectonic History ◽  
Cape Breton ◽  
Metavolcanic Rocks ◽  
High Grade Metamorphism ◽  
Arc Setting

Interlayered mafic and felsic metavolcanic rocks and metasedimentary rocks of Ordovician to Silurian age are characteristic of the Aspy terrane of northwestern Cape Breton Island. These rocks were affected by medium- to high-grade metamorphism and were intruded by synkinematic granitoid orthogneisses during Late Silurian to Early Devonian times. They were intruded by posttectonic Devonian granitic plutons and experienced rapid Devonian decompression and cooling. The chemical characteristics of the mafic metavolcanic rocks indicate that they are tholeiites formed in a volcanic-arc setting. The volcanic rocks of the Aspy terrane differ from many other Silurian and Silurian–Devonian successions in Atlantic Canada, which have chemical and stratigraphic characteristics of volcanic rocks formed in extensional within-plate settings, and are somewhat younger than the Aspy terrane sequences. Aspy terrane units are most similar to Ordovician–Silurian volcanic and metamorphic units in southwestern Newfoundland, including the La Poile Group and the Port aux Basques gneiss. Together with other occurrences of Late Ordovician to Early Silurian volcanic-arc units, they indicate that subduction-related compressional tectonics continued into the Silurian in parts of the northern Appalachian Orogen. The complex Late Silurian – Devonian tectonic history of the Aspy terrane may reflect collision with the southeastern edge of a Grenvillian crustal promentory.

scholarly journals Continued 1:500 000 reconnaissance mapping in the Precambrian of the Sukkertoppen region, southern West Greenland

1978 ◽  
Vol 90 ◽  
pp. 50-54
Author(s):  
J.H Allaart ◽  
C.R.L Friend ◽  
R.P Hall ◽  
S.B Jensen ◽  
I.W.N Roberts
Keyword(s):  
Coastal Areas ◽  
West Greenland ◽  
North East ◽  
Base Camp ◽  
Area North

The reconnaissance mapping programme for the 1:500000 map sheet Frederikshåb Isblink - Søndre Strømfjord (62°30'-66°45'N), in the Godthåb-Sukkertoppen region that started in 1976 (Allaart et al., 1977), was continued in 1977. This summer's activity was concentrated in the areas between the inner part of Fiskefjord and Taserssuaq, from Taserssuaq to north of Majorqaq and from Søndre Isortoq to Evighedsfjord (fig. 19). Between Fiskefjord and Søndre Isortoq detailed mapping has been carried out by geologists of Kryolitselskabet Øresund A/S during the summers of 1965-1976. The coastal areas have been investigated previously by GGU geologists (Berthelsen, 1960; Noe-Nygaard & Ramberg, 1961). The mapping team of five geologists, supported by two Bell G3 helicopters and by the GGU motor cutter F. Johnstrup, operated from a base camp at the head of the fjord Kangerdluarssuk, 30 km north-east of Sukkertoppen. The reconnaissance mapping programme will be completed in 1978, when the area north of Evighedsfjord as far as latitude 66°45'N will be mapped.

scholarly journals Stratigraphy and structural development of the Precambrian rocks in the area north-east of Disko Bugt, West Greenland

1967 ◽  
Vol 13 ◽  
pp. 1-28
Author(s):  
A Escher ◽  
M Burri
Keyword(s):  
Transition Zone ◽  
Greenschist Facies ◽  
Amphibolite Facies ◽  
Structural Development ◽  
West Greenland ◽  
Precambrian Rocks ◽  
The Third ◽  
North East ◽  
Area North

The Precambrian rocks in the area north-east of Disko Bugt can be divided into a lower gneiss group and an upper supracrustal group. The lower part of the supracrustal group consists of quartzites, amphibolites and garnet-staurolite schists, while the upper part is mainly semipelitic schist. The gneisses were affected by three successive phases of deformation, while in the supracrustals only the two latest phases of folding can be recognized. Evidence is given in support of the idea that the supracrustals were deposited on a gneiss basement after the first phase of folding, the basement being later reactivated mainly during the third and last deformation. Two main tectonic compLexes can be distinguished in the area mapped: a southern complex characterized by a predominarit ENE direction of the fold axes and a northern complex in which the main fold axes are strongly curved around a central gneiss dorne. The transition zone between the southern and northern complex is marked by the presence of severaL important faults and mylonites. The gneiss dorne is flanked in its northern part by a thick granite sheet. The dorne structure appears to have been forrned by a combination of diapiric movements and the interference between two successive deformations. The gneisses and lower supracrustals recrystallized under amphibolite facies conditions, while greenschist facies conditions prevaiLed during the recrystallisation of the upper supracrustals.

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