Implications of the detrital zircon record for global plate tectonic reconstructions in deep time

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dongchuan Jian ◽  
Simon Williams ◽  
Shan Yu ◽  
Guochun Zhao
Keyword(s):  
Detrital Zircon ◽  
Detrital Zircons ◽  
Classification Method ◽  
Alternative Methods ◽  
Plate Boundaries ◽  
Plate Tectonic ◽  
Deep Time ◽  
Plate Reconstructions ◽  
Competing Models ◽  
Tectonic Reconstructions

<p>Full-plate reconstructions describe the history of both past continental motions and how plate boundaries have evolved to accommodate these motions. The fluxes of material into and out of the mantle at plate boundaries is thought to deeply influence the evolution of deep Earth structure, surface environments and biological systems through deep time. Traditionally, plate tectonic reconstructions have relied on geophysical data from the oceans, which provides details of how Pangea broke apart (since ca. 200 Myr) while paleomagnetism is the primary quantitative constraint prior to Pangea formation. However, these data do not directly constrain the extent of subduction zones or other plate boundaries, so reconstructing the past plate configurations of past supercontinents must rely on alternative methods. One source of data that can resolve this problem is to use observations from detrital zircons. Previous studies have proposed classification schemes to determine tectonic settings where samples were deposited, based on the different characteristic shapes of detrital zircon age spectra found in convergent, collisional and extensional settings.</p><p>Here, we investigate the applicability of this method to test and refine global full-plate tectonic reconstructions in deep time, using a published database of zircon ages. We first use reconstructions for relatively recent times (<100 Ma), where reconstructions are reasonable well constrained, to evaluate the effectiveness of the classification method. For older times, where uncertainties in the reconstructions are far larger, we can use the results to discriminate between competing models. We analysed the proximity between reconstructed plate boundaries and zircon sample sites assigned to different tectonic classifications, and found that the classification method does well (~64－79% success depending on distance threshold used) in distinguishing convergent settings. The ability of the classification to define extensional settings such as rift basins is less clear, though samples in this class do lie preferentially further from convergent settings. Based on these insights, we apply the method to evaluate full-plate reconstructions for the Neoproterozoic as well as other competing models for the configuration of Rodinia.</p>

scholarly journals Uncertainties in break-up markers along the Iberia–Newfoundland margins illustrated by new seismic data

Solid Earth ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
pp. 397-417 ◽  
Author(s):  
Annabel Causer ◽  
Lucía Pérez-Díaz ◽  
Jürgen Adam ◽  
Graeme Eagles
Keyword(s):  
Seismic Data ◽  
Direct Consequence ◽  
Magnetic Anomalies ◽  
Oceanic Lithosphere ◽  
High Amplitude ◽  
Plate Tectonic ◽  
Plate Models ◽  
Plate Reconstructions ◽  
Tectonic Reconstructions ◽  
Break Up

Abstract. Plate tectonic modellers often rely on the identification of “break-up” markers to reconstruct the early stages of continental separation. Along the Iberian-Newfoundland margin, so-called break-up markers include interpretations of old magnetic anomalies from the M series, as well as the “J anomaly”. These have been used as the basis for plate tectonic reconstructions are based on the concept that these anomalies pinpoint the location of first oceanic lithosphere. However, uncertainties in the location and interpretation of break-up markers, as well as the difficulty in dating them precisely, has led to plate models that differ in both the timing and relative palaeo-positions of Iberia and Newfoundland during separation. We use newly available seismic data from the Southern Newfoundland Basin (SNB) to assess the suitability of commonly used break-up markers along the Newfoundland margin for plate kinematic reconstructions. Our data show that basement associated with the younger M-series magnetic anomalies is comprised of exhumed mantle and magmatic additions and most likely represents transitional domains and not true oceanic lithosphere. Because rifting propagated northward, we argue that M-series anomaly identifications further north, although in a region not imaged by our seismic, are also unlikely to be diagnostic of true oceanic crust beneath the SNB. Similarly, our data also allow us to show that the high amplitude of the J Anomaly is associated with a zone of exhumed mantle punctuated by significant volcanic additions and at times characterized by interbedded volcanics and sediments. Magmatic activity in the SNB at a time coinciding with M4 (128 Ma) and the presence of SDR packages onlapping onto a basement fault suggest that, at this time, plate divergence was still being accommodated by tectonic faulting. We illustrate the differences in the relative positions of Iberia and Newfoundland across published plate reconstructions and discuss how these are a direct consequence of the uncertainties introduced into the modelling procedure by the use of extended continental margin data (dubious magnetic anomaly identifications, break-up unconformity interpretations). We conclude that a different approach is needed for constraining plate kinematics of the Iberian plate pre-M0 times.

Detrital zircons and the interpretation of palaeogeography, with the Variscan Orogeny as an example

2019 ◽  
Vol 157 (4) ◽  
pp. 690-694 ◽  
Author(s):  
W. Franke ◽  
L.R.M. Cocks ◽  
T.H. Torsvik
Keyword(s):  
Indian Ocean ◽  
Detrital Zircon ◽  
Detrital Zircons ◽  
Variscan Orogeny ◽  
Plate Tectonic ◽  
The North ◽  
The Indian Ocean ◽  
Break Up ◽  
Early Palaeozoic ◽  
Original Derivation

AbstractAnalysis of the distribution of detrital zircon grains is one of the few parameters by which Precambrian palaeogeography may be interpreted. However, the break-up of Pangea and the subsequent dispersal of some of its fragments around the Indian Ocean demonstrate that zircon analysis alone may be misleading, since zircons indicate their original derivation and not their subsequent plate-tectonic pathways. Based on analysis of Precambrian–Ordovician zircon distributions, the presence of microcontinents and separating oceans in the north Gondwanan realm has been rejected in favour of an undivided pre-Variscan continental northwards extension of Africa to include Iberia, Armorica and neighbouring southern European terranes, based on analysis of Precambrian–Ordovician zircon distribution. However, contrasting views, indicating the presence of three peri-Gondwanan oceans with complete Wilson cycles, are reinforced here by a critical reappraisal of the significance of that Variscan area detrital zircon record together with a comparison of the evolution of the present-day Indian Ocean, indicating that Iberia, Armorica and other terranes were each separate from the main Gondwanan craton during the early Palaeozoic Era.

Plate tectonic modelling: review and perspectives

2018 ◽  
Vol 156 (2) ◽  
pp. 208-241 ◽  
Author(s):  
CHRISTIAN VÉRARD
Keyword(s):  
Plate Boundaries ◽  
Dual Control ◽  
Plate Tectonic ◽  
Joint Effort ◽  
Tectonic Plate ◽  
Deep Time ◽  
Tectonic Plates ◽  
Control Approach ◽  
New Frontier ◽  
Tectonic Boundaries

AbstractSince the 1970s, numerous global plate tectonic models have been proposed to reconstruct the Earth's evolution through deep time. The reconstructions have proven immensely useful for the scientific community. However, we are now at a time when plate tectonic models must take a new step forward. There are two types of reconstructions: those using a ‘single control’ approach and those with a ‘dual control’ approach. Models using the ‘single control’ approach compile quantitative and/or semi-quantitative data from the present-day world and transfer them to the chosen time slices back in time. The reconstructions focus therefore on the position of tectonic elements but may ignore (partially or entirely) tectonic plates and in particular closed tectonic plate boundaries. For the readers, continents seem to float on the Earth's surface. Hence, the resulting maps look closer to what Alfred Wegener did in the early twentieth century and confuse many people, particularly the general public. With the ‘dual control’ approach, not only are data from the present-day world transferred back to the chosen time slices, but closed plate tectonic boundaries are defined iteratively from one reconstruction to the next. Thus, reconstructions benefit from the wealth of the plate tectonic theory. They are physically coherent and are suited to the new frontier of global reconstruction: the coupling of plate tectonic models with other global models. A joint effort of the whole community of geosciences will surely be necessary to develop the next generation of plate tectonic models.

Recognising spatially and geochemically anomalous arc magmatism (SGAM) and implications for plate tectonic reconstructions

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gideon Rosenbaum ◽  
John Caulfield ◽  
Teresa Ubide ◽  
Jack Ward ◽  
Mike Sandiford ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
South America ◽  
Volcanic Rocks ◽  
Plate Boundaries ◽  
Arc Magmatism ◽  
Potential Contribution ◽  
Plate Tectonic ◽  
Geochemical Anomaly ◽  
Tectonic Reconstructions ◽  
Slab Tearing ◽  
Subducting Slab

<p>Subduction zones generate volcanic arcs, but there are many examples where magmatism in convergent plate boundaries occurs in unexpected locations relative to the subducting slab. These magmas are commonly also geochemically anomalous relative to the composition of neighbouring typical subduction-related rocks. The origin of such Spatially and Geochemically Anomalous arc Magmatism (SGAM) may correspond to local variations in subduction parameters, the presence of crustal and lithospheric heterogeneities, or the potential contribution of melts generated by slab tearing and slab edge effects. Using the Holocene volcanoes in South America as a case study, we investigated spatial and geochemical patterns of volcanism along the Andean volcanic belt. Based on a series of geochemical indices, we developed a scoring system for the composition of volcanic rocks, with the lowest and highest scores indicating ‘typical’ and ‘anomalous’ arc melting processes, respectively. The results show that a number of Holocene volcanoes in South America can be unambiguously defined as SGAM. Volcanism in these localities may correspond to disruptions in the geometry of the subducting slab, or to areas affected by mantle flow in the proximity of the slab edge. To test the potential applicability of this method for plate tectonic reconstructions, we calculated geochemical anomaly scores for whole-rock analyses of volcanic rocks from other convergent boundary settings. The results show that high geochemical anomaly scores are obtained in areas where slab tearing has been documented or postulated, such as in Mount Etna (Sicily). The occurrence of anomalous magmatic rocks in older convergent plate boundary settings (e.g., Neogene rocks from the Gibraltar area) corroborates plate tectonic reconstructions that incorporated processes such as subduction segmentation, slab tearing, and the development of asthenospheric windows. Accordingly, we suggest that the recognition of SGAM from other modern and ancient arc settings may inform on similar types of processes, even in cases where the three-dimensional slab structure is no longer detectable.</p>

scholarly journals Uncertainties in breakup markers along the Iberia-Newfoundland margins illustrated by new seismic data

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Annabel Causer ◽  
Lucía Pérez-Díaz ◽  
Jürgen Adam ◽  
Graeme Eagles
Keyword(s):  
Seismic Data ◽  
Direct Consequence ◽  
Magnetic Anomalies ◽  
Oceanic Lithosphere ◽  
High Amplitude ◽  
Plate Tectonic ◽  
Plate Reconstructions ◽  
Tectonic Reconstructions ◽  
Break Up ◽  
Breakup Unconformity

Abstract. Plate tectonic modellers often rely on the identification of break-up markers to reconstruct the early stages of continental separation. Along the Iberian-Newfoundland margin, so-called break-up markers include interpretations of old magnetic anomalies from the M-series, as well as the J-anomaly. These have been used as the basis for plate tectonic reconstructions on the belief that these anomalies pinpoint the location of first oceanic lithosphere. However, uncertainties in the location and interpretation of break-up markers, as well as the difficulty in dating them precisely, has led to plate models that differ in their depiction of the separation of Iberia and Newfoundland. We use newly available seismic data from the Southern Newfoundland Basin (SNB) to assess the suitability of commonly used break-up markers along the Newfoundland margin for plate kinematic reconstructions. Our data shows that basement associated with the younger M-Series magnetic anomalies is comprised of exhumed mantle and magmatic additions, and most likely represents transitional domains and not true oceanic lithosphere. Because rifting propagated northward, we argue that M-series anomaly identifications further north, although in a region not imaged by our seismic, are also unlikely to be diagnostic of true oceanic crust beneath the SNB. Similarly, our data also allows us to show that the high amplitude of the J Anomaly is associated to a zone of exhumed mantle punctuated by significant volcanic additions, and at times characterised by interbedded volcanics and sediments. Magmatic activity in the SNB at a time coinciding with M4 (128 Ma), and the presence of SDR packages onlapping onto a basement fault suggest that, at this time, plate divergence was still being accommodated by tectonic faulting. We illustrate the differences in the relative positions of Iberia and Newfoundland across published plate reconstructions and discuss how these are a direct consequence of the uncertainties introduced into the modelling procedure by the use of extended continental margin data (dubious magnetic anomaly identifications, breakup unconformity interpretations). We conclude that a different approach is needed for constraining plate kinematics of the Iberian plate pre M0 times.

Preliminary detrital zircon U-Pb Geochronology of the Wasatch Formation, Powder River Basin, Wyoming

2019 ◽  
Vol 56 (3) ◽  
pp. 247-266
Author(s):  
Ian Anderson ◽  
David H. Malone ◽  
John Craddock
Keyword(s):  
River Basin ◽  
Detrital Zircon ◽  
Middle Part ◽  
Detrital Zircons ◽  
Powder River Basin ◽  
Zircon Age ◽  
Lower Eocene ◽  
The North ◽  
Mountain Front ◽  
Fluvial Sandstone

The lower Eocene Wasatch Formation is more than 1500 m thick in the Powder River Basin of Wyoming. The Wasatch is a Laramide synorgenic deposit that consists of paludal and lacustrine mudstone, fluvial sandstone, and coal. U-Pb geochronologic data on detrital zircons were gathered for a sandstone unit in the middle part of the succession. The Wasatch was collected along Interstate 90 just west of the Powder River, which is about 50 km east of the Bighorn Mountain front. The sandstone is lenticular in geometry and consists of arkosic arenite and wacke. The detrital zircon age spectrum ranged (n=99) from 1433-2957 Ma in age, and consisted of more than 95% Archean age grains, with an age peak of about 2900 Ma. Three populations of Archean ages are evident: 2886.6±10 Ma (24%), 2906.6±8.4 Ma (56%) and 2934.1±6.6 Ma (20%; all results 2 sigma). These ages are consistent with the age of Archean rocks exposed in the northern part of the range. The sparse Proterozoic grains were likely derived from the recycling of Cambrian and Carboniferous strata. These sands were transported to the Powder River Basin through the alluvial fans adjacent to the Piney Creek thrust. Drainage continued to the north through the basin and eventually into the Ancestral Missouri River and Gulf of Mexico. The provenance of the Wasatch is distinct from coeval Tatman and Willwood strata in the Bighorn and Absaroka basins, which were derived from distal source (>500 km) areas in the Sevier Highlands of Idaho and the Laramide Beartooth and Tobacco Root uplifts. Why the Bighorn Mountains shed abundant Eocene strata only to the east and not to the west remains enigmatic, and merits further study.

scholarly journals Origin of marginal basins of the NW Pacific and their plate tectonic reconstructions

2014 ◽  
Vol 130 ◽  
pp. 154-196 ◽  
Author(s):  
Junyuan Xu ◽  
Zvi Ben-Avraham ◽  
Tom Kelty ◽  
Ho-Shing Yu
Keyword(s):  
Plate Tectonic ◽  
Tectonic Reconstructions

Detrital zircon geochronology and provenance of Devono-Mississippian strata in the northern Canadian Cordilleran miogeoclineThis article is one of a series of papers published in this Special Issue on the theme of Geochronology in honour of Tom Krogh.Northwest Territories Geoscience Office Contribution 0047. Geological Survey of Canada Contribution 20100432.

2011 ◽  
Vol 48 (2) ◽  
pp. 515-541 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yvon Lemieux ◽  
Thomas Hadlari ◽  
Antonio Simonetti
Keyword(s):  
Detrital Zircon ◽  
Inductively Coupled Plasma ◽  
Source Region ◽  
Upper Devonian ◽  
Detrital Zircons ◽  
Detrital Zircon Geochronology ◽  
Inductively Coupled ◽  
Arctic Alaska ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Late Neoproterozoic

U–Pb ages have been determined on detrital zircons from the Upper Devonian Imperial Formation and Upper Devonian – Lower Carboniferous Tuttle Formation of the northern Canadian Cordilleran miogeocline using laser ablation – multicollector – inductively coupled plasma – mass spectrometry. The results provide insights into mid-Paleozoic sediment dispersal in, and paleogeography of, the northern Canadian Cordillera. The Imperial Formation yielded a wide range of detrital zircon dates; one sample yielded dominant peaks at 1130, 1660, and 1860 Ma, with smaller mid-Paleozoic (∼430 Ma), Neoproterozoic, and Archean populations. The easternmost Imperial Formation sample yielded predominantly late Neoproterozoic – Cambrian zircons between 500 and 700 Ma, with lesser Mesoproterozoic and older populations. The age spectra suggest that the samples were largely derived from an extensive region of northwestern Laurentia, including the Canadian Shield, igneous and sedimentary provinces of Canada’s Arctic Islands, and possibly the northern Yukon. The presence of late Neoproterozoic – Cambrian zircon, absent from the Laurentian magmatic record, indicate that a number of grains were likely derived from an exotic source region, possibly including Baltica, Siberia, or Arctic Alaska – Chukotka. In contrast, zircon grains from the Tuttle Formation show a well-defined middle Paleoproterozoic population with dominant relative probability peaks between 1850 and 1950 Ma. Additional populations in the Tuttle Formation are mid-Paleozoic (∼430 Ma), Mesoproterozoic (1000–1600 Ma), and earlier Paleoproterozoic and Archean ages (>2000 Ma). These data lend support to the hypothesis that the influx of sediments of northerly derivation that supplied the northern miogeocline in Late Devonian time underwent an abrupt shift to a source of predominantly Laurentian affinity by the Mississippian.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document