From Cadomian arc to Ordovician passive margin: geochemical records preserved in metasedimentary successions of the Orlica-Śnieżnik Dome in SW Poland

The chemical composition of metamorphosed siliciclastic rocks in the Orlica-?nie?nik Dome (Bohemian Massif) identifies the main sources for the Neoproterozoic [the M?ynowiec Formation (MF)], Early Cambrian [the Stronie Formation (SF)] and Late Cambrian/Early Ordovician [the Goszów quartzites (GQ)] sediments. The MF developed from erosion of a Cadomian magmatic arc along the northern Gondwana margin. The variegated SF, with supra-subduction affinities, shows chemical characteristics pointing to erosion of the freshly exhumed Cadomian orogen and detritus deposition in the back-arc basin. The very different chemical features of the GQ indicate deposition in a basin sited on a passive continental margin. The explanation proposed for the observed changes in chemical composition involves three main stages: (1) The pre ~540 Ma evolution of an active continental margin and related back-arc basin ceased with the collision and accretion of the magmatic arc to the Gondwana margin; (2) Early Cambrian rift to drift transition (540–500 Ma) and development of a depositional basin filled with detritus derived from remnants of the magmatic arc; (3) Peri-Gondwana break-up leading to the formation of shallow-water passive margin depositional basins filled with quartz-rich detritus resembling Early Ordovician Armorican quartzites known from other parts of the Variscan Belt.     

Early Cambrian granitoids of North Gondwana margin in the transition from a convergent setting to intra-continental rifting (Ossa-Morena Zone,SW Iberia)

Two distinct Cambrian magmatic pulses are recognized in the Ossa-Morena Zone (SW Iberia): an early rift-(ER) and a main rift-related event. This Cambrian magmatism is related to intra-continental rifting of North Gondwana that is thought to have culminated in the opening of the Rheic Ocean in Lower Ordovician times. New data of whole-rock geochemistry (19 samples), Sm–Nd–Sr isotopes (4 samples) and ID–TIMS U–Pb zircon geochronology (1 sample) of the Early Cambrian ER plutonic rocks of the Ossa-Morena Zone are presented in this contribution. The ER granitoids (Barreiros, Barquete, Calera, Salvatierra de los Barros and Tablada granitoid Massifs) are mostly peraluminous granites. The Sm–Nd isotopic data show moderate negative εNdt values ranging from ?3.5 to +0.1 and TDM ages greatly in excess of emplacement ages. Most ER granitoids are crustal melts. However, a subset of samples shows a transitional anorogenic alkaline tendency, together with more primitive isotopic signatures, documenting the participation of lower crust or mantle-derived sources and suggesting a local transient advanced stage of rifting. The Barreiros granitoid is intrusive into the Ediacaran basement of the Ossa-Morena Zone (Série Negra succession) and has yielded a crystallization age of 524.7 ± 0.8 Ma consistent with other ages of ER magmatic pulse. This age: (1) constrains the age of the metamorphism developed in the Ediacaran back-arc basins before the intrusion of granites and (2) defines the time of the transition from the Ediacaran convergent setting to the Lower Cambrian intra-continental rifting in North Gondwana.     

New data on the Neoproterozoic – Cambrian geotectonic setting of the Teplá-Barrandian volcano-sedimentary successions: geochemistry,U-Pb zircon ages,and provenance (Bohemian Massif,Czech Republic)

The Teplá-Barrandian unit (TBU) of the Bohemian Massif was a part of the Avalonian-Cadomian belt at the northern margin of Gondwana during Neoproterozoic and Early Cambrian times. New detrital zircon ages and geochemical compositions of Late Neoproterozoic siliciclastic sediments confirm a deposition of the volcano-sedimentary successions of the TBU in a back-arc basin. A change in the geotectonic regime from convergence to transtension was completed by the time of the Precambrian-Cambrian boundary. The accumulation of around 2,500 m Lower Cambrian continental siliciclastics in a Basin-and-Range-type setting was accompanied by magmatism, which shows within-plate features in a few cases, but is predominantly derived from anatectic melts displaying the inherited island arc signature of their Cadomian source rocks. The geochemistry of clastic sediments suggests a deposition in a rift or strike-slip-related basin, respectively. A marine transgression during Middle Cambrian times indicates markedly thinned crust after the Cadomian orogeny. Upper Cambrian magmatism is represented by 1,500 m of subaerial andesites and rhyolites demonstrating several geochemical characteristics of an intra-plate setting. Zircons from a rhyolite give a U-Pb-SHRIMP age of 499±4 Ma. The Cambrian sedimentary and magmatic succession of the TBU records the beginning of an important rifting event at the northern margin of Gondwana.

Time scales and mechanisms of growth of active margins of Gondwana: A model based on detrital zircon ages from the Neoproterozoic to Cambrian Blovice accretionary complex,Bohemian Massif

New U–Pb detrital zircon ages from (meta-)graywackes of the Blovice accretionary complex, Bohemian Massif, provide an intriguing record of expansion of the northern active margin of Gondwana during late Neoproterozoic and Cambrian. The late Neoproterozoic (meta-)graywackes typically contain a smaller proportion of Archean and Paleoproterozoic zircons and show a 1.6–1.0 Ga age gap and a prominent late Cryogenian to early Ediacaran age peak. The respective zircon age spectra match those described from other correlative Cadomian terranes with a West African provenance. On the other hand, some samples were dominated by Cambrian zircons with concordia ages as young as 499 Ma. The age spectra obtained from these samples mostly reflect input from juvenile volcanic arcs whereas the late Cambrian samples are interpreted as representing relics of forearc basins that overlay the accretionary wedge.The new U–Pb zircon ages suggest that the Cadomian orogeny, at least in the Bohemian Massif, was not restricted to the Neoproterozoic but should be rather viewed as a continuum of multiple accretion, deformation, magmatic and basin development events governed by oceanic subduction until late Cambrian times. Our new U–Pb ages also indicate that the Cadomian margin was largely non-accretionary since its initiation at ~ 650–635 Ma and that most of the material accreted during a short time span at around 527 Ma, closely followed by a major pulse of pluton emplacement. Based on the new detrital zircon ages, we argue for an unsteady, cyclic evolution of the Cadomian active margin which had much in common with modern Andean and Cordilleran continental-margin arc systems. The newly recognized episodic magmatic arc activity is interpreted as linked to increased erosion–deposition–accretion events, perhaps driven by feedbacks among the changing subducted slab angle, overriding plate deformation, surface erosion, and gravitational foundering of arc roots. These Cadomian active-margin processes were terminated by slab break-off and/or slab rollback and by a switch from convergent to divergent plate motions related to opening of the Rheic Ocean at around 490–480 Ma.The proposed tectonic evolution of the Teplá–Barrandian unit is rather similar to that of the Ossa Morena Zone in Iberia but shows significant differences to that of the North Armorican Massif and Saxothuringian unit in Western and Central Europe. This suggests that the Cadomian orogenic zoning was complexly disrupted during early Ordovician opening of the Rheic Ocean and Late Paleozoic Variscan orogeny so that the originally outboard tectonic elements are now in the Variscan orogen's interior and vice versa.     

The Cambrian Explosion: Plume-driven birth of the second ecosystem on Earth

The birth of modern life on Earth can be linked to the adequate supply of nutrients into the oceans. In this paper, we evaluate the relative supply of nutrients into the ocean. These nutrients entered the ocean through myriad passageways, but primarily through accelerated erosion due to uplift. In the ‘second ecosystem’, uplift is associated with plume-generation during the breakup of the Rodinia supercontinent. Although the evidence is somewhat cryptic, it appears that the second ecosystem included the demospongia back into the Cryogenian (~ 750 Ma). During the Ediacaran–Cambrian interval, convergent margin magmatism, arc volcanism and the closure of ocean basins provided a second pulse of nutrient delivery into the marine environment. A major radiation of life forms begins around 580 Ma and is represented by the diverse and somewhat enigmatic Ediacaran fauna followed by the Cambrian Explosion of modern phyla during the 540–520 Ma interval. Tectonically, the Ediacaran–Cambrian time interval is dominated by the formation of ultra-high pressure (UHP), high pressure (HP) and ultra-high temperature (UHT) orogenic belts during Gondwana orogenesis. Erosion of this extensive mountainous region delivered vast nutrients into the ocean and enhanced the explosiveness of the Cambrian radiation. The timing of final collisional orogeny and construction of the mountain belts in many of the Gondwana-forming orogens, particularly some of those in the central and eastern belts, post-date the first appearance of modern life forms. We therefore postulate that a more effective nutrient supply for the Cambrian radiation was facilitated by plume-driven uplift of TTG crust, subsequent rifting, and subduction-related nutrient systems prior to the assembly of Gondwana. In the outlined scenario, we propose that the birth of the ‘second ecosystem’ on our planet is plume-driven.     

A SIMS U-Pb (zircon) and Re-Os (molybdenite) isotope study of the early Paleozoic Macquarie Arc,southeastern Australia: Implications for the tectono-magmatic evolution of the paleo-Pacific Gondwana margin

New SIMS U-Pb (zircon) data for intrusive rocks of the Macquarie Arc and adjacent granitic batholiths of the Lachlan Orogen (southeastern Australia) provide insight into the magmatic and tectonic evolution of the paleo-Pacific Gondwana margin in the early Paleozoic. These data are augmented by Re-Os dates on molybdenite from four Cu-Au mineralised porphyry systems to place minimum age constraints on igneous crystallization. The simplicity of the zircon age distributions, and absence of older inheritance, stands in contrast to previous geochronological studies. The earliest magmatism within the Macquarie Arc is registered by a ca. 503 Ma gabbro from the Monza igneous complex, whereas a monzodiorite from the same drillhole records the youngest (ca. 432 Ma). Igneous activity in the Macquarie Arc thus overlapped deformation and magmatism in the craton-proximal Delamerian Orogen to the west, and the emplacement of the Lachlan granitic batholiths at 435–430 Ma; the thermal pulse associated with the latter may have triggered the formation of richly mineralised Silurian porphyries in the Macquarie Arc. The juvenile Hf isotope signature of the Monza Gabbro, together with the lack of zircon inheritance and the radiogenic Hf-Nd isotope systematics of Ordovician Macquarie Arc rocks, is consistent with early development of the arc, or a precursor magmatic belt, in an oceanic setting remote from continental influences, and with the arc being built on primitive Cambrian mafic crust. Outboard arc magmatism in the Cambrian may have initiated in response to convergent Delamerian orogenesis adjacent the Gondwana margin. Overlapping radiogenic isotope-time trends are consistent with the evolution of the Macquarie Arc and the Gondwana continental margin being linked from the Cambrian to the Silurian. These data provide further evidence for the growth of continental crust along the southeastern Australian segment of this margin being related to the dynamics of an extensional accretionary orogenic system.     

Evolution of Cambrian and Early Ordovician arcs in the Kyrgyz North Tianshan: Insights from U-Pb zircon ages and geochemical data

Geochronological, geochemical, and structural studies of magmatic and metamorphic complexes within the Kyrgyz North Tianshan (NTS) revealed an extensive area of early Palaeozoic magmatism with an age range of 540–475 Ma. During the first episode at 540–510 Ma, magmatism likely occurred in an intraplate setting within the NTS microcontinent and in an oceanic arc setting within the Kyrgyz-Terskey zone in the south. During the second episode at 500–475 Ma, the entire NTS represented an arc system. These two phases of magmatism were separated by an episode of accretionary tectonics of uncertain nature, which led to obduction of ophiolites from the Kyrgyz-Terskey zone onto the microcontinent. The occurrence of zircon xenocrysts and predominantly negative whole-rock ɛ_Nd(t) values and ɛ_Hf(t) values of magmatic zircons suggest a continental setting and melting of Precambrian continental sources with minor contributions of Palaeozoic juvenile melts in the generation of the magmatic rocks. The late Cambrian to Early Ordovician 500–475 Ma arc evolved mainly on Mesoproterozoic continental crust in the north and partly on oceanic crust in the south. Arc magmatism was accompanied by spreading in a back-arc basin in the south, where supra-subduction ophiolitic gabbros yielded ages of 496 to 479 Ma. The relative position of the arc and active back-arc basin implies that the subduction zone was located north of the arc, dipping to the south. Variably intense metamorphism and deformation in the NTS reflect an Early Ordovician orogenic event at 480–475 Ma, resulting from closure of the Djalair-Naiman ophiolite trough and collision of the Djel'tau microcontinent with the northern margin of NTS. Comparison of geological patterns and episodes of arc magmatism in the NTS and Chinese Central Tianshan indicate that these crustal units constituted a single early Palaeozoic arc and were separated from the Tarim Craton by an oceanic basin since the Neoproterozoic.     

Ediacaran–Cambrian basin evolution in the Koonenberry Belt (eastern Australia): Implications for the geodynamics of the Delamerian Orogen

Contention surrounds the Ediacaran–Cambrian geodynamic evolution of the palaeo-Pacific margin of Gondwana as it underwent a transition from passive to active margin tectonics. In Australia, disagreement stems from conflicting geodynamic models for the Delamerian Orogen, which differ in the polarity of subduction and the state of the subduction hinge (i.e., stationary or retreating). This study tests competing models of the Delamerian Orogen through reconstructing Ediacaran–Cambrian basin evolution in the Koonenberry Belt, Australia. This was done through characterising the mineral and U–Pb detrital zircon age provenance of sediments deposited during postulated passive and active margin stages. Based on these data, we present a new basin evolution model for the Koonenberry Belt, which also impacts palaeogeographic models of Australia and East Gondwana. Our basin evolution and palaeogeographic model is composed of four main stages, namely: (i) Ediacaran passive margin stage with sediments derived from the Musgrave Province; (ii) Middle Cambrian (517–500 Ma) convergent margin stage with sediments derived from collisional orogens in central Gondwana (i.e., the Maud Belt of East Antarctica) and deposited in a backarc setting; (iii) crustal shortening during the c. 500 Ma Delamerian Orogeny, and; (iv) Middle to Late Cambrian–Ordovician stage with sediments sourced from the local basement and 520–490 Ma igneous rocks and deposited into post-orogenic pull-apart basins. Based on this new basin evolution model we propose a new geodynamic model for the Cambrian evolution of the Koonenberry Belt where: (i) the initiation of a west-dipping subduction zone at c. 517 Ma was associated with incipient calc-alkaline magmatism (Mount Wright Volcanics) and deposition of the Teltawongee and Ponto groups; (ii) immediate east-directed retreat of the subduction zone positioned the Koonenberry Belt in a backarc basin setting (517 to 500 Ma), which became a depocentre for continued deposition of the Teltawongee and Ponto groups; (iii) inversion of the backarc basin during the c. 500 Delamerian Orogeny was driven by increased upper and low plate coupling caused by the arrival of a lower plate asperity to the subduction hinge, and; (iv) subduction of the asperity resulted in renewed rollback and upper plate extension, leading to the development of small, post-orogenic pull-apart basins that received locally derived detritus.     

Age and nature of 560–520 Ma calc-alkaline granitoids of Biarjmand,northeast Iran: insights into Cadomian arc magmatism in northern Gondwana

ABSTRACT

The Biarjmand granitoids and granitic gneisses in northeast Iran are part of the Torud–Biarjmand metamorphic complex, where previous zircon U–Pb geochronology show ages of ca. 554–530 Ma for orthogneissic rocks. Our new U–Pb zircon ages confirm a Cadomian age and show that the granitic gneiss is ~30 million years older (561.3 ± 4.7 Ma) than intruding granitoids (522.3 ± 4.2 Ma; 537.7 ± 4.7 Ma). Cadomian magmatism in Iran was part of an approximately 100-million-year-long episode of subduction-related arc and back-arc magmatism, which dominated the whole northern Gondwana margin, from Iberia to Turkey and Iran. Major REE and trace element data show that these granitoids have calc-alkaline signatures. Their zircon O (δ¹⁸O = 6.2–8.9‰) and Hf (–7.9 to +5.5; one point with εHf ~ –17.4) as well as bulk rock Nd isotopes (εNd(t) = –3 to –6.2) show that these magmas were generated via mixing of juvenile magmas with an older crust and/or melting of middle continental crust. Whole-rock Nd and zircon Hf model ages (1.3–1.6 Ga) suggest that this older continental crust was likely to have been Mesoproterozoic or even older. Our results, including variable zircon εHf(t) values, inheritance of old zircons and lack of evidence for juvenile Cadomian igneous rocks anywhere in Iran, suggest that the geotectonic setting during late Ediacaran and early Cambrian time was a continental magmatic arc rather than back-arc for the evolution of northeast Iran Cadomian igneous rocks.     

How far did the Cadomian ʽterranesʼ travel from Gondwana during early Palaeozoic? A critical reappraisal based on detrital zircon geochronology

In this paper, laser ablation ICP-MS U–Pb detrital zircon ages are used to discuss provenance and early Palaeozoic palaeogeography of continental fragments that originated in the Cadomian–Avalonian active margin of Gondwana at the end of Precambrian, were subsequently extended during late Cambrian to Early Ordovician opening of the Rheic Ocean, and finally were incorporated into and reworked within the European Variscan belt. The U–Pb detrital zircon age spectra in the analysed samples, taken across a late Neproterozoic (Ediacaran) to Early/Middle Devonian metasedimentary succession of the southeastern Teplá–Barrandian unit, Bohemian Massif, are almost identical and exhibit a bimodal age distribution with significant peaks at about 2.1–1.9 Ga and 650–550 Ma. We interpret the source area as an active margin comprising a cratonic (Eburnean) hinterland rimmed by Cadomian volcanic arcs and we suggest that this source was available at all times during deposition. The new detrital zircon ages also corroborate the West African provenance of the Teplá–Barrandian and correlative Saxothuringian and Moldanubian units, questioned in some palaeogeographic reconstructions. Finally, at variance with the still popular concept of the Cadomian basement units as far-travelled terranes, we propose that early Palaeozoic basins, developed upon the Cadomian active margin, were always part of a wide Gondwana shelf and drifted northwards together before involvement in the Variscan collisional belt.     

The missing Rheic Ocean magmatic arcs: Provenance analysis of Late Paleozoic sedimentary clastic rocks of SW Iberia

Early Carboniferous turbiditic sedimentary rocks in synorogenic basins located on both sides of the Rheic suture in SW Iberia were studied for provenance analysis. An enigmatic feature of this suture, which resulted from closure of the Rheic Ocean with the amalgamation of Pangea in the Late Carboniferous, is that there are no recognizable mid- to Late Devonian subduction-related magmatic rocks, which should have been generated during the process of subduction, on either side of it. U–Pb LA–ICP-MS geochronology of detrital zircons from Early Carboniferous turbidites in the vicinity of the Rheic suture in SW Iberia, where it separates the Ossa–Morena Zone (with Gondwana continental basement) to the north from the South Portuguese Zone (with unknown/Meguma? continental basement) to the south, reveals the abundance of mid- to Late Devonian (51–81%) and Early Carboniferous (13–25%) ages. The Cabrela and Mértola turbidites of the Ossa–Morena and South Portuguese zones, respectively, are largely devoid of older zircons, differing from the age spectra of detrital zircons in the oldest (Late Devonian) strata in the underlying South Portuguese Zone, which contain abundant Cambrian and Neoproterozoic ages. Mid- to Late Devonian zircons in the Cabrela Formation (age cluster at c. 391 Ma, Eifelian–Givetian transition) and Mértola Formation (age clusters at c. 369 Ma and at c. 387 Ma, Famennian and Givetian respectively) are attributable to a source terrane made up of magmatic rocks with a simple geological history lacking both multiple tectonic events and older continental basement. The terrane capable of sourcing sediments dispersed on both sides of the suture is interpreted to have been completely removed by erosion in SW Iberia. Given that closure of the Rheic Ocean required subduction of its oceanic lithosphere and the absence of significant arc magmatism on either side of the Rheic suture, we suggest: 1) the source of the zircons in the SW Iberia basins was a short-lived Rheic ocean magmatic arc, and 2) given the lack of older zircons in the SW Iberia basins, this short-lived arc was probably developed in an intra-oceanic environment.     

Arc accretion to the early Paleozoic Antarctic margin of Gondwana in Victoria Land

The Antarctic Ross Orogen was built up during the early Paleozoic in the framework of the convergence between the Paleo-Pacific oceanic plate and the Gondwana continental margin. Models for the Ross Orogen in northern Victoria Land are based on terranes having a variable provenance with respect to the margin. However, recent studies provide evidence for the occurrence of different pieces of the lithospheric puzzle: (i) the Wilson continental magmatic arc, representing the main part of the active Gondwana margin, (ii) the Bowers arc–backarc system, (iii) the Admiralty crustal ribbon including continental material of the Wilson forearc, and (iv) the newly discovered, Cambrian oceanic magmatic Tiger arc, along the Ross Sea coast. An updated model is presented in which, after the Early Cambrian magmatic activity of the Wilson arc, a retreat of the subduction zone in the Early–Middle Cambrian gave way to boudinage of the Wilson forearc, trenchward arc migration, opening of the Bowers backarc basin and inception of the outboard Tiger subduction zone. Renewed convergence resulted in the development of the Middle Cambrian Bowers arc, closure of the backarc and deep underthrusting of portions of it at the Middle–Late Cambrian. Finally, in the latest Cambrian to earliest Ordovician, fast exhumation was coupled in the north with erosion and sediment shed to the northeast, and with extension and potassic magmatism in central and southern Victoria Land.     

Chronological and geochemical constraints on the pre-variscan tectonic history of the Erzgebirge,Saxothuringian Zone

A combined U–Pb zircon geochronological and whole-rock isotopic and geochemical study has been carried out on high-grade orthogneiss, meta-basite, and meta-sediments from the Erzgebirge. The results indicate multiple pulses of Ediacaran–Ordovician magmatism in a transitional volcanic-arc to rift-basin setting. Orthogneiss from high-pressure nappes exhibit a step-like pattern of inherited zircon ages and emplacement ages of 500–475 Ma. In contrast, granite gneiss from the medium-pressure core of the Erzgebirge is characterised by three pulses of magmatism in the Early Cambrian, Late Cambrian, and Early Ordovician. A trend of decreasing Th/U ratios in zircon is observed to c.500 Ma, after which significant increases in the trend and variability of the data is inferred to mark the transition from arc-related to rift-related magmatism. Sediments deposited in the Early Cambrian have continental island arc affinity. Major detrital peaks in the Ediacaran and subordinate Tonian, Palaeoproterozoic, and Neoarchaean data are consistent with an Avalonian-Cadomian Arc and West African Craton derivation. The Early Cambrian sediments were locally reworked by a thermal event in the Ordovician resulting in leucocratic banding and recorded in Ordovician zircon rims characterised by systematically lower Th/U ratios. Ptygmatically folded leucocratic bands containing Ordovician zircon rims, associated with low Th/U ratios, are further observed in the granite gneiss core of the Erzgebirge. Variscan ages are rare, except in a fine-grained high-pressure micaschist, which contains exclusively small, structure-less, zircon with a weighted mean age of 350 ± 2 Ma. These data, along with a re-evaluation of previously published data, have been interpreted as the product of flattening subduction during the Early Cambrian; followed by the opening of slab windows in the Late Cambrian; and finally delamination in the Early Ordovician. Delamination of the orphaned slab led to asthenospheric upwellings triggering extension, bimodal magmatic pulses, recycling of fertile crust, high-temperature metamorphism, and cratonisation of relatively young crust.     

Pre-Alpine evolution of a segment of the North-Gondwanan margin: Geochronological and geochemical evidence from the central Serbo-Macedonian Massif

The Serbo-Macedonian Massif (SMM) represents a composite crystalline belt within the Eastern European Alpine orogen, outcropping from the Pannonian basin in the north, to the Aegean Sea in the south. The central parts of the massif (i.e. southeastern Serbia, southwestern Bulgaria, eastern Macedonia) consist of the medium- to high-grade Lower Complex, and the low-grade Vlasina Unit. New results of U–Pb LA-ICP-MS analyses, coupled with geochemical analyses of Hf isotopes on magmatic and detrital zircons, and main and trace element concentrations in whole-rock samples suggest that the central SMM and the basement of the adjacent units (i.e. Eastern Veles series and Struma Unit) originated in the central parts of the northern margin of Gondwana. These data provided a basis for a revised tectonic model of the evolution of the SMM from the late Ediacaran to the Early Triassic.The earliest magmatism in the Lower Complex, Vlasina Unit and the basement of Struma Unit is related to the activity along the late Cadomian magmatic arc (562–522 Ma). Subsequent stage of early Palaeozoic igneous activity is associated with the reactivation of subduction below the Lower Complex and the Eastern Veles series during the Early Ordovician (490–478 Ma), emplacement of mafic dykes in the Lower Complex due to aborted rifting in the Middle Ordovician (472–456 Ma), and felsic within-plate magmatism in the early Silurian (439 ± 2 Ma). The third magmatic stage is represented by Carboniferous late to post-collisional granites (328–304 Ma). These granites intrude the gneisses of the Lower Complex, in which the youngest deformed igneous rocks are of early Silurian age, thus constraining the high-strain deformation and peak metamorphism to the Variscan orogeny. The Permian–Triassic (255–253 Ma) stage of late- to post-collisional and within-plate felsic magmatism is related to the opening of the Mesozoic Tethys.     

Geodynamic evolution of a Cadomian arc region: the northern Ossa-Morena zone, Iberian massif

Ductile deformation and polyphase metamorphism in the Ossa-Morena zone of the Iberian massif are related to two major tectonothermal episodes of Cadomian (late Neoproterozoic to early Cambrian) and Variscan age (middle to late Paleozoic). The available petrological, structural and geochronological data suggest that a number of tectono-metamorphic and magmatic episodes occurred during the 620–480 Ma interval that would comprise a complete Cadomian Wilson cycle. The geodynamic scenario was that of an Andean-type continental margin. An evolutionary model is presented for this orogeny comprising stages of volcanic arc generation, crustal thickening, back-arc extension, tectonic inversion and cratonization. A correlation with comparable areas from pre-Mesozoic massifs elsewhere in Europe is proposed, in particular with the Armorican massif of northern France.     

Ediacaran mafic magmatism recorded in Cambrian eclogites of the Ross orogen,Antarctica: Implications for the Neoproterozoic rifting episodes along the Pacific-Gondwana margin

We report the first finding of Ediacaran mafic magmatism in northern Victoria Land of the Ross orogen, Antarctica, based on ca. 600–590 Ma magmatic zircon cores in Cambrian eclogites. The mafic magmatism could be either linked to ca. 615–590 Ma incipient convergent margin magmatism in central segment of the Ross orogen, or ca. 600–580 Ma continental rift-related volcanism widespread in eastern Australia. The latter is preferred based on the trace-element compositions distinctive from those of arc-related basalts and the depleted mantle-like Hf isotopic compositions of zircon. Our results suggest dual rifting episodes during both the Ediacaran and Cryogenian (ca. 670–650 Ma) in the East Antarctic margin, correlative with those in eastern Australia. A spatial distribution of coeval rifting and subduction along the Ediacaran margin of East Antarctica is readily accounted for by rift inheritance; the upper- and lower-plate geometry resulting from detachment and transform faulting.     

Avalonian, Ganderian and East Cadomian terranes in South Carpathians, Romania, and Pan-African events recorded in their basement

New U-Pb geochronology is used to refine the provenance and evolution of northwest Gondwana Pan-African terranes preserved in the South Carpathians of Romania. The Dr?g?an terrane of Avalonian affinity, from the Danubian domain of the South Carpathians originated in the Panthalassa Ocean and accreted to the Amazonian part of Rodinia not much before 800 Ma, when the F?ge?el orthogneiss was intruded, at around 807–810 Ma. After this event no other Neoproterozoic magmatic pulse is known in the basement of the Dr?g?an terrane. The Ganderian type Lainici-P?iu? terrane from the same domain of the South Carpathians, recorded magmatic pulses at 782 Ma, 739 Ma, 708 Ma, 639 Ma, 600–587 Ma and 574–568 Ma. The East Cadomian Sebe?-Lotru terrane from the Getic domain of the South Carpathians recorded magmatic pulses at 817 Ma, 768 Ma, 685 Ma, 620 Ma, 584 Ma and 550 Ma. Post 630 Ma the northwestern Gondwana margin evolved as an active continental margin at least until 550 Ma, but the pre-630 Ma magmatism could be associated to some island arcs docked with different pre-Gondwanan continental fragments. Independent of the tectonic setting, the post 750 Ma orogens dated in the basement of the peri-Gondwanan terranes are discussed in the frame of the Cadomian orogens, as constituents of the Pan-African orogens in a broader sense. The detrital zircon may also record magmatic pulses from Pan-African orogens other than the Cadomian ones.     

The Neoproterozoic-early Paleozoic metamorphic and magmatic evolution of the Eastern Sierras Pampeanas: an overview

The Eastern Sierras Pampeanas were structured by three main events: the Ediacaran to early Cambrian (580?C510?Ma) Pampean, the late Cambrian?COrdovician (500?C440?Ma) Famatinian and the Devonian-Carboniferous (400?C350?Ma) Achalian orogenies. Geochronological and Sm?CNd isotopic evidence combined with petrological and structural features allow to speculate for a major rift event (Ediacaran) dividing into two Mesoproterozoic major crustal blocks (source of the Grenvillian age peaks in the metaclastic rocks).This event would be coeval with the development of arc magmatism along the eastern margin of the eastern block. Closure of this eastern margin led to a Cambrian active margin (Sierra Norte arc) along the western margin of the eastern block in which magmatism reworked the same crustal block. Consumption of a ridge segment (input of OIB signature mafic magmas) which controlled granulite-facies metamorphism led to a final collision (Pampean orogeny) with the western Mesoprotrozoic block. Sm?CNd results for the metamorphic basement suggest that the T _DM age interval of 1.8?C1.7?Ga, which is associated with the less radiogenic values of ??Nd₍₅₄₀₎ (?6 to ?8), can be considered as the mean average crustal composition for the Eastern Sierras Pampeanas. Increasing metamorphic grade in rocks with similar detrital sources and metamorphic ages like in the Sierras de Córdoba is associated with a younger T _DM age and a more positive ??Nd₍₅₄₀₎ value. Pampean pre-540?Ma granitoids form two clusters, one with T _DM ages between 2.0 and 1.75?Ga and another between 1.6 and 1.5?Ga. Pampean post-540?Ma granitoids exhibit more homogenous T _DM ages ranging from 2.0 to 1.75?Ga. Ordovician re-activation of active margin along the western part of the block that collided in the Cambrian led to arc magmatism (Famatinian orogeny) and related ensialic back-arc basin in which high-grade metamorphism is related to mid-crustal felsic plutonism and mafic magmatism with significant contamination of continental crust. T _DM values for the Ordovician Famatinian granitoids define a main interval of 1.8?C1.6, except for the Ordovician TTG suites of the Sierras de Córdoba, which show younger T _DM ages ranging from 1.3 to 1.0?Ga. In Devonian times (Achalian orogeny), a new subduction regime installed west of the Eastern Sierras Pampeanas. Devonian magmatism in the Sierras exhibit process of mixing/assimilation of depleted mantle signature melts and continental crust. Achalian magmatism exhibits more radiogenic ??Nd₍₅₄₀₎ values that range between 0.5 and ?4 and T _DM ages younger than 1.3?Ga. In pre-Devonian times, crustal reworking is dominant, whereas processes during Devonian times involved different geochemical and isotopic signatures that reflect a major input of juvenile magmatism.     

Tracking the birth and growth of Cimmeria: Geochronology and origins of intrusive rocks from NW Iran

New geochronological and geochemical data for Late Neoproterozoic to Mesozoic intrusive rocks from NW Iran define major regional magmatic episodes and track the birth and growth of one of the Cimmerian microcontinents: the Persian block.After the final accretion of the Gondwanan terranes, the subduction of the Prototethyan Ocean beneath NW Gondwana during the Late Neoproterozoic was the trigger for high magmatic fluxes and the emplacement of isotopically diverse arc-related intrusions in NW Gondwana. The Late Neoproterozoic rocks of NW Iran belong to this magmatic event which includes intrusions with highly variable εHf(t) values. This magmatism continued until a magmatic lull during the Ordovician, which led to the erosion of the Neoproterozoic arc, and then was followed by a rifting event which controlled the opening of Paleotethys. In addition, it is supposed that a prolonged pulse of rift magmatism in Persia lasted from Devonian-Carboniferous to Early Permian time. These magmatic events are geographically restricted and are mostly recorded from NW Iran, although there is some evidence for these magmatic events in other segments of Iran. The Jurassic rocks of NW Iran are interpreted to be the along-strike equivalents of a Mesozoic magmatic belt (the Sanandaj-Sirjan Zone; SaSZ) toward the NW. Magmatic rocks from the SaSZ show pulsed magmatism, with high-flux events at both ~176–160 Ma and ~130 Ma. The SaSZ magmatic rocks are suggested to be formed along a continental arc but a rift setting is also considered for the formation of the SaSZ rocks based on the plume-related geochemical signatures. The arc signatures are represented by Nb-Ta depletion in the highly contaminated (by upper continental crust) plutonic rocks whereas the plume-related signature of less-contaminated melts is manifested by enrichment in Nb-Ta and high εHf(t) values, with peaks at +0.6 and +11.2. All these magmatic pulses led to pre-Cimmerian continental growth and reworking during the Late Neoproterozoic, rifting and detachment of the Cimmerian blocks from Gondwana in Mid-Late Paleozoic time and further crustal growth and reworking of Cimmeria during the Mesozoic.     

关于古亚洲洋构造演化研究的几点思考

古亚洲洋不是西伯利亚陆台和华北地台间的一个简单洋盆,而是在不同时间、不同地区打开和封闭的多个大小不一的洋盆复杂活动(包括远距离运移)的综合体.其北部洋盆起始于新元古代末-寒武纪初(573~522Ma)冈瓦纳古陆裂解形成的寒武纪洋盆.寒武纪末-奥陶纪初(510~480Ma),冈瓦纳古陆裂解的碎块、寒武纪洋壳碎块和陆缘过渡壳碎块相互碰撞、联合形成原中亚-蒙古古陆.奥陶纪时,原中亚-蒙古古陆南边形成活动陆缘,志留纪形成稳定大陆.泥盆纪初原中亚-蒙古古陆裂解,裂解的碎块在新形成的泥盆纪洋内沿左旋断裂向北运动,于晚泥盆世末到达西伯利亚陆台南缘,重新联合形成现在的中亚-蒙古古陆.晚古生代时,在现在的中亚-蒙古古陆内发生晚石炭世(318~316Ma)和早二叠世(295~285Ma)裂谷岩浆活动,形成双峰式火山岩和碱性花岗岩类.蒙古-鄂霍次克带是西伯利亚古陆和中亚-蒙古古陆之间的泥盆纪洋盆,向东与古太平洋连通,洋盆发展到中晚侏罗世,与古太平洋同时结束,其洋壳移动到西伯利亚陆台边缘受阻而向陆台下俯冲,在陆台南缘形成广泛的陆缘岩浆岩带,从中泥盆世到晚侏罗世都非常活跃.古亚洲洋的南部洋盆始于晚寒武世.此时,华北古陆从冈瓦纳古陆裂解出来,在其北缘形成晚寒武世-早奥陶世的被动陆缘和中奥陶世-早志留世的沟弧盆系.志留纪腕足类生物群的分布表明,华北地台北缘洋盆与塔里木地台北缘、以及川西、云南、东澳大利亚有联系,而与上述的古亚洲洋北部洋盆没有关连,两洋盆之间有松嫩-图兰地块间隔.晚志留世-早泥盆世,华北地台北部发生弧-陆碰撞运动,泥盆纪时,在松嫩地块南缘形成陆缘火山岩带,晚二叠世-早三叠世华北地台与松嫩地块碰撞,至此古亚洲洋盆封闭.古亚洲洋的南、北洋盆最后的褶皱构造,以及与塔里木地台之间发生的直接关系,很可能是后期的构造运动所造成的.