TS7.11

The Caledonian orogen formed following Paleozoic subduction of the Iapetus Ocean and preserves evidence of ultrahigh-pressure (UHP) metamorphism and exhumation of crustal rocks from mantle depths. The Appalachian orogen similarly formed in the Paleozoic following subduction of Iapetus Ocean crust, but evidence for (U)HP metamorphism in exhumed Appalachian rocks has been challenging to identify. We present results from a metapelite from high-pressure rocks of the Tillotson Peak Complex in the northern Appalachians, which formed during the middle-Ordovician Taconic orogeny. This sample contained mm-cm scale garnet porphyroblasts that host abundant mineral inclusions. Confocal Raman microspectroscopy of inclusions in the rims of a garnet porphyroblast identified relic coesite, preserved as a bi-mineralic inclusion composed of coesite in α-quartz. Raman depth profiling and 2-dimensional mapping indicate the relic coesite is ~10 μm³, suggesting that mineralogical evidence of UHP metamorphism in the Appalachians may be preserved only as μm-scale inclusions contained in polymetamorphosed rocks. We applied quantitative WDS X-ray maps acquired with electron microprobe, quartz-in-garnet elastic thermobarometry, and Zr-in-rutile trace element thermometry to further constrain the metamorphic history of the coesite-bearing metapelite. Garnet zoning patterns in conjunction with elastic and trace element thermobarometry applied to co-entrapped mineral inclusions suggest that garnet nucleated at 14-15.5 kbar and 420-520 °C, and continuously crystallized to 15-19.5 kbar and 470-560 °C during subduction zone metamorphism. Peak metamorphic conditions based on the stability field of coesite and on Zr-in-rutile thermometry from inclusions in the garnet rims suggest UHP metamorphism at >28 kbar and 530 °C. UHP metamorphism of pelitic sediments within the Taconic paleo-subduction zone invite comparisons with similar UHP rocks in the Caledonian orogeny. Future studies of UHP metamorphism in the Appalachian orogen will focus on constraining: 1) the spatial and temporal scales of UHP metamorphism, 2) the retrograde/exhumation P–T path of the coesite-bearing metapelite, and 3) the P–T history of other nearby metamorphic units, such as the Tillotson peak metabasites, to evaluate if these units shared a similar metamorphic history.

How to cite: Gonzalez, J. P., Baldwin, S. L., Thomas, J. B., Nachlas, W. O., Fitzgerald, P. G., and Lanari, P.: Petrologic constraints on subduction zone metamorphism from a coesite-bearing metapelite in the Northern Appalachian Orogen, EGU General Assembly 2021, online, 19–30 Apr 2021, EGU21-10080, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu21-10080, 2021.

The Grampian Shear Zone (GSZ) represents a highly deformed tectonostratigraphic contact between the Proterozoic metamorphic rocks of the Dalradian Group from the underlying high grade metamorphic Neoproterozoic rocks of the Badenoch Group within the Grampian Highlands. The nature (tectonic suture or palaeo-unconformity), age and structure of the GSZ and indeed the underling Badenoch Group are poorly constrained. Previous studies of the GSZ and synkinematic (intruded during shearing) pegmatites found therein, yielded metamorphic/deformation (and magmatic) ages ranging from c.a. 808 to 440 M. This study reinvestigates this shearzone using in-situ (within section) petrochonological analysis on a range of U-Pb and Rb-Sr chronometers – Monazite, zircon, titanite, rutile and mica. Carrying out this analysis in-situ and using a variety of minerals allows us to directly date deformation fabrics over a wide range of deformation temperatures, giving us a far more detailed picture of the events recorded within these rocks. Large monazite grains (≥100μm) were mapped using in-situ LA-ICP-MS to show within grain variation of major elements and REEs. Monazite U-Pb spot analysis from the GSZ has yielded ages ranging from 784.11 ± 1.2Ma to 442.58 ± 0.58Ma. The same analysis was performed on a sample from the Grampian group which yielded an age of 441.34 ± 037Ma. In addition to this monazite data, in-situ U-Pb Titanite analysis from the Badenoch Group gave ages of 526.96 ± 1.33 Ma from a metabasite sample, with a metasedimentary sample giving a range of titanite U Pb ages from 540 to 460Ma. These age ranges show that the Badnoch Group and the GSZ have recorded a complex polyorogenic history relative to the “simple” overlying Dalradian metasediments. We propose that the Grampian Shear Zone represents a deep-seated Knoydartian (808 to 784Ma) age shear zone within the meso-Neoproterozoic Badenoch Group. This shear zone was then reactivated during the Grampian phase of the Caledonian Orogeny resulting in the tectonic emplacement of the Dalradian metasediments above the Badenoch group.

How to cite: Evason, L., Bird, A., Dempsey, E., Hardman, K., Smith, M., and Strachan, R.: Unravelling the enigmatic Grampian Shear Zone: In-situ monazite and titanite U-Pb analysis of the juxtaposed Badenoch and Grampian Groups, EGU General Assembly 2021, online, 19–30 Apr 2021, EGU21-6526, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu21-6526, 2021.

Ductile shear zones are heterogeneous areas of strain localisation which often display variation in strain geometry and combinations of coaxial and non-coaxial deformation. One such heterogeneous shear zone is the c. 2 km thick Uyea Shear Zone (USZ) in northwest Mainland Shetland (UK), which separates variably deformed Neoarchaean orthogneisses in its footwall from Neoproterozoic metasediments in its hanging wall (Fig. a). The USZ is characterised by decimetre-scale layers of dip-slip thrusting and extension, strike-slip sinistral and dextral shear senses and interleaved ultramylonitic coaxially deformed horizons. Within the zones of transition between shear sense layers, mineral lineations swing from foliation down-dip to foliation-parallel in kinematically compatible, anticlockwise/clockwise-rotations on a local and regional scale (Fig. b). Rb-Sr dating of white mica grains via laser ablation indicates a c. 440-425 Ma Caledonian age for dip-slip and strike-slip layers and an 800 Ma Neoproterozoic age for coaxial layers. Quartz opening angles and microstructures suggest an upper-greenschist to lower-amphibolite facies temperature for deformation. We propose that a Neoproterozoic, coaxial event is overprinted by Caledonian sinistral transpression under upper greenschist/lower amphibolite facies conditions. Interleaved kinematics and mineral lineation swings are attributed to result from differential flow rates resulting in vertical and lateral extrusion and indicate regional-scale sinistral transpression during the Caledonian orogeny in NW Shetland. This study highlights the importance of linking geochronology to microstructures in a poly-deformed terrane and is a rare example of a highly heterogeneous shear zone in which both vertical and lateral extrusion occurred during transpression.

How to cite: Armitage, T., Holdsworth, R., Strachan, R., Zach, T., Alvarez-Ruiz, D., and Dempsey, E.: Complex kinematics in a major ductile shear zone, NW Shetland: Evidence of ductile extrusion during Caledonian transpression, EGU General Assembly 2021, online, 19–30 Apr 2021, EGU21-722, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu21-722, 2021.

Geological mapping, zircon U–Pb dating of 28 samples, and mica ⁴⁰Ar–³⁹Ar dating of 7 samples in the Stavanger–Ryfylke region (Stavanger, Suldal, Nedstrand, Randøy) characterizes the tectonostratigraphy of the southernmost nappes in the Scandinavian Caledonides. Four main tectonostratigraphic levels are described. (1) The lowest phyllite/mica schist nappes –Buadalen, Holmasjø, Lower Finse, Synnfjell– represent the Cambro–Ordovician sediment cover of the Baltic margin. (2) The overlying nappes –Madla, Storheia, Dyrskard, Hallingskarvet– consist of felsic metaigneous rocks with a consistent age between c.1525 and 1493 Ma. They host c.1040 Ma intrusives and c.1025 Ma Sveconorwegian metamorphism. They likely represent transported Baltican (Sveconorwegian) basement, widely exposed in S Norway. (3) The overlying nappes –Sola, Boknafjord, Kvitenut, Revseggi– are more diverse and lack counterparts in the exposed Baltican crust. The Sola nappe, near Stavanger, comprises a marine succession –Kolnes succession– of mica schist, metasandstone, marble, amphibolite and felsic metavolcanic rocks. The metavolcanic rocks –Snøda metadacite–rhyolite– are fine-grained mica gneisses, with calc-alkaline composition. Their extrusion age of c.941–934 Ma date deposition of the sequence. Detrital zircons in a metasandstone sample (n=138) yield main age modes at c.1040, 1150 and 1395 Ma, as well as significant Paleoproterozoic and Archaean modes. The Kolnes succession was affected by Taconian/Grampian metamorphism peaking in eclogite-facies conditions between c.471 and 458 Ma (Smit et al., 2010), followed by regional cooling around 445–435 Ma. Leucogranite bodies (c.429 Ma) cut the Grampian fabric. Several ⁴⁰Ar–³⁹Ar white mica and biotite plateau ages constrain the timing of Scandian top-to-the SE nappe stacking at c.420 Ma. The Boknafjord nappe in Nedstrand comprises a c.932 Ma augen gneiss, overlain successively by amphibolite and mica schist units. Preliminary detrital zircon data (n=11) imply an Ordovician (<459 Ma) deposition for the mica schist. (4) The highest nappes –Karmsund and Hardangerfjord– host the Karmøy and Bømlo ophiolite complexes. These complexes comprise a c.493 Ma supra subduction zone ophiolite, intruded by c.485–466 Ma volcanic arc plutonic rocks, and unconformably overlain by fossiliferous upper Ordovician (<c.445 Ma) clastic sediments (Pedersen and Dunning, 1997).

We propose that the Iapetan Karmøy–Bømlo ophiolite complexes were accreted onto the Kolnes succession on the Laurentian side of the Iapetus realm, during the Grampian orogeny, before integration of both in the Scandian nappe pile. The age of HP metamorphism in the Kolnes succession (471–458 Ma) matches the inferred timing for obduction of the Karmøy–Bømlo complexes (485–448 Ma). The evidence for a Laurentian margin obduction stems from a conspicuous similarity with Shetland. On Shetland, the c.492 Ma Unst–Fetlar ophiolite complex was obducted during the Grampian orogeny onto Neoproterozoic Laurentian marine sequences (psammite-marble-mica gneiss) of the Westing, Yell Sound and East Mainland successions. The Westing and Yell Sound successions are characterized by a c. 944–925 Ma, Renlandian, high-grade metamorphism, a dominant detrital zircon mode at 1030 Ma, and common Archean detrital zircons. They correlate well with the Kolnes succession and suggest an ancestry along the Neoproterozoic Renlandian active margin of Laurentia and Rodinia, before opening of Iapetus.

How to cite: Bingen, B., Torgersen, E., and Ganerød, M.: Tectonostratigraphy of the Southernmost Scandinavian Caledonides: testing the Shetland correlation and the Laurentian/Renlandian link, EGU General Assembly 2021, online, 19–30 Apr 2021, EGU21-10091, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu21-10091, 2021.

The role of inheritance in localizing basement deformation in the foreland has been demonstrated in orogens in different parts of the world. In the external domain of the central Scandinavian Caledonides, questions remain about the amount and the distribution of deformation accommodated by the Baltica basement during Caledonian orogeny. However, to answer these questions, it is necessary to understand the architecture of the Baltica crust underneath the Caledonian nappes and to determine the occurrence of potential detachment horizons or inherited structures that accommodated the shortening.

In this work, we study the lithological and structural architecture of the Baltica basement in central Sweden, east and west of the present-day Caledonian front. The aim is twofold: 1) identifying the main geological features of the Fennoscandian Shield and their regional extent underneath the Caledonian nappes to the west, and 2) to address their role in accommodating deformation during Caledonian orogeny.

The study area is characterized by mainly ~1.8 Ga granitic bodies intruded by various generations of mafic intrusions and locally bounded by major crustal shear zones. On the one hand, based on seismic interpretations, magnetic and gravimetry forward modeling and mapping, and results from the recently drilled COSC-2 borehole (as part of the Collisional Orogeny in the Scandinavian Caledonides (COSC) drilling project), we show that the basement underlying the Caledonian nappes is characterized by inclined to sub-horizontal mafic intrusions with large extent, emplaced at mid-crustal level. We propose that these intrusions are similar in size, geometry, and potentially age, to the 1.25 Ga Central Scandinavian Dolerite Group (CSDG) that are mapped as 100’s km long elliptic bodies or described as saucer-shaped intrusions further east. On the other hand, based on observations from COSC-2 drill cores and previous studies, analogue modelling and 2D seismic restoration, we propose that favorably oriented intrusions influenced, at least partly, crustal shortening in this area by localizing deformation along their margins. At a regional scale, we discuss the distribution of thick-skinned and thin-skinned deformation at the present-day orogenic front. On a broader scale, this study raises the question regarding the influence of pre-existing mafic intrusions in controlling the structural evolution and the segmentation of orogenic or rift systems in general.

How to cite: Lescoutre, R., Almqvist, B., Koyi, H., Galland, O., Hedin, P., Brahimi, S., Lorenz, H., and Juhlin, C.: Large-scale flat-lying mafic intrusions in the granitic Baltica crust of central Sweden and implications for basement deformation during Caledonian orogeny, EGU General Assembly 2021, online, 19–30 Apr 2021, EGU21-6121, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu21-6121, 2021.

The origin of Large Igneous Provinces (LIPs) associated with continental breakup and the reconstruction of continents older than c. 320 million years (pre-Pangea) are contentious research problems. Here we study the petrology of a 615 - 590 Myr dolerite dyke complex that intruded rift-basins of the magma-rich margin of Baltica and now is exposed in the Scandinavian Caledonides. These dykes are part of the Central Iapetus Magmatic Province (CIMP), a LIP emplaced in Baltica and Laurentia during opening of the Iapetus Ocean within the Caledonian Wilson Cycle. The >1000 km long dyke complex displays lateral geochemical zonation from enriched to depleted basaltic compositions from south to north. Geochemical modelling of major and trace elements shows these compositions are best explained by melting hot mantle 75-250°C above ambient mantle. Although the trace element modelling solutions are non-unique, the best explanation involves melting a laterally zoned mantle plume with enriched and depleted peridotite lithologies, similar to present-day Iceland and to the North Atlantic Igneous Province. The origin of CIMP appears to have involved several mantle plumes. This is best explained if rifting and breakup magmatism coincided with plume generation zones at the margins of a Large Low Shear-wave Velocity Province (LLSVP) at the core mantle boundary. If the LLSVPs are quasi-stationary back in time as suggested in recent geodynamic models, the CIMP provides a guide for reconstructing the paleogeography of Baltica and Laurentia 615 million years ago to the LLSVP now positioned under the Pacific Ocean. Our results provide a stimulus for using LIPs as piercing points for plate reconstructions.

How to cite: Tegner, C., Andersen, T. B., Kjøll, H. J., Brown, E. L., Hagen-Peter, G., Corfu, F., Planke, S., and Torsvik, T. H.: A mantle plume origin for the Scandinavian Dyke Complex: a “piercing point” for 615 Ma plate reconstruction of Baltica?, EGU General Assembly 2021, online, 19–30 Apr 2021, EGU21-4119, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu21-4119, 2021.

Here, we present preliminary petrochronological results of paragneisses and schists containing bodies of metamafic rocks belonging the Upper Gneiss unit that occurs within the Seve Nappe Complex (SNC) in the Váivančohkka-Salmmečohkat area, north of the lake Torneträsk in northern Sweden and Norway.

At the outcrop scale, the paragneiss is pervasively foliated and bears features of migmatization. It hosts garnet amphibolite bodies that are locally transected by leucocratic veins. Thin section observations of the paragneiss reveal a mineral assemblage composed of Q+Grt+Amp+Bi±Pl±Ms±Sil±Ru. The leucocratic vein contains Q+Pl+Ms+Bi+Grt+Kfs±Sil. Importantly, some of the studied gneisses contain quartz, exhibiting lobate boundaries, as well as garnet surrounded by melt rim. The presence of quartz forming pseudomorphs after melt was also identified and observed to host both monophase and fluid inclusions. All of these microtextures are indicative of partial melting.

Preliminary pressure-temperature estimates derived using conventional geothermobarometry and phase equilibrium modelling corroborated petrographic observations. The peak metamorphic conditions were estimated to 8–10kbar and 800–850°C, i.e., in the stability field of melt.

Uranium-Pb zircon and Th-U-total Pb monazite dating of the migmatitic paragneiss yielded consistent age estimates of 602±5Ma and 599±3Ma, respectively. Nearly the same U-Pb age of 604±7Ma was obtained for the zircon from the leucocratic vein transecting the amphibolite within the studied gneiss. Interestingly, no Caledonian zircon nor monazite were identified. Considering the textural position of the dated zircon and monazite, as well as their chemical character, we suggest that these minerals date the partial melting event recorded by the rocks.

Regionally, we interpret that the Upper Gneiss unit of SNC in the Váivančohkka-Salmmečohkat area could be a northern continuation of the Leavasvággi gneiss associated with the Vassačoru Igneous Complex of SNC in the Kebnekaise region. Notably, the latter reveals evidence of high temperature metamorphism at c. 600Ma (Paulsson and Andréasson 2002) and its mafic component (see also Rousku et al. in this session) could be an equivalent to the metamafic rocks enclosed within the Upper Gneiss unit. The Leavasvággi gneiss and the Upper Gneiss unit together with similar rocks farther north in Indre Troms and in Corrovare which also yield a c. 610-600Ma age of high grade overprint (Gee et al. 2016; Kjøll et al. 2019). Altogether, these areas with only localized Caledonian influence diverge from traditional models developed for the SNC farther south and offer an additional insight into the development of the late Neoproterozoic margin of Baltica at the early stages of Iapetus opening.

This study was supported by the National Science Centre (Poland) grant no. 2019/33/B/ST10/01728 to J. Majka.

References

Gee et al. 2016. Baltoscandian margin, Sveconorwegian crust lost by subduction during Caledonian collisional orogeny. GFF 139, 36–51.

Kjøll et al. 2019. Timing of break-up and thermal evolution of a pre-Caledonian  Neoproterozoic exhumed magma-rich rifted margin. Tectonics 38, 1843-1862.

Paulsson & Andréasson 2002. Attempted break-up of Rodinia at 850 Ma: geochronological evidence from the Seve–Kalak Superterrane, Scandinavian Caledonides. JGS, 159, 751-761.

How to cite: Callegari, R., Walczak, K., Ziemniak, G., Barnes, C., and Majka, J.: Late Neoproterozoic granulite facies metamorphism of the Upper Gneiss unit (Seve Nappe Complex) in the Váivančohkka-Salmmečohkat area, northern Scandinavian Caledonides, EGU General Assembly 2021, online, 19–30 Apr 2021, EGU21-9213, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu21-9213, 2021.

The new LA-ICP-MS zircon isotope age data from paragneiss, amphibolite and two leucogranite intrusions in the Lower Seve Nappe of the Åre synform in the Caledonides of central Jämtland provide evidence of both Silurian and Ordovician tectonothermal histories. Well established concordant c. 468 and c. 470 Ma magmatic ages for the Så quarry leucogranite, which cut earlier foliations and folds in the host-rock amphibolites and paragneisses, imply a tectonothermal history prior to the Middle Ordovician (c. 469 Ma), perhaps synchronous with what has been previously recognized in the Seve Nappe Complex of Norrbotten (e.g. Root & Corfu, 2012), 400 km farther north in the Swedish Caledonides, and very recently also in the Middle Seve Nappe in central Jämtland (Walczak et al. 2020).

The field relationships and data presented here show that magmatic activity occurred during the early Silurian (c. 443 Ma) and earlier during the Early to Middle Ordovician (c. 469 Ma), and that deformation and metamorphism took place both prior to and after c. 469 Ma. The Lower Seve rocks from the nearby COSC-1 drill core have been metamorphosed in the upper amphibolite facies, however, the remnants of the high-pressure metamorphic history are preserved in the relic minerals, including high-silica white mica, in the garnet-bearing mica schists. The exact age of the high-pressure metamorphism is not known so far; however, it predates the 460-430 Ma amphibolite facies deformation recorded by titanites in the amphibolites (Giuntoli et al. 2020).    

Zircons in an amphibolite proved to be highly discordant but indicate Early Silurian metamorphism during isoclinal folding. Detrital zircons in a paragneiss are dominated by Sveconorwegian populations, but also include a range of younger Neoproterozoic grains down to the Early Ediacaran (c. 600 Ma).

This new evidence of early Caledonian deformation and metamorphism indicates that the Seve tectonothermal history in central Jämtland probably started early in the Ordovician, or before. Subduction and accretion along the Baltoscandian outer margin occurred prior to the Scandian continent-continent collision, with Siluro-Devonian emplacement of the Seve Nappe Complex across the foreland basins onto the Baltoscandian platform.

References:

Giuntoli, F., Menegon, L., Warren, C.J., Darling, J., Anderson, M.W. 2020. Tectonics, 39, e2020TC006267, https://doi.org/10.1029/2020TC006267.

Root, D., Corfu, F. 2012. Contributions to Mineralogy and Petrology, 163, 769-788, https://doi.org/10.1007/s00410-011-0698-0.

Walczak, K., Barnes, C.J., Majka, J., Gee, D.G. Klonowska, I., 2020. Geoscience Frontiers (in press), https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gsf.2020.11.009.

This work is financially supported by the National Science Centre (Poland) research project no. 2018/29/B/ST10/02315 and is part of the ICDP project “Collisional Orogeny of the Scandinavian Caledonides.”

How to cite: Klonowska, I., Ladenberger, A., Gee, D. G., Jeanneret, P., and Li, Y.: Timing of deformation, metamorphism and leucogranite intrusion in the lower part of the Seve Nappe Complex in central Jämtland, Swedish Caledonides, EGU General Assembly 2021, online, 19–30 Apr 2021, EGU21-13097, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu21-13097, 2021.

Deciphering the structural and metamorphic history of the Balsfjord Series in the Upper Allochthon of the Scandinavian Caledonides in northern Norway

Höpfl Stephan¹, Konopásek Jiří¹, Stünitz Holger^1,2 Bergh G., Steffen¹

UiT Norges arktiske universitet, Institutt for geovitenskap, stephan.m.hopfl@uit.no

¹Department of Geosciences, UiT The Arctic University of Norway, Tromsø 9037, Norway

²Institut des Sciences de la Terre (ISTO), Université d’Orleans, Orleans 45100, France

The Balsfjord Series is located in the central part of Troms–Finnmark County, northern Norway, and is part of the upper allochthon of the Scandinavian Caledonides. It consists of an Ordovician–Silurian metsedimentary sequence lying on top of the mostly gabbroic Lyngen Magmatic Complex (LMC). The unit exhibits an inverted metamorphic gradient, where the metamorphic conditions increase from the base to the top, from very low grade in the southeast to medium grade in the west and northwest. The Balsfjord Series is sandwiched between two high-grade units, the Nakkedal + Tromsø Nappe Complex in the hanging wall and the Nordmannvik Nappe as the top part of the Reisa Nappe Complex (RNC) in the footwall. The Nakkedal + Tromsø Nappe Complex features metamorphic peak ages of ca. 455–450 Ma and the Nordmannvik Nappe of ca. 430 Ma. The peak metamorphism of the Balsfjord Series has never been dated and the role of the inverted metamorphic gradient is not yet understood. One of the main motivations in this project is to resolve the Caledonian deformation history in the Balsfjord Series, ideally leading to a regional tectonic model explaining the tectonostratigraphic and metamorphic relationships between the abovementioned units.

The Balsfjord Series features two main discernible folding phases. The earlier phase displays tight to isoclinal folds with flat lying axial surfaces parallel to the penetrative foliation. Observed fold axes are parallel with the stretching lineation. These folds are best preserved in the northwestern, upper part of the unit and are syn-metamorphic in certain areas, as they fold original bedding (transposed foliation). A later folding phase is represented by mainly open folds with inclined to steep axial surfaces. Their fold axes are gently plunging with a predominant NE–SW orientation. We interpret these two folding events to be genetically related but slightly diachronous. The earlier folding phase with flat lying axial surfaces was likely generated during nappe thrusting and peak metamorphism of the Balsfjord Series. The subsequent open folding with inclined to steep axial surfaces is explained as a result of continued shearing and shortening of the weaker metapelitic Balsfjord Series against the more rigid gabbroic part of the LMC during the late stages of the Caledonian nappe thrusting.      

Observed thrust kinematics and penetrative retrogression at the bottom of the Nakkedal + Tromsø Nappe Complex suggest that its final exhumation took place during prograde metamorphism of the underlying Balsfjord Series. The ongoing dating of the prograde metamorphism in the Balsfjord series will provide important information about a possible continuity between the timing of peak metamorphism in the Nakkedal + Tromsø Nappe Complex, the Balsfjord series and the underlying RNC.

How to cite: Höpfl, S., Konopásek, J., Stünitz, H., and Bergh, S. G.: Deciphering the structural and metamorphic history of the Balsfjord Series in the Upper Allochthon of the Scandinavian Caledonides in northern Norway, EGU General Assembly 2021, online, 19–30 Apr 2021, EGU21-7179, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu21-7179, 2021.

The Western Gneiss Region (WGR), Norway is an archetypal continental ultrahigh-pressure (U)HP terrane with an extensive metamorphic history, recording the subduction and subsequent exhumation of continental crust to depths exceeding 120 km. The vast bulk of past work within the WGR has focused on mafic eclogites. In this study, data from rare garnet-kyanite metapelites in (UHP) domains of the WGR is presented. U–Pb geochronology and trace element compositions in zircon, monazite, apatite, rutile and garnet were acquired, and P–T conditions were calculated by mineral equilibria forward modelling and Zr-in-rutile thermometry. The Ulsteinvik metapelite defines a prograde path that traverses through ~600–710 °C and ~11–14 kbar. Minimum peak conditions are ~750 °C and ~2.9 GPa in an inferred garnet-kyanite-coesite-omphacite-muscovite-rutile-quartz-H₂O assemblage. Plagioclase-biotite-quartz intergrowths developed after omphacite-phengite-rutile breakdown on the early retrograde path, followed by cordierite-spinel-plagioclase symplectites after garnet-kyanite-biotite, defining a retrograde P–T point at ~740 °C and ~7 kbar. Late Ordovician-Early Silurian (~470–440 Ma) zircon and rutile age data in Ulsteinvik pre-dates the major Scandian UHP subduction episode in the WGR, interpreted as recording early Caledonian subduction within the Blåhø nappe. Monazite and apatite U-Pb geochronology and trace element data suggest exhumation occurred at ~400 Ma. The Fjørtoft metapelite is a constituent of the Blåhø nappe. Minimum peak P–T conditions are ~1.8 GPa and ~750 °C, with poor peak mineral fidelity attributed to extensive retrograde deformation. Negative Eu anomalies in ~423 Ma monazite suggest retrograde conditions were reached [RJT1] by ~423 Ma. Ulsteinvik and Fjørtoft may have experienced pre-Scandian subduction together within the Blåhø nappe, but record dissimilar histories after this. Two potential scenarios are presented: (1) Ulsteinvik resided within the mantle for 20 million-years longer than Fjørtoft during Scandian subduction, or (2), the samples were exhumed at different times during pre-Scandian subduction of the Blåhø nappe. The preservation of prograde zoning within Ulsteinvik garnets precludes a long-term residence within the mantle and suggests the latter option. In this scenario, the subducting Blåhø nappe experienced a degree of slab tear and partial underplating of the upper plate during the early stages of continental underthrusting. Discrete pieces may have later reattached to the lower plate at different times, partially exhumed, and then subducted to mantle-depths during the Scandian.

How to cite: March, S., Tamblyn, R., Hand, M., Carvelho, B., and Clark, C.: Timescales of continental subduction: Constraints from ultrahigh-pressure metapelites in the Western Gneiss Region, Norway, EGU General Assembly 2021, online, 19–30 Apr 2021, EGU21-223, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu21-223, 2021.

To better understand the subduction–exhumation cycles of the Baltoscandian margin that reached (U)HP depths during the Caledonian orogeny, we have performed in-situ U-(Th-)Pb dating coupled with REE analysis of zircon and ± monazite in four samples from the supracrustal rocks of the Blåhø Nappe on Gossa island in the Western Gneiss Region (WGR) of Norway. We dated two garnet-plagioclase-biotite gneisses and two garnet-plagioclase-amphibole gneisses. Our research focused on deciphering the early metamorphic evolution of these complex rocks that have been overprinted by exhumation-related structures and pervasive retrogressive metamorphism.

The dated zircon grains are spherical or slightly elongated in shape, some of which display clear multi-stage growth features. Only one grain armored by garnet preserved an older detrital core that yielded early Neoproterozoic dates between 1.1-1.0 Ga. This grain does not provide any Caledonian signal. Younger individual ²⁰⁶Pb/²³⁸U dates show three distinct populations that yield three concordia ages, each obtained from distinctly different compositional domains, the oldest from cores and the two youngest from overgrowths. The cores are characterized by HREE enrichment (high Lu/Gd ratios ca. 14.5), high Th/U ratios (> 0.1), and large Eu anomalies. They yield a concordia age of 474 ± 6.4 Ma. These cores can be rimmed by two different types of zircon overgrowth. The first overgrowth type (1) displays the same REE pattern as the cores and gives a concordia age of 444± 4.3 Ma. The second overgrowth type (2) shows a very weak Eu anomaly, no HREE enrichment (low Lu/Gd ratios ca. 2.37) and a very low Th/U ratios (<0.1). These yield a concordia age of 416± 3.7 Ma. The two older U–Pb zircon age populations are tentatively interpreted as reflecting two distinct metamorphic events or a prolonged episode of metamorphism. The youngest concordant metamorphic zircon dates a high grade, probably (U)HP, metamorphic overprint at ca. 416 Ma, subsequent to the previous events. Analyses performed on monazite provided complementary age records to those obtained on zircon. Monazite grains are weakly zoned, exhibit wormy shapes and are aligned with the youngest foliation. Th–U–total Pb dating of monazite, coupled with major and trace element mapping of monazite, yielded a very homogeneous age of 382 ± 1.6 Ma (n=65) interpreted to date the late shearing, which possibly accommodated a late stage of exhumation.

Funded by the National Science Centre (Poland) project no. 2014/14/E/ST10/00321.

How to cite: Jeanneret, P., Walczak, K., Majka, J., Bukała, M., Cuthbert, S., and Kooijman, E.: In-situ U-(Th-)Pb dating and REE analysis of zircon and monazite in the Grt-bearing gneisses from Gossa: Tracing early subduction into the highest-grade domains of the Western Gneiss Region, Norway, EGU General Assembly 2021, online, 19–30 Apr 2021, EGU21-7275, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu21-7275, 2021.

The Isbjørnhamna Group, which crops out in the south-west of Svalbard in the High Arctic, is crucial for understanding Svalbard’s regional geology. It can be traced in southern Wedel Jarlsberg Land and Sørkapp Land, and it consists of a Barrovian-type series of metapelites that were metamorphosed during the Torellian (c. 640Ma; Majka et al. 2008) and overprinted during the Caledonian orogenesis (Majka & Kośmińska, 2017). Although relatively recent petrological study exists, there are certain gaps in it. In order to fill these gaps, we decided to re-investigate these rocks using the most up-to-date petrochronological approach. Hence, we aim to determine the metamorphic history of these rocks in detail, test the hypothesis if there are indeed several orogenic events registered by these rocks and what was a possible exhumation mechanism responsible for uplift of this sequence.

The studied garnet-bearing mica schists preserve four different parageneses, ranging from chloritoid to kyanite metamorphic zones. Here we report on the samples containing chlorite and chloritoid, kyanite, staurolite and both staurolite and kyanite. The studied samples are the same exact rocks that have been previously studied by Majka et al. (2008, 2010) using both geothermobarometry and petrogenetic grids in the KFMASH system. According to those authors the estimated pressure-temperature conditions (P-T) were c. 655°C at 11kbar for the kyanite-bearing shist, c. 624°C at 6.6 to 8.7kbar for the staurolite + kyanite pelite and c. 580°C at 8-9kbar for the staurolite-bearing rock. The chloritoid schist has not been studied previously.

Our preliminary phase equilibrium modelling in the MnNCKFMASHTO system using the Theriak-Domino software indicates P-T conditions of c. 660°C at 7 kbar for the kyanite-schist and c. 575°C at 8 to 9.5kbar for the staurolite-schist, respectively. The chloritoid schist yielded conditions of c. 560°C at 7.5kbar. Further P-T modelling coupled with in-situ Ar-Ar and U-Pb geochronology should allow for much better understanding of the complex geological history of these rocks as well as potential flaws in the previous studies.

Research funded by National Science Centre (Poland) project no. 2019/33/B/ST10/01728.

References:

Majka & Kośmińska (2017): Arktos, 3:5, 1.17.

Majka et al. (2008): Geological Magazine, 145, 822-830.

Majka et al. (2010): Polar Research, 29, 250-264.        

How to cite: Patry, M., Klonowska, I., Kośmińska, K., and Majka, J.: Re-investigating the Barrovian metamorphic rocks of the Isbjørnhamna Group, Svalbard Caledonides, EGU General Assembly 2021, online, 19–30 Apr 2021, EGU21-13315, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu21-13315, 2021.

Kyanite eclogite from the North-East Greenland Caledonides – the upper plate of the Caledonian orogeny – preserves a mineral assemblage and petrographic texture that are consistent with an initial near-isothermal exhumation path. Two medium-grained kyanite eclogites from the Danmarkshavn area (76°46’N, 18°40’W) located west of the Germania Land shear zone contain the peak assemblage of garnet + omphacite + kyanite + phengite + amphibole + rutile. Subhedral garnet encloses monomineralic omphacite and polymineralic inclusions of clinopyroxene + plagioclase ± quartz ± amphibole ± K-feldspar ± kyanite. X-ray mapping of garnet indicates a homogenous core with a composition of Py_51–52Alm_28–29Gr_19–20Sp_0–1, along with a slightly zoned rim of Py₅₄Alm₃₁Gr₁₅Sp₁ that is replaced by a corona of symplectitic amphibole + plagioclase. Omphacite (X_Na up to 0.41), rarely present in the matrix, is indicated by symplectite of clinopyroxene + amphibole + plagioclase. Symplectites of corundum + plagioclase, spinel + plagioclase and sapphirine + plagioclase replace former kyanite. These symplectites are typically surrounded by a plagioclase corona with decreasing Ca (from X_An = 92–97 to X_An = 47–53) from the symplectite to the matrix. Isochemical phase equilibrium modeling along with homogenous garnet core and peak omphacite compositions yielded a peak metamorphic pressure-temperature (P-T) condition at 1.9 GPa, 840 ˚C. Assuming local equilibrium at the microscopic scale, an attempt to model a symplectite of spinel + sapphirine + plagioclase after kyanite using a pseudosection yielded estimated P-T conditions at 0.8–1.3 GPa and 700–900 ˚C. Integrating the calculated P-T conditions and previous geochronological results, an initial exhumation path from 1.9 GPa to ~1.0 GPa from ~415–390 Ma to ~375 Ma is nearly isothermal at around 800 ˚C.

How to cite: Cao, W., Gilotti, J., and Massonne, H.-J.: Near-isothermal exhumation of lower crust in the Caledonian Orogen: Metamorphic path of kyanite eclogite from the Danmarkshavn area, North-East Greenland Caledonides, EGU General Assembly 2021, online, 19–30 Apr 2021, EGU21-10492, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu21-10492, 2021.

We report on U-Pb zircon dating and bulk rock geochemistry results of intermediate to felsic rocks of the Thores Suite of the Pearya Terrane, northern Ellesmere Island (Arctic Canada).  Our new results together with the previously published data show that the Thores Suite was formed in the Early Ordovician (c. 490-470 Ma) as a part of an island arc. Some of the dated samples revealed common xenocrystic zircon. The latter yielded ages ranging between c. 2690 Ma and c. 520 Ma. The obtained ages of xenocrystic zircon are interpreted to be typical of Laurentia. We propose that the youngest obtained cluster of ages c. 580-570 Ma expresses a component typical for the Timanide Orogen, which is conventionally tied to Baltica. The newdataset sheds light on the history and understanding of the Thores Suite, which used to be explained as an effect of the M’Clintock orogenesis. The latter event was commonly presented as foreign to the major Caledonian orogenesis sensu stricto. In our view, the Thores Suite represents an island arc, which was formed on a fragment of continental crust dismembered during Iapetus opening. Importantly, the age of the Thores island arc is coeval with other island arcs and high pressure metamorphic units of the Scandinavian and Svalbard Caledonides. Thus, it is likely that the Thores volcanic island arc was a part of the larger arc system operating within northern Iapetus. The juxtaposition of the Thores arc with the other successions of the Pearya Terrane is ascribed to a major sinistral strike-slip escape fault-system developed along the northeastern margins of Baltica and Laurentia, broadly concurrent with the main Scandian collision between the two aforementioned continents. This crustal scale fault structure enabled the juxtaposition of numerous crustal blocks of different Precambrian ancestry that can be found in various regions of the current High Arctic, including Svalbard, Greenland and Ellesmere Island.

This research was supported by the National Science Centre (Poland) project no. 2015/17B/ST10/03114 and the internal AGH-UST funding to J. Majka, the internal grant of the Polish Geological Institute - NRI no. 62.9012.2014.00.0 to J. Bazarnik and the National Science Foundation (USA) grant EAR1650022 to J. Gilotti and W. McClelland.

How to cite: Majka, J., Kośmińska, K., Bazarnik, J., and McClelland, W. C.: The Thores volcanic island arc of the Pearya Terrane from Ellesmere Island formed on Precambrian continental crust, EGU General Assembly 2021, online, 19–30 Apr 2021, EGU21-15127, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu21-15127, 2021.