Geology topics

W.S.F. Kidd

Publications and source records attributed to W.S.F. Kidd.

3 recordsLinked to original sources

USGS2005

Foreland-forearc collisional granitoid and mafic magmatism caused by lower-plate lithospheric slab breakoff: The Acadian of Maine, and other orogens

During collisional convergence, failure in extension of the lithosphere of the lower plate due to slab pull will reduce the thickness or completely remove lower-plate lithosphere and cause decompression melting of the asthenospheric mantle; magmas from this source may subsequently provide enough heat for substantial partial melting of crustal rocks under or beyond the toe of the collisional accretionary system. In central Maine, United States, this type of magmatism is first apparent in the Early Devonian West Branch Volcanics and equivalent mafic volcanics, in the slightly younger voluminous mafic/silicic magmatic event of the Moxie Gabbro-Katahdin batholith and related ignimbrite volcanism, and in other Early Devonian granitic plutons. Similar lower-plate collisional sequences with mafic and related silicic magmatism probably caused by slab breakoff are seen in the Miocene-Holocene Papuan orogen, and the Hercynian-Alleghenian belt. Magmatism of this type is significant because it gives evidence in those examples of whole-lithosphere extension. We infer that normal fault systems in outer trench slopes of collisional orogens in general, and possibly those of oceanic subduction zones, may not be primarily due to flexural bending, but are also driven by whole-lithosphere extension due to slab pull. The Maine Acadian example suggests that slab failure and this type of magmatism may be promoted by pre-existing large margin-parallel faults in the lower plate. ?? 2005 Geological Society of America.

Geology↗

USGS2004

U-Pb zircon constraints on the tectonic evolution of southeastern Tibet, Namche Barwa area

The eastern syntaxis of the Himalayas is expressed in the crust as a pronounced southward bend in the orogen. The change in strike of geologic features coincides with the high topography of the Namche Barwa region, the exposure of granulite-grade metamorphic rocks, and a 180-degree bend in the Yalu Tsangpo. We have conducted a geochronologic and geochemical investigation of several suites of granitoids collected from the Namche Barwa massif and subjacent terranes of southeastern Tibet, ranging from cm-scale dikes and sills to larger, outcrop-scale intrusions. U-Pb SHRIMP-RG zircon ages establish at least five magmatic episodes: ∼400 to 500 Ma, ∼120 Ma, 40 to 70 Ma, 18 to 25 Ma, and 3 to 10 Ma . These episodes broadly correlate to spatial patterns in sample localities, as follows: 400 to 500 Ma ages occur in zircon cores collected from within the massif proper; ∼120 Ma granites, related to early Gangdese arc plutonism, are primarily located northeast of Namche Barwa; later (40-70 Ma) Gangdese activity is expressed in granites west of Namche Barwa. 18 to 25 Ma granites occur both along the suture zone west of Gyala Peri, and directly north of Namche Barwa along the area of the Jiali fault zone, and are attributed both to shearing within the Jiali fault zone and to an early Miocene Gangdese Thrust event. Exceptionally young (<10 Ma) zircon ages are clustered near the core of the massif, along the Yalu Tsangpo gorge. Trace-element geochemical data indicates the presence of both fluid-present and fluid absent melts, with a fluid-absent (decompression) melting regime dominating near the core of Namche Barwa.

Tibet↗

USGS1991

Flexural extension of the upper continental crust in collisional foredeeps

Normal faults on the outer slopes of trenches and collisional foredeeps reveal that high-amplitude lithospheric flexure can result in inelastic extensional deformation of the convex side of a flexed plate. This process, which we call "flexural extension," differs fundamentally from rifting in that the lower lithosphere contracts while the upper lithosphere extends. In the Taconic foreland of New York, a >100-km-wide zone of brittle failure propagated ahead of the convergent plate boundary, rupturing the upper crust to an estimated depth of 15-20 km. Dip-slip displacement on normal faults in the Taconic and Arkoma foredeeps produced water depths like those in the closest modern analogue, the Timor Trough. Structural evidence does not support common illustrations of flexural normal faults as planar-irrotational structures which simply die out at shallow crustal depths. Instead, the surface geology shows that flexural normal faulting must be rotational with respect to the enveloping surface of the flexed plate. This toppled domino geometry implies the presence at depth of a detachment or zone of distributed ductile simple shear where fault displacement and block rotation are accommodated.

Geological Society of America Bulletin↗