Paleomagnetism of the Liassic member of the Zarzaïtine Formation (stable Saharan craton, Illizi basin, Algeria)

A paleomagnetic study was carried out in the carbonates and marls of the Liassic member of the Zarzaïtine Formation of the Illizi basin (SE Algeria) deposited in a continental environment. Two magnetization components were identified. The first, defined at relatively low blocking temperature, was isolated in five sites, and yields the following paleomagnetic pole (80.8°N, 20.1°E, K = 811 and A 95 = 2.2°). This magnetization is considered an overprint acquired during Cenozoic times. The second component was defined by both normal and reversed polarity. The normal polarity was identified in fourteen sites using both linear regression and great circles. The reversed one was inferred in four sites from the remagnetization circle and demagnetization path analyses. This component is mainly (it could be in part the primary magnetization) a late diagenesis magnetic overprint. It yields a new Liassic pole (71.8°S, 54.9°E, K = 91 and A 95 = 3.9°) for Africa

Chemical remagnetizations in the Illizi basin (Saharan craton, Algeria) and their acquisition process

International audienceDuring remagnetization, chemical changes limited to moderate grain growth from pre-existing single domain (SD) grains do not modify the palaeomagnetic direction carried by these grains. Palaeomagnetic direction from new SD grains, on the contrary, is that of the magnetic field during remagnetization. The resulting direction becomes intermediate between the directions carried by previous and new SD grains, as it appears often in case of a partial magnetic overprint. If the growth of pre-existing grains is more important, these grains become large multidomain (MD) and loose the primary magnetization. Stable magnetization is then only related to the new SD grains, which carry the total remagnetization. In the Illizi basin (Saharan platform), these different cases of partial or total magnetic overprint have been observed, resulting from palaeomagnetic studies of different Palaeozoic and Mesozoic formations

New Moscovian palaeomagnetic pole from the Edjeleh fold (Saharan craton, Algeria)

International audienceA palaeomagnetic study was carried out in the Moscovian (~305Ma) formation in the Edjeleh anticline, the only area where important dips can be observed in the Upper Palaeozoic series of the Illizi basin (Algeria). This study shows the existence of three magnetization components. Two of them are interpreted as Cenozoic and Permian remagnetizations; their poles are 88.8°N, 164.0°E, K=262, A95=3.3° and 43.4°S, 61.7°E, K=93, A95=5.9°, respectively. The third component is determined by both well-defined ChRMs and remagnetization circles analysis. Its associated fold test is positive and significant. Because the folding started before or during the Autunian, this third component was acquired very early and is very probably the primary magnetization. Its corresponding palaeomagnetic pole (28.3°S, 58.9°E, K=157, A95=4.2°) is close to the poles from the Saharan platform obtained from neighbouring periods. The positive fold test of this study thus validates these previous Upper Palaeozoic poles. This new result is in agreement with the geodynamical model (Matte 1986; Henry et al. 1992), which proposed the occurrence of a large clockwise rotation of Africa during the Carboniferous; such a motion agrees with the Permian Pangaea A2 reconstruction

Paleomagnetism of the Liassic member of the Zarzaïtine Formation (stable Saharan craton, Illizi basin, Algeria)

A paleomagnetic study was carried out in the carbonates and marls of the Liassic member of the Zarzaïtine Formation of the Illizi basin (SE Algeria) deposited in a continental environment. Two magnetization components were identified. The first, defined at relatively low blocking temperature, was isolated in five sites, and yields the following paleomagnetic pole (80.8°N, 20.1°E, K = 811 and A 95 = 2.2°). This magnetization is considered an overprint acquired during Cenozoic times. The second component was defined by both normal and reversed polarity. The normal polarity was identified in fourteen sites using both linear regression and great circles. The reversed one was inferred in four sites from the remagnetization circle and demagnetization path analyses. This component is mainly (it could be in part the primary magnetization) a late diagenesis magnetic overprint. It yields a new Liassic pole (71.8°S, 54.9°E, K = 91 and A 95 = 3.9°) for Africa

Composite magnetic fabric deciphered using heating treatment

International audienceAbstract In a number of AMS studies, the presence and deciphering of composite magnetic fabrics is of major importance for a correct interpretation of the data. On the basis of several examples from intrusive rocks (diorites and dolerites) we show that the use of laboratory heatings can help to extract at least one component of the composite magnetic fabrics usually present. The procedure includes comparison of the fabrics measured after stepwise laboratory heating with the fabrics determined by tensor difference and by linear regression analysis. In the diorite samples, the measured AMS results from the superimposition of different component fabrics and does not correspond exactly to any of these fabrics. In these dykes, isolated magnetic fabric during thermal treatment corresponds to that of the main magnetic mineral (Ti-poor titanomaghemite) and reveals an unknown structure. In volcanic flow or doleritic dykes, a “parasitic” fabric related to late or post-magmatic evolution superimposed to the flow fabric can produce important scattering of the AMS principal directions. Decomposition of magnetic fabric during thermal treatment allows isolation of the flow fabri

Late Pan-African Murzuq event in the Central Hoggar: Sinistral displacement along the Ounane major shear zone (Gour Oumelalen, Algeria) shown by the magnetic fabric of the Tisselliline pluton

International audienceThe late upper-level subcircular Tisselliline pluton (c. 572 Ma), emplaced in Hoggar along the major Pan-African Ounane shear zone, is NNW-SSE oriented. Its magnetic fabric is mainly characterized by dome-shaped magnetic foliations and subhorizontal magnetic lineations. When approaching the nearby Ounane shear zone, the lineations become associated with a prolate shape of the fabric and their direction evolves from NE-SW to NNE-SSW. This highlights a stretching underwent by the pluton during its late magmatic stage, in agreement with the shape of the pluton itself. These characteristics indicate a sinistral movement along the Ounane shear zone during the emplacement of the Tisselliline pluton. It is the opposite to the dextral movement that affected earlier the older Ounane batholith (c. 629 Ma) located on the other side of the shear zone. This sinistral movement can be related to the NE-SW compression that occurred in the Eastern Hoggar, western part of the Saharan metacraton, during the Murzukian event. Its age, given by the Tisselliline pluton age (c. 572 Ma), corresponds indeed to the initiation of this event (575-555 Ma). This shows that the Eastern Hoggar Murzukian event affected also the Central Hoggar, even if with a much lower intensity

Transpressive tectonics along a major E-W crustal structure on the Algerian continental margin: Blocks rotations revealed by a paleomagnetic analysis

International audienceThe present paleomagnetic study has been conducted on volcanic rocks of Miocene age outcropping on the northern border of the Neogene Chelif basin, northwest Algeria. The results show the existence of numerous small tectonic blocks, of probable size around 0.5 to 0.6 km, which underwent clockwise rotations. The magnitude of these rotations is often important and of different strengths according to the studied sites. That evidences the effect of a major narrow dextral E-W crustal shear structure. The location of this structure on the northern border of Chelif basin is coherent with the geodynamical context of this basin, which corresponds to a wide zone affected by clockwise rotations of large blocks limited by such major faults. The present paleomagnetic results confirm that the relative convergence motion between the Africa and Eurasia plates could be interpreted as a transpressional tectonic deformation model with block rotations along the Algerian continental margin. Strong block rotations are revealed by paleomagnetism on northern Algerian margin. They are of Neogene age and localized along an E-W major dextral structure. Transpressional tectonic is related to the convergence Africa-Eurasia

Improved Moscovian part of the Gondwana APWP for paleocontinental reconstructions, obtained from a first paleomagnetic pole, age-constrained by a fold test, from In Ezzane area in the Murzuq basin (Algeria, stable Africa)

International audienceTo improve paleocontinental reconstructions, paleomagnetic reference curves (Apparent Polar Wander Path: APWP) feature for large continents have to be continuously refined by adding up new high-quality data. For stable Africa, the Moscovian period was favorable for such aim, with well-dated and widespread geological formations. A new study has been conducted in the Upper “Dembaba” geological formation of Lower Moscovian age outcropping in the western part of the “Murzuq” basin (Saharan platform). Well-defined ChRMs, combined with remagnetization circles data, both constrained in age by a positive fold test, yield a new significant paleomagnetic pole (λ = 25.2°S, ϕ = 59.9°E, K = 55, A95 = 5.4°). When joined with previous African data of the same age, it gives an improved reference pole for Africa (λ = 28.9°S, ϕ = 54.5°E, K = 106, A95 = 3.6°). The Mean Moscovian paleomagnetic pole determined from an updated Gondwana Paleozoic APWP (λ = 29.4°S, ϕ = 51.5°E, K = 11, A95 = 1.8°), associated with the corresponding Laurussia pole (Domeier et al., 2012), yields a more constrained paleocontinental reconstruction for 310 Ma

Paleomagnetic dating of continental geological formations: Strong diachronism evidenced in the Saharan platform and geodynamical implications

International audienceThe paleomagnetism is a powerful tool to date formations that have age not constrained by paleontological, stratigraphical or radiochronological data. It was applied, on the western border of the Murzuq basin in Algeria (Saharan platform), to the Zarzaïtine formation, attributed to a Middle-Upper Triassic-Lower Jurassic age. Comparison of the obtained paleomagnetic pole with previous poles from the same geological formation outcropping in another basin and from other Carboniferous to Lower Mesozoic African formations yielded a clearly older age (Late Permian) than expected. That evidences a strong diachronism (at least 40 My) of the deposition of this formation on the Saharan platform. The post-Hercynian structural evolution was therefore different according to the parts of this platform, with significant differential vertical tectonic movements. The latter were at the origin of erosion, hiatus or sediments deposition according to areas