The Schwarzhorn Amphibolite (Eastern Ratikon, Austria): an Early Cambrian intrusion in the Lower Austroalpine basement

The Alpine nappe stack in the Penninic-Austroalpine boundary zone in the Ratikon (Austria) contains a 4x1 km tectonic sliver of meta-diorite, known as the Schwarzhorn Amphibolite. It was deformed and metamorphosed in the amphibolite facies and is unconformably overlain by unmetamorphic Lower Triassic sandstone, indicating pre-Triassic metamorphism. Cataclastic deformation and brecciation of the amphibolite is related to normal faulting and block tilting during Jurassic rifting. Zircon dating of the Schwarzhorn Amphibolite using LA-ICP-MS gave a U-Pb age of 529+9/-8 Ma, interpreted as the crystallization age of the protolith. Geochemical characteristics indicate formation of the magmatic protolith in a supra-subduction zone setting. The Cambrian protolith age identifies the Schwarzhorn Amphibolite as a pre-Variscan element within the Austroalpine basement. Similar calc-alkaline igneous rocks of Late Neoproterozoic to Early Cambrian age are found in the Upper Austroalpine Silvretta Nappe nearby and in several other Variscan basement units of the Alps, interpreted to have formed in a peri-Gondwanan active-margin or island-arc setting

Zircons from Syros, Cyclades, Greece—Recrystallization and Mobilization of Zircon During High-Pressure Metamorphism

Zircons were studied from high-pressure/low-temperature metamorphosed meta-igneous lithologies from Syros. These rocks carry several zircon generations related to each other by dissolution-reprecipitation processes. One generation is pristine zircon that shows growth zoning, relatively elevated contents of trivalent cations and high Th/U ratios. The other end-member is a skeletal zircon generation with negligible trivalent cation contents and low Th/U ratios (≤0·1). Texturally between these two, there is a range of zircon crystals with complex inclusion populations of Y-HREE-Th phases and fluid inclusions, showing variable progress of replacement- recrystallization. Both end-members yield distinct sensitive high-resolution ion microprobe (SHRIMP) U-Pb ages. The pristine generation has an age of 80·2 ± 1·6 Ma from a metagabbro, and 76·4 ± 2·1 Ma from a meta-plagiogranite dyke. The skeletal, low-Th/U zircon generation yields an age of 52·4 ± 0·8 Ma. The older, Late Cretaceous, zircons are interpreted to date emplacement of the magmatic protoliths in a small segment of oceanic crust. The younger, Eocene, age, however, dates a zircon recrystallization event, which possibly coincides with high solubility and mobility of high field strength elements in a high-pressure aqueous fluid phase. Intergrowth relations between zircon and peak-metamorphic garnet, and excellent agreement of the U-Pb ages with white mica Ar-Ar ages for the same samples support the conclusion that Eocene is the true age of high-pressure metamorphism on Syro

Kinematics and Age of Syn-Intrusive Detachment Faulting in the Southern Alps: Evidence for Early Permian Crustal Extension and Implications for the Pangea A Versus B Controversy

Permian basin formation and magmatism in the Southern Alps of Italy have been interpreted as expressions of a WSW‐ENE‐trending, dextral megashear zone transforming Early Permian Pangea B into Late Permian Pangea A between ~285 and 265 Ma. In an alternative model, basin formation and magmatism resulted from N‐S crustal extension. To characterize Permian tectonics, we studied the Grassi Detachment Fault, a low‐angle extensional fault in the central Southern Alps. The footwall forms a metamorphic core complex affected by upward‐increasing, top‐to‐the‐southeast mylonitization. Two granitoid intrusions occur in the core complex, the synmylonitic Val Biandino Quartz Diorite and the postmylonitic Valle San Biagio Granite. U‐Pb zircon dating yielded crystallization ages of 289.1 ± 4.5 Ma for the former and 286.8 ± 4.9 Ma for the latter. Consequently, detachment‐related mylonitic shearing took place during the Early Permian and ended at ~288 Ma, but kinematically coherent brittle faulting continued. Considering 30° anticlockwise rotation of the Southern Alps since Early Permian, the extension direction of the Grassi Detachment Fault was originally ~N‐S. Even though a dextral continental wrench system has long been regarded as a viable model at regional scale, the local kinematic evidence is inconsistent with this and, rather, supports N‐S extensional tectonics. Based on a compilation of >200 U‐Pb zircon ages, we discuss the evolution and tectonic framework of Late Carboniferous to Permian magmatism in the Alps

The Schwarzhorn Amphibolite (Eastern Rätikon, Austria): an Early Cambrian intrusion in the Lower Austroalpine basement

The Alpine nappe stack in the Penninic-Austroalpine boundary zone in the Rätikon (Austria) contains a 4×1 km tectonic sliver of meta-diorite, known as the Schwarzhorn Amphibolite. It was deformed and metamorphosed in the amphibolite facies and is unconformably overlain by unmetamorphic Lower Triassic sandstone, indicating pre-Triassic metamorphism. Cataclastic deformation and brecciation of the amphibolite is related to normal faulting and block tilting during Jurassic rifting. Zircon dating of the Schwarzhorn Amphibolite using LA-ICP-MS gave a U-Pb age of 529+9/-8 Ma, interpreted as the crystallization age of the protolith. Geochemical characteristics indicate formation of the magmatic protolith in a supra-subduction zone setting. The Cambrian protolith age identifies the Schwarzhorn Amphibolite as a pre-Variscan element within the Austroalpine basement. Similar calc-alkaline igneous rocks of Late Neoproterozoic to Early Cambrian age are found in the Upper Austroalpine Silvretta Nappe nearby and in several other Variscan basement units of the Alps, interpreted to have formed in a peri-Gondwanan active-margin or island-arc setting

Incipient silicification of recent conifer wood at a Yellowstone hot spring

A branch of lodgepole pine (Pinus contorta) from a silica sinter apron of Cistern Spring, Yellowstone National Park, is partially mineralized with silica gel. The distribution of Si mapped in transverse sections of the branch suggests that mineralization was episodic. Early silica-rich solutions used the cellular structures in the wood as pathways, in particular the axial tracheids and rays. Later solutions infiltrated into the branch through shrinkage cracks along the decorticated branch's periphery. Among the tracheids, a distinct preference is noted for silica precipitates to line lumina of the earlywood tracheids, suggesting that this differential concentration in silica may reflect seasonal growth and water uptake in a live tree. Raman spectroscopy identifies the silica phases as amorphous silica gel. Secondary electron images of radial sections along the tracheids demonstrate that the distribution of silica is heterogeneous on a micrometer scale. Silica gel precipitates form micro spheroids with a spherical substructure that extends down to the sub-nanometer scale. All cell walls are templated with a monolayer consisting of closely spaced silica gel nano spheres around 100 nm in diameter. Transmission electron microscopy of focused ion beam sections through cell walls of partially mineralized tracheids reveals that the permineralization of cellular structures and the replacement of organic material by silica are processes that go hand in hand. The branch is dated with the C-14 chronometer to 140 +/- 33 years, underlining that the silicification reactions that preserve wood in the fossil record can be very rapid. Textural considerations of Si distribution in the wood suggest that the early stages of silicification in this branch date from a time when the pine tree was still alive. (C) 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved