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Evolution of Cretaceous active continental margins and their correlation with other global events
Author(s) -
Filatova N. I.
Publication year - 1998
Publication title -
island arc
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.554
H-Index - 58
eISSN - 1440-1738
pISSN - 1038-4871
DOI - 10.1046/j.1440-1738.1998.00175.x
Subject(s) - geology , continental margin , paleontology , continental crust , subduction , cretaceous , terrane , oceanic crust , back arc basin , obduction , convergent boundary , volcanic arc , passive margin , island arc , continental arc , orogeny , plate tectonics , earth science , rift , tectonics
The scenario of the Earth active continental margin evolution is reconstructed here for Early Cretaceous–Senonian times when pulsatory alternated magmatic and orogenic processes occurred. The correlation of these continental marginal manifestations with some global events was undertaken also. The first, Neocomian stage (starting from the Jurassic) was distinguished by the combined development of continental marginal volcanic belts (with extensional conditions in back‐arc regions) and peri‐oceanic island arcs. In the second, Aptian–early Middle Albian stage the mid‐Cretaceous global orogeny took place which resulted in almost complete extinction of subduction zones within the continent–ocean transition as well as in obduction (with metamorphism) of island arc, back‐arc, and oceanic terranes together with microcontinents over continents. This mid‐Cretaceous (120–100 Ma) hypercollision was caused by a sharp increase in the spreading rate and origination of new mid‐oceanic ridges accompanied the breakup of Pangea. Those events provoked an increase in the rate of convergence of oceanic plates and continents, strong compressional stress into peri‐oceanic domains, and fast growth of the continental edges due to fold–thrust terrane rim development. During the third, late Albian–Late Cretaceous stage (100–85 Ma), some decrease of the rapid oceanic crust growth led to the accelerated subduction of oceanic plates under continents. The new convergent plate boundaries with global systems of continental marginal magmatic belts with a very large volume of volcanics were developed. The peculiar events of the Cretaceous history at active continental margins coincided with simultaneous extraordinary global events: fast growth of the oceanic crust, peak of intraplate magmatism, and prolonged lack of the Earth magnetic reversals, and can be considered to be indicators of mantle superplume activity and whole‐mantle convection development during 120–80 Ma.