Where did the Arizona‐Plano Go? Protracted Thinning Via Upper‐ to Lower‐Crustal Processes

• Published in: Journal of geophysical research. Solid earth 2022-04, Vol.127 (4), p.n/a
• Main Authors: Jepson, Gilby, Carrapa, Barbara, George, Sarah W. M., Reeher, Lauren J., Kapp, Paul A., Davis, George H., Thomson, Stuart N., Amadori, Chiara, Clinkscales, Christopher, Jones, Sean, Gleadow, Andrew J. W., Kohn, Barry P.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Arizona‐plano; Cenozoic; Cooling; Cretaceous; Crustal thickness; crustal thickness estimates; Denudation; Estimates; Geochemistry; Geological faults; Geophysics; lower‐crustal flow; Mesozoic; metamorphic core complex; Mountains; Orogeny; Petrology; Plateaus; Range extension; Rocks; Subduction; Subduction (geology); Tectonics; Temperature; Temperature requirements; thermochronology; Thickening; Thickness; Thinning; Uplift; Workflow
• ISSN: 2169-9313; 2169-9356
• DOI: 10.1029/2021JB023850

Mesozoic‐Cenozoic subduction of the Farallon slab beneath North America generated a regionally extensive orogenic plateau in the southwestern US during the latest Cretaceous, similar to the modern Central Andean Plateau. In Nevada and southern Arizona, estimates from whole‐rock geochemistry suggest crustal thicknesses reached ∼60–55 km by the Late Cretaceous. Modern crustal thicknesses are ∼28 km, requiring significant Cenozoic crustal thinning. Here, we compare detailed low‐temperature thermochronology from the Catalina metamorphic core complex (MCC) to whole rock Sr/Y crustal thickness estimates across southern Arizona. We identify three periods of cooling. A minor cooling phase occurred prior to ∼40 Ma with limited evidence of denudation and ∼10 km of crustal thinning. Major cooling occurred during detachment faulting and MCC formation at 26–19 Ma, corresponding to ∼8 km of denudation and ∼8 km of crustal thinning. Finally, we document a cooling phase at 17–11 Ma related to Basin and Range extension that corresponds with ∼5 km of denudation and ∼9 km of crustal thinning. During the MCC and Basin and Range extension events, the amount of denudation recorded by low‐temperature thermochronology can be explained by corresponding decreases in the crustal thickness. However, the relatively limited exhumation prior to detachment faulting at ∼26 Ma recorded by thermochronology is insufficient to explain the magnitude of crustal thinning (∼10 km) observed in the whole rock crustal thickness record. Therefore, we suggest that crustal thinning of the Arizona‐plano was facilitated via ductile mid‐ to lower‐crustal flow, and limited upper‐crustal extension at 50–30 Ma prior to detachment faulting and Basin and Range extension. Plain Language Summary In this study, we integrate low‐temperature thermochronology with regional paleo‐crustal thickness estimates from whole rock geochemistry and geophysical proxies applied to the southwestern USA, which is a natural laboratory for crustal thickening and thinning processes. Understanding crustal evolution is paramount for our understanding of the processes involved in mountain building and surface uplift with implications on various fields of Geosciences including tectonics, petrology and surface processes. Through this approach, we are able to compare the total amount of crustal thinning to the amount of denudation experienced by the upper crust. Thus, we provide a quantitative, mass‐balance calculation of crustal thinning.