Precambrian sedimentation in the Urik-Iya Graben, southern Siberian Craton: Main stages and tectonic settings

• Published in: Geotectonics 2014-09, Vol.48 (5), p.359-370
• Main Authors: Gladkochub, D. P., Mazukabzov, A. M., Stanevich, A. M., Donskaya, T. V., Motova, Z. L., Vanin, V. A.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Earth and Environmental Science; Earth Sciences; Geological time; Graben; Lithosphere; Plate tectonics; Precambrian; Rifting; Rocks; Sedimentation; Sedimentation & deposition; Seismology; Structural Geology
• ISSN: 0016-8521; 1556-1976
• DOI: 10.1134/S0016852114050033

The Paleoproterozoic sedimentary and volcanic-sedimentary sequences of the Urik-Iya Graben at southern flank of the Siberian Craton have been studied. Based on the isotopic U-Pb LA-ICP-MS dating of detrital zircons contained in the clastic fraction of the studied rocks, three main extension stages accompanied by sedimentation are recognized; each stage is characterized by certain types of sediments and conditions of their accumulation. The oldest rocks (Ingashi Formation) mark early extension events (∼1.91−1.87 Ga), which were caused by collapse of the orogen that arose due to collision of the Biryusa and Sharyzhalgai blocks. The basin formed as a result of extension is regarded as an aulacogen. Granitoids of the Sayan Complex were emplaced in the cratonic lithosphere at the final stage of the first extension stage. The second stage of extension started ∼1.75 Ga ago as a response to the effect of the inferred mantle plume on the lithosphere of the Siberian Craton. It was accompanied by deposition of the Daldarma Formation. Stress inversion took place at the final stage (∼1.70 Ga), and an intracratonic fold zone arose at the place of the paleoaulacogen. The third extension stage (1.65−1.60 Ga) corresponds to the time of molasse accumulation in pull-apart basins (Yermosokha Formation). The final stage of rifting was marked by emplacement of granitoids (Chernaya Zima Complex, 1.53 Ga), which completed the active tectonic events in the region. Afterward, the Urik-Iya Graben transformed into a stable intracratonic domain. The available data allow us to revise the tectonic history of the Urik-Iya Graben. In light of new evidence, this structural unit may be interpreted as a long-evolving paleoaulacogen. The series of revealed sedimentation settings reflects the formation of a consolidated continental lithosphere at the southern flank of the Siberian Craton.