Geology of the Cordilleran Orogen in Canada

Seven stratigraphic chapters cover time slices from Precambrian to Neogene; also included are chapters covering tectonic framework, paleomagnetism, physiographic evolution, Quaternary glaciation, volcanic and plutonic regimes, metamorphism, structural styles, metallogeny, energy and ground resources, and natural hazards. A tectonic synthesis chapter and a summary of outstanding problems round out the volume. Accompanying plates include physiographic, tectonic assemblage, terrane and metamorphic maps, correlation charts, structural cross sections, and special maps showing distribution of Proterozoic and Miocene plutonic suites and the metallogeny of terranes.
Structural Styles
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Published:January 01, 1991
Abstract
The dominant elements of structural style in the Canadian Cordillera are related to the Insular, Coast, Intermontane, Omineca, and Foreland morphogeological belts, of which the Coast and Omineca belts represent greatly uplifted granitic and metamorphic orogenic core zones. Structures commonly verge outward from the core zones so that, in cross-section, the Cordilleran orogen contains two symmetrical suborogens (Fig. 17.1, in pocket). The first to develop was the Omineca Belt wherein Mesozoic deformation is attributed to the collision of the Intermontane Superterrane with ancestral North America. Orogenesis in the Coast Belt is attributed to the long-lived development of a volcanic-plutonic...