Plate Tectonics, Ophiolites, and Societal Significance of Geology: A Celebration of the Career of Eldridge Moores

This volume honors Eldridge Moores, one of the most accomplished geologists of his generation. The volume starts with a summary of Moores’ achievements, along with personal dedications and memories from people who knew him. Leading off the volume’s 12 chapters of original scientific contributions is Moores’ last published paper that presents an example of the Historical Contingency concept, which suggested that earlier subduction history may result in supra-subduction zone geochemical signatures for some magmas formed in non-subduction environments. Other chapters highlight the societal significance of geology, the petrogenesis of ophiolites, subduction zone processes, orogenic belt evolution, and other topics, covering the globe and intersecting with Moores’ interests and influences.
Petrotectonic origin of mafic eclogites from the Maksyutov subduction complex, south Ural Mountains, Russia
*Corresponding author: [email protected]
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Published:September 09, 2021
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CiteCitation
Valentin V. Fedkin, Theodore D. Burlick, Mary L. Leech*, Andrey A. Shchipansky, Peter M. Valizer, W.G. Ernst, 2021. "Petrotectonic origin of mafic eclogites from the Maksyutov subduction complex, south Ural Mountains, Russia", Plate Tectonics, Ophiolites, and Societal Significance of Geology: A Celebration of the Career of Eldridge Moores, John Wakabayashi, Yildirim Dilek, John Wakabayashi
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ABSTRACT
The Maksyutov complex is a mid- to late-Paleozoic high- to ultrahigh-pressure (HP-UHP) eclogite-bearing subduction zone terrane in the south Ural Mountains. Previous reports of radial fractures emanating from quartz inclusions in garnet, omphacite, and glaucophane, cuboid graphite pseudomorphs after matrix diamond, and microdiamond aggregates preserved in garnet identified by Raman spectroscopy indicate that parts of the complex were subjected to physical conditions of ~600 °C and >2.8 GPa for coesite-bearing rocks, and >3.2 GPa for diamond-bearing rocks. Peak UHP eclogite-facies metamorphism took place at ca. 385 Ma, and rocks were exhumed through retrograde blueschist-facies conditions by ca. 360 Ma. Bulk analyses of 18 rocks reflect the presence of mid-oceanic-ridge basalt (MORB), oceanic-island basalt (OIB), and island-arc tholeiite (IAT) basaltic and andesitic series plus their metasomatized equivalents. To more fully constrain the petrotectonic evolution of the complex, we computed isochemical phase equilibria models for representative metabasites in the system Na2O-CaO-K2O-FeO-MgO-Al2O3-SiO2-H2O-TiO2 based on our new bulk-rock X-ray fluorescence (XRF) data. Both conventional Fe-Mg exchange thermometry and phase equilibrium modeling result in higher peak equilibrium temperatures than were previously reported for the complex. Pseudosection analysis provides minimum P-T conditions of 650–675 °C and 2.4–2.6 GPa for peak assemblages of the least retrogressed Maksyutov eclogites, whereas Fe-Mg exchange thermometry yields temperatures of 750 ± 25 °C for a pressure of 2.5 GPa. We interpret our new P-T data to reflect a thermal maximum reached by the eclogites on their initial decompression-exhumation stage, that defines a metamorphic field gradient; the relict coesite and microdiamond aggregates previously reported testify to pressure maxima that define an earlier prograde subduction zone gradient. The eclogitic Maksyutov complex marks underflow of the paleo-Asian oceanic plate and does not represent subduction of the Siberian cratonal margin.
- blueschist
- Commonwealth of Independent States
- eclogite
- high pressure
- ICP mass spectra
- mafic composition
- Maksyutov Complex
- mass spectra
- metals
- metamorphic rocks
- P-T conditions
- phase equilibria
- pressure
- rare earths
- Russian Federation
- schists
- Southern Urals
- spectra
- subduction zones
- ultrahigh pressure
- Urals
- X-ray fluorescence spectra