Analysis of a database of ∼600,000 detrital zircon ages constrained by the depositional ages of the respective sedimentary units reveals a dynamic evolution of zircon age peaks through time. Analysis of a database of ∼600,000 detrital zircon ages constrained by the depositional ages of the respective sedimentary units reveals a dynamic evolution of zircon age peaks through time. This analysis demonstrates that zircon age peaks from ancient sedimentary successions are often out of phase with the detrital zircon record obtained from modern sediments. The growth and diminishment of the zircon age peaks through time implies the presence of continental crust whose age is not proportionately represented in the modern record, and therefore that the current crustal archive is biased. However, when the detrital zircon record is viewed in terms of its evolution through time, that is taken as a time-lapse view of continental growth, it appears there never was a time in Earth history without an associated zircon age peak. The analysis of detrital zircon age peaks presented herein also reveals an evolution that can be broadly divided into three temporal groupings that broadly correspond with phases of Earth's tectonic evolution, namely pre-supercontinent continental growth (pre-2.1 Ga), Earth's middle age (2.1–0.8 Ga), and post-onset of modern-day plate tectonics (post-0.8 Ga). These three groupings each display increasing degrees of zircon age diversification with time, and are a likely result of a net increase of preserved continental crust through time. The presence of these three tectonic states in multiple geologic proxies (detrital zircon ages, changing styles of metamorphism, paleogeography/supercontinents) suggests that while the growth of the continental crust is continuous, the tectonic processes that shape the long-term preservation of the crust have evolved over geologic time.

中文翻译：

---

受沉积记录限制的大陆持续增长

对约 600,000 个受各个沉积单元沉积年龄约束的碎屑锆石年龄数据库的分析揭示了锆石年龄峰值随时间的动态演变。对约 600,000 个受各个沉积单元沉积年龄约束的碎屑锆石年龄数据库的分析揭示了锆石年龄峰值随时间的动态演变。该分析表明，来自古代沉积层序的锆石年龄峰值通常与从现代沉积物中获得的碎屑锆石记录不同相。锆石年龄随着时间的推移达到峰值的增长和减少意味着存在大陆地壳，其年龄在现代记录中没有按比例表示，因此当前的地壳档案是有偏差的。然而，当从碎屑锆石记录随时间的演化（即大陆生长的延时视图）来看时，似乎地球历史上从来没有一个时期没有相关的锆石年龄峰值。本文提出的碎屑锆石年龄峰的分析还揭示了一种演化，可以大致分为三个时间组，大致对应于地球构造演化的阶段，即前超大陆大陆生长（前 2.1 Ga）、地球中年（2.1 –0.8 Ga），以及现代板块构造发生后（后 0.8 Ga）。这三组都显示出随时间增加的锆石年龄多样化程度，并且很可能是保存的大陆地壳随时间净增加的结果。