Multiple climate proxies indicate episodic changes in moisture levels within an ∼1 Ma duration (early–mid Pliocene) interval. Limestones within the Opache Formation, Calama Basin, Atacama Desert region, Chile, contain evidence for wetter and drier periods on short time scales. Proxies include carbonate lithological changes, paleontology (stromatolites, oncolites, gastropods, ostracods and diatoms)

Many low-angle normal faults (dip ≤30°) accommodate tens of kilometers of crustal extension, but their mechanics remain contentious. Most models for low-angle normal fault slip assume vertical maximum principal stress σ1, leading many authors to conclude that low-angle normal faults are poorly oriented in the stress field (≥60° from σ1) and weak (low friction). In contrast, models for low-angle normal

U-Pb geochronology on baddeleyite is a powerful technique that can be applied effectively to chronostratigraphy. In southern Africa, the Kaapvaal Craton hosts a well-preserved Mesoarchean to Paleoproterozoic geological record, including the Neoarchean Ventersdorp Supergroup. It overlies the Witwatersrand Supergroup and its world-class gold deposits. The Ventersdorp Supergroup comprises the Klipriviersberg

The way that far-field stresses and deformation propagated eastward in response to the growth and extrusion of the northeastern Tibetan Plateau remains a crucial scientific issue. This paper focuses on the Bailongjiang and Hanan faults, which are the easternmost part of the East Kunlun fault in northeast Tibet. Based on new field geological investigations, structural data, satellite imagery interpretation

Identification of subduction to post-collisional tectonic transitions is critical to the study of orogenic belts. To characterize such a transition in the Tianshan Orogenic Belt, a systematic study was conducted on the late Carboniferous (305–301 Ma) Hongshankou dolerite and Dikan’er basalt of Eastern Tianshan. The Hongshankou dolerites have relatively high Ti and Nb contents, akin to Nb-enriched arc

Deposits of the ca. 110 ka Halarauður eruption of Krafla caldera (reconstructed volume = 7 ± 6 km3 dense rock equivalent) include the only spatter-rich ignimbrite known in Iceland, and an exceptionally rare lava-like basaltic ignimbrite. We present a revised stratigraphy and new whole-rock major-element data set for products of this unusual event, one of only three Quaternary ignimbrite eruptions identified

An intermediate-composition hydroclastic breccia deposit is exposed in the upper reaches of a deep glacial valley at Ruapehu volcano, New Zealand, indicating an ancient accumulation of water existed near the current summit area. Lobate intrusions within the deposit have variably fluidal and brecciated margins, and are inferred to have been intruded while the deposit was wet and unconsolidated. The

Steam-driven eruptions are caused by explosive vaporization of water within the pores and cracks of a host rock, mainly within geothermal or volcanic terrains. Ground or surface water can be heated and pressurized rapidly from below (phreatic explosions), or already hot and pressurized fluids in hydrothermal systems may decompress when host rocks or seals fail (hydrothermal eruptions). Deposit characteristics

Periodic variations in Earth’s orbital parameters force climate on local and global scales, with global responses particularly sensitive to the presence of ice sheets and their associated feedbacks. Therefore, determining whether orbital forcings influenced sedimentary records of the past, and if so, which had such an effect, can shed light on Earth’s climate sensitivity and global ice volume. To this

A clear insight of the Indo-Burma amalgamation is required for an understanding of the complex processes of the Indo-Asian collision. Where and when the northeastern part of the Indian subcontinent amalgamated with the Burma plate has not yet been well defined. In order to better understand the tectonic affiliations and evolution of the Indo-Burma Ranges (IBR), we report new detrital zircon U-Pb and

The initiation and peak magmatic periods of the Emeishan Large Igneous Province (LIP) are well constrained by both biostratigraphic and radioisotopic dating methods; however, the age of cessation of volcanism is poorly constrained and continues to be debated. Marine carbonates interbedded with volcanic ashes across the Guadalupian–Lopingian boundary (GLB) are widespread in south China, and these ashes

Detrital zircon provenance studies of Mesoproterozoic basement and overlying Old Red Sandstone strata in northwestern Svalbard, Arctic Norway, were conducted to test competing models for Caledonian paleogeography and tectonics and constrain the magnitude of orogen-parallel, Silurian to Devonian strike-slip faulting following the Laurentia-Baltica collision. Mesoproterozoic basement strata, cut by earliest

The chemical composition of river waters gives a measure of the atmospheric CO2 fixed by chemical weathering processes. Since the dominating factors controlling these processes are lithology and runoff, as well as uplift and erosion, we introduce a new simplified geo-lithological map of the Alps (Alpine-Geo-LiM) that adopted a lithological classification compliant with the methods most used in literature

The evolution of overriding-plate deformation, and the mechanisms responsible for this deformation, are debated. One area where these processes can be investigated is the eastern North China Craton (NCC) in China, which was situated in an overriding-plate position relative to the subducting Paleo-Pacific Plate during the Jurassic and Cretaceous. Here we constrain the structural evolution of the Jurassic

The Devonian Period experienced significant fluctuations of atmospheric oxygen (O2) levels (∼25–13%), for which the extent and timing are debated. Also characteristic of the Devonian Period, at the Frasnian–Famennian (F–F) boundary, is one of the “big five” mass extinction events of the Phanerozoic. Fossilized charcoal (inertinite) provides a record of wildfire events, which in turn can provide insight

Chalcophile elements are enriched in the Cretaceous–Paleogene (KPg) boundary clays from Stevns Klint, Denmark. As the concentrations of Cu, Ag, and Pb among several chalcophile elements such as Cu, Zn, Ga, As, Ag, and Pb are correlated with those of Ir, we suggest that these elements were supplied to the oceans by processes related to the end-Cretaceous asteroid impact. Synchrotron X-ray fluorescence

Hainan Island may have lain at the boundary between the Tethyan and Pacific domains since the late Paleozoic. Permo–Triassic granitoids outcropped on the island provide insight into Mesozoic tectonic evolution and potential dynamics. Based on analyses of zircon U-Pb geochronological and Hf-O isotopic data, along with whole-rock elemental and Sr-Nd isotopic data, the Permo–Triassic granitoids are divided

The moment magnitude 7.2 El Mayor–Cucapah (EMC) earthquake of 2010 in northern Baja California, Mexico produced a cascading rupture that propagated through a geometrically diverse network of intersecting faults. These faults have been exhumed from depths of 6–10 km since the late Miocene based on low-temperature thermochronology, synkinematic alteration, and deformational fabrics. Coseismic slip of

Reconstructing the tectonic evolution of the southern Appalachian metamorphic internides is hampered by the relative paucity of accurate geochronologic constraints and the apparent rarity or absence of Paleozoic cover sequences. At the orogen’s greatest width, near the junction of Georgia, North Carolina, and Tennessee, the western Blue Ridge is a composite metamorphic allochthon of three major thrust

Fundamental geodynamic changes from vertical tectonics to lateral subduction occurred during the Neoarchean, yet detailed processes related to this transition and initiation of modern-style subduction remain enigmatic. Successive Neoarchean magmatic rocks including both plume-derived komatiites and subduction-related supracrustal and intrusive rocks appeared and preserved key information on the late

Statherian through Tonian strata of the Langshan–Zha’ertai–Bayan Obo–Huade rift zone (LZBH) at the northern margin of the North China Craton provide an excellent record of changes in sediment provenance related to the supercontinent dispersal and amalgamation. During the late Paleoproterozoic to early Neoproterozoic, the LZBH developed over the Yinshan Block and was flanked by the Khondalite Belt to

The lower Paleocene Ojo Alamo Sandstone and Nacimiento Formation from the San Juan Basin (SJB) in northwestern New Mexico preserve arguably the best early Paleocene mammalian record in North America and is the type location for the Puercan (Pu) and Torrejonian (To) North American land mammal ages (NALMA). However, the lack of precise depositional age constraints for the Ojo Alamo Sandstone and lower

Recognition of accretionary tectonics in ancient orogenic collages is important for reconstructing the long-term subduction, accretion, and erosional history of fossil convergent margins, and for understanding crustal growth and supercontinent assembly. The North Qilian orogenic belt (NQOB), located between the Alxa block and the Central Qilian–Qaidam block in northeastern Tibet, is a typical Phanerozoic

The Meso-Tethys was a late Paleozoic to Mesozoic ocean basin between the Cimmerian continent and Gondwana. Part of its relicts is exposed in the Bangong–Nujiang suture zone, in the north-central Tibetan Plateau, that played a key role in the evolution of the Tibetan plateau before the India-Asia collision. A Penrose-type ophiolitic sequence was newly discovered in the Ren Co area in the middle of the

The west Kunlun orogenic belt, located on the northwest margin of the Tibetan Plateau, represents a crucial tectonic junction between the central Asia and Tethys domains. Its evolution was closely related to the Paleozoic subduction and closure of the Proto-Tethys Ocean, which was formed by the breakup of the Rodinia supercontinent following the Neoproterozoic. However, the early evolution of Proto-Tethys

Although continental crust is characterized by the widespread occurrence of granitoids, the causal relationship between continental crust growth and granitic magmatism still remains enigmatic. While fractional crystallization of basaltic magmas (with or without crustal contamination) and partial melting of mafic lower crust are two feasible mechanisms for the production of granitoids in continental

Halite precipitates in the Dead Sea during winter but re-dissolves above the thermocline upon summer warming, “focusing” halite deposition below the thermocline (Sirota et al., 2016, 2017, 2018). Here we develop an “evaporite focusing” model for evaporites (nahcolite + halite) preserved in a restricted area of the Eocene Green River Formation in the Piceance Creek Basin of Colorado, USA. Nahcolite

Harrat Rahat, one of several large, basalt-dominated volcanic fields in western Saudi Arabia, is a prime example of continental, intraplate volcanism. Excellent exposure makes this an outstanding site to investigate changing volcanic flux and composition through time. We present 93 40Ar/39Ar ages and six 36Cl surface-exposure ages for volcanic deposits throughout northern Harrat Rahat that, when integrated

New age data for the Baoban Complex, South China establishes that it lay outboard of western Laurentia in the early Mesoproterozoic but was not part of the Cathaysia Block, with which it is traditional linked, until the mid-Paleozoic. Our geochronology data for detrital zircon and authigenic monazite grains from metasedimentary rocks indicate accumulation between ca. 1.55 Ga and 1.45 Ga for the Gezhencun

Global gold deposit classes are enigmatic in relation to first-order tectonic scale, leading to controversial genetic models and exploration strategies. Traditionally, hydrothermal gold deposits that formed through transport and deposition from auriferous ore fluids are grouped into specific deposit types such as porphyry, skarn, high- and low-sulfidation–type epithermal, gold-rich volcanogenic massive

Magma-poor ocean-continent transitions at distal rifted margins record complex stratigraphic interactions engendered by extreme crustal thinning and mantle exhumation. The Tasna ocean-continent transition, exposed in the Middle Penninic Tasna nappe in eastern Switzerland, is so far the only known example where the lateral transition from continental crust to exhumed serpentinized mantle lithosphere

Deposits of calcite coating the lower passages of Wind Cave in the southern Black Hills of South Dakota were precipitated under phreatic conditions. Data from samples associated with a new cave survey and hydrologic studies indicate that past water tables within Wind Cave reached a maximum height of 45 m above modern levels but were mostly confined to 25 m or less. Uranium-series ages for basal layers

In contrast to the widespread occurrence of mafic arc magmatism during oceanic subduction, there is a general lack of such magmatism during continental subduction. This paradigm is challenged by the discovery of Early-Middle Triassic mafic igneous rocks from the southeastern margin of the North China Block (NCB), which was subducted by the South China Block (SCB) during the Triassic. Zircon U-Pb dating

The collapse of late Permian (Lopingian) Gondwanan floras, characterized by the extinction of glossopterid gymnosperms, heralded the end of one of the most enduring and extensive biomes in Earth’s history. The Sydney Basin, Australia, hosts a near-continuous, age-constrained succession of high southern paleolatitude (∼65–75°S) terrestrial strata spanning the end-Permian extinction (EPE) interval. Sedimentological

Two Cretaceous granitoid belts (i.e., the northwest and southeast belts) have been identified in Zhejiang, northeast South China Block. In this study, seven granitoid plutons from both the two belts were collected for zircon U-Pb dating, whole-rock geochemistry, Sr-Nd isotope, and zircon Hf isotope analyses. Chronologically, the Longyou (132 Ma), Sucun (136 Ma), Shanghekou (131 Ma), and Huangshitan

The Tecopa basin in eastern California was a terminal basin that episodically held lakes during most of the Quaternary until the basin and its modern stream, the Amargosa River, became tributary to Death Valley. Although long studied for its sedimentology, diagenesis, and paleomagnetism, the basin’s lacustrine and paleoclimate history has not been well understood, and conflicting interpretations exist

The 72-km-long Teton normal fault bounds the eastern base of the Teton Range in northwestern Wyoming, USA. Although geomorphic surfaces along the fault record latest Pleistocene to Holocene fault movement, the postglacial earthquake history of the fault has remained enigmatic. We excavated a paleoseismic trench at the Buffalo Bowl site along the southernmost part of the fault to determine its Holocene

Abundant Neogene adakitic magmatism occurred in the southern Lhasa subterrane after the onset of the India–Asia collision while convergence continued. However, the tectonic setting and magmatic evolution of the adakitic rocks are still under discussion. This study includes new mineral chemical and whole-rock geochemical data as well as zircon U-Pb and Lu-Hf isotopes of adakitic intrusive rocks from

Climate changes related to orographic barrier uplift have been in the research spotlight over recent years. Several works have focused on the interactions between climatic and tectonic processes in order to understand the development of a rain shadow. Patagonia is an ideal region in which to analyze such interactions, since a Miocene climate change, from wetter to drier conditions, has mainly been

Lava flows represent the greatest threat by far to exposed population and infrastructure on Mt. Etna, Italy. The increasing exposure of a larger population, which has almost tripled in the area around Mt. Etna during the past 150 years, has resulted from poor assessment of the volcanic hazard and inappropriate land use in vulnerable areas. Here we quantify the lava flow risk on the flanks of Mt. Etna

Oxygen isotope analyses of diagenetic cements can provide detailed evidence of sedimentary burial processes and conditions, as the δ18O values of precipitating minerals reflect contemporaneous local δ18Owater and temperature conditions. Uncertainties in the timing and rates of pore water δ18O evolution in sedimentary basins can complicate interpretation of these records. Fracture-bridging (0.5–1 mm)

The nature of coarse sediment in rivers emerging from mountain ranges determines rates of downstream fining, the position of the gravel-sand transition, sediment entrainment thresholds, and channel morphologies. Additionally, in the stratigraphic record, clast size distributions and lithologies are used to reconstruct paleo-hydraulic conditions and source area provenance. Using Himalayan rivers, we

New geochemical and geochronological data are used to characterize the geodynamic setting of metasediments, felsic orthogneisses, and eclogite and amphibolite lenses forming the Beishan complex, NW China, at the southern part of the Central Asian Orogenic Belt. The metasediments correspond compositionally to immature greywackes receiving detritus from a heterogeneous source involving a magmatic arc

High-resolution elevation surveys of deformed late Pleistocene shorelines and new luminescence dating provide improved constraints on spatiotemporal patterns of distributed slip between normal and strike-slip faulting in southern Owens Valley, eastern California. A complex array of five subparallel faults, including the normal Sierra Nevada frontal fault and the oblique-normal Owens Valley fault, collectively

The organic matter-rich shales in Wufeng-Longmaxi Formation, Jiaoshiba area, Southeast China, are showing a notable petrographic heterogeneity characteristic within the isochronous stratigraphic framework, which lead to vast differences in the mineral composition and organic matter abundance in the adjacent sections of the shale reservoir. The studied shale has been divided into three systems tracts:

The Wufeng and Longmaxi organic-rich shales host the largest shale gas plays in China. This study examined the petrography, rare earth element (REE) and other trace-element geochemistry, Sm-Nd geochronology, and isotope geochemistry (87Sr/86Sr, δ18O, δ13C) of fracture-cementing minerals within core samples of the Wufeng and Longmaxi Formations from the Jiaoshiba shale gas field in order to (1) characterize

Paleosalinity is an important environmental feature but it is difficult to evaluate. In the present study, paleosalinity was assessed during the deposition of three sets of source rocks in the western Pearl River Mouth Basin, South China Sea, utilizing four different kinds of methods, i.e., saturated hydrocarbon biomarkers, strontium abundance, non-pollen microalgae assemblies, and carbon-sulfur relationships

Late Paleozoic large-scale transcurrent tectonics and synkinematic intrusions are prominent features in the Eastern Tianshan segment of the southwestern Central Asian Orogenic Belt. However, the spatial and temporal relationship between synkinematic intrusions and crustal-scale shear zones remains unclear. Here we report petrology, geochemistry, and geochronology of the Qiziltag pluton associated with

Large-magnitude earthquakes and hydrologic events in mountainous settings commonly trigger thousands of landslides, and slope failures typically constitute a significant proportion of the damage associated with these events. Large, dormant deep-seated landslides are ubiquitous in the Oregon Coast Range, western United States, yet a method for calculating landslide ages with the precision required to