UNIVERSITY of CALIFORNIA RIVERSIDE Insights Into The
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UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA RIVERSIDE Insights Into the Paleoproterozoic Paleogeography of the Superia Supercraton From Detrital Zircon Geochronology, Isotope Geochemistry, and Chemostratigraphy of Supracrustal Successions on the Southern Margin of the Wyoming Craton A Thesis submitted in partial satisfaction of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science in Geological Sciences by Nicholas Michael Mammone June 2021 Thesis Committee: Dr. Andrey Bekker, Chairperson Dr. Peter Sadler Dr. Heather Ford Copyright by Nicholas Michael Mammone 2021 The Thesis of Nicholas Michael Mammone is approved: Committee Chairperson University of California, Riverside Table of Contents General Background .....................................................................................1 Chapter 1: Insights into the early Paleoproterozoic paleogeography of the Superia supercraton from detrital zircon geochronology, and Sm-Nd and Pb-Pb isotope geochemistry of supracrustal successions on the southern margin of the Wyoming craton .........................................................................................................................9 Abstract .......................................................................................................................... 9 Introduction ................................................................................................................. 11 Regional Geology ........................................................................................................ 15 Paleoproterozoic stratigraphy of the Medicine Bow Mountains and Sierra Madre ....................................................................................................................................... 19 Methods ........................................................................................................................ 25 Detrital Zircon Results ............................................................................................... 31 Nd Model Ages for fine-grained metasediments of the Snowy Pass Supergroup, Medicine Bow Mountains ........................................................................................... 34 Pb isotope composition of fine-grained metasediments from the Snowy Pass Supergroup, Medicine Bow Mountains .................................................................... 35 Discussion ............................................................................................................................... 38 1.1. Age of the Phantom Lake Group ................................................................................................. 38 1.2. Correlation between the Paleoproterozoic successions in Sierra Madre and Medicine Bow Mountains ........................................................................................................................................... 38 1.3. Changes in provenance during deposition of Paleoproterozoic successions in Medicine Bow Mountains and Sierra Madre ............................................................................................................. 39 1.4. Age and correlation of the Nash Fork and Slaughterhouse formations .................................... 40 1.5. Comparing Sm-Nd data for shales and U-Pb data for detrital zircons from sandstones .......... 42 2.1. Correlation between the Paleoproterozoic successions of Wyoming and the Huronian Supergroup on the Superior craton .................................................................................................... 42 2.2. Lower Huronian Supergroup and Phantom Lake Group .......................................................... 43 2.3. Comparing changes in provenance during deposition of Paleoproterozoic successions in the Snowy Pass and Huronian basins ...................................................................................................... 44 2.4. Detrital zircon patterns for the upper parts of the Huronian and Snowy Pass successions ...... 47 2.5. Sm-Nd data for the Snowy Pass and Huronian supergroups ..................................................... 50 2.6. Events affecting the Pb isotope system ........................................................................................ 53 3.1. Implications for the evolution of the early Paleoproterozoic Earth System ............................... 56 3.2. Reconstruction of the Superia supercraton................................................................................. 57 3.3. Age constraints for the early Paleoproterozoic (Huronian) glaciations .................................... 57 3.4. 2.3 Ga magmatic event and the proposed tectono-magmatic lull of the Paleoproterozoic ........ 58 3.5. Age constraints for C isotope variations in seawater in the early Paleoproterozoic .................. 60 Conclusion ................................................................................................................... 61 iv References .................................................................................................................... 65 Chapter 2: Reconstructing the paleogeography of the Superia supercraton using detrital zircon provenance of early Paleoproterozoic supracrustal successions from the southern margin of the Wyoming craton ................................................................78 Abstract ........................................................................................................................ 78 Introduction ................................................................................................................. 80 Results .......................................................................................................................... 89 Detrital zircon U-Pb data .................................................................................................................... 89 Carbon and oxygen isotope values for carbonates ............................................................................ 92 Discussion ............................................................................................................................... 96 1.1. Comparing records for the Red Creek Quartzite with other supracrustal successions on the southern margin of the Wyoming craton ........................................................................................... 96 1.2. Provenance of the Red Creek Quartzite .................................................................................... 102 1.3. Tectonic model for early Paleoproterozoic tectonic evolution on the southern margin of the Wyoming craton ................................................................................................................................ 103 1.4. Reconstruction of Superia by comparing potential provenances for early Paleoproterozoic supracrustal successions ................................................................................................................... 104 Conclusion ................................................................................................................. 114 References .................................................................................................................. 117 General Conclusions ..................................................................................139 v List of Figures Figure 1.1: Global changes in surface environments, mantle activity, and plate tectonics during the early Paleoproterozoic ........................................................................................................................................... 15 Figure 1.2: The Wyoming craton and its subprovinces............................................................................. 18 Figure 1.3: A - Map showing Archean cratons of North America B – Geologic map of the Medicine Bow Mountains and Sierra Madre ........................................................................................................................ 23 Figure 1.4: A – Lithostratigraphic correlation between the Snowy Pass Supergroup of the Medicine Bow Mountains, WY, USA, the Snowy Pass Group of the Sierra Madre, WY, USA, and the Huronian Supergroup, Ontario, CA B – Stratigraphically ordered detrital zircon histograms for units of the Snowy Pass Supergroup of the Medicine Bow Mountains with correlative formations of the Snowy Pass Group of the Sierra Madre, and Huronian Supergroup. .............................................................................................. 24 Figure 1.5: Nd data for the Snowy Pass Supergroup and Huronian Supergroup .................................... 35 Figure 1.6: Plot of 206Pb/204Pb vs. 207Pb/204Pb for units from the SPS and HS ......................................... 37 Figure 1.7: Early Paleoproterozoic reconstruction of the Superior and Wyoming cratons ..................... 50 Figure 1.8: Plot of 206Pb/204Pb vs. 208Pb/204Pb for units from the SPS and HS ......................................... 55 Figure 1.9: (232Th/238U) values for Archean and Paleoproterozoic shale suites through time .............. 56 Figure 1.10: Compilation of all concordant (<10%) detrital zircon data from this study ....................... 60 Figure 2.1: The Wyoming craton with the placement and extent of subprovinces within and the location of the Uinta Mountains, NE Utah .................................................................................................................. 83 Figure 2.2: Study area in the Uinta Mountains showing