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Early Palaeozoic Basin Development of North Greenland ­ Part of the Franklinian Basin

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Early Palaeozoic Basin Development of North Greenland ­ Part of the Franklinian Basin Polarforschung 68: 131 -140, 1998 (erschienen 2000) Early Palaeozoic Basin Development of North Greenland ­ Part of the Franklinian Basin By Niels Henriksen 1 and Anthony K. Higgins' THEME 7: Problems of the Caldonian / Ellesmerian Junction Devonian and reach a thickness of more than 8 km; they crop out in an almost 900 km long E-W trending zone up to 200 Summary: The North Greenland segment of the Franklinian Basin bordering km in width across North Greenland (Fig. 1). The Franklinian the present Arctie Oeean accumulated up to 8 km of Cambrian-Devon strata. Basin continues westwards into the Canadian Arctic Islands whieh are weIl exposed and permit reeognition of seven stages in the evolution ofthe basin. Eaeh stage (cxccpt the first) is eharaeterizcd by differentiation into for a further 1000 km (TRETTIN 1991). Sedimentation in the a southern shelfand slopc and a northcrn dccp-watcr trough. With time thc basin Franklinian Basin in both North Greenland and Canada was expanded southwards leading to final foundering of the shelf areas in the late brought to a elose by the latest Devonian Ellesmerian orogeny, Silurian. Some stratigraphieal dcvelopments in the basin ean be linked to the which in North Greenland produced the North Greenland fold rising Caledonian mountains in East and Nonh-East GreenlancI. Accumulation in the Franklinian Basin was brought to a elose in the latest Devonian by the belt (HIGGINS et al. 2000, this vol). Ellesmerian orogeny. This paper deals with the development of the Franklinian Ba­ sin in North Greenland, and is a review of data mainly collected INTRODUCTION by participants in the Geological Survey of Greenland mapping projects in North Greenland with field work between 1975 and At the end of the Neoproterozoic Greenland was apart of the 1985. These projects resulted in publication of more than 200 continent of Laurentia and situated in the southern hemisphere scientific papers, two published regional maps in the Survey's where it formed apart of the supercontinent Rodinia (CONDIE 1 : 500 000 series, and more detailed maps of selected areas. 1997). The position of Greenland in Laurentia, corresponding General regional descriptions inelude a volume on the to the present north-eastern corner of the North American sedimentary basins of North Greenland (PEEL & S0NDERHOLM shield, was such that it was bordered by opening oceans - the 1991) and adescription to accompany the two 1 : 500000 Iapetus Ocean between Laurentia and Baltica east of present­ geological maps (HENRIKSEN 1992). day Greenland, and an ocean across what is now North Green­ land approximately perpendicular to the northern part of Iape­ tus (GOLONKA et al. 1994, McKERROW et al. 1991). Along the THE FRANKLINIAN BASIN continental rnargins adjacent to these oceans two extensive sedimentary basins developed, Along East Greenland up to The Franklinian Basin was probably initiated by rifting in 18.5 km of ensialic sediments of Neoproterozoic to Middle latest Proterozoic firnes, although the tirning of this event is Ordovician age accumulated in a N-S trending basin, of which poorly defined. The oldest exposed Franklinian deposits are the most important element was the Neoproterozoic Eleonore of early Cambrian age, but deposition may have begun in the Bay Supergroup (S0NDERHOLM & TIRSGAARD 1993); this latest Proterozoic. Basic late Proterozoic volcanics reported in succession was involved in the early Silurian Caledonian Arctic Canada as possibly representing initial rifting (TRETTIN orogeny (e.g. HIGGINS et al. 2000, this vol.). In North-East 1989) are not known in North Greenland where the earliest Greenland Proterozoic successions present both in the foreland deposits are of marine shelf origin with an unknown base. The to the Caledonian fold belt and within Caledonian nappe sheets Franklinian sea appears to have transgressed across an eroded inelude the Independence Fjord Group and Zig-Zag Dal Ba­ land surface in North Greenland, fol1owing a hiatus of 10-30 salt Formation (COLLlNSON 1980, KALSBEEK & JEPSEN 1983, Ma between formation of the Vendian glacial sediments 1984, S0NDERHOLM & JEPSEN 1991), disconformably deposited on the marginal platform of the Greenland shield overlapped by the late Proterozoic Hagen Fjord Group (S0NDERHOLM & JEPSEN 1991). The slight unconforrnity may (CLEMMENSEN & JEPSEN 1992, JEPSEN & KALSBEEK 200). Along reflect uplift, block faulting and erosion of the latest North Greenland the deposits laid down in the Frankliniart Proterozoic sediments, However, there is no evidence for Basin span the period from the latest Proterozoic to the earliest Proterozoic orogenic events in North or North-East Greenland subsequent to deposition of the Mesoproterozoic Independence Fjord Group and Zig-Zag Dal Basalt Formation on the margin J GeologieaI Survey 01' Denmark and Greenland (GEUS), Thoravej 8, DK-2400 of the Greenland shield (HANSEN et al. 1987, KALSBEEK et al. Copenhagen NV. Denmark, <[email protected] [email protected]> 1993); the latter make up the southern borderland to the Manuscript received 14 Ocrober 1998, accepted 22 June 1999 Franklinian Basin. 131 f-' W N 83° 60° 50° 40° 30° 20° 83° 82° Wandel Sea Ellesmere Island Lincoin Sea 82° tl 81° Inland lee 80° 80° I 100 km I L~nd SHELF • Stage 7 Silurian reets TROUGH 1:>:1 Stage 6 -7 Peary Group Velvedal Group, Amundsen Land Group ~ Stage 6 Washington Land Group (upper) E-i#ii Stage 4 -5 Polkorridoren Group lIiiiI Stage 5 Amundsen Land Group [ttM Stage 3 Paradisfjeld Group ~ Stage 5 Morris Bugt Group, Washington Land Group (Iower) ~ Stage 2 Stage 4 Ryder Gletscher Group PRE AND POST FRANKLINIAN ROCKS [:0~~~;J Stage 4 Brenlund Fjord Group, Tavsens Iskappe Group ~\" Carboniferous - Tertiary sediments !___ ! Stage 3 Buen Formation WJ.~~-. + Proterozoic sediments and basalts ~CI C Stage 2 Portfjeld Formation ~~ Crystalline basement ~ ~~ Stage 1 Skagen Group Fault Thrust Fig. 1: Regional geologiealmap of North Greenland showing major stratigraphie units of the Franklinian Basin eorresponding to the seven basin evolutionary stages of HIGGlNS et al. (1991 a, b) deseribed in the tcxt. HFFZ = Harder Fjord fault zone. In North Greenland only the southern border of the Franklinian Stage 2: Early Cambrian platform and incipient trough. Basin is preserved, although the existence of a northern border can be inferred from the pronounced longitudinal east to west This stage marks a gradual differentiation into southern shelf and transport of turbidites during the Silurian. SURLYK & HURST northern deeper water settings; platform carbonates of the (1983) discuss whether the basin was a narrow ocean basin Portfjeld Formation pass northwards into slope to incipient representing continental break-up, 01' formed by rift-controlled trough carbonate muds tones and conglomerates of the Paradis­ subsidence. The dominantly ensialic nature of the Franklinian fjeld Group (Fig. 2). Basin favours interpretation as an aulacogen, formed by rifting extending deeply into an old continentalland mass and at right­ The Portfjeld Formation is a 200-700 m thick sequence of poorly angles to the Iapatus Ocean to the east. The marked fossiliferous, mainly dolomitic sediments which in the south differentiation into a wide shallow marine shelf bordered by a (where the Skagen Group is absent) rest unconformably on a deep-water basin suggests that a spreading centre may have peneplained surface of either crystalline basement or Proterozoic formed, reaching the narrow ocean stage in Early Cambrian sediments, including Vendian tillites. The formation comprises times (SURLYK 1991). typically dolomites, silty dolomites and algal-Iaminated dolomites, often with conspicuous stromatolite developments. Deposition in the Franklinian Basin in North Greenland can be The association reflects deposition on a shallow tidal and considered as taking place along a passive continental margin, intertidal marine platform. Northwards towards the platform and its evolution during the Early Palaeozoic resulted in a edge the formation thickens, and grades abruptly into the trough distinctive differentiation into a broad shallow water shelf, a equivalents of the Paradisfjeld Group (the transition is hidden slope with medium water depths and a deep water basin or nearly everywhere). Southwards at the southern edge of the trough (HIGGINS et al. 1991a, b, HURST & SURLYK 1983, SURLYK outcrop, where it overlies crystalline basement, large blocks and 1991). The shelf-slope-trough formed linked depositional slabs of Portfjeld Formation lithologies form a remarkable systems during Cambro-Ordovician times, whereas independent megabreccia together with basement crystalline blocks, shelf and deep water trough depositional systems were interpreted as formed by violent earthquakes associated with developed in the Silurian. The distinction of seven stages in the faults along the southern hinge line of the Franklinian Basin evolution of the Franklinian Basin in North Greenland presented (SURLYK & INEsON 1987). by HIGGINS et al. (1991 a, b) is followed here; these stages mark major changes in the sedimentary regime linked to expansion The Paradisfjeld Group (FRIDERICHSEN et al. 1982), at least 1 km of the basin by southward shift of the southern margin. The thick, is the slope and deep water equivalent of the Portfjeld boundaries between shelf, slope and deep-water trough Formation. It consists of calcareous mudstones, dolomites and segments of the Franklinian Basin trend E-W, parallel to the conglomerates and accumulated in deeper water north of the continental margin.
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