Journal article
Long-term reactivation and morphotectonic history of the Zambezi Belt, northern Zimbabwe, revealed by multi-method thermochronometry
V Mackintosh, B Kohn, A Gleadow, K Gallagher
Tectonophysics | ELSEVIER SCIENCE BV | Published : 2019
Abstract
Neoproterozoic-early Paleozoic Pan-African mobile belts that formed during the amalgamation of Gondwana, such as the Zambezi Belt, are inherently weak zones that are susceptible to reactivation by later tectonism. With the exception of Karoo rifting, however, the post-Pan-African morphotectonic history of the Zambezi Belt is poorly constrained. Here, we use multiple low-temperature thermochronometers on samples collected across major structures in northern Zimbabwe to reveal the temporal and spatial pattern of tectonism and denudation in this portion of the Zambezi Belt. Thermal history modelling suggests that a large crustal block encompassing part of the Zambezi Belt and northern margin of..
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Funding Acknowledgements
The University of Melbourne thermochronology laboratory receives support under the National Collaborative Research Infrastructure Strategy AuScope program and the Education Investment Fund AGOS program. VM received financial support from the David Lachlan Hay Memorial Fund, Melbourne International Fee Remission Scholarship, Melbourne International Research Scholarship and Baragwanath Geology Research Scholarship which are all awarded through the University of Melbourne. We warmly thank Dr. David Belton who collected the samples and provided sample data that was used in this work. Abaz Alimanovic and Graham Hutchinson at the University of Melbourne provided technical assistance with (U-Th)/He and electron microprobe analyses which is greatly appreciated.