An Archaean province in the southern Prince Charles Mountains, East Antarctica: U-Pb zircon evidence for c. 3170 Ma granite plutonism and c. 2780 Ma partial melting and orogenesis

Abstract

U-Pb ion microprobe analysis of zircon indicates that the oldest rocks from the southern Prince Charles Mountains, east Antarctica, consist of granitoid rocks of the Mawson Suite that were emplaced between 3185 and 3155 Ma. These granitoids are tectonically intercalated with the Menzies Series, a thick sequence of Cr-quartzite, marble, metaconglomerate and kyanite-bearing metapelite. Together these rocks were deformed during a single Late Archaean tectonothermal event that occurred between 2790 and 2770 Ma based on the ages of two syn-tectonic leucosomes. This event deformed the terrane via south to southwest-directed shortening and metamorphosed the rocks to upper-amphibolite facies. A samp..