Where did the Arizona‐Plano Go? Protracted Thinning Via Upper‐ to Lower‐Crustal Processes

Jepson, Gilby; Carrapa, Bárbara; George, Sarah W.M.; Reeher, Lauren J.; Kapp, Paul; Davis, George H.; Thomson, Stuart N.; Amadori, Chiara; Clinkscales, Chris; Jones, Sean; Gleadow, A. J. W.; Kohn, Barry P.

doi:10.1029/2021jb023850

Cited by 11 publications

(12 citation statements)

References 112 publications

(237 reference statements)

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“…Sample SS-20-08 was not included because it is located southwest of the main sample transect (Figure 7b). Based on AFT samples alone, the Pinaleño metamorphic core complex has an apparent exhumation rate of 0.18 mm/yr during 29-21 Ma, which is comparable to the apparent exhumation rate for the Catalina metamorphic core complex (0.24 mm/yr during 25-19 Ma, Jepson et al, 2022). This rate is an apparent rate in part because the amount of tilting and/or rotation that the Pinaleño Mountains experienced during tectonic exhumation is unknown.…”

Section: Thermochronologic Date Populations and Exhumation Of The Pin...mentioning

confidence: 74%

“…An exception is the Catalina metamorphic core complex, located adjacent to the Piñaleno core complex (Figure 1), from which Jepson et al. (2022) identified a transition from core complex style exhumation to Basin and Range style exhumation at ca. 17 Ma.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The orange line is a moving average (period = 50) of magmatic dates compiled from EarthChem. The start and end of rapid cooling for metamorphic core complexes is reported inFoster and Spencer (1992),John and Foster (1993),Fitzgerald et al (1993),Miranda-Gasca et al (1998),Pease et al (1999),Granillo and Calmus (2003),Haines and van der Pluijm (2008),Carter et al (2004),Wong and Gans (2008),Wong et al (2010),Singleton et al (2014Singleton et al ( , 2019,Prior et al (2016), LaForge et al (2017,Jacobson et al (2019),Gottardi et al (2020), andJepson et al (2022). (b) Schematic plate reconstructions showing the subduction of the Pacific-Farallon spreading ridge, the initiation of the MTJ and RTJ, the development of the dextral-transform Pacific-North American plate boundary, and the San Andreas Fault system (SAFS).…”

mentioning

confidence: 89%

“…These core complexes are central to many tectonic models, however, the geodynamic mechanisms and forces that generated them remain the subject of debate. End‐member hypotheses for core complex formation in North America include (a) orogenic collapse due to excess gravitational potential energy following the termination of orogenesis, (b) changes in plate boundary conditions with regional stress fields transitioning from compressional to extensional, (c) opening of a slab window in the subducting Farallon plate, (d) Farallon slab roll‐back and/or foundering, and (e) thermal weakening and viscosity decrease of the crust due to enhanced heat flow from increased asthenospheric upwelling and regional magmatism (Armstrong & Ward, 1991; Atwater, 1970; Bahadori et al., 2022; Coney, 1987; Coney & Harms, 1984; Dickinson & Snyder, 1979; Dokka & Ross, 1995; Gans et al., 1989; Glazner & Bartley, 1984; Gottardi et al., 2020; Howlett et al., 2021; Jepson et al., 2022; Konstantinou, 2022; Lund‐Snee & Miller, 2022; Rey et al., 2009; Sonder & Jones, 1999; Zuza & Cao, 2023).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Oligocene‐Miocene Exhumation of the Pinaleño Metamorphic Core Complex, Southeastern Arizona: Support for Magmatism and Plate Margin Reorganization as Controls on Regional Exhumation Trends

Chapman,

Scoggin,

Jepson

et al. 2024

Tectonics

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The Pinaleño Mountains of southeastern Arizona is the eastern‐most metamorphic core complex in the southern U.S. and northern Mexican Cordillera. This study investigates the thermal history and exhumation record of the Pinaleño core complex using mica 40Ar/39Ar, apatite and zircon (U‐Th)/He, and apatite fission‐track thermochronometers. The Pinaleño Mountains experienced two periods of rapid cooling during the Cenozoic. The first period, from ca. 27 to 21 Ma, records tectonic exhumation related to the development of the core complex and extensional shear zone. This period was followed by a relatively quiescent interval from 21 to 13.5 Ma that records little to no exhumation. The second period of rapid cooling, from 13.5 to 11 Ma, records tectonic exhumation related to high‐angle normal faulting, characteristic of the Basin and Range province. The exhumation timing of the Pinaleño core complex matches previously recognized spatiotemporal trends in the southern Basin and Range province and indicates that core complex exhumation in this region started in southeastern Arizona (ca. 32–33°N) and migrated both northward and southward. These trends correlate well with the latitude and timing of subduction of the Pacific‐Farallon spreading ridge and the migration of the Mendocino (northward) and Rivera (southward) triple junctions. Spatiotemporal core complex exhumation trends also correlate well with regional magmatism associated with the mid‐Cenozoic flare‐up, including syn‐extensional intrusive rocks found in the footwalls of core complexes.

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Section: Thermochronologic Date Populations and Exhumation Of The Pin...mentioning

confidence: 74%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

mentioning

confidence: 89%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Oligocene‐Miocene Exhumation of the Pinaleño Metamorphic Core Complex, Southeastern Arizona: Support for Magmatism and Plate Margin Reorganization as Controls on Regional Exhumation Trends

Chapman,

Scoggin,

Jepson

et al. 2024

Tectonics

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“…Considering that the geothermal gradient in a craton is normally lower than that of its surrounding basin (Zhao, Wang, Liu, et al., 2018) and the previous estimates in thermal modeling studies in the Jiaodong Peninsula (Zhang, Weinberg, et al., 2020), we use a paleo‐geothermal gradient of 44°C/km from the Early Cretaceous to Late Miocene and 35°C/km from the Late Miocene to the present in the following discussion. Despite the uncertainty, these estimates provide cooling constraints for comparison between different tectonic events (Jepson et al., 2022). Biotite 40 Ar/ 39 Ar geochronology on the Kunyushan and Queshan granites yielded 129–124 Ma dates (Li et al., 2006), suggesting that the host granites cooled below 300°C ± 50°C (closure temperature of the biotite 40 Ar/ 39 Ar system; McDougall et al., 1999) in the Early Cretaceous.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Low‐Temperature Thermochronology for Defining the Tectonic Controls on Heterogeneous Gold Endowment Across the Jiaodong Peninsula, Eastern China

et al. 2023

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This study presents a low-temperature thermochronological data set from the Jiaodong Peninsula in eastern China, including new zircon U-Th/He and apatite fission-track data from the Sulu Terrane in the eastern side of the Jiaodong Peninsula and published data from the Jiaobei Uplift to the west. These data reveal differential tectonic evolution between the Jiaobei Uplift and the Sulu Terrane, which is responsible for their heterogeneous gold endowment. Thermal history inverse modeling and structural analysis indicate three broad periods of cooling in the Sulu Terrane. These include: (a) slow cooling from 114 to 50 Ma; (b) rapid cooling from 50 to 40 Ma; and (c) tectonic stability after 40 Ma with little cooling. This thermotectonic evolution pattern shows that the local tectonic evolution of Sulu Terrane and Jiaobei Uplift are relatively independent, although they share identical far-field geodynamic controls. The critical characteristic is the Early Cretaceous extension within the Sulu Terrane was much weaker than that in the Jiaobei Uplift that underwent a rapid period of uplift in the Aptian. The differential tectonic evolution of the two areas induced variation in structural architecture and consequential differences in degree of extension that are important factors in defining the heterogeneous gold endowment rather than simply suggested differences in ore-forming fluid chemistry, metal precipitation mechanism, and/or exhumation levels. The intense extension in the Jiaobei Uplift was conducive to voluminous fluid migration and gold precipitation. In contrast, the much weaker extensional setting in the Sulu Terrane was not conducive to large-scale fluid migration from deep. Plain Language SummaryThe Izanagi Plate was subducted westward underneath the Eurasian continent beginning in the Jurassic, influencing the tectonic evolution and forming a remarkable metal endowment in eastern China. The Jiaodong gold province in China is composed of the Jiaobei Uplift to the west and Sulu Terrane to the east, hosting gold resources of >5,000 tonnes. More than 85% of the gold resources are hosted in orogenic gold deposits in the Jiaobei Uplift, whereas gold endowment is more limited in the Sulu Terrane. Structural analysis and low-temperature thermochronology from our new study reveal that the tectonic evolution of the Sulu Terrane is different from that previously described for the Jiaobei Uplift. Differential tectonic evolution shows that the local ore-controlling structural evolution of the two areas is relatively independent although both are controlled by the subduction of the Izanagi Plate. This independence reflecting differences in degrees of extension appears to be the major factor responsible for the heterogeneous gold endowment in the Jiaodong gold province. The greater amount of extension in the Jiaobei Uplift relative to that in the Sulu Terrane was more conducive to large-scale fluid migration in the Early Cretaceous, which led to the world-class gold deposit formation.

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Reassessing metamorphic core complexes in the North American Cordillera

Zuza,

Jepson,

Cao

2025

Earth-Science Reviews

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Where did the Arizona‐Plano Go? Protracted Thinning Via Upper‐ to Lower‐Crustal Processes

Abstract: Regions of high elevation and thick crust define many of the Earth's active contractional tectonic settings. Shortening thickens the crust and, if a landscape is in isostatic equilibrium, creates high elevation (e.g., England &

Cited by 11 publications

References 112 publications

Oligocene‐Miocene Exhumation of the Pinaleño Metamorphic Core Complex, Southeastern Arizona: Support for Magmatism and Plate Margin Reorganization as Controls on Regional Exhumation Trends

Oligocene‐Miocene Exhumation of the Pinaleño Metamorphic Core Complex, Southeastern Arizona: Support for Magmatism and Plate Margin Reorganization as Controls on Regional Exhumation Trends

Low‐Temperature Thermochronology for Defining the Tectonic Controls on Heterogeneous Gold Endowment Across the Jiaodong Peninsula, Eastern China

Reassessing metamorphic core complexes in the North American Cordillera

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