| Title | Extending full-plate tectonic models into deep time: linking the Neoproterozoic and the Phanerozoic |
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| Author | Merdith, A S; Williams, S E; Collins, A S; Tetley, M G; Mulder, J A; Blades, M L; Young, A; Armistead, S E ; Cannon, J; Zahirovic, S; Müller, R D |
| Source | Earth-Science Reviews vol. 214, 103477, 2020 p. 1-44, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.earscirev.2020.103477  Open Access |
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| Year | 2020 |
| Alt Series | Natural Resources Canada, Contribution Series 20200703 |
| Publisher | Elsevier B.V. |
| Document | serial |
| Lang. | English |
| Media | paper; on-line; digital |
| File format | pdf; html |
| Lat/Long WENS | -180.0000 180.0000 90.0000 -90.0000 |
| Subjects | Science and Technology; tectonics; plate tectonics; Rodinia; Gondwana; Proterozoic |
| Illustrations | location maps; diagrams; tables |
| Released | 2020 12 24 |
| Abstract | Recent progress in plate tectonic reconstructions has seen models move beyond the classical idea of continental drift by attempting to reconstruct the full evolving configuration of tectonic plates and
plate boundaries. A particular problem for the Neoproterozoic and Cambrian is that many existing interpretations of geological and palaeomagnetic data have remained disconnected from younger, better-constrained periods in Earth history. An important
test of deep time reconstructions is therefore to demonstrate the continuous kinematic viability of tectonic motions across multiple supercontinent cycles. We present, for the first time, a continuous full-plate model spanning 1 Ga to the
present-day, that includes a revised and improved model for the Neoproterozoic-Cambrian (1000-520 Ma) that connects with models of the Phanerozoic, thereby opening up pre-Gondwana times for quantitative analysis and further regional refinements. In
this contribution, we first summarise methodological approaches to full-plate modelling and review the existing full-plate models in order to select appropriate models that produce a single continuous model. Our model is presented in a palaeomagnetic
reference frame, with a newly-derived apparent polar wander path for Gondwana from 540 to 320 Ma, and a global apparent polar wander path from 320 to 0 Ma. We stress, though while we have used palaeomagnetic data when available, the model is also
geologically constrained, based on preserved data from past-plate boundaries. This study is intended as a first step in the direction of a detailed and self-consistent tectonic reconstruction for the last billion years of Earth history, and our model
files are released to facilitate community development. |
| GEOSCAN ID | 328012 |
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