2 - Tectonic Setting

Abstract

The Korean Peninsula is part of the Eurasian Plate. In the Phanerozoic Era, the Eurasian Plate comprised the Sino-Korean Block (Nangrim and Yeongnam massifs) and the South China Block (Gyeonggi Massif). The massifs initially formed at about 2.5Ga and stabilized by about 1.8Ga. In the Triassic, the South China Block collided against the Sino-Korean Block at the Imjingang Suture Belt; the Gyeonggi Massif (South China Block) offset the Yeongnam Massif (Sino-Korean Block) along the South Korean Tectonic Line. In the Jurassic, the Pacific Plate was subducted orthogonally under the Asian continent. In the Cretaceous, the southeastern part of the peninsula formed a continental arc. In the Tertiary, backarc basins formed behind the arc.