Prospects of paleomagnetic studies of the Riphean intrusive bodies of the Bashkirian megazone (Southern Urals)

Abstract

<p>         The studied objects are located in the core of the Bashkirian megazone and related to the Riphean stage of rift magmatism of the East European craton. Paleomagnetic studies of the Bashkirian megazone intrusive bodies can be a source of new information on the East European platform position in the Riphean, as well as on the process of remagnetization during the Late Paleozoic folding on the Southern Urals. At this moment, 42 thin basic intrusions and the Main Bakal dyke were investigated.</p><p>         According to the results of our previous paleomagnetic studies two remanence components were isolated in Bashkirian megazone intrusions. First, the primary remanence component of Middle Riphean age was isolated in 8 thin bodies. Pole for the boundary of the Early and Middle Riphean of the East European Craton was calculated from high-temperature component of remanence of 8 sheet intrusions. This pole is close to the known paleomagnetic poles of East European craton for close ages and agrees with U-Pb age of one of the studied bodies (1349 ± 11 Ma). Also, arguments in favor of the primary origin of the remanence and the absence of significant tectonic dislocations in the sampling area are discussed. In other 4 intrusive bodies, paleomagnetic directions that are close but slightly different from the Middle Riphean directions were found. Second, the Late Paleozoic directions were found in the studied objects. These directions are widespread in the Bashkirian megazone rocks and have been reported by other researchers. Presumably it is the result of the Late Paleozoic syn-collisional remagnetization.</p><p>            According to the new results another component of remanence was detected in the intrusive bodies of the Bashkirian megazone. In 2 sheet bodies and the Main Bakal dyke a component close to the Late Riphean identified earlier in sedimentary rocks of the same region was found (Pavlov, Gallet, 2009; Danukalov et al., 2019). Furthermore, in total 20 thin intrusive bodies and the Main Bakal dyke have paleomagnetic directions close to the Late Paleozoic directions. The comparison of mean paleomagnetic directions for the different studied regions demonstrates the absence of any traces of essential rotation of blocks within the Bashkirian megazone in the Later Paleozoic.</p><p>            At this moment the origin of the remanence of 8 thin bodies is unclear, the nature of the other components of remanence requires additional research. It is planned to sample more intrusive bodies and to perform the isotopic dating of the key objects.</p><p>