Record of plate boundary metamorphism during Gondwana breakup from Lu–Hf garnet geochronology of the Alpine Schist, New Zealand

Abstract

AbstractThe Zealandia portion of the Pacific–Gondwana margin underwent widespread extension, fragmentation, separation and subsidence during the final stages in the breakup of Gondwana. Although these processes shaped the geology of New Zealand, their timing and the timing of subduction cessation in the region remain unclear. To investigate the timing of these processes, we used Lu–Hf garnet geochronology to date six samples of the Alpine Schist, which represents the metamorphic section of the former Zealandia margin. The garnet dates range from 97.3 ± 0.3 to 75.4 ± 1.3 Ma. Compositional zoning in garnet indicates that the spread in ages results from diachronous metamorphism in the upper plate at the Pacific–Gondwana margin, occurring concurrently with rifting of Zealandia from East Gondwana via opening of the Tasman Sea. Clear spatial trends in the timing of garnet growth throughout the Alpine Schist are absent, indicating that either regional age trends were offset by post‐metamorphic deformation, or that metamorphism did not result from a single regional heat source, and was instead driven by short‐duration, spatially dispersed processes such as episodic fluid‐fluxing or mechanical heating. Diachronous metamorphism of the Alpine Schist can be attributed to heat conduction from the rising upper mantle during widespread extension, progressive burial and heating of accretionary wedge sediments during ongoing horizontal shortening, or fluid‐fluxing sourced from a subducting and dehydrating Hikurangi Plateau. These results indicate that during separation of Zealandia from East Gondwana in the late Cretaceous, the crust at the Pacific–Gondwana margin remained hot, potentially facilitating the extensive thinning of the Zealandia lithosphere during this time.