Timing of collision initiation and location of the Scandian orogenic suture in the Scandinavian Caledonides

Abstract

AbstractThe Scandinavian Caledonides represent a classical example of a deeply eroded Himalayan‐style orogen formed during Baltica–Laurentia continent collision. We propose that initial contact along continental‐margin promontories led to a drop in convergence rate, resulting in increased slab rollback along parts of the margin still undergoing oceanic subduction. Slab rollback caused extension of the overlying lithosphere with orogen‐wide emplacement of mafic layered intrusions, ophiolite formation and bimodal magmatism at 438–434 Ma, in what immediately thereafter became the upper plate (Laurentia) in the Scandian continent–continent collision. A compilation of magmatic ages provides evidence of long‐lived, Ordovician arc magmatism in units above the suture, which is essentially absent below the suture. This model provides a tight constraint on the timing of collision initiation, and provides a framework by which tectonic units comprising the Scandinavian Caledonides can be assigned a Baltican or more exotic heritage.