Early Proterozoic Bell Island group: initiation of, and extension within, a continental magmatic arc
The Bell Island Group is the oldest sequence of supracrustal rocks of the Great Bear Magmatic Zone (GBMZ), western Wopmay Orogen, northwestern Canadian Shield. These rocks lie unconformably on a penetratively deformed and metamorphosed sialic basement complex and are unconformably beneath the calc-alkaline LaBine Group, which is interpreted as continental magmatic arc. The supracrustal rocks of the GBMZ are broadly folded about gently plunging, northwest trending axes and cut by transcurrent faults. The lower part of the Bell Island Group comprises 1.5-2 km of poorly sorted arkose and fanglomerate, aphyric mafic to intermediate lavas, block-and-ash flows, a mineralogically zone cooling unit of rhyolite ash-flow tuff, and aphyric to porphyritic rhyolite flows and domes. Structures and lithologies of the sedimentary rocks, as well as physical characteristics of the volcanics, suggest subaerial deposition. Chemical analyses of lavas and ash-flow tuff indicate a predominantly calc-alkaline suite, although minor tholeiitic lavas are present. Conformably overlying the lower subaerial succession is at least 3.5 km of tholeiitic pillow basalts, intercalated sedimentary rocks and breccias, and tholeiitic gabbro sills. The subaerial to subaqueous transition in rocks of the Bell Island Group suggests 2-3.5 km of syn-volcanic subsidence which may have begun during early subaerial volcanism, but if so, continued during the extrusion of the thick tholeiitic pillow basalt pile. Subaerial conditions resumed during eruption and deposition of the overlying calc-alkaline LaBine Group. Therefore, rocks of the Bell Island Group may represent initiation of calc-alkaline magmatism in a continental arc, followed by tholeiitic magmatism related to intra-arc extension.
- Research Organization:
- Carleton Univ. Ottawa, Ontario (Canada)
- OSTI ID:
- 6460719
- Report Number(s):
- CONF-8510489-
- Journal Information:
- Geol. Soc. Am., Abstr. Programs; (United States), Vol. 17; Conference: 98. annual meeting of the Geological Society of America, Orlando, FL, USA, 28 Oct 1985
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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NORTHWEST TERRITORIES
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