S U M M A R YBroad-band magnetotelluric data were collected at 50 stations over a 400 km long, approximately east-west profile over the granite-greenstone terrain of Dharwar, southern India. The tensor decomposed data were interpreted using a 2-D inversion scheme. The geoelectric model is suggestive of a suture along the Chitradurga-Gadag schist belt, formed by the thrusting of the West Dharwar Craton beneath its eastern counterpart, with an easterly dip of 20-30 • . The thrust proposed here pre-dates the formation of these schists, which occurred during the Late Archean (2600 Ma). The accretionary wedge of the thrust and the depressed part of the West Dharwar Craton may have controlled the emplacement of the Chitradurga-Gadag and Shimoga-Dharwar schists. The subsequent weathering, the several episodes of tectonic activity witnessed during the Precambrian and the vertical block movements caused during the passage of the Indian Plate over the Reunion hotspot may have modified the crust, leading to the present-day geological configuration. Despite its age and several tectonothermal episodes, the signature of this thrust is adequately preserved in the Dharwar Craton. Several similarities with younger sutures, as is evident from the observed relics of the oceanic rocks present along the Chitradurga schist belt, suggest that the tectonic processes leading to this Archean event may have had a close resemblance to those witnessed in recent times. Magnetotelluric studies also image a zone of low resistivity at a depth of 40 km beneath the west Dharwar Craton. This seems to be a regional feature, extending to the north over a distance of at least 250 km beneath the Deccan volcanics. The low heat flow values and the high density associated with this feature make partial melting an unlikely explanation for the low resistivity. The grain boundary graphites and the sulphides deposited in the form of pyrites may have caused the low resistivity in the lithospheric mantle of the West Dharwar Craton, although the fluids generated and trapped in the mantle during the passage of the Indian Plate over the Reunion hotspot in the waning phase of its outburst could also be a possibility. The asthenosphere is delineated at a depth of about 100 km beneath the East Dharwar Craton.

SUMMAR YMagnetotelluric studies over the Damoh±Jabalpur±Mandla±Anjaneya pro®le in central India have delineated Vindhyan sediments which are about 5 km thick in the Damoh± Katangi region. The crust below the Vindhyan sediments shows the characteristics of lower crust, as observed from the relatively lower resistivity of about 200 V m and high seismic velocities (P-wave velocities of 6.5 km s x1 compared with 5.8±6.2 km s x1 in the surrounding region). It is conjectured that the upper crust may have been completely eroded in the uplift and erosion process and thus the Vindhyan sedimentation has occurred directly over the lower crust. An anomalous conductivity is observed at depths of 10±12 km in the Vindhyan crust. The conductance of more than 1200 S observed here may be due to either the serpentinization of the ma®c and ultrama®c rocks or the presence of grain boundary graphites. The thickness of the Deccan traps is about 100 m near Jabalpur and decreases near Mandla. On the south of Mandla, the Archaean crust is exposed. Two crustal conductors are delineated below the Deccan volcanics with a resistivity of about 30 V m. The ®rst on the immediate south of Jabalpur seems to mark the southern boundary of the Jabalpur horst block. The second conductor was delineated about 40 km southeast of Jabalpur, coincident with a positive gravity anomaly of about 30 mGal. Deep seismic sounding studies do not show any signi®cant density contrast associated with this conductive feature. It is proposed that the gravity high may be due to the upwarp of the Moho. The high electrical conductivity is attributed to the¯uids in the upper crust.

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S U M M A R YBroad-band and long period magnetotelluric (MT) data were acquired at 39 stations along five NNW-SSE profiles crossing the Iapetus Suture Zone (ISZ) in Ireland. Regional strike analyses indicate that the vast majority of the MT data is consistent with an assumption of a 2-D geoelectric strike direction. Strike is N52 • E for the three easternmost profiles and N75 • E for the two westernmost profiles; these directions correlate well with the observed predominant geological strike of the study region. 2-D inversions of the galvanic distortion-corrected TE and TM mode data from each profile are shown and discussed. As mapped geological variations between the neighbouring profiles suggest a heterogeneous subsurface, it is important to verify the robustness of the presence and geometries of prominent conductivity anomalies by employing 3-D forward and inverse modelling. A high conductivity layer (resistivity of 1-10 m), found at middle to lower crustal depths and presumed to be indicative of metamorphosed graphitic sediments rich in sulphides deposited during the convergence of the Laurentian and Avalonian continents, essentially constitutes the electrical signature of the ISZ. Shallow conductors observed are probably due to black shales that were widely deposited within the sedimentary accretionary wedge during Ordovician time. We interpret the moderately low resistivity at shallow depths from west to east across Ireland as indicative of an increase in maturity of the black shales in the easterly direction. From our conductivity models the southern extent of the ISZ is inferred to lie between the Navan Silvermines Fault and the Navan Tipperary Line, and shows clear resistivity contrast along all the profiles at the southern MT stations. The change in resistivity deduced from the 2-D models is spatially related to the composition of Lower Palaeozoic Ordovician, Silurian, Devonian and Carboniferous rocks. At upper mantle depths of about 60 km, a high conductivity block below the central MT stations is found to lie within the accretionary wedge of the Iapetus suture, and the location of the conductive anomaly corroborates reasonably well with the inferred spreading head of the putative Iceland plume-related magmatic intrusion. The low resistivity upper crust beneath the ISZ is indeed rich in Ordovician rocks with black shale content in the eastern as well as the central part; the western part is largely underlain by a highly resistive block of volcanic and metamorphosed rocks forming crystalline basement.

[1] Magnetotelluric studies in the NW Himalayan region have shown anomalously high conductance of about 20,000 siemens in the crust beneath the Indus Tsangpo suture (ITS) and the adjoining Tso-Morari dome in the depth range of 1 -20 km. High heat flow and high attenuation of the seismic waves in the Himalayan crust, together with the observed high conductance indicate presence of wide spread partial melt generated from the subducted Indian crust. The Ladakh batholith appears as a resistive block to the north of ITS. A moderately conductive zone demarcates the Ladakh batholith from Karakoram batholith to the north. The similarity in the resistive structure with the results reported from the Tibetan region by Wei et al. [2001] about 1500 km to the east is rather significant, indicative of a two dimensional nature of the Himalayan collision belt, at least to the first order.