Age of Palaeozoic granites and metamorphism in the Tuvino-Mongolian Massif of the Central Asian Mobile Belt: loss of a Precambrian microcontinent

Was the easternmost segment of the Central Asian Orogenic Belt derived from Gondwana or Siberia: An intriguing dilemma?

“…It was more closely associated with Laurentia and, by ∼540 Ma, it is considered to have lain much further to the southeast; direct collision with Siberia therefore appears unlikely. However, late Pan-African metamorphism has now been reported along the southern margin of the Siberia Craton in several recent studies (Salnikova et al, 1998(Salnikova et al, , 2001Donskaya et al, 2000;Khain et al, 2003;Gladkochub et al, 2008). This early Paleozoic collision is named the Sayang-Baikal Orogen (Salnikova et al, 1998;Donskaya et al, 2000;Gladkochub et al, 2008) and includes the Olkhon, Kitoykin, Derba and Slyudyanka massifs (OKDS massifs) (Fig.…”

“…Vernikovsky et al (2003) have also identified three main Neoproterozoic tectonic events along the western margin of the Siberia Craton in forming the Yenisey Ridge fold-and-thrust belt: at 880-860 Ma, 760-720 Ma and 700-630 Ma. Khain et al (2002) and Kuzmichev et al (2005) proposed that Mesoproterozoic to Neo- Kelty et al (2008) and Salnikova et al (1998Salnikova et al ( , 2001 proterozoic crust (1.1-0.8 Ga) was produced by subduction-related magmatism. These data establish that many of the blocks in the CAOB record Neoproterozoic tectonic events.…”

Integrated stratigraphic, geochemical, and paleontological late Ediacaran to early Cambrian records from southwestern Mongolia

“…Detrital zircon studies have been minimally incorporated into origination questions of the Proterozoic cratonic fragments of Mongolia except what is discussed in Salnikova et al [2001] from metasediments of the Tuva-Mongolia zone, Bold et al [2016a] from the Zavkhan terrane, and Rojas- Agramonte et al [2011]. Detrital zircon spectra of the Neoproterozoic siliciclastic rocks of the Zavkhan terrane yielded prominent age peaks at 2600-2400, 2100-1950, and 950-700 Ma [Bold et al, 2016a].…”

Hf isotope compositions and HREE variations in off-craton garnet and spinel peridotite xenoliths from central Asia

“…The most common basement rocks are mid-Paleozoic to early Mesozoic granites. Precambrian igneous and metamorphic rocks outcrop elsewhere in the Trans-Baikal region, indicating possible existence of ancient lithosphere before the widespread intrusion of granitic magmas during and after the Caledonian orogeny (Delvaux et al, 1995;Salnikova et al, 2001).…”