Geochronological constraints on the metamorphic sole of the Semail ophiolite in the United Arab Emirates

The Semail ophiolite of Oman and the United Arab Emirates （UAE） provides the best preserved large slice of oceanic lithosphere exposed on the continental crust, and offers unique opportunities to study processes of ocean crust formation, subduction initiation and obduction. Metamorphic rocks exposed in the eastern UAE have traditionally been interpreted as a metamorphic sole to the Semail ophiolite. However, there has been some debate over the possibility that the exposures contain components of older Arabian continental crust. To help answer this question, presented here are new zircon and futile U-Pb geochronological data from various units of the metamorphic rocks. Zircon was absent in most samples. Those that yielded zircon and futile provide dominant single age populations that are 95-93 Ma, partially overlapping with the known age of oceanic crust formation （96.5-94.5 Ma）, and partially overlapping with cooling ages of the metamorphic rocks （95 90 Ma）. The data are interpreted as dating high-grade metamorphism during subduction burial of the sediments into hot mantle lithosphere, and rapid cooling during their subsequent exhumation. A few discordant zircon ages, interpreted as late Neoproterozoic and younger, represent minor detrital input from the continent. No evidence is found in favour of the existence of older Arabian continental crust within the metamorphic rocks of the UAE.

New U-Pb-Hf zircon isotope data for the Paleoproterozoic Ubendian belt in the Chimala area,SW Tanzania

We present new U-Pb and Hf zircon isotope data on a suite of granitoids from a hitherto unstudied area of the Palaeoproterozoic Lupa terrane of the Ubendian belt in SW Tanzania.The major part of the area comprises a sequence of upper amphibolite grade paragneisses and migmatites.Subsequently,the field relations show a complex history of granitoid emplacement from early pre-tectonic strongly foliated diorite-tonalite-granodiorite orthogneiss to late tectonic,weakly deformed ellipsoidal granitoid plutons.These were followed by emplacement of undeformed K-feldspar rich porphyritic alkali granite.U-Pb zircon data on the granitoids show their emplacement ages span the period^1925 Ma to 1890 Ma and constrain the culmination of the Ubendian orogeny in the Lupa terrane to about 1900 Ma.The undeformed K-feldspar rich Chimala granite,previously considered to be unconformably overlain by the Buanji Group volcano-sedimentary rocks(recently shown to be^1675 Ma,not Neoproterozoic as originally thought)was dated at^1407 Ma showing that it must intrude the sedimentary rocks,although the age relationships are not exposed in the mapping area.This is the first record of early Irumide/Kibaran-aged post-tectonic granites in this part of East Africa.Hf isotope data from the zircons show that the granitoids have a long crustal pre-history stretching back to as far as^3.9 Ga,and showing that the Lupa terrane may form part of the"metacratonic"margin of an originally much more extensive Tanzania Craton.