Article
Geochemistry & Geophysics
Hadi Shafaii Moghadam, Robert J. Stern
Summary: Subduction initiation leads to plate sinking and extensional stress on the overriding plate. The Late Cretaceous forearc ophiolites in Iran demonstrate that subduction initiation can cause strong extension over a wider region than previously thought.
Article
Geosciences, Multidisciplinary
Nikola Stankovic, Taras Gerya, Vesna Cvetkov, Vladica Cvetkovic
Summary: The ophiolites of the Balkan Peninsula, including the Western and Eastern Vardar ophiolites, are believed to have formed due to the closure of the Vardar branch of the Tethys Ocean. This study uses numerical modeling to test the hypothesis that a single intra-oceanic subduction can explain the origin and emplacement of both ophiolite belts. The results suggest that the subduction can account for the westward obduction of the Western Vardar ophiolites and the complex active margin processes along the western rim of the European plate.
Article
Geology
Lidia Butjosa, Aitor Cambeses, Joaquin A. Proenza, Samuele Agostini, Manuel Iturralde-Vinent, Luis Bernal-Rodriguez, Antonio Garcia-Casco
Summary: The Villa Clara serpentinite-matrix melange in central Cuba is part of the large ophiolitic belt of the Greater Antilles. The composition of ultramafic and mafic rocks allows classifying them into two main groups: MORB-like mantle typical of abyssal peridotite and refractory mantle-wedge forearc peridotites. These two groups indicate different melting processes and the influx of fluids evolved from the subducting slab. The geodynamic evolution from abyssal to forearc settings explains the nature of the oceanic lithosphere and the formation of serpentinization and melange.
INTERNATIONAL GEOLOGY REVIEW
(2023)
Article
Geosciences, Multidisciplinary
Saeedeh Senemari, Alejandra Mejia-Molina
Summary: Deposition of black shales and dark argillaceous limestones from the Cenomanian to Turonian interval has been studied in a stratigraphic section in Iran's Zagros Basin, showing consistency with global trends in the biostratigraphic framework based on calcareous nannofossils.
MARINE AND PETROLEUM GEOLOGY
(2021)
Review
Geology
Fatemeh Sepidbar, Seyed Masoud Homam, Mohamed Zaki Khedr, Robert J. J. Stern, Orhan Karsli
Summary: Several Mesozoic ophiolites in Iran formed in response to Late Cretaceous subduction initiation. They are remnants of Neo-Tethys ocean lithosphere formed during subduction initiation and were emplaced onto the southern flank of Eurasia. Most show SSZ-type geochemical affinity.
INTERNATIONAL GEOLOGY REVIEW
(2023)
Article
Geochemistry & Geophysics
Yousif Mohammad, Kurda Abdulla, Hossein Azizi
Summary: The Bulfat Igneous Complex consists of the Bulfat and Walash groups, which show different rock compositions and have undergone evolution influenced by crustal and mantle melting processes. The transition from arc signatures to oceanic island basalt signatures in the Neotethys ocean occurred over a relatively short period of about 10 million years.
Article
Geochemistry & Geophysics
Jiuyuan Zhang, Weiming Fan, Touping Peng, Lothar Ratschbacher
Summary: This study investigates volcanic rocks in the Lameng area of the Baoshan block, southwestern China, using various analytical techniques. The results suggest that the Early Cretaceous magmatism in the Tengchong and Baoshan blocks may have been associated with the rollback of the Neo-Tethyan slab.
Article
Geosciences, Multidisciplinary
Luca Pandolfi, Edoardo Barbero, Michele Marroni, Morteza Delavari, Asghar Dolati, Maria Di Rosa, Chiara Frassi, Antonio Langone, Federico Farina, Christopher S. MacDonald, Emilio Saccani
Summary: This study focuses on the geological structural features of the Makran area, discussing the origin and evolutionary history of related rocks. It highlights the significance of the Bajgan Complex and provides explanations for its formation period.
JOURNAL OF ASIAN EARTH SCIENCES
(2021)
Article
Geology
Wei Wang, Qing-Guo Zhai, Pei-Yuan Hu, Sun-Lin Chung, Yue Tang, Hai-Tao Wang, Zhi-Cai Zhu, Hao Wu, Zhi-Qiang Huang
Summary: Research suggests that adakitic dacite in the Rutog area of western Tibetan Plateau may have been formed due to the northward subduction of the Indus-Yarlung Zangbo oceanic lithosphere, triggering Late Cretaceous magmatism. This finding provides new insights into the geodynamic evolution of the Indus-Yarlung Zangbo Neo-Tethys Ocean.
INTERNATIONAL GEOLOGY REVIEW
(2021)
Article
Geosciences, Multidisciplinary
Xuxuan Ma, Zhiqin Xu, Alexander D. Lusk, Saskia Erdmann, Xijie Chen, Shiwei Ma
Summary: This study presents detailed structural analysis and geochronology of the Gangdese belt in southern Tibet. The results indicate that south- vergent folding and thrusting occurred between ca. 90 and 65 Ma, linked to flat- slab subduction of the Neotethyan oceanic slab beneath the southern margin of the Asian continent. This deformation resulted in the formation of a major angular unconformity and was coupled with magmatism. These findings provide new insights into the tectonic evolution of the Gangdese belt prior to the formation of the Tibetan Plateau.
Article
Geosciences, Multidisciplinary
Xuxuan Ma, Zhiqin Xu, Alexander D. Lusk, Saskia Erdmann, Xijie Chen, Shiwei Ma
Summary: This study presents detailed structural and geochronological analyses of the Gangdese belt in southern Tibet. The results provide new insights into the formation of a major angular unconformity, deformation of the Gangdese decollement, and the coupling between deformation and magmatism. The findings suggest that the deformation in the Gangdese belt was caused by flat-slab subduction of the Neotethyan oceanic slab.
Article
Geosciences, Multidisciplinary
Saeedeh Senemari
Summary: This study investigates the Gurpi Formation in the northeast of Izeh, southwestern Iran. Biostratigraphy analysis was used to determine the age range of the formation and identify several significant changes, which may indicate environmental variations during the Late Cretaceous-Paleogene transition in the eastern Neo-Tethys domain.
JOURNAL OF EARTH SCIENCE
(2022)
Article
Geosciences, Multidisciplinary
Amin Jafari, Songjian Ao, Susan Jamei, Habibollah Ghasemi
Summary: This article reviews the geological data relevant to the Neo-Tethys realm in the Iran Plateau and provides an updated understanding of its geodynamic history, from early rifting to final closure. The analysis reveals compelling evidence for the occurrence of rifting and the formation of a passive margin in the Late Paleozoic. The updated perspective suggests that subduction of the Neo-Tethys oceanic slab began simultaneously across the entire zone in the Late Triassic-Early Jurassic.
EARTH-SCIENCE REVIEWS
(2023)
Article
Geochemistry & Geophysics
Yun-Chuan Zeng, Ji-Feng Xu, Jian-Lin Chen, Bao-Di Wang, Feng Huang, Xiao-Ping Xia, Ming-Jian Li
Summary: This study presents new geochronological and geochemical data, confirming the presence of Early Cretaceous ophiolite within the Bangong-Nujiang Suture Zone and supporting a new model for the evolution of the Meso-Tethys Ocean.
Review
Geosciences, Multidisciplinary
Yener Eyuboglu, Francis O. Dudas, Di-Cheng Zhu, M. Santosh, Ze Liu, Nilanjan Chatterjee, Keewook Yi
Summary: The research on the Eastern Pontides Orogenic Belt in northeastern Turkey reveals a complex continental arc system with multi-stage Late Cretaceous magmatism showing different characteristics in terms of rock types and geochemical features, indicating a significant geological differentiation.
Article
Geochemistry & Geophysics
Hadi Shafaii Moghadam, Q. L. Li, W. L. Griffin, R. J. Stern, O. Ishizuka, H. Henry, F. Lucci, S. Y. O'Reilly, G. Ghorbani
EARTH AND PLANETARY SCIENCE LETTERS
(2020)
Article
Geochemistry & Geophysics
R. Esmaeili, W. Xiao, W. L. Griffin, H. Shafaii Moghadam, Z. Zhang, M. Ebrahimi, J. Zhang, B. Wan, S. Ao, S. Bhandari
Article
Geochemistry & Geophysics
H. Shafaii Moghadam, Q. L. Li, W. L. Griffin, R. J. Stern, J. F. Santos, F. Lucci, M. Beyarslan, G. Ghorbani, A. Ravankhah, R. Tilhac, S. Y. O'Reilly
Summary: The crust of Iran and Anatolia was mainly formed during the Cadomian crust-forming event from ca 620 Ma to ca 500 Ma, as a result of subduction of oceanic lithosphere beneath northern Gondwana. Cadomian magmatism included calc-alkaline igneous rocks of arc affinity in the main arc and alkalic igneous rocks in a back-arc setting, associated with sedimentary rocks, with basaltic magmas as the main input.
Review
Astronomy & Astrophysics
Robert J. Stern, Hadi Shafaii Moghadam, Mortaza Pirouz, Walter Mooney
Summary: Iran serves as a remarkable geoscientific laboratory for studying the full range of processes that form and modify the continental crust. Its crustal evolution, from forming as a magmatic arc on the northern margin of Gondwana to colliding with Arabia in the Paleogene era, has led to significant economic resources and earthquake hazards. Iran's Cenozoic evolution preserves the main elements of a convergent plate margin, including foredeep, accretionary prism, and magmatic arc.
ANNUAL REVIEW OF EARTH AND PLANETARY SCIENCES, VOL 49, 2021
(2021)
Article
Geochemistry & Geophysics
H. S. Moghadam, Q. L. Li, M. Kirchenbaur, D. Garbe-Schoenberg, F. Lucci, W. L. Griffin, G. Ghorbani
Summary: The study reveals that collisional magmatism in the NE Iran back-arc began around 24 million years ago, with magmatism starting as early as the Late Cretaceous and continuing until the Pleistocene. The collisional igneous rocks exhibit bimodal characteristics, with significant isotopic differences between basaltic-andesitic and dacitic-rhyolitic components, suggesting a role of fractional crystallization and assimilation-fractional crystallization in the genesis of felsic rocks. Trace element and isotopic modeling point to triggers of magmatism in NE Iran being a depleted to enriched mantle and the Cadomian continental crust of Iran, with temporal magmatic variations observed from Late Cretaceous to Pleistocene.
GEOCHEMISTRY GEOPHYSICS GEOSYSTEMS
(2021)
Article
Geology
Taha Sadeghi Chorsi, Jochen Braunmiller, Fanghui Deng, Nicholas Mueller, Scott Kerstetter, Robert J. Stern, Timothy H. Dixon
Summary: The M 6.5 earthquake near Mina, Nevada on May 15, 2020 was well-documented with seismic and geodetic instrumentation, allowing for detailed analysis of the surface rupture. Integration of multiple datasets revealed educational and research opportunities, with models for slip at depth consistent with various data sources. The earthquake also suggests new seismic hazard assessment approaches may be needed for rapidly evolving tectonic regions.
INTERNATIONAL GEOLOGY REVIEW
(2022)
Article
Geochemistry & Geophysics
Hadi Shafaii Moghadam, Robert J. Stern
Summary: Subduction initiation leads to plate sinking and extensional stress on the overriding plate. The Late Cretaceous forearc ophiolites in Iran demonstrate that subduction initiation can cause strong extension over a wider region than previously thought.
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Hong-Yan Li, Rui-Peng Zhao, Jie Li, Yoshihiko Tamura, Christopher Spencer, Robert J. Stern, Jeffrey G. Ryan, Yi-Gang Xu
Summary: A deep neural network is used to automatically extract ground deformation from Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar time series. The method detects 2 mm deformation transients over the North Anatolian Fault and reveals a previously unrecognized slow earthquake. The study investigates how serpentinites in the forearc mantle and subducted lithosphere enrich the subarc mantle source of arc magmas.
NATURE COMMUNICATIONS
(2021)
Review
Geochemistry & Geophysics
H. Y. Hu, R. J. Stern, Y. Rojas-Agramonte, A. Garcia-Casco
Summary: This study compiled geochronologic and geochemical data of igneous and metamorphic rocks in the Greater Antilles islands to investigate the formation and evolution of the Greater Antilles Arc (GAA). The results indicate that the GAA started in the Early Cretaceous and ceased in the Paleogene, and it was influenced by the Caribbean Large Igneous Province.
GEOCHEMISTRY GEOPHYSICS GEOSYSTEMS
(2022)
Article
Geology
H. S. Moghadam, Q. L. Li, R. J. Stern, W. L. Griffin, S. Y. O'Reilly
Summary: Geochronological and geochemical data suggest that Late Cretaceous Zagros ophiolites in southwestern Iran were formed through forearc seafloor spreading. These ophiolites span a belt of approximately 3000 km from Cyprus to Oman, passing through Turkey, Syria, Iran, and the UAE. The U-Pb zircon magmatic ages of samples from the Kermanshah ophiolite indicate ophiolite formation occurred between 98 and 96 million years ago. The presence of zircon xenocrysts in the Kermanshah ophiolite suggests its formation adjacent to the Iranian continent during Late Cretaceous subduction initiation.
INTERNATIONAL GEOLOGY REVIEW
(2022)
Article
Geochemistry & Geophysics
H. Shafaii Moghadam, K. Hoernle, F. Hauff, D. Garbe-Schoenberg, J. A. Pfaender
Summary: High Na-to K-alkaline magmatism is common in the rear-arc region of the Cenozoic Urumieh-Dokhtar Magmatic Belt in Iran. The Kleybar area in NW Iran shows Middle Eocene magmatic activity with diverse rock types and significant isotopic variations, enriched in alkalis and light rare earth elements.
Article
Geochemistry & Geophysics
Hadi Shafaii Moghadam, William L. Griffin, Jose F. Santos, Ren-Xu Chen, Orhan Karsli, Federico Lucci, Fatemeh Sepidbar, S. Y. O'Reilly
Summary: This study focuses on the magmatic rocks in the Nagisun area of the southeast segment of the Urumieh-Dokhtar Magmatic Belt (UDMB) in Iran. The rocks exhibit characteristics similar to volcanic arcs based on their geochemical and isotopic compositions. The results provide insights into the formation mechanisms and origin of these rocks.
Article
Geosciences, Multidisciplinary
Shi-Min Li, Qing Wang, Di-Cheng Zhu, Peter A. Cawood, Robert J. Stern, Zhidan Zhao
Summary: The compositional similarity between high-Mg andesite-dacite from accretionary orogens and bulk continental crust provides an opportunity to unravel the CC formation paradox. Compositional data from a global compilation of Quaternary magmatic arcs indicate the presence of low-Mg series and high-Mg series. The LMS show trends of crystal fractionation, while the HMS have mixed compositions that can be explained by partial melting of melange diapirs rising into the mantle wedge.
GEOPHYSICAL RESEARCH LETTERS
(2022)
Article
Geosciences, Multidisciplinary
Siavash Omidianfar, Iman Monsef, Mohammad Rahgoshay, Hadi Shafaii Moghadam, Brian Cousens, Ming Chen, Shahrokh Rajabpour, Jianping Zheng
Summary: Eocene-Oligocene magmatic rocks in the region south of Birjand, eastern Iran, provide valuable insights into the magmatic and geodynamic history of the area during the Cenozoic. The rocks are predominantly volcanic and intrusive, with geochemical characteristics indicative of subduction-related magmatism. The ages of these rocks range from approximately 46 Ma to 25 Ma, and their formation is likely linked to the subduction of the Neo-Tethyan oceanic lithosphere and subsequent asthenospheric upwelling. The interaction between the parental magmas and the continental crust during ascent likely played a role in the formation of these magmatic rocks.
GEOLOGICAL MAGAZINE
(2023)
Review
Geosciences, Multidisciplinary
Hossein Azizi, Robert J. Stern, Raif Kandemir, Orhan Karsli
Summary: The Early to Middle Jurassic stratigraphic sequences of the Sanandaj-Sirjan Zone in Iran and the Sakarya Zone in Turkey, which exhibit similar features, suggest that they formed in a common tectonic setting of an extensional basin. The whole-rock chemistry and Sr-Nd isotope signatures indicate that the mafic melts originated from partial melting of the subcontinental lithosphere. The decompression associated with extension led to the partial melting of spinel-garnet lherzolite and formation of tholeiitic to transitional basaltic magma. The inversion of extensional basins occurred during the Mid-Late Jurassic.