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Precise U-Pb zircon ages for the Molson dyke swarm and the Fox River sill: Constraints for Early Proterozoic crustal evolution in northeastern Manitoba, Canada

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Abstract

Precise U-Pb zircon ages have been obtained for samples from the Molson dyke swarm and the Fox River sill in NE Manitoba, Canada. The ages determined for the Cross Lake and Cuthbert Lake dykes are 1,883.7 +1.7−1.5 and 1,883±2 Ma, respectively, and are in excellent agreement with the 1,882.9 +1.5−1.4 Ma age obtained for the Fox River sill. These results support the contention that the emplacement of the Fox River sill and the Molson Dyke swarm was contemporaneous and also demonstrate the potential for correlating mafic igneous activity in widely spaced localities. The timing of Early Proterozoic mafic magmatism in the western Superior Province appears to be synchronous with igneous activity in other parts of the Circum-Superior Belt and in the Trans Hudson orogen to the west. The emplacement of the Molson dyke swarm at 1,883 Ma indicates a 700 Ma interval of quiescence between the final igneous activity that is recorded in the Archean basement and dyke intrusion. The presence of deformed equivalents of Molson dykes in the Thompson Nickel Belt indicates that the intense deformation in this belt occurred sometime after 1,883 Ma.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Mineralogy and Geology, Royal Ontario Museum, 100 Queen's Park, M5S 2C6, Toronto, Ontario, Canada

    L. M. Heaman, N. Machado & T. E. Krogh

  2. Manitoba Department of Energy and Mines, Geological Services, R3C 4E3, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada

    W. Weber

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  1. L. M. Heaman
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  2. N. Machado
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  3. T. E. Krogh
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  4. W. Weber
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Heaman, L.M., Machado, N., Krogh, T.E. et al. Precise U-Pb zircon ages for the Molson dyke swarm and the Fox River sill: Constraints for Early Proterozoic crustal evolution in northeastern Manitoba, Canada. Contr. Mineral. and Petrol. 94, 82–89 (1986). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00371229

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