Tectonic Evolution and Geochronology of the Indian Craton
Summary
The Indian Craton represents one of the oldest and most stable continental cores, documenting a protracted history that spans from the Hadean–Archean through the Proterozoic. Its evolution encompasses the assembly of Archean nuclei, the growth of juvenile crust, and successive orogenic cycles that amalgamated microcontinental blocks into a unified continental shield. Key episodes include early TTG (tonalite–trondhjemite–granodiorite) crust formation, Neoarchean plume activity and rifting, Paleoproterozoic collision during the Columbia supercontinent assembly, and Neoproterozoic orogenesis linked to Gondwana formation. Advances in high-precision U-Pb zircon and monazite geochronology have constrained the timing of magmatic, metamorphic and deformational events to within a few million years, revealing diachronous block accretion, prolonged crustal residence of inherited domains and episodic crust–mantle interactions. This integrated tectono-chronological framework underpins models for supercontinent cycles, stabilisation of continental lithosphere and the distribution of mineral endowments such as quartz vein systems, granitoid batholiths and shear-zone hosted mineral deposits.
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Technical terms
Craton: A long-lived, stable part of the continental lithosphere that has survived successive cycles of rifting and collision.
Orogeny: A mountain-building event during which deformation, metamorphism and magmatism accompany continental collision or subduction.
Geochronology: The science of determining the absolute ages of rocks, minerals and geological events, often by radiometric methods.
Zircon U-Pb Dating: A high-precision radiometric technique that measures uranium decay to lead in zircon crystals to date magmatic and metamorphic events.
Monazite Geochronology: U-Th-Pb dating of monazite minerals, commonly used to time metamorphic and syntectonic processes.
Shear Zone: A planar or tabular zone of intense deformation within the crust, accommodating displacement through ductile and brittle processes.
Ton-Trondhjemite-Granodiorite (TTG): A suite of Archean felsic plutonic rocks interpreted as residues of early crustal differentiation and juvenile crust formation.
References
- Tectonic Fabric, Geochemistry, and Zircon-Monazite Geochronology as Proxies to Date an Orogeny: Example of South Delhi Orogeny, NW India, and Implications for East Gondwana Tectonics. Frontiers in Earth Science (2021).
- Structural Anatomy of the Intraterrane Shear Zones in the Archean Bundelkhand Craton, North-Central India and Its Possible Linkage to Supercontinent Assembly: Insights from Field- and AMS-Based Kinematic Analysis. Lithosphere (2022).
- Early Neoproterozoic Tectonics in the Godhra–Chhota Udepur Sector: Evidence for Two-Stage Accretion in the Great Indian Proterozoic Fold Belt. Lithosphere (2022).
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