James Schwanethal

The timing and mechanisms involved in creating the elevated, low‐relief topography of the South African plateau remain unresolved. Here we constrain the thermal history of the Southwest African plateau since 300 Ma by using apatite fission track (AFT) and (U‐Th‐Sm)/He (AHe) thermochronology. Archean rocks from the center of the Kaapvaal Craton yield AFT ages of 331.0 ± 11.0 and 379.0 ± 23.0 Ma and mean track lengths (MTLs) of 11.9 ± 0.2 and 12.5 ± 0.3 µm. Toward the southwest margin of the craton and in the adjacent Paleozoic mobile belt, AFT ages are significantly younger and range from 58.9 ± 5.9 to 128.7 ± 6.3 Ma and have longer MTLs (>13 µm). The range of sample AHe ages complements the AFT ages, and single‐grain AHe ages for most samples are highly dispersed. Results from joint inverse modeling of these data reveal that the center of the craton has resided at near‐surface temperatures (<60°C) since 300 Ma, whereas the margins of the craton and the off‐craton mobile belt experienced two discrete episodes of cooling during the Cretaceous. An Early Cretaceous cooling episode is ascribed to regional denudation following continental breakup. Late Cretaceous cooling occurs regionally but is locally variable and may be a result of a complex interaction between mantle‐driven uplift and the tectonic setting of the craton margin. Across the entire plateau, samples are predicted to have remained at near‐surface temperatures throughout the Cenozoic, suggesting minimal denudation (<1 km) and relative tectonic stability of the plateau.

Atlantic‐type continental margins have long been considered “passive” tectonic settings throughout the entire postrift phase. Recent studies question the long‐term stability of these margins and have shown that postrift uplift and reactivation of preexisting structures may be a common feature of a continental margin's evolution. The Namaqualand sector of the western continental margin of South Africa is characterized by a ubiquitously faulted basement but lacks preservation of younger geological strata to constrain postrift tectonic fault activity. Here we present the first systematic study using joint apatite fission track and apatite (U‐Th‐Sm)/He thermochronology to achieve a better understanding on the chronology and tectonic style of landscape evolution across this region. Apatite fission track ages range from 58.3 ± 2.6 to 132.2 ± 3.6 Ma, with mean track lengths between 10.9 ± 0.19 and 14.35 ± 0.22 µm, and mean (U‐Th‐Sm)/He sample ages range from 55.8 ± 31.3 to 120.6 ± 31.4 Ma. Joint inverse modeling of these data reveals two distinct episodes of cooling at approximately 150–130 Ma and 110–90 Ma with limited cooling during the Cenozoic. Estimates of denudation based on these thermal histories predict approximately 1–3 km of denudation coinciding with two major tectonic events. The first event, during the Early Cretaceous, was driven by continental rifting and the development and removal of synrift topography. The second event, during the Late Cretaceous, includes localized reactivation of basement structures as well as regional mantle‐driven uplift. Relative tectonic stability prevailed during the Cenozoic, and regional denudation over this time is constrained to be less than 1 km.

Measurements of helium isotopes used for geochronological studies are subject to interferences from ¹²C³⁺ and HD⁺. The ¹²C³⁺ interference was studied on a Nu Instruments Noblesse mass spectrometer which has sufficient mass resolution to measure the interference on the ⁴He⁺ peak due to ¹²C³⁺ directly, by setting the magnet at the relevant peak shoulders. Helium sensitivity varies with source trap current. Increasing the source trap current increases the electron fluence, and hence the probability of ionisation, within the source. The source trap current on the Noblesse is typically held at ∼400 μA. Increasing the trap current to 550 μA increases sensitivity to ⁴He⁺ approximately two-fold, but ¹²C³⁺ increases approximately 17 times. The ⁴He⁺ and ¹²C³⁺ peak shoulders at m/z = 4 are narrow, despite the high mass resolution, and consequently any instrument drift can cause the peak positions to be lost. However, it is shown that measurement of ¹²C²⁺ at m/z = 6 can be used to correct for this interference, allowing the intensity of the broad flat top of m/z = 4 to be used.

Cenozoic opening of the central Scotia Sea involved the tectonic translation of crustal blocks to form the North Scotia Ridge, which today is a major topographic constriction to the flow of the deep Antarctic Circumpolar Current that keeps Antarctica thermally isolated from warmer ocean waters. How this ridge developed and whether it was a topographic barrier in the past are unknown. To address this we investigated the Cenozoic history of the South Georgia microcontinental block, the exposed part of the ridge. Detrital zircon U-Pb geochronology data confirm that the Cretaceous succession of turbidites exposed on South Georgia was stratigraphically connected to the Rocas Verdes backarc basin, part of the South America plate. Apatite thermochronometry results show that South Georgia had remained connected to South America until ca. 45–40 Ma; both record a distinct rapid cooling event at that time. Subsequent separation from South America was accompanied by kilometer-scale reburial until inversion ca. 10 Ma, coeval with the cessation of spreading at the West Scotia Ridge and collision between the South Georgia block and the Northeast Georgia Rise. Our results show that the South Georgia microcontinental block could not have been an emergent feature from ca. 40 Ma until 10 Ma.

New data from a gem-quality feldspar from Itrongay, Madagascar, record naturally occurring ⁴⁰ Ar/ ³⁹ Ar age profiles which can be numerically modelled by invoking a single diffusion mechanism and show that microtexturally simple crystals are capable of recording complex thermal histories. We present the longest directly measured, naturally produced ⁴⁰ Ar*-closure profiles from a single, homogeneous orthoclase feldspar. These data appear to confirm the assumption that laboratory derived diffusion parameters are valid in nature and over geological timescales. Diffusion domains are defined by crystal faces and ancient cracks, thus in gem-quality feldspars the diffusion domain size equates to the physical grain size. The data also illustrate the potential of large, gem-quality feldspars to record detailed thermal histories over tens of millions of years and such samples should be considered for future studies on the slow cooling of continental crust. Supplementary material: Ar-isotope data, standards and constants used in calculations and irradiation parameters are available at http://www.geolsoc.org.uk/SUP18720 .