Arctida-Baltica Collision Is the Earliest Collisonal Event of Supercontinent Pangea Assembling

Nikolay B. Kuznetsov
Geological Institute, Moscow, Moscow, Russia.

A synthesis of available geological\geophishical data for the Western Russian Arctica, Svalbard, Timan-Pechora region and Western Urals allows to modernize the scenario of the earliest stage of Pangea assembling. The key event of the new scenario is a collision of two Neoproterozoic continents Baltica and Arctida at appr. Neoproterozoic-Cambrian time boundary (Kuznetsov et al., 2007). Baltica (Timan-Uralian passive margin) and Arctida (Bolshezemel active margin) combined into a composite continent Arct-Europe (Baltica+Arctida) with the Pre-Uralides-Timanides orogen in the collisional zone. Arct-Europe collided with Laurentia at the time boundary of Silurian and Devonian (Caledonian belt of Westerm Greenland and Scandinavia, and Innuitian belt). Later, composite continent Arct-Laurussia (Arc-Europe + Laurentia) collided with Siberia-Kyrgyz-Kazakh composite continent (Uralian orogeny). Thus, the northern Vegener Pangea had been assembled, and the collision of Baltica and Arctida was the earliest colisional (continent-continent) event in assembling history of the northern Pangea. During colisional events, the relicts of the north-western edge of the Pre-Uralides-Timanides orogen were involved in Caledonian orogenes and the relicts of the south-eastern edge of the orogen were involved in Uralian orogenes. Later, in the Late Mesosoic - Early Cenozoic north-eastern parts of Arctida (which was a part of supercontinent Pangea) were fragmented as a result of opening of oceanic basins of the North Atlanic and Arctic ocean (Makarov, Amerasian (Canadian) and Eurasian basins). Now Arctida’s fragments are parts of northern peripheric areas of North America and North Eurasia and their Arctic shelfs, and blocks between oceanic basins (Lomonosov, Mendeleev and Alpha ridges).

This work was partially supported by Program N16 of Presidium RAS and RFFI grants 09-05-01033 and 09-05-00812.

AAPG Search and Discover Article #90096©2009 AAPG 3-P Arctic Conference and Exhibition, Moscow, Russia