DELAM

Project coordinator: Prof. Joachim Jacobs

Project partners: Prof. B. Bingen, Dr. A. Engvik, NGU; Dr. R.J. Thomas, British Geological Survey; Dr. Daudi, Mozambique Geological Survey; Dr. J.-A. Wartho, Arizona State University; Dr. W. Jokat, Alfred-Wegener-Institute

Funding: NFR

Principal investigator: Prof. Joachim Jacobs

People involved at UiB: Assoc. Prof. Jan Kosler, Dr. Benjamin Emmel (Postdoc), Kosuke Ueda (PhD-student)

Project period: 2007-06-01 to 2010-06-30

The project contributes to the understanding of some of the fundamental processes related to lateral tectonic variations within orogens. Lithospheric-scale delamination of orogen roots strongly influences the late tectonic style of orogens. So far, there has no orogen been identified in which only part of the orogenic root has been laterally delaminated. The East African-Antarctic Orogen (EAAO) possibly represents an orogen with such a partly delaminated root. In this project we study the crustal processes that are associated with the lateral termination of a delaminated orogenic root by quantifying differential exhumation rates, especially through combined Ar-Ar and titanite fission-track analyses. These studies are complemented by low-temperature thermochronological studies across the orogen in order to outline and quantify the significance of structural inheritance on the later continental margin formation within the reactivated orogen. These combined studies allow an integrated approach to quantify exhumation process in combined orogen - passive continental margin systems.