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| Yenisey Fold Belt | |
|---|---|
| Name | Yenisey Fold Belt |
| Country | Russia |
| Region | Krasnoyarsk Krai |
| Age | Paleozoic |
| Period | Late Precambrian–Paleozoic |
| Orogeny | Tarim, Siberian, Hercynian correlations |
Yenisey Fold Belt The Yenisey Fold Belt is a major mountain-forming zone in central Siberia that links the Angara Shield with the Siberian Craton and interacts with the Krasnoyarsk Krai and Taimyr Peninsula tectonic domains. It forms a salient between the Central Asian Orogenic Belt and the Verkhoyansk-Kolyma Fold System, recording collisions and accretion from the Neoproterozoic through the Paleozoic. The belt hosts complex relationships among terranes recognized in studies by researchers associated with institutions such as the Russian Academy of Sciences, Vernadsky Institute, and international teams from the US Geological Survey and GFZ Potsdam.
The tectonic framework places the belt at the junction of the Siberian Craton, the Paleo-Asian Ocean margin, and exotic terranes like the Kuznetsk-Alatau and Altai-Sayan blocks, with nearby orogenic segments including the Ural orogen and Central Asian Orogenic Belt. Plate reconstructions referencing the Gondwana breakup, the Laurentia margin, and models by proponents of the Akatore and Siberia-Laurentia hypotheses frame its evolution. Tectonic models invoke subduction zones comparable to those beneath the Kurile Basin and collision zones analogous to the Hercynian orogeny and the Caledonian orogeny, involving oceanic plates previously identified in paleogeographic syntheses by groups at Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory and the British Geological Survey.
Stratigraphy comprises sequences correlated with the Neoproterozoic Riphean, Cambrian, Ordovician, Silurian, Devonian, Carboniferous, and Permian systems, with lithologies ranging from mafiс and ultramafic complexes to siliciclastic turbidites and carbonate platforms. Key units include ophiolitic mélanges similar to those in the Semail Ophiolite and peridotite assemblages akin to the Kola Peninsula complexes, as well as volcanic sequences comparable to the Siberian Traps basalts in age-adjacent contexts. Sedimentary basins within the belt show analogies to the West Siberian Basin and display facies transitions reported in studies at Novosibirsk State University and Tomsk State University.
Deformation includes multi-phase folding, thrusting, and strike-slip faulting with structural comparisons to the Baikal Rift Zone and the Altai-Sayan fold belt. Major thrust faults and nappes show kinematics correlated with collision events reconstructed by researchers from Moscow State University and University of Oxford. Transpressional features have been linked to far-field stress regimes similar to those inferred for the Collisional Orogeny affecting the Tethys margins, and strike-slip systems bear resemblance to the North Anatolian Fault in kinematic behavior. Structural mapping campaigns integrate methods pioneered by teams at the Geological Survey of Canada and the Institute of Geology and Geophysics, Novosibirsk.
Metamorphic grades range from greenschist to granulite facies with assemblages of garnet, kyanite, sillimanite, and orthopyroxene noted in high-grade terranes, paralleling metamorphic studies in the Himalaya and the Scandinavian Caledonides. Petrological investigations document eclogite-bearing blocks and HP/LT belts analogous to those in the UHP terrains studied by groups at ETH Zurich and Utrecht University. Isograd relationships and P-T-t paths have been analyzed using techniques developed by laboratories at the Max Planck Institute for Chemistry and the Smithsonian Institution.
The belt is significant for mineralization including gold-bearing quartz veins comparable to those in the Kuznetsk Alatau, nickel-sulfide deposits similar to the Norilsk type, chromite in ophiolitic ultramafics, and base-metal sulfide systems akin to deposits studied by the USGS Mineral Resources Program. Exploration by companies and institutions such as Alrosa, Polyus Gold, and joint ventures with international firms has targeted chromium, platinum-group elements, copper, and rare metals analogous to occurrences in the Urals and Kolyma provinces. Economic studies reference mining law frameworks used in Russia and environmental assessments following protocols from UNEP and International Council on Mining and Metals.
Radiometric age constraints derive from U-Pb zircon, Ar-Ar mica, and Sm-Nd isotopic systems with work published in journals associated with Geological Society of America, Nature Geoscience, and the Journal of the Geological Society. Paleomagnetic data have been integrated with global apparent polar wander paths for Siberia and Laurentia by teams at ETH Zurich, University of Cambridge, and Caltech, refining reconstructions of Pangea assembly and Rodinia break-up. Detrital zircon provenance studies utilize methods standardized by the International Association of Sedimentologists and have been compared to datasets from the Tarim Basin and North China Craton.
Investigation history spans Russian Tsarist-era surveys, Soviet-era Geological Institute programs, and post-Soviet collaborative projects involving Russian Academy of Sciences, International Continental Scientific Drilling Program, and Western universities. Prominent researchers and expeditions include work by geologists affiliated with Academician Vernadsky-era institutes, field campaigns supported by BAS-style programs, and mapping initiatives co-funded by the European Commission and national agencies. Recent research emphasizes integrated geophysics, remote sensing from Landsat and Sentinel platforms, and data synthesis efforts modeled on projects at the European Geosciences Union and IGCP.