Paleoproterozoic (ca. 1.8 Ga) arc magmatism in the Lützow-Holm Complex, East Antarctica: implications for the tectonics of Gondwana amalgamation

Abstract

We obtained the first evidence for regional ca. 1.8 Ga arc magmatism in the Lützow-Holm Complex (LHC) of East Antarctica. Based on the distribution of magmatic ages and lithologies, together with the geophysical data, the LHC can be divided into three units; the northern LHC (ca. 1.0 Ga juvenile arc), the central LHC (supracrustal unit), and the southern LHC (ca. 2.5 Ga microcontinent). We consider that the central LHC is a suture zone formed by the collision of the northern LHC and the southern LHC, and infer that the northern LHC and the Vijayan Complex in Sri Lanka were a single crustal unit.