Structural geology, tectonics and gold mineralisation of the southern Anakie Inlier

Abstract

The late Neoproterozoic-EarlyPalaeozoic geology of northwest Australia is not well known, and restricted to studies of relatively small basement inliers in Queensland. The Anakie Inlier is one such area. Basement rocks of the Anakie Inlier comprise the Anakie Metamorphic Group, and provide a window into crust that potentially underlies a significant area of northeast Australia. A ductile flat-lying foliation is the dominant structural feature of the Anakie Metamorphic Group, and both extensional and shortening processes have previously been interpreted for its formation. A combination of structural, metamorphic, 40Ar/39 Ar thermochronologic and SHRIMP U-Pb geochronologic studies were used to elucidate the nature of the flat-lying foliation, as well as provide tectonic constraints for the Late Neoproterozoic-Early Palaeozoic evolution of northeast Australia. <…>