Journal article
Svartevaeg terrane: New evidence for a Silurian arc fragment in northern North America and its significance for early Paleozoic sinistral displacements along the Canadian Arctic transform system
Geological Society of America bulletin
05/18/2026
DOI: 10.1130/B38865.1
Abstract
The Canadian Arctic transform system defined a Paleozoic plate-boundary zone along northern Laurentia from the Svalbard Caledonides through Arctic Canada to eastern Alaska. Published models predict the early history of the Canadian Arctic transform system included Ordovician arc collision followed by Silurian reactivation of suture zone faults, sinistral translation of crustal fragments, and synorogenic flysch deposition. Here, we define the Svartevaeg terrane as a fault-bounded fragment in the northern Axel Heiberg and Ellesmere Islands region of Nunavut, Canada, and interpret its origin, displacement, and capture along the Canadian Arctic transform system. New igneous and detrital zircon U/Pb-Hf isotope and whole-rock geochemical results from the Svartevaeg Formation indicate the Svartevaeg terrane primarily consists of Silurian lava flow and volcaniclastic deposits that are the vestiges of an arc system. The new data allow three nonunique scenarios for the onset of Silurian arc volcanism: (1) Compressive stresses along a restraining bend forced oceanic lithosphere beneath northern Laurentia analogous to Puysegur subduction nucleation near the Australia-Pacific transform plate boundary, (2) postcollision convergence taken up by accreted Ordovician arc lithosphere led to a polarity reversal along northern Laurentia analogous to Ryukyu subduction nucleation near the Luzon arc−Eurasia collision, or (3) the Svartevaeg terrane had an outboard origin within a west-propagating island-arc system. Silurian−Devonian sinistral transpression resulted in arc cessation, deformation, and accretion of the Svartevaeg terrane along the Canadian Arctic transform system. Detrital zircon assessments of new and published flysch datasets constrain the initial juxtaposition and final imbrication of the Svartevaeg terrane against Laurentian margin successions at ca. 420 Ma and 360 Ma, respectively.
Details
- Title: Subtitle
- Svartevaeg terrane: New evidence for a Silurian arc fragment in northern North America and its significance for early Paleozoic sinistral displacements along the Canadian Arctic transform system
- Creators
- Luke P. Beranek - Memorial University of NewfoundlandVictoria Pease - Stockholm UniversityWilliam C. McClelland - University of IowaJustin V. Strauss - Dartmouth College
- Resource Type
- Journal article
- Publication Details
- Geological Society of America bulletin
- DOI
- 10.1130/B38865.1
- ISSN
- 0016-7606
- eISSN
- 1943-2674
- Publisher
- Geological Society of America
- Grant note
- Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada Discovery Grant Program: RGPIN-2014-06327, RGPIN-2019-05647 National Sci-ence Foundation: EAR-16550152, EAR-1650022
Luke Beranek acknowledges funding from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada Discovery Grant Program (RGPIN-2014-06327 and RGPIN-2019-05647) . Additional funding was provided by National Sci-ence Foundation grants EAR-16550152 awarded to Strauss and EAR-1650022 awarded to Jane Gilotti and co-principal investigator William McClelland. John Hanchar, Christopher Fisher, and Core Research Equipment & Instrument Training Network staff members Wanda Aylward, Rebecca Lam, and Markus Walle aided laboratory studies at the Memorial Uni-versity of Newfoundland. Fieldwork was conducted with the assistance of the Bundesanstalt fur Geowis-senschaften und Rohstoffe and Geological Survey of Canada, and we thank CASE 19 excursion leader Karsten Piepjohn for his support. Jared Gooley and Jeff Benowitz provided constructive reviews that im-proved this manuscript.
- Language
- English
- Electronic publication date
- 05/18/2026
- Academic Unit
- School of Earth, Environment, and Sustainability
- Record Identifier
- 9985164724202771
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