• Journal of the Korean earth science society
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• v.34 no.4
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• pp.329-335
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• 2013

Based on mineral assemblages, field occurrences, the volcanic rocks distributed in the Geumdang Island area are divided into three types: rhyolite, porphyritic rhyolite and intermediated dyke rock. In a diagram of [TAS (total alkali-silica)], rhyolites and porphyritic rhyolites belong to the rhyolite-dacite field and rhyolite field, respectively. As to the times when the rhyolite and porphyritic rhyolite rocks were formed a whole rock K-Ar age was obtained. These absolute age determinations have revealed that the former (rhyolite) has an age of 76-78 Ma and belongs to the Late Cretaceous (Campanian) and the latter (porphyritic rhyolite) is 71-72 Ma in age and thus belongs to the boundary between the Campanian and Maastrichtian. These geological ages are associated with the igneous activity of the Yuchon Group which occurred vigorously in the southern part of the Korean peninsula during the Late Cretaceous. The various geological ages of volcanic rocks distributed in the southwestern part of the peninsula and of igneous rocks found in the Cretaceous formation which contain a wide variety of minerals indicate that in this area, volcanic activities continued vigorously as a result of the collision of the Eurasian and Pacific Plates between 108-71 Ma.

• The Journal of the Petrological Society of Korea
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• v.21 no.2
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• pp.193-202
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• 2012

There were three cycles of igneous activities from the late Paleozoic to early Cenozoic; Permian to Triassic, Jurassic, and Cretaceous to Paleogene. After the beginning of each igneous activity cycle, igneous activity became more frequent until its climax. It is noteworthy that A-type magmatisms are reported from near the ends of the all three igneous activity cycles. In addition, adakitic magmatisms occurred at the beginning of both the Permian-Triassic and the Cretaceous-Paleogene cycles. Most of the igneous activities during the late Paleozoic to early Cenozoic period were subduction-related. Therefore, transitions among beginning, proceeding, and closing of the igneous activity cycles would be intimately related with changes in directions of plate movements. In this context, I suggest following hypotheses. The closing of the Permian-Triassic igneous cycle was possibly a consequence of radical adjustment of plate motion occurred due to continental collision between north and south China blocks. Considering that no appreciable tectonic activities were recognized from the east Asian continent at the closing of the Jurassic igneous cycle, it seems that one of the strong events related with Gondwanaland-breakup and subsequent birth of the new oceans, which might cause sudden adjustments of plate motions. The closing of the Cretaceous-Paleogene igneous cycle seems to be caused as a consequence of the collision between India and Asia continents. Meanwhile, adakitic igneous bodies emplaced at the beginnings of the Permian-Triassic and Cretaceous-Paleogene cycles could be products of slab-melting during the early stages of the subduction.

• The Journal of the Petrological Society of Korea
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• v.1 no.1
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• pp.49-57
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• 1992

Whole rock and mineral ages for the Jecheon Granite distributed in the Ogcheon Fold Belt were dated by three radiometric methods, and its thermal history was elucidated as follows, on the basis of isotopic age data. Rb and Sr isotopic compositions of three whole rock and seven mineral concentrates made an isochron of 202.7${\pm}$ 1.9 Ma with a strontium initial ratio of 0.7140. Different age data of twelve mineral concentrates agree closely with the retention temperature of each mineral in K-Ar and Fission Track methods. The Jecheon granitic magma was generated by partial melting of crustal materials (S-type), or by mixins between mantle and crustal materials, intruded into the katazone or mesozone (7∼9 km) of the Ogcheon Fold Belt, at least in the Early Jurassic (about 203 Ma), and then crystallized and cooled down rapidly from about 600$^{\circ}C$ to 300$^{\circ}C$ (more than 20$^{\circ}C$/Ma), owing to thermal differences between the magma and the wall-rock. During the Middle to Late Jurassic (190∼140 Ma), the cooling of the granite was likely to stop and keep thermal equilibrium with the wall-rock. The severe tectonism associated with igneous activities and active weathering on the surface in Early to Late Cretaceous time (140∼70 Ma) might have accelerated the granite pluton to uplift rapidly (40∼60 m/Ma in average) up to 3∼4 km and cooled down from 300$^{\circ}C$ to 200$^{\circ}C$ (1.4 $^{\circ}C$/Ma). The granite pluton was likely to keep different uplifting and cooling rate of about 120 m/Ma and 5$^{\circ}C$/Ma in average from the Late Cretaceous to Early Tertiary (70∼50 Ma), and about 60 m/Ma and 2$^{\circ}C$/Ma in average from about 50 Ma up to the present, respectively.

• Economic and Environmental Geology
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• v.11 no.4
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• pp.127-141
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• 1978

The major structures characteristic of the Taebaegsan sedimentary basin were regionally analyzed with special reference to its southeastern extension to the Yeonhwa-Ulchin district of economic interest in zinc-lead mineralization. The basin geometry, basement setting, sedimentary components, and the characteristics of deformation and igneous activity of the Taebaegsan basin differ basically from those of the adjacent mobile belt of the Ogcheon geosyncline, although the latter affected the basin's western side considerably. The subrectangular shape of the Taebaegsan basin reflects the checkered pattern of basement-block arrangement, and the carbonate-dominated lithologic components of the basin-fill indicate a cratonic depositional setting, which is comparable to some of the North American mid-continental craton. The Taebaegsan basin, however, has somewhat been less stable than the North American megacraton that is reflected in the former's thicker sedimentary fill and steeper faults of later deformation, showing a tendency to increase in thickness close to the basement-block boundaries, which may indicate contacts of possibly detached cratonic blocks of Precambrian age; these weak zones of block boundaries have been the loci of repeated sedimentation, deformation and related igneous intrusions. A series of downthrown or uplifted tilted blocks, in which the Cambro-Ordovician sedimentary wedges and the late Cretaceous to early Tertiary igneous intrusives are involved, occurs intermittently across the Yeonhwa-Ulchin district in a noticeable pattern of en echelon type. These sedimentary wedges are correlated to the Cambro-Ordovician section of the Hambaeg syncline to the west in stratigraphy and lithology, and are considered to have resulted from the northeastern and/or northwestern cross-faulting of the pre-existing syncline belt of easterly trend, extended from the main portion of the Hambaeg syncline. These structural junctions (or intersections) of the earlier syncline belt and the later cross-faults have been acted as a guide to ascending igneous materials and hydrothermal ore-forming fluids to form a zone of zinc-lead skarn deposits across the Yeonhwa-Ulchin district showing a stepwise recurrence of these deposits toward the east.

• Economic and Environmental Geology
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• v.15 no.3
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• pp.123-154
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• 1982

Petrochemical, K-Ar dating, Sand Rb/Sr isotopes, metallogenic zoning, paleomagnetic and geotectonic studies of the Gyongsang basin were carried out to examine applicability of plate tectonics to the post-late Cretaceous igneous activity and metallogeny in the southeastern part of Korean Peninsula. The results obtained are as follows: 1. Bulgugsa granitic rocks range from granite to adamellite, whose Q-Ab-Or triangular diagram indicates that the depth and pressure at which the magma consolidated increase from coast to inland varying from 6 km, 0.5-3.3 kb in the coastal area to 17 km, 0.5-10 kb in the inland area. 2. The volcanic rocks in Gyongsang basin range from andesitic to basaltic rocks, and the basaltic rocks are generally tholeiitic in the coastal area and alkali basalt in the inland area. 3. The volcanic rocks of the area have the initial ratio of Sr^{87}/Sr^{86} varying from 0.706 to 0.707 which suggests a continental origin; the ratio of Rb/Sr changing from 0.079-0.157 in the coastal area to 0.021-0.034 in the inland area suggests that the volcanism is getting younger toward coastal side, which may indicate a retreat in stage of differentiation if they were derived from a same magma. The K_2O/SiO_2 (60%) increases from about 1.0 in the coastal area to about 3.0 in the inland area, which may suggest an increase indepth of the Benioff zone, if existed, toward inland side. 4. The K-Ar ages of volcanic rocks were measured to be 79.4 m.y. near Daegu, and 61.7 m.y. near Busan indicating a southeastward decrease in age. The ages of plutonic rocks also decrease toward the same direction with 73 m.y. near Daegu, and 58 m.y. near Busan, so that the volcanism predated the plutonism by 6 m.y. in the continental interior and 4 m.y. along the coast. Such igneous activities provide a positive evidence for an applicability of plate tectonics to this area. 5. Sulfur isotope analyses of sulfide minerals from 8 mines revealed that these deposits were genetically connected with the spacially associated ingeous rocks showing relatively narrow range of ${\delta}^{34}S$ values (-0.9‰ to +7.5‰ except for +13.3 from Mulgum Mine). A sequence of metallogenic zones from the coast to the inland is delineated to be in the order of Fe-Cu zone, Cu-Pb-Zn zone, and W-Mo zone. A few porphyry type copper deposits are found in the Fe-Cu zone. These two facts enable the sequence to be comparable with that of Andean type in South America. 6. The VGP's of Cretaceous and post Cretaceous rocks from Korea are located near the ones($71^{\circ}N$, $180^{\circ}E$ and $90^{\circ}N$, $110^{\circ}E$) obtained from continents of northern hemisphere. This suggests that the Korean peninsula has been stable tectonically since Cretaceous, belonging to the Eurasian continent. 7. Different polar wandering path between Korean peninsula and Japanese islands delineates that there has been some relative movement between them. 8. The variational feature of declination of NRM toward northwestern inland side from southeastern extremity of Korean peninsula suggests that the age of rocks becomes older toward inland side. 9. The geological structure(mainly faults) and trends of lineaments interpreted from the Landsat imagery reveal that NNE-, NWW- and NEE-trends are predominant in the decreasing order of intensity. 10. The NNE-trending structures were originated by tensional and/or compressional forces, the directions of which were parallel and perpendicular respectively to the subduction boundary of the Kula plate during about 90 m.y. B.P. The NWW-trending structures were originated as shear fractures by the same compressional forces. The NEE-trending structures are considered to be priginated as tension fractures parallel to the subduction boundary of the Kula plate during about 70 m.y. B.P. when Japanese islands had drifted toward southeast leaving the Sea of Japan behind. It was clearly demonstrated by many authors that the drifting of Japanese islands was accompanied with a rotational movement of a clock-wise direction, so that it is inferred that subduction boundary had changed from NNE- to NEE-direction. A number of facts and features mentioned above provide a suite of positive evidences enabling application of plate tectonics to the late Cretaceous-early Tertiary igneous activity and metallogeny in the area. Synthesizing these facts, an arc-trench system of continental margin-type is adopted by reconstructing paleogeographic models for the evolution of Korean peninsula and Japan islands. The models involve an extention mechanism behind the are(proto-Japan), by which proto-Japan as of northeastern continuation of Gyongsang zone has been drifted rotationally toward southeast. The zone of igneous activity has also been migrated from the inland in late-Cretaceous to the peninsula margin and southwestern Japan in Tertiary.