Exhumation and extension in northwest Sulawesi

Personnel: Eldert Advokaat, Robert Hall & Lloyd White

Themes: Subsidence, exhumation and uplift; Eastern Indonesia and the Bird’s Head

Aims

This project aims to identify the cause and timing of Neogene deformation and tectonic events in the western part of the North Arm of Sulawesi.

Background

Sulawesi is located at the junction between the Eurasian, Australian, and Philippine Sea plates. The island is composed of numerous fragments derived from these plates, and it has long been thought that convergence and accretion were the main mechanisms responsible for its complex geology. Previous tectonic models are based on relatively limited field and age data. New studies indicate that crustal extension also played an important role. We report new field data, micro-structural observations and radiometric ages from the Malino Metamorphic Complex (MMC) in the western part of the North Arm.

Recent Papers –

Max Webb et al., 2020. Isotopic mapping reveals the location of crustal fragments along a long-lived convergent plate boundary. Lithos.

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.lithos.2020.105687

Max Webb et al., 2020. The history of Cenozoic magmatism and collision in NW New Guinea – New insights into the tectonic evolution of the northernmost margin of the Australian Plate. Gondwana Research.

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gr.2019.12.010

Amy Gough et al., 2020. Mid-Cenozoic fluvio-deltaic to marine environments of the Salin Sub-basin, Central Myanmar. Journal of Asian Earth Sciences.

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jseaes.2019.104143

Recent News –

Amy Gough and Max Webb attended the Restech 2.0 Virtual Reservoir Conference. Amy Gough presented new SEARG research on the pitfalls of light mineral studies for sedimentary provenance in tropical climates.

Amy Gough was awarded an honorary research fellowship of the British Geological Survey and continues to foster collaborative relationships between SEARG and the BGS.