J.W.H. Monger's research while affiliated with Queen's University and other places

The boundary between rocks assigned to the Intermontane superterrane in the interior of the Canadian Cordillera and those of the Insular superterrane in the westernmost Cordillera of British Columbia and southeastern Alaska lies within/along the Coast Mountains, in which is exposed the core of an orogen that emerged as a discrete tectonic entity between 105 and 45 million years ago. Evidence from the Coast Mountains and flanking areas indicates that parts of the Intermontane superterrane (in Stikinia and Yukon-Tanana terranes) were near those of the Insular superterrane Wrangellia and Alexander terranes) by the Early Jurassic (similar to 180 Ma). This timing, as well as paleobiogeographic and paleomagnetic considerations, appears to discount a recent hypothesis that proposes westward-dipping subduction beneath an intra-oceanic arc on Insular superterrane resulted in arc-continent collision and inaugurated Cordilleran orogenesis in the Late Jurassic (similar to 146 Ma). The hypothesis also relates the subducted ocean that had separated the superterranes to a massive, faster-than- average-velocity seismic anomaly in the lower mantle below the eastern seaboard of North America. To create such an anomaly, subduction of the floor of a large ocean was needed. The only surface record of such an ocean in the interior of the Canadian Cordillera is the Cache Creek terrane, which lies within the Intermontane superterrane but is no younger than Middle Jurassic (similar to 174 Ma). This terrane, together with the probably related Bridge River terrane in the southeastern Coast Mountains, which is as young as latest Middle Jurassic (164 Ma) and possibly as young as earliest Cretaceous (>= 130 Ma), appear to be the only candidates in Canada for the possible surface record of the seismic anomaly.

2008.03 Nokleberg, W. J., Bundtzen, T. K., Scotese, C. R., Parfenov, L. M., Monger, J. W. H., Dawson, K. M., Khanchuk, A. I., Goryachev, N. A., Shpikerman, V. I., 2008. Metallogenic and tectonic model for the Circum-North Pacific, 33rd International Geological Congress, Norway, 2008, International Geological Congress, Abstracts, v. 33, Abstract 1342108. Abstract: The Phanerozoic metallogenic and tectonic evolution of the Circum-North Pacific (Russian Far East, Alaska, and the Canadian Cordillera) is recorded in the cratons, craton margins, and orogenic collages of the Circum-North Pacific mountain belts that separate the North Pacific from the eastern North Asian and western North American Cratons. The collages consist of tectonostratigraphic terranes with older metallogenic belts that are composed of fragments of igneous arcs, accretionary-wedge and subduction-zone complexes, passive continental margins, and cratons; they are overlapped by continental-margin-arc and sedimentary-basin assemblages with younger metallogenic belts. The metallogenic and geologic history of terranes, overlap assemblages, cratons, and craton margins is highly complicated because of post-accretion dismemberment and translation during strike-slip faulting that occurred subparallel to continental margins. Six processes overlapping in time were responsible for most metallogenic and geologic complexities of the region. (1) In the Late Proterozoic, Late Devonian, and Early Carboniferous, major periods of rifting occurred along the ancestral margins of present-day Northeast Asia and northwestern North American. (2) From about the Late Triassic through the mid-Cretaceous, a succession of island arcs and contained igneous-arc-related metallogenic belts, and tectonically paired subduction zones formed near continental margins. (3) From about mainly the mid- Cretaceous through the present, a succession of igneous arcs and contained metallogenic belts, and tectonically paired subduction zones formed along the continental margins. (4) From about the Jurassic to the present, oblique convergence and rotations caused orogen-parallel sinistral, and then dextral displacements within the upper plate margins of cratons that have become Northeast Asia and the North America. (5) From the Early Jurassic through Tertiary, movement of the upper continental plates toward subduction zones resulted in strong plate coupling and accretion of the former island arcs, subduction zones, and contained metallogenic belts to continental margins. (6) In the middle and late Cenozoic, oblique to orthogonal convergence of the Pacific Plate with present-day Alaska and Northeast Asia resulted in formation of the modern-day ring of volcanoes and contained metallogenic belts around the Circum-North Pacific. To illustrate the Phanerozoic metallogenic and tectonic evolution of the Circum-North Pacific, dynamic computer animation with successive time-stage diagrams for the region is constructed to portray the formation of metallogenic belts and associated tectonic events through geologic space and time.

2007.02 Nokleberg, W.J., Parfenov, L.M., Monger, J.W. H., Stone, D.B., Scotese, C.R., and Scholl, D.W., 2007. Correlative geologic and tectonic events in the Russian Northeast, Alaska, and the northern Canadian Cordillera, Geological Society of America, Cordilleran Section, 103rd annual meeting, Abstracts with Programs - Geological Society of America, v. 39, issue 4, p. 60. Abstract: Six processes overlapping in time were responsible for most of the complexities of the collage of terranes and overlap assemblages around the Circum-North Pacific. (1) In the Late Proterozoic, Late Devonian, and Early Carboniferous, major periods of rifting occurred along the ancestral margins of present-day Northeast Asia and northwestern North American. The rifting resulted in fragmentation of each continent, and formation of cratonal and passive continental-margin terranes that eventually migrated and accreted to other sites along the evolving margins of the original or adjacent continents. (2) From about the Late Triassic through the mid Cretaceous, a succession of island arcs and tectonically paired subduction zones formed near continental margins. (3) From about mainly the mid-Cretaceous through the present, a succession of igneous arcs and tectonically paired subduction zones formed along the continental margins. (4) From about the Jurassic to the present, oblique convergence and rotations caused orogen-parallel sinistral and then dextral displacements within the upper plate margins of cratons that have become Northeast Asia and the North America. The oblique convergences and rotations resulted in the fragmentation, displacement, and duplication of formerly more continuous arcs, subduction zones, and passive continental margins. These fragments were subsequently accreted along the margins of the expanding continental margins. (5) From the Early Jurassic through Tertiary, movement of the upper continental plates toward subduction zones resulted in strong plate coupling and accretion of the former island arcs and subduction zones to continental margins. Accretions were accompanied and followed by crustal thickening, anatexis, metamorphism, and uplift. The accretions resulted in the substantial growth of the North Asian and North American continents. (6) In the middle and late Cenozoic, oblique to orthogonal convergence of the Pacific Plate with present-day Alaska and Northeast Asia resulted in formation of the modern-day ring of volcanoes around the Circum-North Pacific. Oblique convergence between the Pacific Plate and Alaska also resulted in major dextral-slip faulting in interior and Southern Alaska and along the western part of the Aleutian-Wrangell arc.

2006.09 Nokleberg, W.J., Scotese, C.R., and Monger, J.W.H., and 2006. Major tectonic processs illustrated in a Phanerozoic model for Alaska and the Canadian Cordillera, Geological Society of America, Cordilleran Section, 102nd annual meeting; American Association of Petroleum Geologists, Pacific Section, 81st annual meeting; Society of Petroleum Engineers, Western Region, 76th annual meeting, Abstracts with Programs - Geological Society of America, v. 38, issue 5, p. 81. Abstract: Six tectonic processes were responsible for formation of the collage of terranes and overlap assemblages in Alaska and the Canadian Cordillera. (1) In the Late Devonian and Early Mississippian, a major period of rifting occurred along the ancestral continental margin of North America. The rifting resulted in formation of an ocean basin that contained cratonal and passive continental-margin terranes that eventually migrated and accreted at other sites along the evolving margin of the continent. (2) From about the Late Triassic through the mid-Cretaceous, a succession of island arcs and tectonically paired subduction zones formed near the continental margin. (3) From about mainly the mid-Cretaceous through the present, a succession of igneous arcs and tectonically paired subduction zones formed along the continental margin. (4) From about the Jurassic to the present, oblique convergence and rotations caused orogen-parallel sinistral and then dextral displacements within the upper plate margins of the North American Craton. The oblique convergences and rotations resulted in the fragmentation, displacement, and duplication of formerly more-continuous arcs, subduction zones, and passive continental margins. These fragments were subsequently displaced along the margins of the expanding continental margin. (5) From the Early Jurassic through Tertiary, movement of the upper continental plates toward subduction zones resulted in strong plate coupling and accretion of the former, separate island arcs and subduction zones to continental margins. Accretions were accompanied and followed by crustal thickening, anatexis, metamorphism, and uplift. The accretions resulted in the substantial growth of the North American continent. (6) In the middle and late Cenozoic, oblique to orthogonal convergence of the Pacific Plate with present-day Alaska resulted in formation of the modern-day ring of volcanoes around continental margin. The oblique convergence between the Pacific Plate and Alaska also resulted in major dextral-slip faulting in interior and Southern Alaska and along the western part of the Aleutian-Wrangell arc. Associated with dextral-slip faulting was crustal extrusion of terranes from Western Alaska into the Bering Sea.

2005-04 Nokleberg, W. J., Bundtzen, T. K., Eremin, R. A., Ratkin, V. V., Dawson, K. M., Shpikerman, V. I., Goryachev, N. A., Byalobzhesky, S. G., Frolov, Yu. F., Khanchuk, A. I., Koch, R. D., Monger, J. W. H., Pozdeev, A. I;., Rozenblum, I. S., Rodionov, S. M., Parfenov, L. M.,; Scotese, C. R., Sidorov, A. A., 2005. Metallogenesis and tectonics of the Russian Far East, Alaska, and the Canadian Cordillera, U.S. Geological Survey Professional Paper P1697, 397 pp. (99c) Abstract: The Proterozoic and Phanerozoic metallogenic and tectonic evolution of the Russian Far East, Alaska, and the Canadian Cordillera is recorded in the cratons, craton margins, and orogenic collages of the Circum- North Pacific mountain belts that separate the North Pacific from the eastern North Asian and western North American Cratons. The collages consist of tectonostratigraphic terranes and contained metallogenic belts, which are composed of fragments of igneous arcs, accretionary-wedge and subduction-zone complexes, passive continental margins, and cratons. The terranes are overlapped by continental-margin-arc and sedimentary-basin assemblages and contained metallogenic belts. The metallogenic and geologic history of terranes, overlap assemblages, cratons, and craton margins has been complicated by postaccretion dismemberment and translation during strike-slip faulting that occurred subparallel to continental margins.

gold seekers making their way across the plains to the 'promised land'. As the area was populated, building material and water were needed and many other resources besides metals were exploited, including gypsum, salt, fluorite, clay, lime, glass sand, sand and gravel, building and crushed stone, and fertilizer minerals.

2003.06

2003.02