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Evidence from neodymium isotopes for mantle contributions to Phanerozoic crustal genesis in the Canadian Cordillera

Abstract

Sm–Nd and Rb–Sr isotopic studies of several Phanerozoic orogenic belts have shown that much of the crust in these belts is composed of reworked, pre-existing continental crust. In contrast, isotopic data collected from two of the largest terranes in the Canadian Cordilleran orogenic belt, the Alexander and Stikine terranes, show that these tectonic fragments are composed of mantle-derived continental crust. In many respects the style and rate of crustal accretion of these and related terranes appear similar to those of some Proterozoic crustal regions

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Samson, S., McClelland, W., Patchett, P. et al. Evidence from neodymium isotopes for mantle contributions to Phanerozoic crustal genesis in the Canadian Cordillera. Nature 337, 705–709 (1989). https://doi.org/10.1038/337705a0

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