Frank Lisker - Profile on Academia.edu (original) (raw)

Papers by Frank Lisker

Northern Victoria Land forms a segment of the Transantarctic Mountains in the western Ross Sea th... more Northern Victoria Land forms a segment of the Transantarctic Mountains in the western Ross Sea that is characterized by extreme landscape contrasts. A high Alpine coastal morphology developed in immediate vicinity to high-elevated inland plateaus and deep, structurally defined glacial troughs. Recent thermochronological research during the last five years discovered that the whole region was occupied by a Mesozoic sedimentary ba sin. This recognition requires future thermochronological research to focus on five main objectives: (1) More and better data, new and complementary techniques, and quantitative modelling, (2) evolution of the Mesozoic Victo ria Basin on the continental crust of SE Australia and the western Ross Sea, (3) Passive margin formation versus West Antarctic rifting, (4) timing and amount of the final exhumation and uplift of the Transantarctic Mountains since the Eocene / Oligocene, and (5) Landscape contrasts in northern Victoria Land resulting from the interplay between climate, tectonics and lithology. This paper also gives an overview of thermochronological field work during expedition GANOVEX X und reviews subsequent research in the Terra Nova Bay region, were up to 1.1 km thick post-Ferrar sediments were deposited between ~180 and ~35 Ma.

Exhumation of the Voltri Massif HP-units, Ligurian Alps

RENDICONTI ONLINE DELLA SOCIETÀ GEOLOGICA ITALIANA, Sep 1, 2010

Geological Map of the Ebbe Glacier Quadrangle, north Victoria Land, Antarctica (Scale 1:250.000)

Evolution of the elevated passive margin of northwest Greenland

EGUGA, Apr 1, 2015

Tectonics, Mar 1, 2019

The first low-temperature thermochronological data from Thurston Island, West Antarctica, provide... more The first low-temperature thermochronological data from Thurston Island, West Antarctica, provide insights into the poorly constrained thermotectonic evolution of the paleo-Pacific margin of Gondwana since the Late Paleozoic. Here we present the first apatite fission track and apatite (U-Th-Sm)/He data from Carboniferous to mid-Cretaceous (meta-) igneous rocks from the Thurston Island area. Thermal history modeling of apatite fission track dates of 145-92 Ma and apatite (U-Th-Sm)/He dates of 112-71 Ma, in combination with kinematic indicators, geological information, and thermobarometrical measurements, indicate a complex thermal history with at least six episodes of cooling and reheating. Thermal history models are interpreted to reflect Late Paleozoic to Early Mesozoic tectonic uplift of pre-Jurassic arc sequences, prior to the formation of an extensional Jurassic-Early Cretaceous back-arc basin up to 4.5 km deep, which was deepened during intrusion and rapid exhumation of rocks of the Late Jurassic granite suite. Overall Early to mid-Cretaceous exhumation and basin inversion coincided with an episode of intensive magmatism and crustal thickening and was followed by exhumation during formation of the Zealandia-West Antarctica rift and continental breakup. Final exhumation since the Oligocene was likely triggered by activity of the West Antarctic rift system and by glacial erosion.

Cenozoic exhumation of the Mountaineer Range, Transantarctic Mountains, in northern Victoria Land: new constraints from apatite (U-Th-Sm)/He data

AGU Fall Meeting Abstracts, Dec 1, 2018

The Cauvery suture zone (CSZ) in southern India has witnessed multiple deformations associated wi... more The Cauvery suture zone (CSZ) in southern India has witnessed multiple deformations associated with multiple subduction-collision history, with incorporation of the related accretionary belts sequentially into the southern continental margin of the Archaean Dharwar craton since Neoarchaen to Neoproterozoic. The accreted tectonic elements include suprasubduction complexes of arc magmatic sequences, high-grade supracrustals, thrust duplexes, ophiolites, and younger intrusions that are dispersed along the suture. The intra-oceanic Neoarchaean-Neoproterozoic arc assemblages are well exposed in the form of tectonic mélanges dominantly towards the eastern sector of the CSZ and are typically subjected to complex and multiple deformation events. Multi-scale analysis of structural elements with detailed geological mapping of the sub-regions and their structural cross sections, geochemical and geochronological data and integrated geophysical observations suggest that the CSZ is an important zone that preserves the imprints of multiple cycles of Precambrian plate tectonic regimes.

This paper presents the overview of the apatite fission track (AFT) data set of northern Victoria... more This paper presents the overview of the apatite fission track (AFT) data set of northern Victoria Land and juxtaposed SE Australia, and the underlying geological and geomorphological processes since late Paleozoic times. It focuses on thermochronological data produced during the last two decades, new interpretation strategies, and the combined use of thermochronological data and complementary geological information. The regional AFT pattern and stratigraphic age information require the existence of a late Paleozoic -Mesozoic sedimentary basin between northern Victoria Land and SE Australia. Basin formation resulted from long-lasting N-S oblique extension that also triggered the ~180 Ma Ferrar magmatism, the rifting of the Ross Sea, and eventually continental breakup between Antarctica and Australia. The locus of breakup is probably controlled by basin geometry and depth. Zusammenfassung: Dieser Artikel präsentiert einen Überblick über den Datensatz von Apatitspaltspurenaltern (AFT) von Nordviktorialand und dem gegenüberliegenden Südosten Australiens sowie über die zu Grunde liegenden geologischen und geomorphologischen Prozesse seit dem Paläozoikum. Er fokussiert auf thermochronologische Daten der letzten beiden Jahrzehnte, neue Interpretationsstrategien sowie die Kombination thermochronologischer Daten mit komplementären geologischen Informationen. Der Vergleich regionaler AFT-Alter und stratigraphischer Alter erfordert die Existenz eines spätpaläozoisch-mesozoischen Beckens zwischen Nordviktorialand und SE-Australien. Dessen Bildung ist das Ergebnis lang anhaltender schräger N-S-Extension, die auch für den ~180 Ma Ferrar-Magmatismus, das Rossmeer-Rifting und schließlich den Kontinentalzerfall zwischen der Antarktis und Australien verantwortlich ist. Die Anlage der entsprechenden Bruchstelle ist vermutlich durch Beckengeometrie und Beckentiefe kontrolliert.

Subsidence, rapid inversion, and slow erosion of the Central Tertiary Basin of Svalbard: Evidence from the thermal evolution and basin modeling

Geological Society of America eBooks, Jun 14, 2019

The Southern Ocean region between northern Victoria Land (Antarctica) and Australia is characteri... more The Southern Ocean region between northern Victoria Land (Antarctica) and Australia is characterized by a dense array of NW-SE trending fracture zones. These fracture zones are apparently parallel to an intraplate dextral strike-slip fault system that cuts through the continental crust of northern Victoria Land and seems to continue into the Ross Sea. In order to evaluate a possible correlation between these off-and onshore tectonic features, a combined aerogeophysical and structural-geological study was performed in the greater Edisto and Tucker Inlet area and in the offshore region north of Cape Adare. The comparison of onshore brittle faults and the recorded magnetic features Cape Adare indicates a close alignment of these faults with offshore anomalies. Individual faults trend often parallel to the main glaciers suggesting that the course of these glaciers is tectonically controlled. Faults can be separated into a first strike-slip to transtensional dominated group and a second, possibly partially younger extensional one. Based on crosscutting relationships with the Neogene Hallett volcanics, a genetic link between volcanic and tectonic activity is indicated. The magnetic anomalies in the offshore survey area reveal two main trends that are oriented almost orthogonal to each other. NNW-SSE trending anomalies northeast of Cape Adare represent seafloor spreading in the Adare Trough. Anomalies of the Adare Trough and of the volcanic Adare Peninsula and its northward extension into the Antarctic shelf are parallel to roughly NNW-SSE oriented dextral-transtensional to extensional faults in the onshore region, which possibly facilitated magma extrusion. NE-SW oriented normal faults seem to segment the main bodies of the Hallett Volcanics, which is also visible in the continental (i.e. southwestern) flank of the Adare Trough. Zusammenfassung: Der Südliche Ozean zwischen dem nördlichen Viktorialand (Antarktis) und Australien ist durch dicht nebeneinander liegende NW-SE streichende intra-ozeanische Bruchzonen gekennzeichnet. Diese Bruchzonen verlaufen etwa parallel zu einem intrakontinentalen dextralen Blattverschiebungsgürtel, der die kontinentale Kruste des nördlichen Viktorialandes durchzieht und sich in das Rossmeer hinein fort zu setzen scheint. Um eine mögliche Korrelation zwischen tektonischen Elementen an Land und im ozeanischen Bereich zu prüfen, wurde daher eine kombinierte aerogeophysikalische und strukturgeologische Studie im weiteren Umfeld des Edisto und Tucker Inlet und im Seebereich nördlich von Cape Adare durchgeführt. Die strukturelle Analyse von Sprödflächen an Land und die aeromagnetische Befliegung im marinen Bereich deuten auf eine enge Beziehung terrestrischer Störungssysteme und mariner magnetischer Anomalien hin. Viele Störungen verlaufen etwa parallel zu den Hauptgletschern, was vermuten lässt, dass der Verlauf dieser Gletscher tektonisch beeinflusst ist. Es konnten zwei Hauptgruppen von Störungssystemen unterschieden werden. Eine erste Gruppe besteht überwiegend aus Blattverschiebungen und transtensionalen Störungen, eine zweite Gruppe aus vermutlich zumindest teilweise jüngeren Abschiebungen. Aufgrund von Überschneidungskriterien mit den neogenen Hallett Volcanics lassen diese Abschiebungen auf einen genetischen Zusammenhang zwischen vulkanischer und tektonischer Aktivität schließen. Die magnetischen Anomalien im marinen Bereich verlaufen in zwei fast senkrecht aufeinander stehenden Richtungen. NNW-SSE gerichtete Anomalien nordöstlich von Cape Adare stellen ozeanische Spreizungsmuster im Adare Trough dar. Anomalien des Adare Trough und der vulkanischen Adare Peninsula und ihrer nördlichen Verlängerung auf dem antarktischen Schelf verlaufen parallel zu etwa NNW-SSE gerichteten dextral-transtensionalen bis ____________

Thermotectonic and geomorphic evolution of Marie Byrd Land and the Pine Island Bay area

Due to extensive glacial cover, the evolution or the West Antarctic Rift System (WARS) and the pr... more Due to extensive glacial cover, the evolution or the West Antarctic Rift System (WARS) and the proto- Pacific margin of Gondwana are still poorly understood. Here we present the first low-temperature thermochronology data from eastern Marie Byrd Land and the Pine Island Bay area. The goal of our study is to decipher the long-term thermotectonic evolution of this area, infer its denudation history, and to provide estimates for paleotopography and potential links to the glaciation history. Our data show that during early and mid-Cretaceous subduction along the proto-Pacific margin, all of Marie Byrd Land and the Pine Island Bay area experienced rapid exhumation. This rapid exhumation continued for about 25 Myr after subduction stopped, presumably driven by tectonic denudation related to continental breakup between Zealandia and West Antarctica and rifting activity of the WARS. This late Cretaceous extension period was related to rapid topography reduction, as expressed by the formation of the West Antarctic erosion surface close to sea level, and was probably related to free-boundary gravitational collapse of the Gondwanide orogen. By ~60 Ma, rapid exhumation stopped, which we interpret as cessation of the first WARS rifting period. Cretaceous rapid exhumation was followed by very low exhumation rates throughout the Cenozoic, which we explain by tectonic quiescence and subdued topography. After ~30 Ma, and restricted to the western Pine Island Bay area, rapid exhumation resumed, presumably coeval with large-scale crustal tilting of the eastern Pine Island Bay area towards the Pine Island trough. We interpret this as indicating renewed activity of the WARS, (i) suggesting that Cenozoic rifting activity was much more localized than Cretaceous rifting, and (ii) corroborating previous assumptions that the WARS branches from the continental interior into the Amundsen Sea. Our structural model, based on the thermochronology data, kinematically links the rift branches reaching into the Bellingshausen and Amundsen Seas with the Byrd Subglacial Basin and the Bentley Subglacial Trench, requiring dextral transtension for the Bellingshausen Sea area and sinistral transtension for the Amundsen Sea area. Furthermore, our data suggest that enhanced denudation along the flanks of the Marie Byrd Land dome and thus presumably its uplift only started at ~20 Ma, that is, nearly 10 Ma later than previously assumed. The Marie Byrd Land dome is the only extensive part of continental West Antarctica elevated above sea level. Since the formation of a continental ice sheet requires a significant area of emergent land, our data imply that initiation of extensive glaciation of this part of West Antarctica may only have started since the early Miocene.

The analysis of numerous apatite fission track (AFT) data sets throughout the Transantarctic Moun... more The analysis of numerous apatite fission track (AFT) data sets throughout the Transantarctic Mountains reveals three episodes of upper crustal cooling since the Cretaceous. Traditional thinking presumes that this cooling was produced by uplift and denudation stages occurring in the Early Cretaceous, the Late Cretaceous, and the Cenozoic. However, diachronous paleotemperatures up to 400°C determined on Jurassic superficial rocks require substantial burial and thermal activity before a stable geothermal gradient was established during the Late Cretaceous. Therefore, an extensive sedimentary basin between Antarctica and Australia must have existed, likely due to continental rifting processes leading to Gondwana breakup and passive margin formation. Denudation-dominated cooling occurred only with the formation of the Cenozoic West Antarctic Rift System and the related uplift of the Transantarctic Mountains since ca. 55 Ma.

Phanerozoic Tectonic and Sedimentation History of the Arctic: Constraints From Deep‐Time Low‐Temperature Thermochronology Data of Ellesmere Island and Northwest Greenland

Tectonics

Episodic exhumation along the northern Canadian margin, with implications of the tectonic, geotectonic and environmental evolution of the Arctic from Paleocene to Oligocene times

EGU General Assembly Conference Abstracts, Apr 1, 2019

Geowissenschaftliche Polarforschung in Deutschland – globale Bedeutung und Perspektiven –

Polarforschung, 2015

Geochemical composition of bentonite layers and U-Pb ages of detrital zircons from the Paleogene Basilika Formation (Svalbard) and Mount Lawson Formation (Ellesmere Island)

Major and trace element composition as well as Sm-Nd isotopes of whole-rock samples and clay frac... more Major and trace element composition as well as Sm-Nd isotopes of whole-rock samples and clay fractions (<2 µm) of bentonite layers and U-Pb ages of detrital zircons from the Paleogene Basilika Formation (Svalbard) and Mount Lawson Formation (Ellesmere Island).

The rise of Kleinschmidt Bluffs (northern Victoria Land, Antarctica)

Eocene initiation of Ross Sea dextral seismogenic faulting and implications for East Antarctic neotectonics