Cambro-Ordovician orogenic magmatism in Northern Victoria Land

The Transantarctic Mountains expose the uplifted roots of the Ross- Delamerian orogenic system, that was active on the East Antarctic- Australia craton margin during Cambrian-Ordovician time. Granitoid magmas extensively intruded the Antarctic sector of the orogen , that results segmented in crustal sectors, structurally, chronologically and geochemically diverse.
Several studies carried out on the main intrusive complexes in this area allowed to constrain the petrology and chemical affinities of three main different magmatic suites defining different parallel belts within the Wilson Terrane: 1-a composite high-K calcalcaline suite ;2-a peraluminuos suite and 3-a metaluminous suite with shoshonitic affinity. Furthermore, recent advances in the geochronology of the main intrusive sequences of the Wilson Terrane provided data on the emplacement ages.
The field work on selected intrusions include collection of petrographic data at the macro scale and samples (stored in the Museo Nazionale dell’Antartide at Siena). Petrographic and mineral chemistry investigations as well as geochemical data for major and trace elements and isotopes have been carried out on selected intrusive rock samples of the different suites .
The main objective of the research team is to collect data for a better understanding of the tectono-metamorphic evolution of the basement and its relationship with the magmatic sequences of the Ross Orogen in the Wilson Terrane during the early Paleozoic and so to improve the knowledge of magma emplacement processes in orogenic belts, to evaluate the role of magmatism in structuring the crust in convergent to collisional settings.