The Caledonides are a major orogenic belt that stretches from the Arctic, through Scandinavia, East Greenland, Britain and Ireland into the Atlantic coast of North America. Following the break-up of Rodinia, the Caledonides formed in the Palaeozoic by the drifting of various continents and their eventual aggregation in the Silurian and Devonian. The orogen subsequently fragmented during the opening of the Atlantic Ocean. This volume brings together 25 papers presenting the results of modern research that investigates the orogenic processes and the provenance of specific components of the belt. The contributions reflect different lines of research, linking traditional field studies with modern analytical techniques. In addition three overview papers summarize the main features of the belts in Scandinavia, Svalbard, East Greenland, Britain and Ireland, highlighting the advances made since the last major synthesis of the Scandinavian Caledonides 30 years ago, and discussing important open questions.

Worldwide, Neoproterozoic successions are major hydrocarbon producers. In North Africa, large basins with significant surface outcrops and thick sedimen-tary fills are widespread. These basins are now emerging as potential sources of hydrocarbons and are attracting interest both from geological researchers and the oil and gas industry. This volume focuses on recent developments in the understanding and correla-tion of North African basin fills and explores novel approaches to prospecting for source and reservoir rocks. The papers cover aspects of petroleum prospectivity and age-equivalent global petroleum systems, Neoproterozoic tectonics and pa-laeogeography, sequence stratigraphy, glacial events and global climatic models, faunal and floral evolution and the deposition of early source rocks. The broader aim is to compare with, and learn from, well-studied Neoproterozoic successions globally, including major environmental change, the emergence of life, the global carbon cycle and implications for hydrocarbon exploration.

"This Memoir focuses on 7 'turning points' that had specific and lasting impacts on Laurentian evolution: The Neoarchean, characterized by cratonization; the Paleoproterozoic and the initial assembly of Laurentia; the Mesoproterozoic southern margin of Laurentia; the Midcontinent rift and the Grenville orogeny; (5) the Neoproterozoic breakup of Rodinia; the mid-Paleozoic phases of the Appalachian-Caledonian orogen; and the Jurassic-Paleogene assembly of the North American Cordillerar"--

The solid rock mass of Sweden forms a natural field laboratory revealing insight into the westward growth and reworking of one of the planet’s ancient continental nuclei. Three major geological units are exposed in different parts of the country: the western part of the Fennoscandian Shield, mainly sedimentary rocks deposited on this crystalline rock mass and the Caledonide orogen. This volume synthesizes the tectonic evolution of Sweden over more than 2500 million years from the Neoarchean to the Neogene. Following an introduction describing the lithotectonic framework of the country and the organization of the volume, the tectonic evolution is addressed essentially chronologically. Different phases of intracratonic rifting, accretionary orogeny, continent-continent collisional orogeny and platformal sedimentation are identified. Sweden is one of Europe’s major suppliers of metals, and the country’s mineral resources are also presented in the context of the lithotectonic framework. Sweden: Lithotectonic Framework, Tectonic Evolution and Mineral Resources has been designed to interest a professional geoscientific audience and advanced students of Earth Sciences.

The 5-year Circum-Arctic Lithosphere Evolution (CALE) program developed new constraints on the tectonic history of the central Amerasia basin of the Arctic Ocean. This volume is the final synthesis of the CALE program, which brought together an international team of scientists to develop integrated, multi-disciplinary understanding of the region. This approach, based on the integration of much new geological and geophysical data from onshore and offshore , is necessary to advance our understanding of this basin. Regional onshore-to-offshore transects are central to the 18 papers in this volume. The diverse science supporting these crust-to-mantle regional transects includes structural, geochronological, isotopic, potential fields, and seismic reflection and refraction data. Four chapters present circum-Arctic investigations by the regional CALE teams. The final chapter addresses pan-Arctic themes. This unique collaboration, relying on new data and new syntheses of existing data sheds new light on the history of the Arctic Ocean.

Encyclopedia of Geology, Second Edition presents in six volumes state-of-the-art reviews on the various aspects of geologic research, all of which have moved on considerably since the writing of the first edition. New areas of discussion include extinctions, origins of life, plate tectonics and its influence on faunal provinces, new types of mineral and hydrocarbon deposits, new methods of dating rocks, and geological processes. Users will find this to be a fundamental resource for teachers and students of geology, as well as researchers and non-geology professionals seeking up-to-date reviews of geologic research. Provides a comprehensive and accessible one-stop shop for information on the subject of geology, explaining methodologies and technical jargon used in the field Highlights connections between geology and other physical and biological sciences, tackling research problems that span multiple fields Fills a critical gap of information in a field that has seen significant progress in past years Presents an ideal reference for a wide range of scientists in earth and environmental areas of study