On the vertical growth of continents in deep depressions of the Earth’s peridotite mantle

• Published in: LITHOSPHERE (Russia)
• Main Author: A. M. Zhirnov
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English; Russian
• Published: A.N. Zavaritsky Institute of Geology and Geochemistry 2020
• Subjects: mantle surface; three-beam cavity; continental crust; vertical growth; north megacontinent; Engineering geology. Rock mechanics. Soil mechanics. Underground construction; TA703-712; Antarc*; Antarctica
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.24930/1681-9004-2020-20-5-727-745; https://doaj.org/article/b256d53c7001442daf46587c117d5759

Research subject. The geological structure and evolution of the Earth’s continents.Methods. This article is based on a long-term study and review of geological, geophysical and bathymetric published data, as well as on an analysis of the major geological discoveries of the 20th century.Results and conclusions. It is established that all the continents on the Earth, except for Antarctica, constitute a single Northen megamaterik, which was being formed during a prolonged period of time (4.4 billion years) in a deep three-beam cavity on the surface of the peridotite mantle. The ancient Hadean– Archean basement of the megacontinent was being formed during the period of 3 billion years, which comprises about 70% of the Earth’s geological history. In the Late Proterozoic and Phanerozoic, periodically formed local depressions were flooded with sedimentary material leading to the formation of sedimentary basins and folded rock structures. As a result, the thickness of the megacontinent’s crust steadily increased reaching a large size of 15–40 or 60–70 km. During this period, the primary oceanic (peridotite) crust with a thickness of 3–5 km remained unchanged until the Mesozoic–Cenozoic, when it was covered with a layer of younger basalts and loose rock sediments with a thickness of 1–2 km.