A Field Guide to the Geology of Western Ireland: The Birth and Death of an Ocean

This book provides a comprehensive field guide to the Geology of Western Ireland, a classic site for studying the Neoproterozoic 'birth to the Devonian 'death of the Iapetus Ocean. It includes information on the region's rock record, lithologies, and processes, and is followed by nine chapters covering various topics such as the Laurentian basement, Ordovician Grampian Orogeny, Cambro-Ordovician subduction-accretion complex, Silurian successor basins, Devonian Granite batholiths, and post-orogenic Carboniferous cratonic sediments. Two final chapters summarize the current tectonic interpretation, areas for future research, and the extensive sources of geochemical and geophysical data.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 425 pages
Publication date: 17 July 2022
Publisher: Springer Nature Switzerland AG

This book is a comprehensive field guide that provides detailed itineraries and supporting data for exploring the Geology of Western Ireland, a renowned site for global geology. It facilitates research into the rock record of the Neoproterozoic period, which marked the birth to the Devonian period, the death of the Iapetus Ocean along the Laurentian (North American) margin. The region offers an incredible variety of lithologies and processes for study, including fluviatile to deep-sea sediments, layered ultramafic intrusions, zeolite to eclogite facies metamorphic assemblages, continental rifting, subduction processes, island arc evolution, arc-continent collision, Andean margin development, and continent-continent collision.

To aid in field trip planning and execution, an introduction to the geology of the region is followed by nine chapters. Each chapter covers the necessary background information, field itineraries, exercises, and points for debate. The topics covered include:

Laurentian basement and Neoproterozoic cover of North Mayo, Sligo, the Ox Mountains, and Connemara
Metamorphic nappes and syn-orogenic intrusions of the Ordovician Grampian Orogeny
Cambro-Ordovician subduction-accretion complex of Clew Bay
Obducted Ordovician fore-arc basin of South Mayo
Post-subduction flip late-Ordovician of South Connemara
Silurian successor basins deformed during the final closure of the Iapetus Ocean
Late to post-orogenic Devonian sediments
Devonian Granite batholiths
Post-orogenic Carboniferous cratonic sediments

Two final chapters summarize the current tectonic interpretation of the region, areas for future research, and the extensive sources of geochemical and geophysical data available for further exploration.

This book is an invaluable resource for geologists, researchers, and students interested in studying the Earth's geological history and the processes that have shaped its landscapes.

Weight: 652g
Dimension: 156 x 234 x 27 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9783030974787
Edition number: 1st ed. 2022