From Gondwana rifting to Alpine orogeny: Detrital zircon geochronologic and provenance signals from the Kopet Dagh Basin (NE Iran)

The Kopet Dagh mountains in NE Iran exhibit a 7-km-thick continuous sedimentary sequence recording detritus from exposed surrounding terranes the last 175 Ma. This work presents multi-disciplinary geochronologic and provenance analysis an attempt to identify date major geologic events along northern segment of Tethys reconstruct regional tectonic history Gondwana-related rifting until Alpine orogeny. Sandstone framework, heavy mineral analysis, U-Pb dating detrital zircons, Hf-isotope ratio measurements on dated zircons Triassic Paleocene sandstones indicate three main that include Early Silurian intracontinental (opening Paleo-Tethys), Carboniferous back-arc basin (Aghdarband Complex), Late collisional post-collisional magmatism (Paleo-Tethys collision). Mineralogical age peak considerations was supplied south into extensional Basin during Middle Jurassic, while Cretaceous show signs increasing recycling.