SHRIMP U-Pb detrital zircon geochronology of Athabasca Group sandstones, northern Saskatchewan and Alberta
Citations Over Time
Abstract
Detrital zircon geochronology was conducted on five sandstone units from the Athabasca Group of northern Saskatchewan and Alberta using the SHRIMP II ion microprobe. In ascending stratigraphic order, the youngest zircons from the Fair Point Formation and from members B and D of the Manitou Falls Formation yielded maximum ages of deposition of 1810 ± 15 Ma, 1819 ± 21 Ma, and 1814 ± 23 Ma, respectively. The overlying Wolverine Point Formation yielded three zircons with a mean age of 1662 ± 17 Ma. Among the five samples studied, these zircons are the youngest encountered and provide the best constraint on the maximum age of the upper part of the Athabasca Group. The youngest zircons from the uppermost Douglas Formation range in age from 1775 to 1765 Ma. The key age modes identified from the five samples are 1780 Ma, 1850 Ma, 1900 Ma, 2530 Ma, 2580 Ma, 2610 Ma, and ca. 2700 Ma.