Churchland Plutonic Suite
| Churchland Plutonic Suite | |
|---|---|
| Stratigraphic range: ~282 ± 6 Ma | |
 North Carolina formation ages. The black arrow points to the Churchland Plutonic Suite in light blue | |
| Type | Granite Pluton |
| Area | 126 square miles (330 km2) |
| Thickness | up to 6 miles (10 km) |
| Lithology | |
| Primary | Granite: Metacystic to equigranular. |
| Other | Grandodiorite, Biotite Monzogranite |
| Location | |
| Location | North Carolina |
| Coordinates | 36°01′49″N 80°06′11″W / 36.0304°N 80.1031°W |
| Region | Piedmont |
| Country | United States |
| Type section | |
| Named for | Churchland, North Carolina |
| Location | North Carolina |
| Coordinates | 35°47′15″N 80°25′05″W / 35.78750°N 80.41815°W |
| Approximate paleocoordinates | 13°37′47″N 2°26′21″E / 13.6297°N 2.4392°E |
The Churchland Plutonic Suite is a large granite body located in central North Carolina. Granites here date to the late Paleozoic as the supercontinent Pangea was in its compressional stage. This formation is also known as a post-metamorphic, Alleghanian-age granite plutons.[1] Magma generation was related to shear zone melt during the late Alleghenian Orogeny.
Geology
The Churchland Plutonic suite is located in central North Carolina. It dates back to ~282± 6 Ma, which places it at the end of the Artinskian. It is related to other intrusive suites in the area; namely the Landis, Mooresville, York, Clover, and the Rolesville plutons associated with the Charlotte Belt.[2]
The granitic rocks are classified as biotite monzogranite, typically porphyritic, but with fine-grained phases. It also has a weak flow foliation structure.[3] Other minerals include: epidote, potassium feldspar, muscovite, plagioclase feldspar, and quartz.[4]
Geological context
The Churchland Plutonic Suite's formation is tied to the late Alleghenian Orogeny. Magma generation was long (~45 Ma) and slow (~2 cubic kilometers, 1.2 cubic miles per million years). These intrusions formed a southwest to northeast trend line covering 10,500 square kilometres (4,050 mi2). Magma formed by juxtaposition of high temperature rocks against lower-temperature melting rocks, decompression, fluxing, or a combination of these as a result of either transpressional arching or faulting. This happened most often at shear zones. There is no evidence of magma being erupted at the surface.[5][6]
References
- ↑ Stamm, Nancy (28 August 2025). "Geolex — Churchland publications". ngmdb.usgs.gov. US Geological Survey. Retrieved 25 December 2025.
- ↑ Carpenter III, P. Albert (1995). "Potential Feldspar Resources in North-Central North Carolina". Deq NC. Raleigh, NC: US Geological Survey. Retrieved 26 December 2025.
- ↑ Moye, Robert (31 March 2023). "A geologic analysis of the Charlotte terrane from a metallogenic perspective and a proposed first-order stratigraphy" (PDF). Carolina Geological Society. Retrieved 31 December 2025.
- ↑ Monadjemi, Roya (12 May 2015). "A PETROGRAPHIC STUDY OF THE GREENSBORO, NORTH CAROLINA AREA" (PDF). Greensboro, NC: Department of Geology, Guilford College. Retrieved 31 December 2025.
- ↑ Speer, J. Alexander; McSween, Harry Y.; Gates, Alexander E. (May 1994). "Generation, Segregation, Ascent, and Emplacement of Alleghanian Plutons in the Southern Appalachians". The Journal of Geology. 102 (3): 249–267. doi:10.1086/629669. Retrieved 31 December 2025.
- ↑ Mueller, Paul; Heatherington, Ann; Foster, David; Wooden, Joseph (January 2011). "Alleghanian granites of the southern Appalachian orogen: keys to Pangean reconstructions". Gainsville, FL. Retrieved 31 December 2025.