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Musgrave Province

The Musgrave Province is a Mesoproterozoic crystalline basement terrain that extends across the common borders of South Australian, Western Australian and Northern Territory.

 

Age

Sedimentation and Volcanism — Palaeoproterozoic to Mesoproterozoic (~1600 Ma and ~1300 Ma).

Granite (Pitjantjatjara Supersuite) intrusions and deformation by Musgravian Orogeny — ~1200 Ma.

Layered ultramafic–mafic–anorthosite intrusions (Giles Complex), Alcurra Dolerite and Angatja Granite suite — ~1070 Ma.

Regional dolerite (Amata Dolerite) dykes swarm (~800 Ma) equivalent to the Gairdner Dyke Swarm.

Sedimentation around province margins (Officer Basin) and internal grabens (Levenger and Moorilyanna) — ~820 to ~540 Ma.

Petermann Orogeny (~540 Ma) — crustal shortening with strain distribution varying from partitioning in thrust faults, to regional penetrative, to basement and cover coupling in thrust nappes.

Significant epidote–quartz alteration and faulting during Alice Springs Orogeny (~380 Ma).

 

Prospective commodities

Ni, Cu, PGE, Au, Pb, Zn, chromite, V, ilmenite, RRE, U, W, Sn, opal, diamonds, rubies, chrysoprase, magnesite, S.

 

Major exploration models

The following exploration models have the potential to be aplied to the Musgrave Province;

  • Ultramafic-hosted nickel sulphides and PGE
  • Stratiform chromite cumulates
  • Stratiform titaniferous magnetite cumulates
  • Laterite nickel deposits
  • VHMS in basement meta-volcanics
  • Sediment-hosted copper and zinc in basement metasediments
  • Diamonds in kimberlites along major structures

Summary Geology

The following table gives a brief description of the major geological events that occurred within the Musgrave Province.

 

 

Age

Comment

~1600 to ~1300 Ma

Protolith ages for felsic volcanics, granites and paragneisses (Birksgate Complex and Olia Gneiss).

~1200 to ~1170 Ma

Musgravian Orogeny

- Granulite to amphibolite facies metamorphism

- Kulgera Suite Granite emplacement

- Evidence for West-East faulting

~1080 to 1050 Ma

Major thermal event

- Giles Complex emplacement and eruption of the Tollu Group Volcanics (~1080 Ma)

- Angatja Granite emplacement (~1070 Ma)

- Emplacement of the Alcurra Dyke swarm

~800 Ma

Possible extensional event

- Emplacement of the Amata Dyke swarm

- Possible correlation with the Gairdner Dyke swarm during extension in the Gawler Craton

~550 Ma

Petermann Orogeny

- West-East trending high grade shear zones

- Juxtaposition of the Fregon and Mulga park subdomains (Woodroffe Thrust).

- Exhumation of deep crustal rocks

- Gneissic overprinting in the N.T. side of the Musgrave Province

~350 Ma

Alice Springs Orogeny

 

More information on Musgrave Province Geology.

 

More information on Musgrave Province Economic Potential.