Deep burial of coal-bearing strata, Anthracite region, Pennsylvania: Sedimentation or tectonics?

Research Article| July 01, 1986 Deep burial of coal-bearing strata, Anthracite region, Pennsylvania: Sedimentation or tectonics? Jeffrey Ross Levine Jeffrey Ross Levine 1Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania 16802 Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Author and Article Information Jeffrey Ross Levine 1Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania 16802 Publisher: Geological Society of America First Online: 01 Jun 2017 Online ISSN: 1943-2682 Print ISSN: 0091-7613 Geological Society of America Geology (1986) 14 (7): 577–580. https://doi.org/10.1130/0091-7613(1986)14<577:DBOCSA>2.0.CO;2 Article history First Online: 01 Jun 2017 Cite View This Citation Add to Citation Manager Share Icon Share Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email Permissions Search Site Citation Jeffrey Ross Levine; Deep burial of coal-bearing strata, Anthracite region, Pennsylvania: Sedimentation or tectonics?. Geology 1986;; 14 (7): 577–580. doi: https://doi.org/10.1130/0091-7613(1986)14<577:DBOCSA>2.0.CO;2 Download citation file: Ris (Zotero) Refmanager EasyBib Bookends Mendeley Papers EndNote RefWorks BibTex toolbar search Search Dropdown Menu toolbar search search input Search input auto suggest filter your search All ContentBy SocietyGeology Search Advanced Search Abstract Recent studies of vitrinite reflectance, sedimentary compaction, and fluid inclusions indicate that coal-bearing strata of the Pennsylvania Anthacite region were once buried at depths ranging from 6 to as much as 9 km. Vitrinite reflectance anisotropy suggests that anthracite rank was attained by normal geothermal heating largely prior to and during Alleghanian folding. Paleomagnetic ages for the folding and paleobotanical ages of the youngest extant sediments delimit the maximum burial and deformation to a relatively short interval (285 to 270 Ma). In comparison with typical molasse sequences, the implied thicknesses and rates of deposition are excessive, suggesting that much of the former overburden was emplaced tectonically or by extremely rapid sedimentation.The total implied thickness (about 20 km) of Paleozoic strata in the region is abnormally large for an epicontinental basin. An inferred body of mafic rock embedded in the Precambrian basement, evidenced by the Scranton gravity high (SGH), may have influenced crustal subsidence, especially during the Allegheny orogeny, and produced a large downwarp accounting for the high coal rank. The fact that isorank contours, Paleozoic sediment isopach contours, and a large structural sag all lie roughly parallel to the boundaries of the SGH, oblique to the principal Alleghanian fold trend, lends support to this idea. First Page Preview Close Modal You do not have access to this content, please speak to your institutional administrator if you feel you should have access.