New paleomagnetic data for the Triassic Guichon batholith of south-central British Columbia and their bearing on Terrane I tectonics

Abstract

The 198 Ma Guichon batholith outcrops in the southern end of the Intermontane Belt or composite Terrane I of the western North American Cordillera. Thermal demagnetization of specimens from 19 sites at 200, 450, and 560 °C isolates a stable primary component at 560 °C in 13 sites, giving a pole position of 347°W, 52°N (δ_p = 5°, δ_m = 9°). These data support earlier results obtained by the author that indicate the batholith has undergone a clockwise rotation about a vertical axis of ~43 ± 7°. They also show that the batholith has undergone northward motion of 13 ± 6°, which supports recent arguments that the terrane underwent 14 ± 2° of northward translation between Late Cretaceous and pre-Miocene time.