Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

The Paleomagnetism Of The Stewart’S Point And Anchor Bay Members Of The Point Arena Terrane, Northern California, Kirk Heim

WWU Graduate School Collection

Paleomagnetic investigation of Upper Cretaceous sedimentary strata of the Point Arena terrane has shown the rocks to be remagnetized. The study was initially intended to reconstruct the Cretaceous paleogeography of the Point Arena terrane and resolve conflicting translation estimates, but became one of remagnetization. Samples studied are from the Upper Cretaceous Stewart’s Point member and the Late Cretaceous Anchor Bay Member of the Gualala formation. Specimens surviving the remagnetization have a mean second-removed direction that indicates approximately 20 degrees vertical rotation from the expected direction of the Cretaceous magnetic field at the locality of the Point Arena terrane. The loss …