Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Gravity Evidence For A Larger Limpopo Belt In Southern Africa And Geodynamic Implications, Rubeni T. Ranganai, Ali Basira H. Kampunzu, Estella A. Atekwana, B. K. Paya, J. G. King, D. I. Koosimile, Edgar H. Stettler

Geosciences and Geological and Petroleum Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

The Limpopo Belt of southern Africa is a Neoarchean orogenic belt located between two older Archean provinces, the Zimbabwe craton to the north and the Kaapvaal craton to the south. Previous studies considered the Limpopo Belt to be a linearly trending east-northeast belt with a width of ∼250 km and ∼600 km long. We provide evidence from gravity data constrained by seismic and geochronologic data suggesting that the Limpopo Belt is much larger than previously assumed and includes the Shashe Belt in Botswana, thus defining a southward convex orogenic arc sandwiched between the two cratons. The 2 Ga Magondi orogenic …