Craton

A craton (of the Greek kratos - force) is an old element of the continental Croûte which survived the fusion and the separation of the Continent S and the Supercontinent S since at least 500 million years. One finds in general cratons them inside the continents. They are made of a magmatic crust of Roche like the Granite attached to a section of the higher coat. A craton can extend until a 200 km depth. Some let us cratons consist of cratons smaller and older (example: the craton of Wyoming belongs to the North-American craton).

Let us cratons are classified in three categories:

  • Archons, composed of rocks of the Archaean , more than 2,5 billion years).
  • Protons, composed of rocks of the Protérozoïque old or average, of more than 1,6 billion years.
  • Tectons, composed of rocks of the Néoprotérozoïque, old among 1,6 billion and 800 million years.

As the minerals such as the noble metals and the Diamant S of the earth's crust tend to separate with time, let us cratons them oldest are of a great interest for the mining companies. Let us cratons are still to date discovered by the geological prospection.

List

Cratons having a name, classified by continents:

  • Australia :

    • Craton d' Altjawarra
    • central Craton
    • Craton de Curnamona (Australia of the South)
    • Craton de Gawler (center of Australia of the South)
    • Craton de Pilbara (Australia Western)
    • Craton d' Yilgarn (Australia Western)

  • Americas :

    • Amazonian Craton:
      • Guianese Shield
    • Craton de Sao Francisco (Brazil)
    • Craton of Rio of Plata
    • North-American Craton:
      • Canadian Shield
      • Craton of the slaves (North-western of Canada)
      • higher Craton (Canada)
      • Craton of North-Atlantic Wyoming
      • Craton (north-western of Scotland, south of Greenland (province of dwarf) and coast-is of Labrador)

  • Africa :

    • Arab Craton
    • Craton of Congo:
      • Block Bangweulu (Zambia)
      • Tanzanian Craton
      • Craton of Kasaï
      • Craton de Tete
    • Craton of Kalahari:
      • Craton of Kaapvaal (South Africa)
      • Craton of Zimbabwe
    • Be-Saharan Craton (Libya, Sudan, Egypt)
    • West African Craton
      • Craton of the Sahara (Algeria)

  • Eurasia :

    • Eastern-European Craton:
      • Shield of the Baltic
      • Craton de Karélie (Finland)
      • Craton de Sarmatie (Ukraine)
      • Craton the Volga-Ural (Russia)
    • Craton de Midland (England and Wales)
    • Siberian Craton
    • Craton of Eastern China
    • Craton of septentrional China
    • Craton sino-Korean (northern of China)
    • Craton de Tarim (China)
    • Craton of Yangtze (China of the South)
    • Indian Craton
      • Craton de Dharwar (India)

  • the Antarctic :

    • Craton of the Antarctic Eastern

Be-X-old: Кратон

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