古生代〜中生代の"アジア大陸"と"日本列島"  [in Japanese] "Asia" and the "Japanese Islands" in Paleo-Mesozoic time  [in Japanese]

岩質, 古生物地理および剪断帯の分布と運動像から, 東アジアの各地帯とオーストラリアとの中〜古生代の運動史を次の様に考えた。(1)カンブリア-オルドビス紀の各地帯は熱帯〜亜熱帯区に位置し, オルドビス紀には, 筆石の太平洋区と大西洋区とが識別される。(2)各地帯の上部オルドビス〜デボン系は, サンゴ礁の形成可能な熱帯地域にほぼ東西に配列する, 火山弧近辺の堆積物からなる。(3)上記火山弧列は, 後期デボン紀〜ペルム紀に時計回り回転し, オーストラリアは南極域へ, アンガラ剛塊は北半球の温帯域へ移動した。北中国地塊, 南中国地塊および日本は, 熱帯のカタイシア植物区にとどまった。(4)三畳紀には南北中国地塊の東部が衝突し, 朝鮮半島の臨津江ナップが形成された。(5)南中国地塊は北中国地塊と癒合した後, モンゴル-オホーツク海を消滅させつつ北上し, 前期白亜紀までにはアンガラ剛塊と衝突した。上記の運動の中での, 日本の位置づけも議論した。

Paleozoic to Mesozoic movements of East, Asian tectonic units and Australia are discussed in the light of lithology, paleobiogeography, and distribution and kinematics of shear zones. In Cambrian time, East Asian tectonic units and Australia occupied the Redlichia trilobite faunal province, although some minor faunal provinciality, followed by the Ordovician graptolite provinciality, did exist. Late Ordovician to Devonian coral reef limestone in these units was deposited in a tropical region along a chain of volcanic arcs, the Mongol-Jilin-Japan and east Australian volcanic Arcs. The chain of arcs likely rotated clockwise in Late Devonian to Permian time; Australia there by moved to the southern polar Gondwana province, the Angara Craton and the most part of the Mongol-Jilin-Japan arc moved to the northern temperate to polar Angara Province, and the North China and South China Blocks and Japan stayed in the tropical Cathaysian province. The Mongol-Jilin-Japan arc likely amalgamated with the North China Block in Late Permian time. Eastern parts of the North China and South China Blocks likely collided with each other in Triassic time, thrusting up the Imjingang Nappe with affinities of South China onto eastern most part of the North China Block. Upper Triassic terrigenous strata in Korea and South China Block yield similar flora. The amalgamation of the North China and South China Blocks completed in Jurassic time. The amalgamated blocks collided with the Angara Craton in Late Jurassic to Early Cretaceous time, consuming the Mongol-Okhotsk Oceanin between, and forming a major dextral shear zone along their eastern margin. The dextral shearing likely caused a divergence of the Late Jurassic to Early Cretaceous paleobiogeographical setting between continental and oceanward sides of Japan. Cretaceous major sinistral movement along the eastern margin of the above amalgalnated blocks and cratons finally created the geologic framework for present-day Japan.