• The Journal of the Petrological Society of Korea
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• v.21 no.2
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• pp.89-112
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• 2012

The Korean Peninsula consists of three Precambrian blocks: Nangrim, Gyeonggi and Yeongnam massifs. Here we revisited previous stratigraphic relationships, largely based on new geochronologic data, and investigated the crustal evolution history of the Precambrian massifs. The Precambrian strata have been usually divided into lower crystalline basements and upper supracrustal rocks. The former has been considered as Archean or Paleoproterozoic in age, whereas the latter as Paleoproterozoic or later. However, both are revealed as the Paleoproterozoic (2.3-1.8 Ga) strata as a whole, and Archean strata are very limited in the Korean Peninsula. These make the previous stratigraphic system wrong and require reconsideration. The oldest age of the basement rocks can be dated as old as Paleoarchean, suggested by the occurrence of ~3.6 Ga inherited zircon. However, most of crust-forming materials were extracted from mantle around ~2.7 Ga, and produced major portions of crust materials at ~2.5 Ga, which make each massif a discrete continental mass. After that, all the massifs belonged to continental margin orogen during the Paleoproterozoic time, and experienced repeated intracrustal differentiation. After the final cratonization occurring at ~1.9-1.8 Ga, they were stabilized as continental platforms. The Nangrim and Gyeonggi massif included local sedimentary deposition as well as igneous activity during Meso-to Neoproterozoic, but the Yeongnam massif remained stable before the development of Paleozoic basin.

• Economic and Environmental Geology
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• v.52 no.6
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• pp.555-560
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• 2019

One-dimensional shear wave velocity structure of North Korea is constrained using short (2-sec) to long period (30-sec) Rayleigh waves generated from four seismic events in China. Rayleigh waves are well recorded at the five broadband seismic stations (BRD, SNU, CHNB, YKB, KSA) which are located near to the border between North and South Korea. Group velocities of fundamental-mode Rayleigh waves are estimated with the Multiple Filter Analysis and refined by using the Phase Matched Filter. Average group velocity dispersion curve ranging from 2.9 to 3.2 km/s, is inverted to constrain the shear wave velocity structures. Relatively low group velocity dispersion curves along the path between the events to BRD at period from 4 to 6 seconds may correspond to the sedimentary sequence of the West Korea Bay Basin (WKBB) in the Yellow Sea. The low velocity zone in deep layers (14-20 km) may be related to the deep sedimentary structure in Pyongnam basin. The fast shear wave velocity structure from the surface to the depth of 14 km is consistent with the existence of metamorphic rocks and igneous bodies in Nangrim massif and Pyongnam basin.

• The Journal of the Petrological Society of Korea
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• v.18 no.2
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• pp.171-179
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• 2009

LA-ICP-MS U-Pb zircon age was determined from the granite gneiss from Jeungsan-Pyeongwon area located to the west of Pyeongan Basin, North Korea, yielding concordant age of $1,873{\pm}19(2{\sigma})$Ma interpreted as Paleoproterozoic granitic magmatism. Considering relatively precise data reported recently using SHRIMP and LA-ICP-MS, ages around 1,870 Ma have been most frequently reported from Precambrian basement rocks of Korean peninsula, including Yeongnam, Gyeonggi, and Nangnim massifs altogether. Geologic events of this period are interpreted as not only granitic magmatism but also hightemperature regional metamorphism depending on their localities. The magmatic and regional metamorphic events of similar periods have also been reported from neighboring cratons of both North China and South China. Therefore, we need more data and efforts to decipher correlation between Precambrian basements between Korea and China.

• The Journal of the Petrological Society of Korea
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• v.20 no.2
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• pp.99-114
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• 2011

Precambrian gneiss complex in the Pyeongchang-Wonju area, which lies west of the Paleozoic sedimentary basin of the Yeongwol-Taebaek area, is being considered as a part of the Gyeonggi massif, but its ages of formation and metamorphic events are not well defined yet. In this study, SHRIMP zircon U-Pb ages were determined from the gneiss complex in the area, We obtained the discrete ages of magmatic (ca. 1960 Ma) and metamorphic (ca. 1860 Ma) events through the interpretation of the SHRIMP data based on the internal structures of zircons. These are almost the same to the ages of main intrusion and metamorphism reported from the Precambrian basements of Gyeonggi, Yeongnam and Nangnim massifs of the Korean Peninsula, Ages of 3200~3300 Ma, 2900 Ma, 2660 Ma, 2430 Ma, 2260 Ma, and 2080~2070 Ma obtained from inherited cores of studied zircons are also very similar to the frequently reported ages from the basement rocks of the Gyeonggi and Yeongnam massifs, Lower intercept age of about 270 Ma calculated from the rim data seems to indicate that the study area suffered from a late Paleozoic metamorphism (Okcheon Orogeny), but we need more reasonable and sufficient data to confirm it. According to the results of this study, it is suggested that the Bangnim group unconformably overlying the gneiss complex was deposited after the Paleoproterozoic granitic magmatism (ca. 1960 Ma) and metamorphism (ca. 1860 Ma).