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PALEGEOGRAPHY AND PALEOZOIC STRATIGRAPHY OF YEMEN

By:

Abdullah Alqubaleeg201304210@kfupm.edu.sa

KFUPMEarth Science Department

Feb. 03, 2015

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Outline• Arabian Plate Paleogeography• Arabian Plate Paleo-climate• Major Paleozoic tectonic events on the Arabian Plate• Paleozoic Basins of Yemen• Paleozoic Stratigraphy of Yemen

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West Gondwana

East Gondwana

-144 Compiled by (Johnson, 1998)

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Arabian Plate Paleo-climatePaleo-Plate Positions

Early Palaeozoic

E-W

Late Precambrian

1st Glaciation, N-AP 2nd Glaciation, S-AP

Silurian-Late Carboniferous

Modified after Konert et.al, 2001

-147 (Haq & Al-Qahtani, 2005)

Major Paleozoic tectonic events on the Arabian Plate

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Basins of Yemen

(As-Saruri et al., 2010 )

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Paleozoic Stratigraphy of Yemen

(As-Saruri et al., 2010 )

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Formation Wajid Akbarah

Age Cambrian-Carboniferous?

?Lower Permian

Lithology Mainly Sandstone (Glacial Deposits)

Environment Fluvial Glacial

Similar deposits in South Arabia

SW Saudi Arabia:Wajid Sandstone

Oman : Alkhalata and Gharif formation

Saudi Arabia:Juwayl Member of Wajid Sandstone and Unayzah formation

Outcrop Location NW of Sana’a Basin NW of Sana’a Basin

Lower contact Uncon. With basement Uncon. With Wajid or Basement.

Upper contact Uncon. With Akbarah or or Mesozoic Sediments

Uncon. With Mesozoic Sediments

( Beydoun, 1998)

Pale

ozoi

c St

ratig

raph

y of

Yem

en

Surface section - North of Yemen Base-Top

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Formation Dibsiyah Qalibah Khusayyayn Juwayl

Age Cambrian-Ordovician

Silurian Devonian-Carboniferous

Upper Carb. - Lower Perm.

Lithology Sst, mic-congl, congl, thin Sh interbeds

Lower : Qusibah ShUpper:Sharorah Sd, Slst.

Sandstone Samdstone/ Sandy shale / (Glacial Deposits)

Environment Fluvial Cycle of Trans. & regression/Marine

Marginal Marine-shoreface/Fluvial

Glaciofluvial

Equivalent FM

SW Saudi Arabia:Dibsiyah lower part of Wajid

Saudi Arabia: Qalibah Gr (Qusibah Fm & Sharorah Fm)

Saudi Arabia:Huj Gr. (Tawil, Jawf, Jubah) and Berwath Fm.

N Yemen:Akbarah FmC & N Saudi Arabia:Unayzah Fm

Pal

eozo

ic

Stra

tigra

phy

of Y

emen

Subsurface Section- Rub’ Al-Khali (Southern Flank) Base-Top

( Beydoun, 1998)

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Conclusion• Yemen is a part of Arabian plate which was a part of Gondwana.• Yemen was affected by the second glaciation on AP, Late Permian.• Wajid and Akbarah FM are only the exposed Paleozoic formations

located in Sana’a Basin.• Subsurface Paleozoic formations appeared in the Rub’ Al-Khali Basins

include: Dibsiyah, Qalibah, Khusayyayn and Juwayl FMs.• Glacial deposits of late Permian occurred in Akbarah FM, Sana’a

Basin, and Jwayal FM in the Rub’ Al-Khali Basin. • Qalibah and Khusayyayn FMs were deposited in marginal

marine/marine environment.

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Thank you for listening

Yemen- Jabal an-Nabi Shu'aib, 3670m15° 16 45″ N, 43° 58 33″ E′ ′

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References• As-Saruri, M. A., Sorkhabi, R., & Baraba, R. (2013). Sedimentary basins of Yemen: their

tectonic development and lithostratigraphic cover. In Lithosphere Dynamics and Sedimentary Basins: The Arabian Plate and Analogues (pp. 361-373). Springer Berlin Heidelberg.

• Beydoun, Z. R. (1998). International lexicon of stratigraphy. Vol. 3. Asia: Fasc. 10b2. Republic of Yemen. Internat. Union of Geological Sciences, Internat. Commission on Stratigraphy.

• Johnson, P.S.(1998) Tectonic map of Saudi Arabia and adjacent areas. Deputy Ministry for Mineral Resources.

• Konert, G., Afifi, A. M., Al-Hajri, S. A., De Groot, K., Al Naim, A. A., & Droste, H. J. (2001). AAPG Memoir 74, Chapter 24: Paleozoic Stratigraphy and Hydrocarbon Habitat of the Arabian Plate.

• Haq, B. U., & Al-Qahtani, A. M. (2005). Phanerozoic cycles of sea-level change on the Arabian Platform. GeoArabia, 10(2), 127-160.