Paleomagnetism of parts of the Late Triassic diabase dike system associated with the trans-New Brunswick aeromagnetic lineament

A paleomagnetic study was conducted on dike samples taken from three widely separated localities along the northeasterly trending Caraquet dike system (New Brunswick) in order to define their age relationship. This dike system is recognized on the basis of a well defined aeromagnetic lineament. Stable magnetization directions were isolated after alternating field (15–40 mT) and thermal (300–550 °C) treatments of the samples taken from the three localities: C (353°, +56°), N (353°, +50°), and T (14°, +37°). The virtual pole derived from dike T (82°E, 62°N) agrees well with previously determined Late Triassic – Early Jurassic (200–190 Ma) poles for the Appalachians. On the other hand, the other two virtual pole positions from dikes C (143°E, 78°N) and N (133°E, 74°N) fall in the general area of average paleopoles for the Middle–Late Jurassic (180–170 Ma) age. The possibility that the dike at T differs in age from that of the dikes at localities C and N by at least 20 Ma is suggested. In the absence of relia...