Ultrahigh-Pressure Metamorphic Rocks in the Dabieshan-Sulu Region of China

Recent discoveries of diamond and coesite in the ultrahigh-pressure (UHP) metamorphosed supracrustal rocks have provoked a challenge to geodynamic ideas. Chinese geologists have been taking an active role. The Dabieshan-Sulu region, a large and exposed UHP belt, has attracted international attention. This text describes many aspects of the UHP rocks in the Dabieshan-Sulu region, including the geotectonic setting, mode of occurrence, mineralogy and petrology, isotope chronology, major and trace element chemistry, and metamorphic PTt path. The possible geodynamic mechanisms involved in the deep subduction and rapid exhumation of UHP rocks are also discussed.