The Acadian Thermal History of the Merrimack Synclinorium in New Hampshire

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Abstract
The thermal history of the Acadian metamorphism of the Merrimack Synclinorium is examined to determine the conditions required for the high grade metamorphism of the region. Constraints are provided by metamorphic pressure estimates, by information on the erosional history, and by present day heat flow determinations in the Synclinorium. One-dimensional heat transfer calculations show that the high grade metamorphism could readily have been produced during thermal relaxation of the thickened continental crust under conditions of normal continental heat flow. More data on the rates of Paleozoic uplift and on the Pressure-Temperature-Time paths followed by these rocks are needed in order to place tighter constraints on the thermal history of the Acadian metamorphism. -from Author