728:
19:
87:
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500:
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27:
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196:. Taken together, they are the remains of magma intrusions metamorphosed to granulite grade. The second unit contains dark gneiss and aluminium-rich granulite, which may have originated from sediments, along with metadolerite dikes. The metamorphism and deformation that affected both units likely happened 2.8 billion years ago.
282:
2.9 billion years ago and contain charnockitic dolerite dikes, with isoclinal folding of the rock. After the Watian orogeny, volcanic and sedimentary rocks in what is now northeast DRC metamorphosed into the
Western Gray Gneissic Group with biotite,
534:) and often recharge rapidly. The Lubumbashi dolomites in southern Katanaga can be highly productive, although the presence of schist and gypsum in the carbonates sometimes results in high mineralization. Three main aquifers in the Watsa area in
636:
shut down in 1993, although feasibility studies indicated potential for producing up to 200,000 tons of copper a year prompting the possibility that it might be reopened. Some mines were shut down even earlier, such as a manganese mine in
275:
structure in northern DRC. The different gneisses probably began to form 3.5 billion years ago from oceanic source material and were later intruded by tonalite around 3.41 billion years ago.
507:
The hydrogeology of DRC is poorly researched, although individual areas have been studied since the 1950s. Alluvial sand and gravel aquifers are common throughout the country. One unit in
1306:
597:
hinged on the mining industry, particularly in colonial times and immediately after independence. However, Congolese metal mining virtually collapsed as a result of the
1207:
594:
231:
and amphibolite-rich types, cut by veins of pink, potassic migmatite. The
Chaillu Massif granitoids are 2.7 billion years old and engulfed pre-existing
1122:
962:
733:
137:
In Kasai, the metamorphic basement rocks of the
Angolan Shield are bounded by a fault at 4 degrees south latitude, with underlying poorly exposed
669:
when refined. With soaring demand for tantalum capacitors in cellphones, computers and other electronics, prices of the metal increased rapidly.
306:, talc schist poor in quartz and chlorite schist. The Kibalian Greenstone Belt appears at surface level to be separate belts, divided up by the
899:
519:
in southeast Kasai, in sandy loam and soft sandstone has poor recharge and transmissivity but sustains the baseflow of many different streams.
480:, the fracture pattern changed to northeast-southwest, building up a chain of volcanic mountains formed from potassic, undersaturated lava.
982:
741:
362:
1.3 to 1.1 billion years ago. Beginning 875 million years ago, up to 10 kilometers of sediment deposited in rift basins and sag basins in
684:, although many of these reserves are becoming depleted. One third of the DRC's diamonds are smuggled out of the country every year.
181:
rocks in the Kasai-Lomami group. Geologists estimate that the Kanda Kanda gneisses are formed between 3.4 and 2.82 billion years ago.
831:
476:, east of the current rift is 14 million years old. Alkaline basalts erupted from 13 million to nine million years ago. In the late
628:
Political unrest and obsolete equipment caused a precipitous drop in gold production. In the early 1990s, many large mines closed.
310:, but geologists believe it is actually a continuous greenstone belt with mafic and intermediate volcanic rocks in the west and
267:
at the border with the
Central African Republic. Out of four named types of gneiss, the Bomu gneiss, rich in amphibolite and
613:, with 12% of the world's copper and half of all cobalt reserves. Within the polymetallic metallogenic province, there are
1233:
997:
1276:
343:
515:
is 120 metres (390 ft) thick, recharging rapidly from rainfall and river water. A large aquifer underlying the
892:
307:
1280:
150:
625:
and chlorine oxides. DRC has 3.1 million tons out of the 4.8 million tons of cobalt reserves in the copperbelt.
248:
223:. The massif has a north-south foliation and two generations of granitoids. Gray granodiorite shifts to quartz,
58:: a stable section of ancient continental crust, deformed and influenced by several different mountain building
1037:
461:
118:
63:
680:
DRC also has large diamond deposits, mainly extracted through artisanal mining of alluvium near Mbuji-Mayi in
456:
After a long period of relative tectonic quiet, volcanism started in the geologically recent past of the late
256:
405:
fossils. Some examples include the dolomitic shales, conglomerates, quartzites, siltstones and shales of the
252:
1272:
1147:
1137:
942:
695:
598:
406:
379:
244:
1152:
1042:
972:
311:
161:. Faults are believed to separate these rocks from the Kanda Kanda gneisses, which contain lenses of pink
762:
1241:
1212:
1132:
1097:
1082:
1067:
1022:
957:
885:
699:
410:
1263:
393:. Away from the mobile belts, the Congo Craton has large sedimentary rock formations leftover from the
1237:
351:
259:
in the east formed between 3.2 and 2.6 billion years ago. The Bomu
Gneissic Complex outcrops near the
1087:
516:
359:
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54:) is extremely old, on the order of several billion years for many rocks. The country spans the
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in the east. Granitoid rocks are the most common in northeastern DRC, probably formed from
18:
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967:
606:
450:
446:
363:
355:
347:
573:
Mining in southern provinces like
Katanga has seriously polluted some of DRC's aquifers.
719:
681:
650:
389:
The sediments in
Katanga metamorphosed to greenschist and amphibolite grade during the
383:
339:
335:
243:
In northeastern DRC, Archean gneisses and granite-greenstones terranes are common. The
212:
110:
106:
86:
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in the east. The country's complicated tectonic past have yielded large deposits of
713:
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Granulite rocks in the same region as the West Nile
Gneissic Complex pre-date the
499:
465:
193:
189:
170:
154:
146:
126:
491:
in DRC, the World Impact Crater list by Anna
Mikheeva lists it as "potential".
709:
633:
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areas associated with the different orogenies deep in the past, which include
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264:
260:
687:
662:
658:
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563:
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315:
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209:
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events, sedimentation, volcanism and the geologically recent effects of the
819:
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shutdown the
Benguela railroad used to export ore. Coal production at the
666:
477:
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422:
394:
303:
299:
268:
251:
basement gneiss rocks are 3.5 billion year old, while the more scattered
162:
71:
638:
484:
367:
272:
228:
224:
94:
59:
868:
820:
The Complete Catalog of the Earth's Impact structures by Anna Mikheeva
370:, overlain by carbonaceous shales, iron formations and the remains of
113:
of the West Congolian mobile belt in the northwest and as granite and
26:
871:
Democratic Republic of the Congo National Investment Promotion Agency
654:
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527:
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in the southeast or the quartzites and carbonate assemblages of the
295:
2.68 billion years ago gave these rocks a northeast plunging fold.
618:
580:
545:
526:
related Mesozoic-Paleozoic sandstones (which are significant near
498:
382:
starts off with glacial sedimentary rocks from the Neoproterozoic
298:
The Ganguan Greenstone Belt is 3.2 billion years old and contains
220:
204:
The West Congolian mobile belt became a foreland basin during the
185:
85:
25:
17:
559:
558:
in January, 2002, killed 45 people in the major eastern city of
67:
881:
570:
on November 27, 2006 did not result in significant fatalities.
621:
and vein deposits with copper-cobalt and zinc-lead sulfides,
425:
left the basin to fill with river and lake sediments in the
791:
789:
562:
and lava flows destroyed the city's airport flowing toward
149:. The oldest rocks in the DRC are the 3.4 billion year old
145:
and overlying rocks from the past 541 million years of the
554:
Eastern DRC has several active volcanoes. The eruption of
538:
are in fractured Precambrian crystalline basement rock.
366:. In Katanga, the bottom of the sedimentary sequence is
449:, along with alluvial diamonds at its base, suggesting
346:. The Lufilian Arc separates the Congo Craton from the
22:
Topographic map of the Democratic Republic of the Congo
522:
Other aquifers are situated in Cretaceous sandstones,
445:
preserves fossilized freshwater fish and dates to the
421:
Downwarping of the crust of the Congo Craton in the
184:
The Kasai-Lomami group has two rock units. One is a
1221:
1196:
915:
605:hosts the famous copperbelt region that spans from
1307:Geology of the Democratic Republic of the Congo
673:, often associated with rebels involved in the
464:, at the same time that eruptions began in the
354:and overprints alignments in the rock from the
334:, now located between central Zambia and DRC's
36:geology of the Democratic Republic of the Congo
832:"Hydrogeology of Democratic Republic of Congo"
153:, which contains pegmatites, metamorphosed to
82:Stratigraphy, tectonics & geologic History
893:
90:Map of Western Gondwana with the Congo Craton
8:
595:economy of the Democratic Republic of Congo
900:
886:
878:
413:in the north, formed from stromatolites.
200:Foreland basin: West Congolian mobile belt
677:has arisen to meet international demand.
632:, a copper, zinc and germanium mine near
417:Mesozoic and Cenozoic (251 Ma to present)
169:grade metamorphism and originating from
856:
844:
807:
795:
780:
653:has been curtailed by ethnic conflicts.
753:
734:Democratic Republic of the Congo portal
665:is common in eastern DRC, which yields
386:event followed by a cap of carbonates.
30:Mount Stanley on the border with Uganda
7:
742:Geology of the Republic of the Congo
869:https://www.investindrc.cd/en/Mines
338:formed in an extension zone in the
483:The Wembo-Nyama ring structure in
14:
1208:Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic
978:Democratic Republic of the Congo
726:
712:
344:Damara-Lufilian-Zambezi orogeny
326:Neoproterozoic (1 Ga to 542 Ma)
641:closed in the 1970s after the
1:
165:gneiss, probably formed near
78:and other valuable minerals.
834:. British Geological Survey.
550:Nyiragongo lava lake in 2005
308:Upper Congo Granitoid Massif
460:in the Western Rift of the
151:Upper Luanyi granite gneiss
101:are exposed as part of the
1323:
770:. Springer. p. 78–80.
764:Geological Atlas of Africa
271:is the largest group in a
249:West Nile Gneissic Complex
188:unit with gabbro, norite,
117:spanning into neighboring
761:Schluter, Thomas (2006).
963:Central African Republic
577:Natural resource geology
462:East African Rift System
257:Kibalian Greenstone Belt
119:Central African Republic
64:East African Rift System
453:eruptions at the time.
253:Ganguan Greenstone Belt
599:Second Congo Civil War
590:
551:
504:
312:banded iron formations
239:Northeast Congo Craton
91:
31:
23:
1123:SĂŁo TomĂ© and PrĂncipe
983:Republic of the Congo
588:Photo by Rob Lavinsky
584:
549:
502:
407:Mbuyi Mayi Supergroup
380:Kundelungu Supergroup
245:Bomu Gneissic Complex
89:
29:
21:
585:Diamond from the DRC
255:in the west and the
1198:States with limited
472:at the base of the
391:Pan-African orogeny
302:quartzites, quartz
206:Pan-African orogeny
909:Geology of Africa
593:Historically, the
591:
566:. The eruption of
552:
505:
503:Zongo falls in DRC
411:Lindian Supergroup
215:spanning into the
159:metamorphic facies
92:
32:
24:
1294:
1293:
1225:other territories
998:Equatorial Guinea
643:Angolan Civil War
568:Mount Nyamulagira
536:Oriental Province
372:pyroclastic flows
291:. The subsequent
217:Republic of Congo
1314:
1286:
1285:(United Kingdom)
1281:Tristan da Cunha
1277:Ascension Island
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1223:Dependencies and
916:Sovereign states
902:
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879:
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859:, p. 81-82.
854:
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805:
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671:Artisanal mining
589:
556:Mount Nyiragongo
513:Cuvette Centrale
431:Early Cretaceous
378:. The overlying
352:Bangweulu Craton
235:and greenstone.
115:greenstone belts
97:terranes in the
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542:Natural hazards
517:Batekes Plateau
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451:kimberlite pipe
447:Late Cretaceous
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360:Irumide orogeny
356:Kibaran orogeny
348:Kalahari Craton
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720:Geology portal
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682:Kasai Province
651:Shaba Province
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487:is a possible
474:Virunga Massif
435:Lualaba Series
433:, forming the
418:
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384:Snowball Earth
340:Neoproterozoic
336:Shaba Province
327:
324:
280:Watian orogeny
240:
237:
213:Chaillu Massif
208:and forms the
201:
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133:Angolan Shield
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107:Kasai Province
103:Angolan Shield
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857:Schluter 2006
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675:Kivu conflict
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489:impact crater
486:
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468:. The oldest
467:
463:
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443:Kwanga Series
440:
439:Kamina Series
436:
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428:
427:Late Jurassic
424:
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376:Mwashya Group
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342:, during the
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52:Belgian Congo
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1273:Saint Helena
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1148:South Africa
1138:Sierra Leone
977:
943:Burkina Faso
864:
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826:
815:
803:
776:
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700:Haut-Katanga
686:
679:
630:Kipushi Mine
627:
623:noble metals
603:Lufilian Arc
592:
572:
553:
524:Cape orogeny
521:
506:
495:Hydrogeology
482:
455:
420:
399:stromatolite
388:
332:Lufilian Arc
329:
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99:Congo Craton
93:
56:Congo Craton
51:
47:
43:
39:
35:
33:
15:
1200:recognition
1153:South Sudan
1043:Ivory Coast
702:provinces.
657:, a mix of
466:Kenyan Rift
194:anorthosite
190:amphibolite
171:charnockite
155:amphibolite
147:Phanerozoic
127:South Sudan
46:, formerly
1255:(Portugal)
1213:Somaliland
1133:Seychelles
1098:Mozambique
1083:Mauritania
1068:Madagascar
1023:The Gambia
958:Cape Verde
748:References
690:occurs in
647:Luena Mine
634:Lubumbashi
615:stratiform
320:tonalities
285:hornblende
265:Uele River
261:Bomu River
1088:Mauritius
688:Limestone
663:tantalite
659:columbite
564:Lake Kivu
532:Kisangani
403:acritarch
316:monzonite
289:microlite
210:granitoid
167:granulite
139:migmatite
1301:Category
1279: /
1275: /
1268:(France)
1262: /
1240: /
1236: /
1188:Zimbabwe
1163:Tanzania
1013:Ethiopia
1008:Eswatini
988:Djibouti
953:Cameroon
938:Botswana
706:See also
696:Équateur
667:tantalum
509:Oubangui
478:Pliocene
458:Cenozoic
423:Mesozoic
395:molasses
358:and the
350:and the
304:phyllite
300:sericite
269:pyroxene
263:and the
247:and the
219:through
163:alaskite
111:foreland
72:diamonds
1264:RĂ©union
1260:Mayotte
1251:Madeira
1246:(Spain)
1242:Melilla
1173:Tunisia
1143:Somalia
1128:Senegal
1113:Nigeria
1103:Namibia
1093:Morocco
1058:Liberia
1053:Lesotho
1003:Eritrea
973:Comoros
948:Burundi
923:Algeria
639:Kisenge
607:Katanga
485:Omeonga
374:in the
368:breccia
364:Katanga
273:synform
229:biotite
225:diorite
95:Archean
60:orogeny
1283:
1266:
1253:
1183:Zambia
1178:Uganda
1118:Rwanda
1073:Malawi
1033:Guinea
928:Angola
655:Coltan
611:Zambia
601:. The
528:Gemena
470:basalt
441:. The
233:schist
179:norite
175:gabbro
157:grade
143:gneiss
123:Uganda
109:, the
76:coltan
1238:Ceuta
1158:Sudan
1108:Niger
1063:Libya
1048:Kenya
1028:Ghana
1018:Gabon
993:Egypt
933:Benin
768:(PDF)
619:skarn
609:into
221:Gabon
186:mafic
48:Zaire
1168:Togo
1078:Mali
968:Chad
698:and
661:and
560:Goma
530:and
511:and
437:and
429:and
401:and
330:The
287:and
192:and
177:and
141:and
125:and
68:gold
50:and
34:The
649:in
105:in
42:or
40:DRC
1303::
788:^
694:,
617:,
322:.
227:,
173:,
129:.
121:,
74:,
70:,
901:e
894:t
887:v
38:(
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