Shear

Shear zones is the result of huge volume of rock deformation due to intense stress in the
region, typically in the zones of subduction at depths down to few kilometers. It may occur
at the edges of tectonic blocks, forming discontinuities that mark a distinct structure.
Shear zones often host orebodies as a result of syngenetic or epigenetic hydrothermal
flow through orogenic belts. The rocks are commonly metasomatized, and often display
some retro grade metamorphism assemblage. An intense fractured or shear zone is a
favorable structure to trap mineralization. The Hyde-Macraes shear zone, New Zealand,
is a low-angle thrust system in which gold-bearing quartz veins have been deposited.
Copper sulfide vein-type mineralization associ ated with migmatization in the
southeastern part of the Singhbhum shear zone, Jharkhand, India, is an example of
shear-controlled copper-uranium mineralization.