Iberian-Europe convergence: evolution of the Cretaceous and Eocene basins in Pyrenees and Provence
- Faculte des Sciences de St.-Jerome, Marseille (France)
During Cretaceous time the geodynamic evolution of Northern and Western Pyrenean basins was related to scissors-shaped rifting which evolved as a passive margin filled by thick flysch deposits. In Provence, the carbonate platform was marked since the late Albian by the arrival of significant detrital flows originated from an uplifted Paleozoic block situated in the Gulf of Lion. In Provence the northward migration of the basin from Cenomanian to Eocene and Oligocene indicates the growing of the Gulf of Lion-South Provence crustal uplift and its northward displacement. The Cretaceous opening of the western Pyrenean, Parentis, and Bay of Biscay basins is synchronous with the first stages of compression in the Gulf of Lion. These features are induced by the rotation of Iberia. During the Eocene the compression, resulting from the Iberian-Europe convergence, affected nearly the whole Pyrenean-Provencal area. In the southern part of the Pyrenees east of the Pamplona fault, the successive dislocations of carbonate platforms, migration of reefs, and filling of foreland basins became the signature of the intracontinental subduction of Iberia. The transform fault pattern, still well preserved in spite of the Eocene compression, prevents any important strike-slip movement between Europe and Iberia, especially along the so-called North Pyrenean fault zone, which shows several discontinuities in the western part of Pyrenees. The final evolution of Gulf of Lion crustal uplift generated a gliding of its cover (Provence overthrusts) and, during Oligocene, the opening of the Ligurian-Provencal basin by a propagating rift process.
- OSTI ID:
- 5537597
- Report Number(s):
- CONF-8809346-; CODEN: AABUD
- Journal Information:
- AAPG Bulletin (American Association of Petroleum Geologists); (USA), Vol. 72:8; Conference: Mediterranean Basins conference and exhibition, Nice (France), 25-28 Sep 1988; ISSN 0149-1423
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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EUROPE
SEDIMENTARY BASINS
TECTONICS
CRETACEOUS PERIOD
GEOLOGIC FAULTS
GEOLOGIC HISTORY
RIFT ZONES
SPAIN
TERTIARY PERIOD
CENOZOIC ERA
DEVELOPING COUNTRIES
GEOLOGIC AGES
GEOLOGIC FRACTURES
GEOLOGIC STRUCTURES
MESOZOIC ERA
WESTERN EUROPE
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