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Constraints Imposed by rift inheritance on the compressional reactivation of a hyperextended margin: Mapping Rift Domains in the North Iberian Margin and in the Cantabrian Mountains

Constraints Imposed by rift inheritance on the compressional reactivation of a hyperextended margin: Mapping Rift Domains in the North Iberian Margin and in the Cantabrian Mountains
Constraints Imposed by rift inheritance on the compressional reactivation of a hyperextended margin: Mapping Rift Domains in the North Iberian Margin and in the Cantabrian Mountains
The Alpine Pyrenean‐Cantabrian orogen developed along the plate boundary between Iberia and Europe, involving the inversion of Mesozoic hyperextended basins along the southern Biscay margin. Thus, this margin represents a natural laboratory to analyze the control of structural rift inheritance on the compressional reactivation of a continental margin. With the aim to identify former rift domains and investigate their role during the subsequent compression, we performed a structural analysis of the central and western North Iberian margin, based on the interpretation of seismic reflection profiles and local constraints from drill‐hole data. Seismic interpretations and published seismic velocity models enabled the development of crustal thickness maps that helped to constrain further the offshore and onshore segmentation. Based on all these constraints, we present a rift domain map across the central and western North Iberian margin, as far as the adjacent western Cantabrian Mountains. Furthermore, we provide a first‐order description of the margin segmentation resulting from its polyphase tectonic evolution. The most striking result is the presence of a hyperthinned domain (e.g., Asturian Basin) along the central continental platform that is bounded to the north by the Le Danois High, interpreted as a rift‐related continental block separating two distinctive hyperextended domains. From the analysis of the rift domain map and the distribution of reactivation structures, we conclude that the landward limit of the necking domain and the hyperextended domains, respectively, guide and localize the compressional overprint. The Le Danois block acted as a local buttress, conditioning the inversion of the Asturian Basin.
0278-7407
1-28
Cadenas, P.
94928ee8-a537-45ce-82f5-a936ed90389d
Fernández-viejo, G.
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Pulgar, J.A.
d5d0550c-e5d5-48c9-8438-d546df26ad09
Tugend, J.
579ab416-65a4-430f-8f19-03283110956e
Manatschal, G.
2f438cbf-10fb-41ab-9a44-c45fdbeaf66c
Minshull, T.A.
bf413fb5-849e-4389-acd7-0cb0d644e6b8
Cadenas, P.
94928ee8-a537-45ce-82f5-a936ed90389d
Fernández-viejo, G.
adc493c1-16fb-4e3c-8c0d-9101b869f432
Pulgar, J.A.
d5d0550c-e5d5-48c9-8438-d546df26ad09
Tugend, J.
579ab416-65a4-430f-8f19-03283110956e
Manatschal, G.
2f438cbf-10fb-41ab-9a44-c45fdbeaf66c
Minshull, T.A.
bf413fb5-849e-4389-acd7-0cb0d644e6b8

Cadenas, P., Fernández-viejo, G., Pulgar, J.A., Tugend, J., Manatschal, G. and Minshull, T.A. (2018) Constraints Imposed by rift inheritance on the compressional reactivation of a hyperextended margin: Mapping Rift Domains in the North Iberian Margin and in the Cantabrian Mountains. Tectonics, 1-28. (doi:10.1002/2016TC004454).

Record type: Article

Abstract

The Alpine Pyrenean‐Cantabrian orogen developed along the plate boundary between Iberia and Europe, involving the inversion of Mesozoic hyperextended basins along the southern Biscay margin. Thus, this margin represents a natural laboratory to analyze the control of structural rift inheritance on the compressional reactivation of a continental margin. With the aim to identify former rift domains and investigate their role during the subsequent compression, we performed a structural analysis of the central and western North Iberian margin, based on the interpretation of seismic reflection profiles and local constraints from drill‐hole data. Seismic interpretations and published seismic velocity models enabled the development of crustal thickness maps that helped to constrain further the offshore and onshore segmentation. Based on all these constraints, we present a rift domain map across the central and western North Iberian margin, as far as the adjacent western Cantabrian Mountains. Furthermore, we provide a first‐order description of the margin segmentation resulting from its polyphase tectonic evolution. The most striking result is the presence of a hyperthinned domain (e.g., Asturian Basin) along the central continental platform that is bounded to the north by the Le Danois High, interpreted as a rift‐related continental block separating two distinctive hyperextended domains. From the analysis of the rift domain map and the distribution of reactivation structures, we conclude that the landward limit of the necking domain and the hyperextended domains, respectively, guide and localize the compressional overprint. The Le Danois block acted as a local buttress, conditioning the inversion of the Asturian Basin.

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Accepted/In Press date: 30 December 2017
e-pub ahead of print date: 15 January 2018
Published date: 7 March 2018

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Local EPrints ID: 418786
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/418786
ISSN: 0278-7407
PURE UUID: 575136da-b4aa-4310-adfb-af8d8cbfc78b
ORCID for T.A. Minshull: ORCID iD orcid.org/0000-0002-8202-1379

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Date deposited: 22 Mar 2018 17:30
Last modified: 16 Mar 2024 06:23

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Contributors

Author: P. Cadenas
Author: G. Fernández-viejo
Author: J.A. Pulgar
Author: J. Tugend
Author: G. Manatschal
Author: T.A. Minshull ORCID iD

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