European Lithosphere Dynamics

Europe provides an outstanding field laboratory for studying lithospheric processes through time, for tracing the tectonic evolution of crust and mantle from the present far back into the early Precambrian. Two things are particularly striking: the importance of plate tectonics during the Phanerozoic and through the Proterozic into the Archeaen, and the significance of tectonic inheritance, older structures and rheologies guiding the younger evolution. 'European Lithosphere Dynamics' grew out of a major European Science Foundation programme, EUROPROBE, with participation of many hundreds of Earth scientists from all over Europe. The main research activities focused on specific target areas and involved integration of geological, geophysical and geochemical methods. Defining surface-depth relationships was a prerequisite for interpretation of the processes, present and past, responsible for the formation of the lithosphere.

The scientific achievements of the European Geotraverse Committee (EGT) are presented in this unique study of the tectonic evolution of the continent of Europe and the first comprehensive cross section of the continental lithosphere.

Sedimentary basins host, among others, most of our energy and fresh-water resources: they can be regarded as large geo-reactors in which many physical and chemical processes interact. Their complexity can only be well understood in well-organized interdisciplinary co-operations. This book documents how researchers from different geo-scientific disciplines have jointly analysed the structural, thermal, and sedimentary evolution as well as fluid dynamics of a complex sedimentary basin system which has experienced a variety of activation and reactivation impulses as well as intense salt tectonics. In this book we have summarized our geological, geophysical and geochemical understanding of some of the most important processes affecting sedimentary basins in general and our view on the evolution of one of the largest, best explored and most complex continental sedimentary basins on Earth: The Central European Basin System.

The continent of Europe has a complex geological history of successive tectonic events. Over several thousand million years these have formed the present day configuration of major tectonic provinces. A Continent Revealed unravels this history by presenting and interpreting the results of the European Geotraverse (EGT) - a unique study of the continent of Europe and the first comprehensive cross section of the continental lithosphere. An illustrated book and an atlas of data have been assembled by key workers in the EGT project to make known the wealth of information yielded by the ten year project. Seismic, gravity, magnetic, electrical, geothermal and other geophysical and geological data, presented as separate maps and as data files on CD-ROM, have revealed the nature of the deep interior of the continent and the variation in character from one tectonic province to another. The integration of the results and interpretation of the different characters has given new insights into the mechanisms of continental evolution and Europe's geodynamics. From this perspective it is evident that understanding geological processes demands a multidisciplinary approach and that all processes, be they sedimentary, metamorphic or igneous, on every scale, involve the whole lithosphere.

Volume 1 focuses on the evolution of Central Europe from the Precambrian to the Permian, a dynamic period which traces the formation of Central Europe from a series of microcontinents that separated from Gondwana through to the creation of Pangaea. Separate summary chapters on the Cadomian, Caledonian and Variscan orogenic events as well as on Palaeozoic magmatism provide an overview of the tectonic and magmatic evolution of the region. These descriptions sometimes extend beyond the borders of Central Europe to take in the Scottish and Irish Caledonides as well as the Palaeozoic successions in the Baltic region.

This book is devoted to different aspects of tectonic research. Syntheses of recent and earlier works, combined with new results and interpretations, are presented in this book for diverse tectonic settings. Most of the chapters include up-to-date material of detailed geological investigations, often combined with geophysical data, which can help understand more clearly the essence of mechanisms of different tectonic processes. Some chapters are dedicated to general problems of tectonics. Another block of chapters is devoted to sedimentary basins and special attention in this book is given to tectonic processes on active plate margins.

Treatise on Geophysics: Crust and Lithosphere Dynamics, Volume 6, provides a comprehensive review of the state of knowledge on crust and lithosphere dynamics, which is defined as the study of how the outermost layers of the Earth respond to loads that are emplaced on, within, and below it and its implications for plate mechanics and mantle flow. The book begins with a chapter on plate kinematics, which shows how new observations and methodologies have improved the resolution of relative and absolute plate motions. This is followed by studies of plate mechanics, focusing on the long-term rheology of the plates and response of the plates to both relatively short-term and long-term loads. The book also includes chapters that examine the evidence from surface heat flow, borehole breakouts, and magma models for the thermal and mechanical structure of the lithosphere; the deformation of the lithosphere in extensional and compressional settings. The final two chapters deal with the structural styles of faulting in the shallow brittle part of the lithosphere, the brittle-ductile transition, and the shear zone in the ductile part of the lithosphere; and how developments in plate mechanics have impacted our understanding of geological processes. Self-contained volume starts with an overview of the subject then explores each topic with in depth detail Extensive reference lists and cross references with other volumes to facilitate further research Full-color figures and tables support the text and aid in understanding Content suited for both the expert and non-expert