Geological Records Of The Fuegian Andes Deformed Complex Framed In A Patagonian Orogenic Belt Regional Context

This book studies the Fuegian Andes in Argentina, showing both simple and complex aspects. The first ones refer to the general stratigraphy of the area and the latter result from their tectonic characteristics. Concerning the stratigraphy, an appraisal of the denomination and valorization of formations of Jurassic and early Cretaceous age is performed here to reach the simple scheme of the Fuegian-Patagonian continuity under the name of “Fuegian Andes Deformed Complex”. As an essay the formational nomenclature is simplified and the local concept of basement is evaluated. In relation to their structural aspects it is assumed that the formation of the orogenic Fuegian arc and the folding of the Mesozoic and early Tertiary layers are connected phenomena. Tectonic forces from the West, the Northeast and the South have had participation in the formation of the tectonic arc. The lithostatic column pressure was added once the layers were folded and thrusted upwards during the birth of the Fuegian Andes. Even the speculation of a great main fold overturned to North, as an abstraction, is considered. Instead, the Magallanes-Fagnano fault is appreciated only as a product of the transcurrent Quaternary movements, lacking associated eruptive processes that contribute to define plate borders.

The CADIC’s Geological Resources Program will soon turn 40 years of fruitful development. During this period many projects were carried out and others remain to be implemented. In the course of time three generations of researchers have been formed. Mentioning names would be unfair to those that could be involuntarily omitted. There is still a long way to go. The eagerness for knowledge should not stop. This book is a tribute to all those people who have worked in the different projects of pure and applied science, and educational, and human resources training, granted to this founding program and associated laboratories of the regional center of CONICET in Ushuaia, Tierra del Fuego, Argentina. The twenty papers which constitute this book have a genuine Latin appeal, having been written by 50 authors based in Argentina and Spain. All this contributions are concerned with Fuegian geological resources. Everyone concerned with this work hopes that it will prove a fitting and lasting memorial to Nacho Subías, whose personal contribution to our knowledge of this geology was outstanding.

"This memoir brings together results from a multidisciplinary study of the processes that have formed the highest, widest part of the Andean Cordilleran orogenic belt in northern Argentina and Chile. The region features a tectonically erosive forearc, protracted arc magmatism, a high-elevation hinterland plateau and strongly shortened retroarc thrust belt, and a Paleocene-Recent foreland basin system"--

This Special Publication arises from the UNESCO-sponsored IGCP 586-Y project `The tectonics and geomorphology of the Andes (32°–34°S): interplay between short-term and long-term processes’. It includes state-of-the-art reviews and original articles from a multidisciplinary perspective that investigate the complex interactions of tectonics and surface processes in the subduction-related orogen of the Andes of central Chile and Argentina (c. 27° –39°S). It aims to improve our understanding of tectonic and landscape evolution of the Andean range at different time scales, as well as the mutual relationship between internal and external mechanisms in Cenozoic deformation, mountain building, topographic evolution, basin development and mega-landslides occurrence across the flat slab to normal subduction segments. The geodynamic processes of the Andes of central Chile and Argentina are analysed from a number of subdisciplines of the Earth sciences, including tectonics, petrology, geophysics, geochemistry, structural geology, geomorphology, engineering geology, stratigraphy and sedimentology.

This book provides a complete study of the Central Andean volcanism and its most distinctive features, from the lower Paleozoic to the Cenozoic times in the framework of its processes, eruptive mechanisms and geodynamic conditions. It helps readers understand the nature of the volcanic geology and the volcaniclastic related deposits linked to the evolution of the Andean continental margin. Special attention is paid to the analysis of the ancient volcanic successions and the difficulties in recognition of the original rock type caused by the effects of deformation, metamorphism and alteration. The authors use distinctive cases to describe how to apply different tools in analysis and interpretation. The selected representative, well exposed and preserved volcanic records of the Southern Central Andes analyzed in this book open new perspectives in the understanding of the volcanic processes linked to active continental margins as the Central Andes. This book will be of special interest to volcanologists and specialists in the earth sciences and appeal to both undergraduate and graduate students in geology.

The Neuquen Basin of northern Patagonia provides an excellent case study in basin analysis and sequence stratigraphy. The basin is one of the largest petroleum provinces in South America and includes a dramatic record of relative sea level changes as well as a unique and globally important palaeontological record. Understanding this region is also central to unravelling the history of the Andes. The latest developments in the study of the area have been combined in this volume to give an integrated series of case studies that document the structural, igneous, sedimentological and palaeontological history of the region from the Triassic to the Recent. This publication provides an introduction into this fascinating region as well as a resource that includes the most complete and up-to-date studies of the area.