The Sub‐Balkan graben system of central Bulgaria

Abstract

The Sub‐Balkan graben system in central Bulgaria forms the present northern boundary of the Aegean extensional region. This east‐trending graben system lies along the southern flank of the Stara Planina range and consists mainly of half‐grabens. The sedimentary fill in the grabens ranges in age from late Miocene to Recent and records the initiation and evolution of the graben system. The sedimentary fill in the grabens is oldest in the central graben and becomes progressively younger to the west and east, indicating a diachronous development of the grabens. Grabens are formed in the hangingwalls of south‐dipping low‐angle normal faults which have been displaced by younger higher angle normal faults along the foot of the Stara Planina. Hangingwall rocks have been complexly faulted and rotated such that some graben fill has been rotated down‐to‐the‐north. The Sredna Gora range south of the grabens is part of a complexly faulted and rotated hangingwall block bounded on the south by south‐dipping normal faults forming the northern boundary of the Thracian Basin. The Stara Planina range has been formed by uplift and rotation due to footwall unloading along the low‐angle normal faults and forms the northern margin of the graben system. Most of the topography of Bulgaria south of the Sub‐Balkan graben system is the result of late Miocene to Recent extensional processes linked to the Aegean region that have been superposed on convergent features and earlier extensional features that extend back to late Eocene time.