Pre-rift Phase Research Articles

Control of inherited structural fabric on the development and exhumation of passive margins – Insights from the Araçuaí Orogen (Brazil)

The Araçuaí Orogen, in eastern Brazil, was formed during the Neoproterozoic – Cambrian amalgamation of West Gondwana. During the Mesozoic – Cenozoic opening of the South Atlantic Ocean, and the associated divergent tectonics, the orogen developed as basement to the passive margin of South America and was progressively covered by thick offshore sedimentary basins, particularly the Espírito Santo, Mucuri, and Cumuruxatiba basins, in which hydrocarbon systems have been exploited. Our understanding of the Araçuaí Orogen's passive margin evolution, erosion, and sediment transfer to these basins ultimately depends on constraining the onshore exhumation in response to Mesozoic – Cenozoic events. Here, new and previously published data from apatite fission-track (AFT) analyses and inverse thermal history modelling of (Pre)Cambrian basement rocks from the Araçuaí Orogen resolve three discrete basement cooling and associated erosional exhumation episodes. In the Pre-Rift phase, Jurassic – Hauterivian erosion of the Araçuaí Orogen is most likely related to the adjoining intra-continental West Gondwana flexural subsidence, which increased hillslope and river erosion power. In the Rift and Transitional phases, Barremian – Albian accelerated phase of erosion is associated with the uplift of the Atlantic rift shoulders and the establishment of an oceanic base-level. In the Drift phase, reactivations in response to far-field stresses likely triggered a Late Cretaceous – Paleocene rapid erosion event. The rates at which these events unfolded vary spatially and are controlled by inherited structures. The Araçuaí Orogen experienced slower denudation rates in areas closer to the São Francisco Craton, which suggests that the tectonic reactivation and related surface uplift during the Mesozoic–Cenozoic is in first-order controlled by lithospheric rigidity. Furthermore, the structural framework of the Paramirim and Pirapora aulacogens and NE-oriented shear zones in the orogen’s southeast facilitated later reactivations. From the spatial pattern of denudation/exhumation of the Araçuaí Orogen during the Mesozoic – Cenozoic, we draw inferences on the tectonic development of the offshore basins regarding their hydrocarbon potentials.

Complex deformation history of the Keszthely Hills, Transdanubian Range, Hungary

Abstract We have investigated the deformation history of the Keszthely Hills (Transdanubian Range, W Hungary), which belongs to the uppermost slice of the Austroalpine nappe system. This Upper Triassic to Upper Miocene sedimentary rock sequence documented the deformation of the upper crust during repeated rifting and inversion events. We investigated the structural pattern and stress field evolution of this multistage deformation history by structural data collection and evaluation from surface outcrops. Regarding the Mesozoic deformations, we present additional arguments for pre-orogenic (Triassic and Jurassic) extension (D1 and D2 phases), which is mainly characterized by NE–SW extensional structures, such as syn-sedimentary faults, slump-folds, and pre-tilt conjugate normal fault pairs. NW–SE-striking map-scale normal faults were also connected to these phases. The inversion of these pre-orogenic structures took place during the middle part of the Cretaceous; however, minor contractional deformation possibly reoccurred until the Early Miocene (D3 to D5 phases). The related meso- and map-scale structures are gentle to open folds, thrusts and strike-slip faults. We measured various orientations, which were classified into three stress states or fields on the basis of structural criteria, such as tilt-test, and/or superimposed striae on the same fault planes. For this multi-directional shortening we presented three different scenarios. Our preferred suggestion would be the oblique inversion of pre-orogenic faults, which highly influenced the orientation of compressional structures, and resulted in an inhomogeneous stress field with local stress states in the vicinity of inherited older structures. The measured post-orogenic extensional structures are related to a new extensional event, the opening of the Pannonian Basin during the Miocene. We classified these structures into the following groups: immediate pre-rift phase with NE–SW extension (D6), syn-rift phase with E–W extension (D7a) and N–S transpression (D7b), and post-rift phase with NNW–SSE extension (D8).

A Review of the Geology of the Rio Del Rey Basin, Offshore Cameroon

A review of the tectonic evolution, stratigraphic and structural framework, petroleum systems and hydrocarbon potential of the offshore portion of Rio Del Rey (RDR) Basin in Cameroon is presented in this paper. The RDR basin is a passive margin basin present in the Gulf of Guinea and it is located southeast of Niger Delta over an area of about 7,000 km2 offshore. Its stratigraphic components, like those of Niger Delta, comprise of a diachronous succession of prodelta shales (Akata Formation), overlain by delta front sands and shales (Agbada Formation), in turn, overlain by fluvial sands (Benin Formation). The age of this basin ranges from Eocene to Recent and it consists of four structural provinces namely; the growth fault province in the north, the Cretaceous Onshore province in the southeast, the Shale Ridge province in the southwest, and the Delta Toe-thrust in the south-central region. The RDR Basin features three stages of tectonic development: Pre-rift phase (Late Proterozoic to Late Jurassic); Syn-rift phase (Late Jurassic to Early Cretaceous) and Post-rift phase (Late Cretaceous to Holocene). It presently stands out as the major contributor of the petroleum in the country.

Burial and thermal history simulation of the Abu Rudeis-Sidri oil field, Gulf of Suez-Egypt: A 1D basin modeling study

An integrated 1D model on seven wells has been performed to simulate the multi-tectonic phases and multiple thermal regimes in the Abu Rudeis-Sidri oilfield. Concordance between measured and calculated present-day temperatures is achieved with present-day heat flows in the range of 42–55 mW/m2. Reconstruction of the thermal and burial histories provides information on the paleotemperature profiles, the timing of thermal activation as well as the effect of the Oligo-Miocene rifting phases and its associated magmatic activity. The burial histories show the pre-rift subsidence was progressive but modest, whereas the syn-rift was more rapid (contemporaneous with the main rifting phases and basin formation). Finally, the early post-rift thermal subsidence was slow to moderate in contrast to the late post-rift thermal subsidence which was moderate to rapid. The simulated paleo heat flow illustrates a steady state for the pre-rift phase and non-steady state (transient) for syn-rift and postrift phases. Three geothermal regimes are recognized, each of which is associated with a specific geological domain. 1) A lower geothermal regime reflects the impact of stable tectonics (pre-rift). 2) The higher temperature distribution reflects the syn-rift high depositional rate as well as the impact of stretching and thinning (rifting phases) of the lithosphere. 3) A local higher geothermal pulse owing to the magmatic activity during the Oligo-Miocene time (ARM-1 and Sidri-7 wells). Paleoheat flow values of 100mW/m2 (Oligo-Miocene rifting phase) increased to 120mW/m2 (Miocene rifting phase) and lesser magnitude of 80mW/m2 (Mio- Pliocene reactivation phase) have been specified. These affected the thermal regime and temperature distribution by causing perturbations in subsurface temperatures. A decline in the background value of 60mW/m2 owing to conductive cooling has been assigned. The blanketing effect caused by low thermal conductivity of the basin-fill sediments has been simulated as well.

Speculative petroleum systems of the southern Pelotas Basin, offshore Uruguay

The Pelotas Basin of Brazil and Uruguay represents a frontier basin with under-explored hydrocarbon potential. Although oil and gas accumulations have yet to be identified, only 21 exploratory wells have been drilled in an area of more than 330,000 km2, 20 of which are located in the Brazilian portion of the basin. A detailed study of the petroleum system of offshore Uruguay has strong potential to contribute to a better characterization of the capacity of the basin to generate and accumulate hydrocarbons. Three stages have previously been recognized during the evolution of Pelotas basin: (1) a prerift phase which preserved Paleozoic and Mesozoic units of the Paraná Basin; (2) an Early Cretaceous volcano-sedimentary synrift phase; and (3) a Cretaceous to Cenozoic postrift phase deposited during the passive margin stage. In this study, we use sequence stratigraphy methodology to interpret 2D multichannel seismic sections of the southern segment of the Pelotas Basin in the Uruguayan Atlantic margin. This analysis allows us to identify depositional sequences, systems tracts and the distribution of the main elements of the potential petroleum systems. Following our analysis, we propose six speculative petroleum systems (SPS) in the Pelotas Basin. The first SPS is related to the prerift phase and is represented by a Lower Permian restricted marine source rock and reservoirs related to Permian to Upper Jurassic aeolian and fluvial sandstones. The second SPS corresponds to the synrift phase and is constituted by a Barremian lacustrine source rock with reservoirs of alluvial/fluvial sandstones of the same age. The other four proposed SPS are associated with the postrift phase, represented by marine source rocks related to Aptian-Albian, Cenomanian-Turonian and Paleocene transgressions, all of which are identified in the region and interpreted in seismic lines from Uruguay. These postrift SPS have predominantly siliciclastic reservoirs represented by Early Cretaceous aeolian sandstones and Cretaceous to Cenozoic deltaic sandstones and turbidites.

Mesozoic lacustrine system in the Parnaíba Basin, northeastern Brazil: Paleogeographic implications for west Gondwana

The fragmentation of the West Gondwana during Early Triassic to Cretaceous was marked by intense climatic changes, concomitant with the establishment of extensive desertic/lacustrine systems. These deposits succeeded the emplacement and extrusion of lava flows, related to the pre-rift phase and initial opening of the Equatorial Atlantic Ocean. The thermal phase is recorded in the Upper Jurassic-Lower Cretaceous Pastos Bons Formation, exposed mainly in southeast parts of the Parnaíba Basin, Northeastern Brazil. The sedimentary facies of this unit were grouped in two facies associations (FA), representative of a shallow lacustrine system, influenced by episodic hyperpycnal and oscillatory flows. Central lake facies association (FA1) is composed by laminated mudstone (Ml), sandstone/mudstone rhythmite (S/Mr) and sandstone with even-parallel lamination (Sel). Flysch-like delta front (FA2) consists in sandstones with wave structures (Sw), sandstones with even-parallel stratification (Ses), massive sandstones (Sm), sandstones with soft-sediment deformation structures (Sd) and laminated mudstones (Ml). FA1 was deposited in the deepest portions of the lake, characterized by low energy, episodically disturbed by siliciclastic influx. FA2 presents sandy deposits generated by unconfined flow, probably fed by ephemeral stream flows that generated thickening upward of tabular sandstone beds. The progressive filling of the lake resulted in recurrent shoaling up of the water level and reworking by wave action. The installation of Pastos Bons lakes was controlled by thermal subsidence, mainly in restricted depocenters. The siliciclastic fluvial inflow can be related to the adjacent humid desertic facies, formed under climatic attenuation, typical of post-Triassic period, with reduced biological activity. Smectite and abundant feldspars, in lacustrine facies, corroborate an arid climate, with incipient chemical weathering. The new facies and stratigraphic data present in this paper provide an explanation about the implantation of a huge lacustrine system in the southern of Parnaiba Basin, with strong paleogeographic implications for the West-Central Gondwana during Late Jurassic to Early Cretaceous.

Mapa geológico do cenozoico da região da bacia de Volta Redonda (RJ, segmento central do Rifte Continental do Sudeste do Brasil): identificação de novos grabens e ocorrências descontínuas, e caracterização de estágios tectonossedimentares

<p>O presente trabalho traz os resultados inéditos da cartografia e análises tectonossedimentares do cenozoico da região da bacia de Volta Redonda, inserida no segmento central do Rifte Continental do Sudeste do Brasil (RCSB). Distribuídos na direção NE-SW, foram reconhecidos três depocentros paleogênicos (grabens de Colônia Santo Antônio, Dorândia, Casa de Pedra - mais importante, por seu registro sedimentar e vulcânico) e diversas ocorrências paleogênicas descontínuas (áreas de Belmonte, Jardim Amália, Cafundó, Vargem Alegre), além de dois importantes grabens quaternários (grabens do Rio do Bananal e da Usina). O preenchimento paleogênico foi relacionado a três estágios tectônicos: fase Pré-Rifte, vinculada à deposição da Formação Ribeirão dos Quatis (fluvial); fase Rifte I (principal), a que se relaciona a Formação Resende (sistemas fluviais e leques aluviais associados a bordas de falhas principais, além de vulcanismo basanítico intercalado); fase Rifte II (final), a que se relacionam os depósitos da Formação Pinheiral (fluvial), responsáveis pela colmatação dos depocentros paleogênicos. Acumulações significativas de depósitos aluviais recentes vinculam-se ao preenchimento dos grabens quaternários. A atual configuração da região da bacia de Volta Redonda resulta da geração de diversas estruturas rúpteis vinculadas a sua abertura e deformação neotectônica. Desta forma, este segmento do RCSB é representado por um mosaico depocentros e ocorrências paleogênicas descontínuas significativamente compartimentadas por deformação netectônica, além de depocentros quaternários, vinculados principalmente ao último evento distensivo, de idade holocênica. Da identificação e caracterização destas feições, a região da bacia de Volta Redonda passa a apresentar um novo quadro de distribuição do registro cenozoico, com dimensões em torno de 40 km na direção NE-SW e 10 km na direção NW-SE.</p>

Estratigrafia do Grupo Araí: registro de rifteamento paleoproterozoico no Brasil Central

O Grupo Araí, composto por um conjunto de rochas metassedimentares e metavulcânicas, de baixo grau metamórfico, sobreposto à Suíte Aurumina e à Formação Ticunzal, constitui uma sucessão depositada em uma bacia do tipo rifte intracontinental, cuja evolução iniciou antes de 1,77 Ga no Paleoproterozoico. Esse grupo foi subdividido, classicamente, em Formação Arraias (sequência continental) e Formação Traíras (sequência marinha). Entretanto, a análise, compilação e integração dos dados geológicos no que tange à geologia sedimentar e à tectono-estratigrafia mostraram a necessidade de subdividi-lo em quatro unidades: Água Morna, Arraias, Caldas e Traíras. A Formação Água Morna representa um sistema deposicional fluvial entrelaçado, instituído em uma bacia do tipo SAG-intracontinental, no contexto tectônico da fase pré-rifte, representando a Tectonossequência Água Morna submetida a processos de subsidência termal. A Formação Arraias constitui um espesso pacote de sedimentos continentais, subdividida nos membros Cubículo (leques aluviais), Prata (fluvial entrelaçado), Mutum (eólico), Ventura (lacustre) e Buracão (vulcânicas e piroclásticas), que representam a Tectonossequência Arraias e constituem os tratos de sistema da fase ritfe relacionados essencialmente com a subsidência mecânica da bacia. A Formação Caldas compõe a sequência deposicional transicional do Grupo Araí, subdividida em dois membros que constituem um sistema de praia: membro inferior (backshoreeforeshore) e membro superior (shoreface). A Formação Traíras representa a sequência marinha, subdividida nos membros Boqueirão (plataforma siliciclástica dominada por marés), Rio Preto (plataforma siliciclástica dominada por marés) e Rosário (plataforma mista dominada por marés), que constitui a Tectonossequência Traíras desenvolvida no decurso da subsidência flexural. Essa proposta estratigráfica se mostrou bastante funcional, permitindo a realização de correlações regionais entre diferentes áreas de ocorrência do Grupo Araí nos estados de Goiás e Tocantins.

Evidence for exhumation of a granite intrusion in a regional extensional stress regime based on coupled microstructural and fluid inclusion plane studies – An example from the Velence Mts., Hungary

A new approach, the fluid inclusion plane technique coupled with fluid inclusion microthermometry and field measurements have been applied to demonstrate the exhumation and relative vertical displacements of an allochthonous, Permian granite intrusion (Velence Mts.) which was situated in the Middle Triassic at the western end of the Neotethys rift system. The pressure and the temperature conditions during the Permian fluid flow (>350 °C and ∼2 kbar) in the granite were considerably higher than during the Triassic fluid flow (<250 °C and ∼0.5 kbar), which indicates the exhumation of the granite intrusion in a primarily extensional tectonic stress regime. The fluid inclusion planes with NE–SW and NW–SE strike prove stress field permutation that can be explained by the exhumation of the host granite during the Middle Triassic fluid flow.It is suggested that the exhumation of the Velence Mts. along with the regional fluid flow can be connected to the passive pre-rift phase of the northern Adriatic Block, during the Middle–Late Triassic. The variations in homogenization temperatures of Triassic regional fluid inclusion assemblages between the blocks of the granite, as well as variations in the fluid inclusion plane orientations, suggest a post-Triassic vertical segmentation and relative block rotation of the granite.

Tectonostratigraphy of the Southern Part of Papua and Arafura Sea, Eastern Indonesia

DOI: 10.17014/ijog.v7i3.145 Sedimentary history and stratigraphy of the Papua and Arafura Sea areas, eastern Indonesia, are gained from surface geological mapping combined with published data from oil companies. Development of some sedimentary units demonstrates that the tectonism have influenced sedimentation of such units comprising a succession of Phanerozoic rocks developing in a stable continental margin. The succession underlain by Cambrian-Silurian-Devonian metamorphic rocks consists of Tuaba, Kariem, Awitagoh, and Kemum Formation, and Modio Dolomite (Pre-Rift Phase). These rocks having been intruded by Late Permian-Middle Triassic granitoids and Carboniferous granite, are unconformably overlain by Late Carboniferous to Cretaceous siliciclastic-rich units comprising Aifam Group and Tipuma Formation (syn-Rift Phase) and Kembelangan Group (Mesozoic Passive Margin Post-Rift). The Aifam Group is separated by a regionally continuous boundary on its top contact from the Triassic-Early Jurassic Tipuma Formation, which filled the block-faulted rift valley subbasins of continentally deposited red beds in the breakup stage. Regionally, developed erosion surfaces of the breakup unconformity have separated these red beds from generally transgressive post-breakup deposits of the Jurassic to Cretaceous marine sediments of the Kembelangan Group. Beach to shallow marine-glauconitic sandstone and shale of the group pass upward into shelf mudstone. Relative sea level fall related to the tectonic stability of the area led to the development of Eocene to Late Miocene platform carbonates of the New Guinea Limestone Supergroup which occurred in the entire island of Papua and the southern of Arafura that overlie these non-carbonate units (Tertiary passive margin). It is separated from the siliciclastic-rich packages by the Tertiary - Pre-Tertiary boundary. The sea level fluctuation within the group was also recorded during the formation of thin, discontinuous sandstone beds/lenses of Sirga Formation and Adi Member of the Oligocene age (Convergence phase). Turbidite sediments of the Miocene Klasafet Formation was deposited in a deep marine environment at the same time as the eruption of magmatic arc (Compressional phase). The mainland area was exposed above sea level at Late Miocene to Pleistocene (Melanesian Orogeny) and terrigenous detritus deposition began to fill in the basin as molasses type deposits with a marine influence in part (Buru and Steenkool Formations).

Tectonostratigraphy of the Southern Part of Papua and Arafura Sea, Eastern Indonesia

DOI: 10.17014/ijog.v7i3.145Sedimentary history and stratigraphy of the Papua and Arafura Sea areas, eastern Indonesia, are gained from surface geological mapping combined with published data from oil companies. Development of some sedimentary units demonstrates that the tectonism have influenced sedimentation of such units comprising a succession of Phanerozoic rocks developing in a stable continental margin. The succession underlain by Cambrian-Silurian-Devonian metamorphic rocks consists of Tuaba, Kariem, Awitagoh, and Kemum Formation, and Modio Dolomite (Pre-Rift Phase). These rocks having been intruded by Late Permian-Middle Triassic granitoids and Carboniferous granite, are unconformably overlain by Late Carboniferous to Cretaceous siliciclastic-rich units comprising Aifam Group and Tipuma Formation (syn-Rift Phase) and Kembelangan Group (Mesozoic Passive Margin Post-Rift). The Aifam Group is separated by a regionally continuous boundary on its top contact from the Triassic-Early Jurassic Tipuma Formation, which filled the block-faulted rift valley subbasins of continentally deposited red beds in the breakup stage. Regionally, developed erosion surfaces of the breakup unconformity have separated these red beds from generally transgressive post-breakup deposits of the Jurassic to Cretaceous marine sediments of the Kembelangan Group. Beach to shallow marine-glauconitic sandstone and shale of the group pass upward into shelf mudstone. Relative sea level fall related to the tectonic stability of the area led to the development of Eocene to Late Miocene platform carbonates of the New Guinea Limestone Supergroup which occurred in the entire island of Papua and the southern of Arafura that overlie these non-carbonate units (Tertiary passive margin). It is separated from the siliciclastic-rich packages by the Tertiary - Pre-Tertiary boundary. The sea level fluctuation within the group was also recorded during the formation of thin, discontinuous sandstone beds/lenses of Sirga Formation and Adi Member of the Oligocene age (Convergence phase). Turbidite sediments of the Miocene Klasafet Formation was deposited in a deep marine environment at the same time as the eruption of magmatic arc (Compressional phase). The mainland area was exposed above sea level at Late Miocene to Pleistocene (Melanesian Orogeny) and terrigenous detritus deposition began to fill in the basin as molasses type deposits with a marine influence in part (Buru and Steenkool Formations).

A contribution to regional stratigraphic correlations of the Afro-Brazilian depression – The Dom João Stage (Brotas Group and equivalent units – Late Jurassic) in Northeastern Brazilian sedimentary basins

Abstract The Dom Joao Stage comprises an interval with variable thickness between 100 and 1200 m, composed of fluvial, eolian and lacustrine deposits of Late Jurassic age, based mainly on the lacustrine ostracod fauna (although the top deposits may extend into the Early Cretaceous). These deposits comprise the so-called Afro-Brazilian Depression, initially characterized as containing the Brotas Group of the Reconcavo Basin (which includes the Alianca and the Sergi Formations) and subsequently extended into the Tucano, Jatoba, Camamu, Almada, Sergipe, Alagoas and Araripe Basins in northeastern Brazil, encompassing the study area of this paper. The large occurrence area of the Dom Joao Stage gives rise to discussions about the depositional connectivity between the basins, and the real extension of sedimentation. In the first studies of this stratigraphic interval, the Dom Joao Stage was strictly associated with the rift phase, as an initial stage (decades of 1960–70), but subsequent analyses considered the Dom Joao as an intracratonic basin or pre-rift phase – without any relation to the active mechanics of a tectonic syn-rift phase (decades of 1980–2000). The present work developed an evolutionary stratigraphic and tectonic model, based on the characterization of depositional sequences, internal flooding surfaces, depositional systems arrangement and paleoflow directions. Several outcrops on the onshore basins were used to build composite sections of each basin, comprising facies, architectural elements, depositional systems, stratigraphic and lithostratigraphic frameworks, and paleocurrents. In addition to that, over a hundred onshore and offshore exploration wells were used (only 21 of which are showed) to map the depositional sequences and generate correlation sections. These show the characteristics and relations of the Dom Joao Stage in each studied basin, and they were also extended to the Gabon Basin. The results indicate that there were two main phases during the Dom Joao Stage, in which distinctive sedimentary environments were developed, reflecting depositional system arrangements, paleoflow directions were diverse, and continuous or compartmented basins were developed.

Plant–arthropod interaction in the Early Cretaceous (Berriasian) of the Araripe Basin, Brazil

Plant–arthropod interactions provide the first relevant data for addressing evidence of phytophagy for an assemblage of coniferous silicified woods from the pre-rift phase in the Araripe Basin, Brazil. A complex system of borings, sometimes filled with small, oval to hexagonal coprolites, allow inferences to be made about the activities of termites (Isoptera). Previous dendrological data indicated that the climate during the Early Cretaceous on the landmasses of the northern Afro-Brazilian Depression was dry and savanna like, where termite borings were common. Features of wood preservation demonstrate that the damage was probably caused by herbivores, not detritivores.

Reappraisal of the timing of the breakup of Gondwana based on sedimentological and seismic evidence from the Morondava Basin, Madagascar

The breakup of Gondwana along the former East African Orogen is widely interpreted to have started in the Late Palaeozoic. The present study indicates that the Permo-Triassic or Karoo phase of rifting was not responsible for the separation of Madagascar from Africa. This rift system failed in the Late Triassic. The separation of Madagascar occurred in the Late Liassic. This event was relatively short-lived, with a distinct episode of rifting followed by separation and continental drift. Previous workers have interpreted the rift and drift phases as a transitional process, starting in the Late Permian and finishing in the Callovian. The pre-rift phase in the Morondava Basin is represented by the fluvial Isalo Sandstones which are Late Triassic in age, and the syn-rift phase is recorded by the marine shales of the Andafia which are Toarcian–Aalenian in age. The Early Bajocian unconformity is interpreted as the breakup unconformity. The post-rift or drift phase is represented by the Bajocian–Bathonian carbonates of the Bemaraha Formation, and by the marls, sandstones and carbonates of the Sakaraha Formation. These two Formations are considered to be lateral equivalents of one another, with the Sakaraha Formation representing a coastal plain environment and the Bemaraha Formation a coastal barrier/lagoon complex.

Reappraisal of the timing of the breakup of Gondwana based on sedimentological and seismic evidence from the Morondava Basin, Madagascar

The breakup of Gondwana along the former East African Orogen is widely interpreted to have started in the Late Palaeozoic. The present study indicates that the Permo-Triassic or Karoo phase of rifting was not responsible for the separation of Madagascar from Africa. This rift system failed in the Late Triassic. The separation of Madagascar occurred in the Late Liassic. This event was relatively short-lived, with a distinct episode of rifting followed by separation and continental drift. Previous workers have interpreted the rift and drift phases as a transitional process, starting in the Late Permian and finishing in the Callovian. The pre-rift phase in the Morondava Basin is represented by the fluvial Isalo Sandstones which are Late Triassic in age, and the syn-rift phase is recorded by the marine shales of the Andafia which are Toarcian–Aalenian in age. The Early Bajocian unconformity is interpreted as the breakup unconformity. The post-rift or drift phase is represented by the Bajocian–Bathonian carbonates of the Bemaraha Formation, and by the marls, sandstones and carbonates of the Sakaraha Formation. These two Formations are considered to be lateral equivalents of one another, with the Sakaraha Formation representing a coastal plain environment and the Bemaraha Formation a coastal barrier/lagoon complex.

Tectonic variation in the Dniepr-Donets Basin from automated modelling of backstripped subsidence curves

The multiphase rift evolution of the Dniepr-Donets (DD) Basin is analysed by 1D backstripping and tectonic modelling of 66 stratigraphic sections, mostly from well data, distributed throughout the basin. The backstripping results illustrate strong temporal and lateral variations in tectonic subsidence. It is minor during an ‘inceptive’ pre-rift phase (Givetian-early Frasnian; 380.8-370 Ma) and does not show clear spatial correlations within the DD Basin framework. The main rift phase (Frasnian-Famennian; 370-362.5 Ma) corresponds to an acceleration in subsidence rates with tectonic subsidence up to 1500 m along the basin axis, displaying a slight increase from the northwest to the southeast. Strong lateral variations perpendicular to the basin axis reflect the effects of major basin border faults. A rift phase in the Visean (345-340 Ma) is characterised by relatively minor subsidence (up to about 500 m, except for some wells in the southeast), following a stage of extremely low rates of deposition in the earliest Carboniferous. The end of this rift phase can be taken to mark the onset of convex subsidence patterns in the later Carboniferous and Permian, typical in shape of post-rift thermal subsidence, but significantly increasing in magnitude from northwest to southeast in the basin. This trend shows no one-to-one relationship with Late Devonian syn-rift subsidence. The tectonic subsidence curves have been modelled using lithospheric stretching assumptions allowing different stretching factors for the crustal and sub-crustal lithosphere and the incorporation of finite and multiple stretching phases. A numerical technique was developed that automatically finds best fit stretching parameters for part or all of the tectonic subsidence data, given the specification of onset and duration of the various rifting events. Maps of the 1D modelling results display intrabasinal variations in terms of timing and magnitude of rifting. The results indicate that the observed spatial and temporal variations of tectonic subsidence in the DD Basin, specifically the increasing ratio of Carboniferous to Late Devonian subsidence from northwest to southeast, cannot be explained by either a uniform or depth-dependent stretching model adopting only a single Frasnian-Famennian rift phase. A two-phase model, in which a significant part of Carboniferous tectonic subsidence is related to Visean rift activity, strongly dominated by sub-crustal lithospheric attenuation, provides a satisfactory fit to the data although the tectonic implications of such a model are not easily reconcilable by independent constraints. A semi-quantitative investigation of the possible role of withdrawal of underlying Devonian salt during the Carboniferous to produce additional post-Devonian rift phase sediment accommodation space suggests that the effects of such a mechanism could be significant but that they are unlikely to preclude the necessity of the Visean rifting event to explain the Carboniferous basin evolution.

Stratigraphy and structure of the Maltese graben system

The Maltese graben system is a series of Miocene–Quaternary extensional basins located in the foreland of the Sicilian Apennine–Maghrebian fold and thrust belt. The tectono-sedimentary development of the graben was determined from the first fully integrated analysis of the area to include onshore field and hydrological borehole data, together with offshore reflection seismic data and exploration wells. The NW–SE- and ENE–WSW-trending rifts have a coeval, four phase tectono-sedimentary evolution revealed by a succession of platform and pelagic carbonates. The pre-rift phase (&gt;21 Ma) is followed by a early syn-rift phase (21–6 Ma) characterized by evidence for relatively minor extensional faulting including the development of neptunian dykes. Major fault activity occurred during the succeeding late syn-rift phase (&lt;5 Ma) which is characterized by growth faults and fault control on facies and the areas of deposition/non-deposition. This was followed by passive graben infilling during the post-rift phase (probably &lt; 1.5 Ma). Despite low measured extension factors ( β = 1.03–1.17) across the rift structures, major basin bounding extensional faults have throws of up to 2.2 km. Fault slip data indicate that both NW–SE and ENE–WSW rift trends were generated in response to N–S stretching. These results are in accord with Argnanis (1990) description of a major N–S orientated transfer fault located 50 km west of the present study area.

New geophysical evidence for extensional tectonics on the divergent margin offshore Namibia

Abstract Over 14 000 km of high-resolution multifold seismic data together with gravity and magnetic data provide the opportunity to examine the mechanism and history of rifting on the Namibian continental margin. The region is a completely developed divergent margin containing a pre-rift megasequence of interior cratonic sag origin; two rift basin megasequences dominated by siliclastic deposition; a transitional megasequence and thermal sag megasequences dominated by overlapping progradational wedges. In the Orange Basin acid to intermediate volcanic rocks erupted at the end of the pre-rift phase in Mid- to Late Jurassic times and this was followed by regional uplift. Basaltic volcanic activity was associated with the synrift phases and widespread volcanic rocks developed during the second synrift event, related to the Tristan da Cunha-Walvis Ridge mantle plume. Regional seismic mapping indicates that rifting migrated from south to north with time. The geophysical data enable the recognition of major structural elements which include the Eastern Graben Province, the Medial Hinge Line, the Central Half Graben and the Marginal Ridge. The geometry of the rift basin is asymmetric and can be explained by a simple shear mechanism. South of Walvis Ridge extension was accommodated by movement along a major normal fault which is listric at depth. The basin depocentre represented by the Central Half Graben lies landward of this major fault and is offset from the area of thinnest crust as interpreted from the gravity data.

Structure and early history of the Labuan Basin South Indian Ocean

Recent multichannel seismic reflection data from the Labuan Basin, in the Southern Indian Ocean, are used to reevaluate older, single channel data from this region. Together, they throw light on the structure and evolution of this basin, situated between the older than 100 Ma Southern Kerguelen Plateau and the younger than 43 Ma Australian‐Antarctic Basin. The Labuan Basin is a deep, extensive basement depression, more than 350,000 km2 in area, located adjacent to the eastern margin of the Southern Kerguelen Plateau. In contrast to the nearby Kerguelen Plateau, no prominent reflectors are observed within the basement of the Labuan Basin. This suggests a different mechanism of formation from that of the Kerguelen Plateau, which is believed to have been formed by thick sequences of large lava flows. The basement surface of most of the Labuan Basin is presently quite rough, as the result of a tectonic event which created prominent tilted block structures and turned it into a large northwest‐southeast trending syncline. There is a 1–1.5 km elevation difference between the Labuan Basin and the Australian‐Antarctic Basin created at the Southeast Indian Ridge, as well as a large difference in sedimentary thickness between them, indicating that the Labuan Basin is significantly older. The boundary of the Labuan Basin with the Kerguelen Plateau is generally a steep and somewhat linear feature which appears to be of tectonic origin: it seems to result from two extensive tectonic episodes, dated at 96 Ma and 75–68 Ma, associated with the prerift phase of plate breakup between Australia and Antarctica. The basement of the Labuan Basin was created 130–100 Ma ago at about the same time than the Kerguelen Plateau. An extensive tectonic episode, to the south of the Labuan Basin, initiated the formation of the boundary between the Southern Kerguelen Plateau and the Labuan Basin. This tectonic episode could be linked to the beginning of seafloor spreading between Australia and Antarctica 96 Ma ago. Sediments were regularly deposited in the basin until 75–68 Ma, at which time an important extensional tectonic event occurred. It involved two large northwest‐southeast uplifts; one, centered on the Kerguelen Plateau, affected the western part of the Labuan Basin while the other, of which only the western half is observed, affected the eastern part of the Labuan Basin. This tectonic episode seems to correspond to the prerifting episode leading to the breakup between the Kerguelen Plateau‐Labuan Basin and Broken Ridge‐Diamantina Zone at 43 Ma. After this tectonic episode, the sediments of the postuplift megasequence filled topographic lows formed by the normal faults and the tilted blocks. The Diamantina Zone, which prior to 43 Ma was continuous with the Labuan Basin, can be expected to have a similar tectonic history. In particular, the rough basement of the Diamantina Zone can be due to postformation tectonism rather than to slow spreading as previously suggested.

Evolutionary Sequences and Hydrocarbon Potential of Kenya Sedimentary Basins

Kenya basins have evolved primarily through extension related to episodic continental rifting. In eastern Kenya, thick accumulations of sediments formed within grabens during the prerift phase (Precambrian to Carboniferous) of the Gondwana breakup. Synrift sedimentation (Late Carboniferous to Middle Jurassic) occurred within a north-south rift system, which included the Mandera basin, South Anza basin, and Lamu embayment. During the Early Jurassic, a marine transgression invaded the margins of the eastern Kenya rift basins, resulting in the deposition of platform carbonates and shales. A Callovian-aged salt basin formed in the offshore regions of the Lamu embayment. Intermittent tectonic activity and eustatic sea-level changes controlled sedimentation, which produced marine shales, carbonates or evaporites, and fluvio-deltaic to lacustrine sandstones. From the Early Cretaceous to recent, continental sediments were deposited within the North Anza and Turkana basins. These fluvial-lacustrine sediments are similar to the Lower Cretaceous sequences that have produced oil in the Mesozoic Sudanese Abu Gabra rift. Although exploration activities began in the early 1950s, significant occurrences of potential reservoir, source, and seal lithologies as well as trapping configurations remain in many areas. Favorable structures and sequences of reservoir sandstones and carbonates overlain by potentially sealing lacustrine or marine shales, evaporites, or volcanicsmore » have been noted. Potential source beds are believed to be present within shales of the lacustrine or marine depositional environments.« less