Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Elsevier
Résumé : International audience
The Aegean domain is a key area for understanding the processes of back-arc extension. Observed deformation pattern and present day kinematics result from the interaction between the southward retreat of the Hellenic trench and the westward escape of Anatolia. Lithosphere-scale analogue models were employed to display that the overall pattern of Aegean extension requires not only the combination of trench retreat and Anatolia escape since middle Miocene but also the presence of an inherited lithosphere-scale mechanical discontinuity: the Vardar Suture Zone (VSZ). The reactivation in dextral shear of the eastern branch of the VSZ accommodates both the trench retreat (NS stretching) and the westward escape of Anatolia (EW shortening) in the Cyclades area since middle Miocene. Additionally, our model shows that the North Anatolian Fault (NAF) is a late structure in the evolution of the Aegean, initiated around 10 Ma after the onset of Anatolia escape. The displacement field at the surface of the model allows the identification of sub-domains, which result from strain partitioning instead of being "rigid microplates", directly comparable to the present-day displacement field (GPS) of the Aegean and western Anatolia. Our model provides a simple but powerful way to look at the dynamics of Aegean extension in two main stages. From middle Eocene to middle Miocene, extension was only driven by the southward retreat of the Hellenic trench at a rate lower than 1 cm*y− 1. Since middle Miocene, the combination of slab rollback with Anatolia westward escape resulted in a southwest direction of trench retreat, with an accelerating rate of up to 3 cm*y− 1.
ISSN: 0040-1951

insu-01066042
https://hal-insu.archives-ouvertes.fr/insu-01066042
https://hal-insu.archives-ouvertes.fr/insu-01066042/document
https://hal-insu.archives-ouvertes.fr/insu-01066042/file/Philippon-brun-tect-2014-HAL.pdf
DOI : 10.1016/j.tecto.2014.04.039

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD
Résumé : International audience
The Aegean domain is a key area for understanding the processes of back-arc extension. Observed deformation pattern and present day kinematics result from the interaction between the southward retreat of the Hellenic trench and the westward escape of Anatolia. Using laboratory experiments designed to study lithosphere-scale deformation, we show that the overall pattern of Aegean extension requires not only the combination of trench retreat and Anatolia escape since 15 Ma but also the presence of an inherited lithosphere-scale mechanical discontinuity: the Vardar Suture Zone (VSZ). The reactivation in dextral shear of the eastern branch of the VSZ accommodates both the trench retreat (NS stretching) and the westward escape of Anatolia (EW shortening) in the Cyclades area since 15 Ma. Additionally, our model shows that the North Anatolian Fault (NAF) is a late structure in the evolution of the Aegean, initiated 10 Ma after the onset of Anatolia escape. The model displays displacement sub-domains, which result from strain partitioning instead of being “rigid microplates”, directly comparable to the present-day displacement field (GPS) of the Aegean and western Anatolia. Our modelling provides a simple way to look at the dynamics of Aegean extension in two main stages. From middle Eocene to middle Miocene, extension was only driven by the southward retreat of the Hellenic trench at a rate lower than 1 cm.y-1. Since middle Miocene, the combination of slab rollback with Anatolia westward escape, resulted in a southwest direction of trench retreat, with an accelerating rate of up to 3 cm.y-1.
AGU Fall Meeting 2015
San Francisco, United States

insu-01242045
https://hal-insu.archives-ouvertes.fr/insu-01242045

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD
Résumé : International audience
Aegean extension is a process driven by slab rollback that since 45 Ma shows a two-stage evolution. From 45 to13 Ma it is accommodated by localized deformation leading to i) the exhumation of high-pressure metamorphicrocks from mantle to crustal depths, ii) the exhumation of high-temperature rocks in core complexes and iii) thedeposition of Paleogene sedimentary basins. Since 13 Ma, extension is distributed over the whole Aegean domaingiving a widespread development of onshore and offshore Neogene sedimentary basins. The 3D reconstruction atAegean scale of this two-stage evolution shows that the rate of trench retreat was around 0.6 cm/y during the first30 My and then accelerated up to 3.2 cm/y during the last 13 My. Using available tomographic evidence, timingof metamorphic and sedimentary processes, paleomagnetic data and geometry and kinematics of deformation, wepropose that the sharp transition in trench retreat and deformation mode, localized vs distributed, at 13 Ma wascontrolled to slab tearing. Moreover, the development of dextral NE-SW strike-slip faults and related pull-apartbasins in the North Aegean domain, from the Cyclades to the Rhodope, strongly suggests that this sharp transitionalso corresponds to the onset of Anatolia westward escape.
Geophysical Research Abstracts
Vienne, Austria

insu-01137631
https://hal-insu.archives-ouvertes.fr/insu-01137631