Tectonic evolution of the Andes of Neuquén: Constraints derived from the magmatic arc and foreland deformation
The Andes of the Neuquén region (36°-38°S latitude) of the Central Andes have distinctive characteristics that result from the alternation of periods of generalized extension followed by periods of compression. As a result of these processes the Loncopué trough is a unique long depression at the foo...
Guardado en:
| Autores principales: | , |
|---|---|
| Publicado: |
2005
|
| Materias: | |
| Acceso en línea: | https://bibliotecadigital.exactas.uba.ar/collection/paper/document/paper_03058719_v252_n_p15_Ramos http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12110/paper_03058719_v252_n_p15_Ramos |
| Aporte de: |
| Sumario: | The Andes of the Neuquén region (36°-38°S latitude) of the Central Andes have distinctive characteristics that result from the alternation of periods of generalized extension followed by periods of compression. As a result of these processes the Loncopué trough is a unique long depression at the foothills parallel to the Principal Cordillera that consists of a complex half-graben system produced during Oligocene times and extensionally reactivated in the Pliocene-Pleistocene. Its northern sector represents the present contractional orogenic front. The nature and volume of arc-related igneous rocks, the location of the volcanic fronts, expansions and retreats of the magmatism, and the associated igneous activity in the foreland, together with the analyses of the superimposed structural styles, permit the constraint of the alternating tectonic regimes. On these bases, different stages from Jurassic to Present are correlated with changes in the geometry of the Benioff zone through time. Periods of subduction-zone steepening are associated with large volumes of poorly evolved magmas and generalized extension, while shallowing of the subduction zone is linked to foreland migration of more evolved magmas associated with contraction and uplift in the Principal Cordillera. The injection of hot asthenospheric materi al from the subcontinental mantle into the asthenospheric wedge during steepening of the subduction zone produced melting and poorly evolved magmas in an extensional setting. These periods are linked to oceanic plate reorganizations in the late Oligocene and in the early Pliocene. © The Geological Society of London 2005. |
|---|