Abstract
We report new observations in the eastern Black Sea-Caucasus region that allow reconstructing the evolution of the Neotethys in the Cretaceous. At that time, the Neotethys oceanic plate was subducting northward below the continental Eurasia plate. Based on the analysis of the obducted ophiolites that crop out throughout Lesser Caucasus and East Anatolides, we show that a spreading center (AESA basin) existed within the Neotethys, between Middle Jurassic and Early Cretaceous. Later, the spreading center was carried into the subduction with the Neotethys plate. We argue that the subduction of the spreading center opened a slab window that allowed asthenospheric material to move upward, in effect thermally and mechanically weakening the otherwise strong Eurasia upper plate. The local weakness zone favored the opening of the Black Sea back-arc basins. Later, in the Late Cretaceous, the AESA basin obducted onto the Taurides–Anatolides–South Armenia Microplate (TASAM), which then collided with Eurasia along a single suture zone (AESA suture).
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 23-32 |
Number of pages | 10 |
Journal | Comptes Rendus. Ge´oscience |
Volume | 348 |
Issue number | 1 |
Early online date | 18 Dec 2015 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - Jan 2016 |
Bibliographical note
AcknowledgmentsThis paper has been written in tribute to my colleague and friend Jean-François Stéphan, who much motivated this work and followed it step by step. Speaking personally as the primary author, Jean-François supported and enriched my scientific work over my whole career. We spent years as office neighbors in Geoazur, and I thus had the great privilege to discuss science with Jean-François almost every day. I will never forget the great colleague and the even greater friend he was for me.
These works were supported by the “Groupement De Recherche International” Géosciences Sud Caucase of the CNRS\INSU and also by the MEBE and DARIUS Programs.
The authors would like to thank the two reviewers of this paper, Invited Associate Editor Bernard Mercier de Lépinay, and Associate Editor Isabelle Manighetti, who significantly improved the synopsis and the English writing of the paper.
Keywords
- Black Sea
- Caucasus
- Ophiolites
- Cretaceous
- Neotethys
- Paleotectonic reconstruction