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Seismic Stratigraphic Analysis of the Messinian Evaporite Deposits and Their Temporal and Spatial Distribution in the Western Cyprus Arc, Northeastern Mediterranean

Abstract

Abstract

This study aims at achieving a deeper understanding of the Messinian to Recent, interrelation between the structural, morphological and stratigraphical settings of the Eastern Mediterranean in relation to the Messinian Salinity Crisis (MSC) event. The MSC that afflicted the Mediterranean is one of the most dramatic examples of environmental change in the Cenozoic geologic record. Determining the Messinian stratigraphic evolution of the Florence Rise, Antalya Basin and its environs is essential to understand the mechanisms of late Miocene to Recent sedimentary and tectonic history of the eastern Mediterranean Basin.

More specifically the contribution of this study has two distinct and fundamental aims. Firstly, it outlines the stratigraphic and structural framework of the study area. The second aim is describing the depositional distribution of Messinian evaporites, which is used to develop a stratigraphic model to understand the Messinian depositional history of the Eastern Mediterranean. To complete these aims, this study focuses on the Antalya Basin and Florence Rise of western Cyprus Arc in the eastern Mediterranean with the following specific targets; i) constructed a detailed tectonic seismic stratigraphic architecture for the western Cyprus Arc and provided correlations between the offshore features in the study area. Produced detailed maps of tectonic structures and delineated their role in the Miocene to Recent deformation observed within the study area. ii) Identified the responses of main stratigraphic characteristics of the MSC evaporites and overlying formations (Pli-Quaternary) of the eastern Mediterranean environment. The distribution and geometry of the MSC deposits influence the character and stratigraphic architecture of Pli-Quaternary sediment distribution and local and regional modifications of the structural pattern. In this study we proposed a sequence stratigraphic model to explain fractionation of evaporite facies between different paleo-bathymetric settings and predict the temporal evolution of the MSC successions along the Mediterranean Basin and also we determined the relationship between different stages of MSC and global events, particularly of sea level changes.