Conference:
RCMNS 14th Congres, Istanbul, Turkey, 8-12 September 2013, p. 54.
Authors:
Damien Do Couto, Christian Gorini, Ferran Estrada, Speranta-Maria Popescu, Jean-Pierre Suc, Nadia Barhoun, Mihaela-Carmen Melinte Dobrinescu, Jean-Luc Auxietre, Jean-Loup Rubino.
Abstract:
The Messinian Salinity Crisis (MSC), which affected the Mediterranean region during the latest Miocene, is mainly characterized by the deposition of thick evaporites in central basins and strong fluvial erosion of margins (Hsü et al., 1973; Chumakov, 1973; Clauzon, 1973; Bertoni and Cartwright, 2006; Bache et al., 2009). The fluvial erosion, known as the Messinian Erosional Surface (MES), is continuously followed from the Gulf of Lions up to 360 km from the present-day shoreline upstream the Rhône Valley (Clauzon et al., 1990; Guennoc et al., 2000; Lofi et al., 2005; Bache et al., 2009). Short drainage systems limited by high coastal mountain ranges, must have been significantly affected by the Messinian erosion.
The Alboran Sea is similarly characterized by a geographic context and was the first Mediterranean area concerned by connection-disconnection to the Atlantic Ocean during the last millions years. We have performed an extensive research of the MES in the Alboran region, both onshore and offshore, integrating outcrop descriptions, supported by new biostratigraphic data, and seismic profile analyses. This study leads to an up-to-date geological and morphological map displaying the actual contours and morphology of the MES in the whole Alboran domain.