Algarve Basin

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Algarve Basin
Coordinates 36°48′N8°00′W / 36.8°N 8.0°W / 36.8; -8.0 Coordinates: 36°48′N8°00′W / 36.8°N 8.0°W / 36.8; -8.0
Etymology Algarve
RegionAlgarve
CountryPortugal
Characteristics
On/OffshoreOnshore/offshore
Geology
Basin type Extensional
Age Mesozoic

The Algarve Basin is a Mesozoic sedimentary basin located in southernmost Portugal, extending southwards offshore. It was formed during the Late Triassic by rifting associated with the first stage of the break-up of the Pangaea supercontinent. The basin fill consists of two main sequences that represent the two main phases of rifting: Later Triassic to Early Jurassic and Middle Jurassic to Cenomanian. The basin was inverted during the Alpine orogeny in the Cenozoic. [1]

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References

  1. Ramos, A.; Fernández, O.; Terrinha, P.; Muñoz, J.A. "Extension and inversion structures in the Tethys–Atlantic linkage zone, Algarve Basin, Portugal" (PDF). International Journal of Earth Sciences. 105: 1663–1679. doi:10.1007/s00531-015-1280-1.