. 24/7 Space News .
EARTH OBSERVATION
The ancient rotation of the Iberian Peninsula left a magnetic trace
by Staff Writers
Madrid, Spain (SPX) Mar 08, 2016


This is an aerial photograph of the Truchillas river (Truchas, Leon), and detail of its volcanic rock. Image courtesy J. Fernandez Lozano et al. For a larger version of this image please go here.

The volcanic rock found in the south of Leon (Spain) experienced a rotation of almost 60+ 300 million years ago, an example of what could have occurred across the entire Iberian Peninsula when, in that moment, it was still being formed.

This fact is demonstrated by the magnetic signals of its minerals, currently being analysed by researchers from the universities of Salamanca and Utrecht (The Netherlands). This discovery improves our understanding of a now-disappeared mountain range that stood over what is now north-western Spain, France, and the southern United Kingdom.

The bathers that gather every summer on the banks of the rivers of the mountain ranges of La Cabrera and El Teleno in Leon (Spain) have little reason to suspect that the rocks that they can see near the water are of volcanic origin, over 460 million years old, when an emerging Iberian Peninsula was still on the coast of the continent of Gondwana, on the shore of the Rheic ocean.

Around 350 million years ago, that ancient ocean closed during the formation of the Pangea supercontinent, and the sediments deposited in it became a large mountain range that later acquired a curved shape, becoming part of what is now the Iberian Peninsula around 300 million years ago.

Now scientists at University of Salamanca have collected, in the Leonese towns located between Truchas and Ponferrada, 320 samples of volcanic rock and limestone, a record of that turbulent, volcanic period of our planet's history.

After having analysed the samples in one of the most important Palaeomagnetism laboratories in the world, located at Utrecht University (The Netherlands), they have been able to reconstruct the history of these ancient rocks based on the magnetic signal of their mineral content. The results have been published in the journal 'Tectonophysics'.

"These rocks were deposited on the ocean floor 440 million years ago near the south pole, and its components were oriented in the direction of the Earth's magnetic field at the time (N-S)," explains to SINC Javier Fernandez Lozano, a geologist at the University of Salamanca and co-author of the research.

About 120 million years later, the collision of two continents occurred, between what is now the North and South of Europe. The result of this collision was what is known as the Variscan orogeny, the raising of a mountain range along the North-South axis, which left the rocks with a secondary magnetic signal, adapted to the new magnetic field of the Earth.

The changes in the direction of that magnetic field were preserved in their minerals, and indicate that shortly after that process, the rocks of these mountains experienced a rotation of almost 60+ , until they ended up in with their current orientation," notes Fernandez Lozano.

He points out that this magnetic signal can be associated with large-scale processes of mountain formation, and how these ranges can be curved until they create structures known as oroclines: "With a rock sample, we can analyse a process that has occurred on the tectonic plate level; and, specifically, offers new data that allows us to discover how this orogeny or large Variscan range and its curvature occurred. This information was preserved in the rocks of the British Isles, France, and North-West Spain, along more than 3,000 kilometres.

This study forms part of a long-debated geological problem: the Cantabrian orocline, an issue that a few years ago brought together specialists at an international congress held in Salamanca. An orocline is the curvature of a range or chain of mountains that was originally linear, and the Cantabrian orocline is recognizable 300 million years later in the geography of the Iberian Peninsula and surrounding areas.

Concretely, one can observe the arc formed by the Cantabrian range until it disappears into the continental shelf, and the curvature that continues onward towards the Iberian Range. Fernandez Lozano notes that the new research "goes beyond previous efforts, primarily focused on Asturias, in order to understand this orocline, and now we can find its traces further to the south, on the border between Leon and Zamora."

"Thanks to studies like this one, we can continue to provide information on the causes and processes that gave birth to curved mountain ranges after the collision between two continents," concludes the geologist.

References: Fernandez-Lozano, J., Pastor-Galan, D., Gutierrez-Alonso, G. y Franco, P. "New kinematic constraints on the Cantabrian orocline: A paleomagnetic study from the Penalba and Truchas synclines, NW Spain". Tectonophysics , 20 February 2016 (on line). Doi: doi:10.1016/j.tecto.2016.02.019


Thanks for being here;
We need your help. The SpaceDaily news network continues to grow but revenues have never been harder to maintain.

With the rise of Ad Blockers, and Facebook - our traditional revenue sources via quality network advertising continues to decline. And unlike so many other news sites, we don't have a paywall - with those annoying usernames and passwords.

Our news coverage takes time and effort to publish 365 days a year.

If you find our news sites informative and useful then please consider becoming a regular supporter or for now make a one off contribution.
SpaceDaily Contributor
$5 Billed Once


credit card or paypal
SpaceDaily Monthly Supporter
$5 Billed Monthly


paypal only


.


Related Links
Spanish Foundation for Science and Technology
Earth Observation News - Suppiliers, Technology and Application






Comment on this article via your Facebook, Yahoo, AOL, Hotmail login.

Share this article via these popular social media networks
del.icio.usdel.icio.us DiggDigg RedditReddit GoogleGoogle

Previous Report
EARTH OBSERVATION
Nonstop LEOP full stop
Paris (ESA) Feb 26, 2016
Working around the clock, mission teams have brought Sentinel-3A through the critical 'launch and early orbit phase' in just 49 hours, much earlier than planned and a record for such a complex satellite. Last week, the third ESA-developed Sentinel satellite was lofted into space, ready to provide crucial ocean and land remote data for the EU's Copernicus environment programme . The 1 ... read more


EARTH OBSERVATION
China to use data relay satellite to explore dark side of moon

NASA May Return to Moon, But Only After Cutting Off ISS

Lunar love: When science meets artistry

New Lunar Exhibit Features NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Imagery

EARTH OBSERVATION
Great tilt gave Mars a new face

Space simulation crew hits halfway mark til August re-entry

Monster volcano gave Mars extreme makeover: study

SSL developing robotic sample handling assembly for Mars 2020

EARTH OBSERVATION
Sore, but no taller, astronaut Scott Kelly adjusts to Earth

Test Dummies to Help Assess Crew Safety in Orion

Less connectivity improves innovation

Orion launch abort motor case passes structural qualification test

EARTH OBSERVATION
Aim Higher: China Plans to Send Rover to Mars in 2020

China's lunar probe sets record for longest stay

Moving in to Tiangong 2

Logistics Rule on Tiangong 2

EARTH OBSERVATION
International Space Station's '1-year crew' returns to Earth

Scott Kelly and Mikhail Kornienko return to Earth after One-Year Mission

Paragon wins NASA ISS water processor development contract

NASA's Science Command Post Supports Scott Kelly's Year In Space

EARTH OBSERVATION
SpaceX launches SES-9 satellite to GEO; but booster landing fails

US Space Company in Talks With India to Launch Satellite

At last second, SpaceX delays satellite launch again

Arianespace Soyuz to launch 2 Galileo satellites in May

EARTH OBSERVATION
Evidence found for unstable heavy element at solar system formation

Imaging Technique May Help Discover Earth-Like Planets Around Other Stars

Newly discovered planet in the Hyades cluster could shed light on planetary evolution

Imaging technique may help discover Earth-like planets

EARTH OBSERVATION
University of Kentucky physicist discovers new 2-D material that could upstage graphene

Disney automated system lets characters leap and bound realistically in virtual worlds

New catalyst makes hydrogen peroxide accessible to developing world

Research demonstrates that air data can be used to reconstruct radiological releases









The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2024 - Space Media Network. All websites are published in Australia and are solely subject to Australian law and governed by Fair Use principals for news reporting and research purposes. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA news reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. All articles labeled "by Staff Writers" include reports supplied to Space Media Network by industry news wires, PR agencies, corporate press officers and the like. Such articles are individually curated and edited by Space Media Network staff on the basis of the report's information value to our industry and professional readership. Advertising does not imply endorsement, agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) Statement Our advertisers use various cookies and the like to deliver the best ad banner available at one time. All network advertising suppliers have GDPR policies (Legitimate Interest) that conform with EU regulations for data collection. By using our websites you consent to cookie based advertising. If you do not agree with this then you must stop using the websites from May 25, 2018. Privacy Statement. Additional information can be found here at About Us.