CyprusArc

The Eastern Mediterranean region is a natural laboratory to study the various stages of active margin development, including ocean closure and ophiolite formation, continental subduction, continent-continent collision, back-arc basin evolution, slab roll-back and slab-break-off.

The region is characterized by convergence and collision and the Aegean/Anatolian micro-plate is squeezed between the African/Arabian and the Eurasian plate. In the eastern Mediterranean, the Cyprus arc has been the location of subduction of the oceanic edge of the African plate. At the Cyprus arc micro-continental blocks on the oceanic edge of the African plate are now beginning to collide with the Aegean/Anatolian micro-plate and the Cyprus arc is in transition from subduction to continental collision. Whereas the North-Anatolian Fault (NAF) and the Aegean escape tectonics have been studied for many years, our knowledge of the form, dynamics and impact of the Cyprus arc has been very limited.

Tectonic overview	Completed profiles
	Marine profiles	Amphibious profiles

Principal Investigators  

• M. Weber (GFZ Potsdam)
• J. Mechie (GFZ Potsdam
• Ch. Hübscher (Uni. Hamburg)

Ph. D. student  

• C. Feld (GFZ Potsdam)
  

Cooperation  

• Uni. Hamburg, BGR Hannover, Uni. Kiel
• Memorial University, Newfoundland, Canada
• Bogazici University, Istanbul, Turkey
• Geological Survey Department, Cyprus

Experiment time frame  

• March 2010

Methods & equipment  

• refraction / wide-angle reflection - 105 EDL's with either a MARK 1 Hz seismometer or a PE-6/B 4.5 Hz geophone, 85 DSS Cubes with a PE-6/B 4.5 Hz geophone from GIPP; 60 Reftek Texans; 34 OBS/OBH
• near vertical reflection
• Magnetotelluric
• Gravity

Publications  

• N/A

For more information contact M. Weber