An Introduction to the Alpine Cycle in Iberia

Abstract

A global view of the Mesozoic-Cenozoic geodynamic evolution of the Iberian microplate is necessary to determine the role of inherited Variscan structures in the configuration of the Alpine Cycle. Furthermore, it is important to reconstruct the extensional Mesozoic geometries of the Iberian margins, presently inverted during the Cenozoic compression. We discuss briefly in this chapter, thanks to a large number of innovative scientific studies, the evolution of the Iberian microplate and of its margins, and the geology of Iberia mountain ranges and foreland basins: the Betic-Rif system along the southern plate boundary and the Pyrenees-Bay of Biscay along the northern Iberian plate boundary. In addition, the renewed interest in the role of Triassic salt tectonics both during extension and compression is also discussed.