Record of enhanced late Pliocene tectono‐volcanic activity in the Lesser Antilles forearc basin: Insights into the long‐term behaviour of the Lesser Antilles subduction zone

In this study, we investigate the Lesser Antilles forearc basin, focusing on the late Pliocene to Pleistocene sedimentary archives in order to track the occurrence of extreme events triggered by enhanced subduction‐related tectono‐volcanic activity. We identify late Piacenzian deposits covering a ma...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published inTerra nova (Oxford, England) Vol. 29; no. 4; pp. 245 - 252
Main Authors Léticée, Jean‐Len, Philippon, Mélody, Cornée, Jean‐Jacques, Münch, Philippe, De Min, Lyvane, Noury, Mélanie, Randrianasolo, Auran, Lebrun, Jean‐Frédéric
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Oxford Blackwell Publishing Ltd 01.08.2017
Wiley-Blackwell
Subjects
Accretion disks
Archives
Basins
Boulders
Earth Sciences
Forearc basins
Plate tectonics
Pleistocene
Pliocene
Sciences of the Universe
Seismology
Subduction
Subduction zones
Tectonics
Volcanoes
Lesser Antilles
Online AccessGet full text

Cover

More Information
Summary:In this study, we investigate the Lesser Antilles forearc basin, focusing on the late Pliocene to Pleistocene sedimentary archives in order to track the occurrence of extreme events triggered by enhanced subduction‐related tectono‐volcanic activity. We identify late Piacenzian deposits covering a major regional erosional surface, displaying sedimentary dykes and large marine boulders embedded in a mixed continental–marine matrix, characteristic of tsunamites. We interpret this episode of platform emersion and the successive cataclysmic deposits as resulting from enhanced tectonic activity at the interface of the subduction zone, synchronous with the initiation of the Lesser Antilles volcanic arc. We then discuss the implications in terms of the mechanical behaviour of the Lesser Antilles subduction zone.
ISSN:0954-4879
1365-3121
DOI:10.1111/ter.12271