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Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/2445/183443
Deep electrical resistivity of the northern gibraltar arc (western mediterranean): evidence of lithospheric slab break-off
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Uncertainties about the lithospheric structure of the Gibraltar Arc have led to the proposal of several contradictory models to explain its geodynamic setting. Herein, we present a novel 3-D model of the lithospheric electrical resistivity distribution beneath the whole Betic Cordillera obtained by inverting both broad-band and long-period magnetotelluric data. The lithosphere-asthenosphere boundary under SW Iberia is shown to be deeper than under the Alboran Basin. In addition, the sensitivity tests confirm the presence of a N-S oriented low-resistivity anomaly at lithospheric mantle depths east of the 4°W meridian. It coincides with an area of low velocities without earthquake hypocenters and is interpreted as asthenospheric material intruded by the lateral lithospheric tearing and breaking-off of the E-directed subducting Ligurian slab under the Alboran Domain. This scenario suggests that the opening of the Alboran Basin is related to the westward rollback of this E-directed subducting slab.
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ROSELL NOVEL, Oriol, et al. Deep electrical resistivity of the northern gibraltar arc (western mediterranean): evidence of lithospheric slab break-off. Terra Nova. 2011. Vol. 23, num. 3, pags. 179-186. ISSN 0954-4879. [consulted: 10 of June of 2026]. Available at: https://hdl.handle.net/2445/183443