Introduction to the Geology of the Eastern Alps

摘要: The Alpine orogen formed during the convergence of the African and European plates, which was a more or less continuous evolution since Cretaceous times. The geology of the Alpine–Mediterranean area is complex, however, because of the existence of more than one oceanic realm and several plates between Africa and Europe, as well as the interplay between shortening processes and lateral movements. This makes it difficult to determine the plate tectonic arrangement through time (HANDY et al., 2010). Models of Alpine tectonics have developed rapidly during recent decades, mainly as a result of modern structural, stratigraphic, petrological and geochronological investigations which, together with deep reflection seismic profiling and tomographic studies, have provided new insights into the present-day structures. Contrasting interpretations on the evolution of the Alpine orogen still remain, however, further complicated by the use of different nomenclatures. This summary of the geology of the Alps is based on the tectonic interpretation by SCHMID et al.(2004) and on the review of Alpine metamorphic history by OBERHÄNSLI (2004) together with the literature cited therein.In a geographical sense the Alps are divided into the Southern Alps (to the south of the Periadriatic lineament), the Eastern Alps, the Central Alps, and the arc of the Western Alps (Fig. 1). These subdivisions are each dominated by different paleogeographic elements that were incorporated at different stages in the Alpine tectonic evolution, resulting in distinct geological structures and a specific geomorphology. In the following an overview on the plate tectonic and …