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Mesozoic–Cenozoic evolution of North Atlantic continental-slope basins: The Peniche basin, western Iberian margin

¹ Departamento de Geologia Marinha, Instituto Nacional de Engenharia, Tecnologia e Inovação, Estrada da Portela, Zambujal-Alfragide, 2720-866 Amadora, Portugal; tiago.alves{at}ineti.pt
² Direcção Geral de Geologia e Energia-Divisão para a Pesquisa e Prospecção de Petróleo, Av. República 45-5°, Lisbon, Portugal; carlos.moita{at}dge.pt
³ TGS-NOPEC Geophysical Company, Baarsrudveien 2, N-3478 Naersnes, Norway; frode.Sandnes{at}tgsnopec.no
⁴ Department of Earth Sciences, Oxford University, Parks Road, Oxford OX1 3PR, United Kingdom; Tiago.Cunha{at}earth.ox.ac.uk
⁵ Departamento de Geologia Marinha, Instituto Nacional de Engenharia, Tecnologia e Inovação, Estrada da Portela, Zambujal-Alfragide, 2720-866 Amadora, Portugal; hipolito.monteiro{at}ineti.pt
⁶ Departamento de Geociências, Universidade de Aveiro, Campus de Santiago, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal; lmp{at}geo.ua.pt

Tiago Alves has worked on the Iberian margin since 1997. His research activities integrate oil exploration, continental-slope stability, and recent sedimentary processes on continental margins. He is now a European Deep Ocean Margins research fellow at the National Center for Marine Research (Greece), having received a degree in engineering geology from the New University of Lisbon (1997) and a Ph.D. in basin and stratigraphic studies from the University of Manchester, United Kingdom (2002). He has been awarded the Portuguese National Prize for Marine Science and Technology (IMAR-Luiz Saldanha) in 2004.Carlos Moita works for the General Directorate of Geology and Energy of Portugal in the Division of Petroleum Exploration and Production. His professional activities and interests include assisting oil exploration in Portugal, integrating seismic and stratigraphic data in the search for new hydrocarbon plays in west Iberia. He received his B.Sc. and M.Sc. degrees in geology from the University of Lisbon (1996) and his M.Sc. degree in geophysical engineering from the Colorado School of Mines (2001).

Frode Sandnes works as a chief geologist for Europe and Russia for TGS-NOPEC Geophysical Company. He possesses some 26 years of experience in exploration and production and a proven track record through extensive work in new ventures. He received an M.Sc. degree from the Norwegian Technical Institute, Trondheim, in 1978. He also held technical and management positions at Conoco, Saga Petroleum, IBM, and ProWider. He is an active member of the AAPG.

Tiago Cunha is completing his Ph.D. under the supervision of A. B. Watts and L. M. Pinheiro. He is studying the evolution and segmentation of the Iberian–Newfoundland conjugate margin from gravity modeling and flexure analysis. He received his B.Sc. degree in applied and environmental geology from the University of Lisbon, Portugal, in 1998. In 1999, he joined the Marine Geology Department of the Portuguese Geological Survey, where he worked on gravity modeling in collaboration with the British Geological Survey and the Southampton Oceanographic Center, United Kingdom.

José Monteiro graduated in geological sciences (B.Sc.) from the University of Lisbon in 1964 and obtained his M.Sc. degree from the Scripps Institute of Oceanography in 1966. His professional career started in the Portuguese Navy, where he worked as a research geologist. He joined the Portuguese Geological Survey in 1971, where he worked as a geologist in the Petroleum Division, Applied Geology, and Marine Geology departments, having been head of the latter department. He also taught environmental and marine geology at the University of Aveiro, the University of Évora, and the New University of Lisbon.

Luis Pinheiro received a Ph.D. in marine geophysics from Imperial College, United Kingdom (1994). He is an associate professor in marine geology and geophysics at the University of Aveiro and was the head of the Marine Geology Department of the Portuguese Geological Survey. He participated and coordinated 23 research cruises. His current research topics include continental passive-margin crustal structure, fluid seepage, gas hydrates, and seismic stratigraphy.

New regional (two-dimensional) seismic reflection data, published Deep-Sea Drilling Project–Ocean Drilling Program reports, and unpublished shallow-offshore well information characterize the Mesozoic–Cenozoic evolution of the western Iberian continental slope north of 38°45'N. Two distinct sectors bounded by first-order transfer faults exist between the Galicia Bank and the Nazaré fault. The northernmost sector 1 is filled by Triassic–Aptian (prebreakup) sequences, reaching more than 3.5 s two-way traveltime (TWTT) in thickness in distinct half grabens. Salt pillows, salt ridges, minibasins, and salt-detached overburden faults were generated during the Mesozoic and reactivated in the Cenozoic. Sector 2 shows Triassic–Jurassic units more than 2.0 s TWTT thick, underlying east-tilting half grabens of Early Cretaceous age. Salt structures in this sector evolved into mature salt diapirs. Postbreakup units are up to 2.0 s TWTT thick in both sectors. The evolution of the study area replicates evolutionary settings that have previously been proposed for nonvolcanic passive margins. However, some distinct features are noted: (1) widespread Triassic–Berriasian units deposited over rotated tilt blocks represent the early rifting stage; (2) Early Cretaceous subbasins showing rift-climax units, most likely formed during the advanced rifting stage, are spatially constrained to an approximately 100-km (62-mi)-wide region stretched along the continental slope; and (3) listric blocks and their associated low-angle (deep) detachment faults, formed on the distal margin during the advanced rifting and transition to sea-floor spreading stages, show no developed rift-climax units above them. From the early rifting stage onward, Mesozoic faults and halokinetic structures induced local differences in the thickness and character of seismic facies. Cenozoic (Alpine) tectonism promoted the reactivation of older Mesozoic structures.

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