The TOPO-IBERIA Research Initiative

Research Programme in the different Regional domains

The proposed research will be multidisciplinary and dedicated to advancing the understanding of the processes and mechanisms that are, or where active from the surface into the lithospheric mantle in the westernmost segment of the Alpine-Mediterranean orogenic system over the last 30 Ma. It aims to integrate the geophysical and geological techniques described in Section 2.5 over a range of scales to determine the tectonic evolution of the mantle and crust, and the influence that these have had on rock exhumation and the formation of relief in the Iberian plate.

This reseach will provide an important geological and geophysical database not only for basic research into orogenic processes, but also for climate and hydrosphere reserch as well as the preparation, prevention, and mitigation of geological risk in tectonically active and highly populated areas.

Tectonic map of the mountain ranges and foreland basins surrounding the Western Mediterranean. The Iberian microplate is located between the Mediterranean and the Atlantic Ocean.