Javier Fernández-Lozano

Inversion of moment tensor focal mechanisms for active stresses around the microcontinent Iberia: Tectonic implications

The Iberian microcontinent and its connected oceanic crust are affected by deformations related to the Eurasian-African plate boundary. Active stress inversions from populations of moment tensor focal mechanisms have been performed around and inside the Iberian peninsula, using a total of 213 moment tensor estimates. Main results are: 1) The tensorial solutions show better consistency and lower misfits compared to those obtained previously from first P arrival focal mechanisms. 2) Along the Eurasia- Africa western boundary, the type of active stresses progressively changes easternwards from triaxial extension to uniaxial compression along the Terceira Ridge, the Gloria Fault zone and the Gulf of Cadiz. 3) In the Betics-Alboran-Rif zone, uniaxial extension predominates with Shmax N155oE trending. 4) In N Algeria, uniaxial compression reappears. 5) The Iberian foreland is currently under strike-slip to uniaxial extension tensorial conditions.

The Alejico Carboniferous Forest: a 3D-Terrestrial and UAV-Assisted Photogrammetric Model for Geologic Heritage Preservation

The Alejico coalbeds represent a well-preserved Carboniferous fossils site characterised by the presence of tree trunks in life position and parallel to bedding. The area, located near the Picos de Europa National Park (Spain), between the León and Asturias provinces, lacks of any kind of preservation directives, thus being influenced by weathering, erosion and anthropogenic destruction. We present a photogrammetric study carried out through terrestrial and UAV-assisted technology in order to collect digital 3D information for fossil analysis and future preservation. A general overview of the steep wall of the outcrop and a detailed section of the fossil forest have been implemented into a reliable and accurate point cloud. Qualitative and quantitative information was obtained from a georeferenced high-resolution digital 3D model used for the characterisation of the different outcrop features, which aimed specially at the fossil conservation. The results provide useful information on the nature and paleoenvironment of carboniferous forests with important implication for scientific and educational interests. These technologies provide new possibilities for better preservation and diffusion of geologic heritage locations prone to be damaged, and enables public awareness for the protection of fossil sites with high scientific and cultural value.

Lithospheric-scale folding in Iberia from the perspective of analogue modelling

The Subandean Basins of South America extending from Trinidad to Tierra del Fuego have been the object of intensive exploratory activities (Fig. 1). The largest amount of hydrocarbons discovered during the last 30 years in these basins was found in complex structural terrains. A total of 59 Billion Barrels of Oil Equivalent (BBOE) have been discovered in areas affected by compressional tectonics. Of these basins, the largest discoveries are in the Furrial Trend of Venezuela (24 BBOE), followed by the Chaco area in Bolivia and Argentina (13 BBOE), the Llanos Foothills of Colombia (4.4 BBOE), and the Madre de Dios Basin of Peru (4.2 BBOE).