Project WILAS – West Iberia Lithosphere and Astenosphere Structure

Abstract

The lithosphere of Iberia has been formed through a number of processes of continental collision and extension: in Lower Paleozoic, the collision of three tectonics blocks produced the Variscan Orogeny, the main event of formation of the lithosphere. The subsequent Mesozoic rifting and breakup of the Pangea had a profound effect on the continental crust of Iberia. Since the Miocene, the southern interaction between Africa and Iberia is characterized by a diffuse convergent margin that originates a vast area of deformation. The impact of this complex tectonic in the structure of the Lithosphere remains an incognito, especially in its western part. Project WILAS (PTDC/CTE-GIX/097946/2008) is a 3 years project funded by FCT in which a temporary network of more than 20 BB seismic stations is being deployed in Portugal between 2010-2012. It will extend to the western border of Iberia the coverage of the TOPO-IBERIA project. The project aims to image the 3D structure beneath W Iberia. The knowledge of the Crust, Lithosphere and Astenosphere seismic structure must be dealt at different scales, involving different but complementary methods.