Determination of Tectonic and Crustal Structure of the Eastern Pontide Orogenic Belt (NE Turkey) Using Gravity and Magnetic Data

Abstract

The Eastern Pontide Orogenic Belt is one of the most complex geodynamic settings within the Alpine belt. Subduction polarity, which is responsible for the formation of the Eastern Pontide Magmatic Arc, is still under debate because of limited geological, geophysical and geochemical data. This orogenic belt is mainly divided into three subzones depending on lithological characteristics and facies changes as in Northern, Southern and Axial Zones from North to South. These zones are separated from each other by near-vertical faults that display the block-faulting tectonic style of this belt. In this study, the tectonic and crustal structure of the Eastern Pontides, which as yet have not been prospected by using geophysical data, has been investigated with potential field data. The horizontal gradient map obtained from gravity data shows a number of steep and gentle lineaments. It seems that these lineaments E-W, NE and NW-trending correspond to major structural zones of continental crust. Additionally, The Moho depth and Curie point depth variation maps of the Eastern Pontide Orogenic Belt have been computed with the power spectral method of the radial wavenumber carried out by using the fast Fourier transform method. As a result of this method, we estimated that the depths of the Moho and Curie point varied between 29.0 +/- A 1.2-47.2 +/- A 1.9 km and 14.3 +/- A 0.7-27.9 +/- A 1.4 km, respectively. Our findings indicate that the Moho depth generally increases from north to south in the region. However, the Curie point depth level within the crust has an undulating surface, not a horizontal one.