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Tethyan ophiolites and Pangea break‐up

Abstract  The break‐up of Pangea began during the Triassic and was preceded by a generalized Permo‐Triassic formation of continental rifts along the future margins between Africa and Europe, between Africa and North America, and between North and South America. During the Middle–Late Triassic, an ocean basin cutting the eastern equatorial portion of the Pangea opened as a prograding branch of the Paleotethys or as a new ocean (the Eastern Tethys); westwards, continental rift basins developed. The Western Tethys and Central Atlantic began to open only during the Middle Jurassic. The timing of the break‐up can be hypothesized from data from the oceanic remnants of the peri‐Mediterranean and peri‐Caribbean regions (the Mesozoic ophiolites) and from the Atlantic ocean crust. In the Eastern Tethys, Middle–Late Triassic mid‐oceanic ridge basalt (MORB) ophiolites, Middle–Upper Jurassic MORB, island arc tholeiite (IAT) supra‐subduction ophiolites and Middle–Upper Jurassic metamorphic soles occur, suggesting that the ocean drifting was active from the Triassic to the Middle Jurassic. The compressive phases, as early as during the Middle Jurassic, were when the drifting was still active and caused the ocean closure at the Jurassic–Cretaceous boundary and, successively, the formation of the orogenic belts. The present scattering of the ophiolites is a consequence of the orogenesis: once the tectonic disturbances are removed, the Eastern Tethys ophiolites constitute a single alignment. In the Western Tethys only Middle–Upper Jurassic MORB ophiolites are present – this was the drifting time. The closure began during the Late Cretaceous and was completed during the Eocene. Along the area linking the Western Tethys to the Central Atlantic, the break‐up was realized through left lateral wrench movements. In the Central Atlantic – the link between the Western Tethys and the Caribbean Tethys – the drifting began at the same time and is still continuing. The Caribbean Tethys opened probably during the Late Jurassic–Early Cretaceous. The general picture rising from the previous data suggest a Pangea break‐up rejuvenating from east to west, from the Middle–Late Triassic to the Late Jurassic–Early Cretaceous.