The syn- and post-collisional evolution of the Romanian Carpathian foredeep: New constraints from anisotropy of magnetic susceptibility and paleostress analyses

The first results of anisotropy of the magnetic susceptibility (AMS) data from the Romanian Carpathian foredeep reveal compression directions generally perpendicular to the highly bended Carpathian orogenic arc. The distribution of the present-day stress field in the Pannonian-Carpathian region reflects pre-imposed plate boundaries that were established during late Miocene collision. Analysis of the AMS along the eastern and southern Carpathian foredeep, at the contacts of the orogenic nappe pile, the lower plate, and the overlying sedimentary rocks, indicates that two factors are critical for the distribution of the stress field during and after collision, i.e. 1) the inherited highly bended plate geometry and 2) the Quaternary deformation that lead to differential vertical and horizontal movements in the SE Carpathians. The AMS analysis was successfully used in the (weakly) deformed Mio-Pliocene sedimentary rocks from the Carpathian foredeep, revealing information about the deformation history of the soft, non-competent rocks where the poor preservation of traditional kinematic indicators (e.g., faults and folds) is difficult. © 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.