foreland basin
Quick Summary
A foreland basin is a geological feature formed by the downward bending or flexing of the Earth's lithosphere in front of major mountain ranges. This depression is created by the immense weight of the overthrusting mountains, which presses down on the adjacent plate.1
These basins are typically subsurface features, filled with sediments eroded from the nearby mountains. They are deepest and contain the thickest young sediments closest to the mountain range, with the thickness gradually decreasing away from it. A prime example is the Indo-Gangetic Plain in northern India and Pakistan, situated south of the Himalayas. Foreland basins can also be significant reservoirs for oil and gas.1
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mountainAlpine- (or Himalayan-)type belts…the overriding mountain range, a foreland basin is formed by the flexure (see tectonic basins and rift valleys). Foreland basins usually exist as subsurface features that have been filled with debris eroded from the advancing overthrust slice of crust. These deposits, called molasse, can in turn be folded and thrust…
Read More…the overriding mountain range, a foreland basin is formed by the flexure (see tectonic basins and rift valleys). Foreland basins usually exist as subsurface features that have been filled with debris eroded from the advancing overthrust slice of crust. These deposits, called molasse, can in turn be folded and thrust…
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tectonic basins and rift valleysForeland basinsThese lie in front of major mountain ranges—e.g., south of the Himalayas, north of the Alps, and east of the Canadian Rocky Mountains. Most basins of this kind are subsurface features, filled with sediment eroded from the adjacent mountain ranges; thus, they are…
Read MoreThese lie in front of major mountain ranges—e.g., south of the Himalayas, north of the Alps, and east of the Canadian Rocky Mountains. Most basins of this kind are subsurface features, filled with sediment eroded from the adjacent mountain ranges; thus, they are…
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AustraliaThe Mesozoic and Cenozoic eras…230 million years ago the foreland basin of eastern Australia had been overthrusted by the mountain belt, and a second epoch of black-coal formation opened in eastern Australia (southeastern Queensland and Tasmania) and in South Australia (Leigh Creek). Another foreland basin became established behind the magmatic arc along the eastern…
Read More…230 million years ago the foreland basin of eastern Australia had been overthrusted by the mountain belt, and a second epoch of black-coal formation opened in eastern Australia (southeastern Queensland and Tasmania) and in South Australia (Leigh Creek). Another foreland basin became established behind the magmatic arc along the eastern…
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South AmericaEarly Paleozoic events…produced a series of peripheral foreland basins, which were the result of crustal deformation and the stacking of slices of basement rocks in the orogenic areas. Examples of basins of the early Paleozoic age are the Beni basin in Bolivia and the Alhuampa and Las Breñas basins in northern Argentina.…
Read More…produced a series of peripheral foreland basins, which were the result of crustal deformation and the stacking of slices of basement rocks in the orogenic areas. Examples of basins of the early Paleozoic age are the Beni basin in Bolivia and the Alhuampa and Las Breñas basins in northern Argentina.…
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