Metamorphic heat budget and its temporal evolution in a collisional orogen

Mountain belts preserve a record of how rocks are buried, heated, deformed, and exhumed during continental collision. This seminar explores the origin of a classic regional metamorphic pattern (Barrovian) developed during the Alpine collision (Europe), focusing on how heat and deformation interact during large-scale thrusting in the continental crust.

Using an integrated approach that combines detailed geological mapping over a large area (~44 km²), structural analysis, geochronology, petrology, and numerical thermo-kinematic modeling, this work investigates when and how peak metamorphic conditions were achieved. Field observations reveal that high-temperature metamorphism, pervasive mineral lineations, and partial melting developed contemporaneously with large-scale nappe emplacement, rather than after deformation as traditionally assumed.

Numerical models and mineral-scale diffusion show that heat was mainly transported by the motion of hot rocks during thrusting, with a local contribution from shear heating along major shear zones. This explains both the observed temperature distribution and contrasting cooling histories, highlighting the key role of deformation-driven heat transfer in mountain building.

Lugar: Auditorio de Ciencias de la Tierra / https://cicese.zoom.us/j/4652574281?pwd=WR2WQe6ivqbbSVCbVTiagV9CdhohUk.1&omn=88417270607

Fecha: 13-02-2026

Hora: 12:00 pm