Editing Timor (section)

== Geology ==
Timor is an aerially exposed portion of the [[Banda Arc|Banda Forearc]] formed by collision of [[Eurasian Plate|Eurasian]] oceanic [[Crust (geology)|crust]] and continental crust of the [[Australian Plate|Australian plate]]. This is a unique convergent margin where a thick continental margin is forced under thinner oceanic crust. The result is a large [[accretionary wedge]] of imbricated [[Thrust fault|thrust]] sheets composed of [[Cretaceous]] and [[Tertiary]] distal material of the Australian continental margin thrust on top of Australian [[continental shelf]] deposits. Timor is well known for its structural complexity. Debate continues about the nature of deformation of continental crust. Some researchers advocate shallow thin-skinned deformation, while others favor shallow thin-skinned with some basement deformation.<ref name=":0">{{Cite journal |last=Charlton |first=Tim R. |date=2001-10-01 |title=The Petroleum Potential of West Timor |url=http://archives.datapages.com/data/ipa/data/028/028001/301_ipa028a0301.htm |journal=Proceedings, Indonesian Petroleum Association |language=en |publisher=Indonesian Petroleum Association (IPA) |volume=1 |doi=10.29118/IPA.183.301|url-access=subscription }}</ref>

Timor also has potential for significant [[petroleum]] development. Onshore and offshore exploration efforts have been attempted with varying success. Timor host dozens of natural [[Petroleum seep|oil and gas seeps]] with most exploration concentrated on the north end of the Island where oil seeps are prevalent. Carbon rich shales from the island have been found with TOC up to 23%. Such shales buried deep in the subsurface could act as high-quality [[Source rock|source rocks]]. [[Jurassic]] marine shoreface and [[turbidite]] sands of the Plover and Militia Formations are proven [[Petroleum reservoir|reservoirs]] in the North Australian Shelf. Over pressured Upper Jurassic silt and mudstones shales may also provide adequate seals for hydrocarbons. Research focusing on the structure of deformed basement rocks provides insight into possible onshore and offshore structural and stratigraphic traps for future petroleum development.<ref name=":0" /><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Jones |first=Will |last2=Tripathi |first2=Anand |last3=Rajagopal |first3=Rajesh |last4=Williams |first4=Adrian |date=2011 |title=Petroleum Prospectivity of the West Timor Trough |url=https://archives.datapages.com/data/petroleum-exploration-society-of-australia/news/114/114001/pdfs/61.htm?q=+textStrip:plover |journal=PESA News |language=en-US |issue=114 |page=61 |via=AAPG Database}}</ref>