Editing Paleogene (section)

==== Alpine orogeny ====
The [[Alpine orogeny]] developed in response to the collision between the African and Eurasian plates during the closing of the [[Tethys Ocean|Neotethys Ocean]] and the opening of the Central Atlantic Ocean. The result was a series of arcuate mountain ranges, from the [[Tell Atlas|Tell]]-[[Rif]]-[[Baetic System|Betic]] cordillera in the western [[Mediterranean Sea|Mediterranean]] through the [[Alps]], [[Carpathian Mountains|Carpathians]], [[Apennine Mountains|Apennines]], [[Dinaric Alps|Dinarides]] and [[Pindus|Hellenides]] to the [[Taurus Mountains|Taurides]] in the east.<ref name=":2">{{Cite journal |last1=Royden |first1=Leigh |last2=Faccenna |first2=Claudio |date=2018-05-30 |title=Subduction Orogeny and the Late Cenozoic Evolution of the Mediterranean Arcs |url=https://www.annualreviews.org/doi/10.1146/annurev-earth-060115-012419 |journal=Annual Review of Earth and Planetary Sciences |language=en |volume=46 |issue=1 |pages=261–289 |doi=10.1146/annurev-earth-060115-012419 |bibcode=2018AREPS..46..261R |issn=0084-6597}}</ref><ref name=":1" />

From the Late Cretaceous into the early Paleocene, Africa began to converge with Eurasia. The irregular outlines of the continental margins, including the [[Adriatic plate|Adriatic promontory (Adria)]] that extended north from the African plate, led to the development of several short [[subduction]] zones, rather than one long system.<ref name=":2" /> In the western Mediterranean, the European plate was subducted southwards beneath the African plate, whilst in the eastern Mediterranean, Africa was subducted beneath Eurasia along a northward dipping subduction zone.<ref name=":1" /><ref name=":3">{{Cite journal |last1=Martín-Martín |first1=Manuel |last2=Perri |first2=Francesco |last3=Critelli |first3=Salvatore |date=2023-08-01 |title=Cenozoic detrital suites from the Internal Betic-Rif Cordilleras (S Spain and N Morocco): implications for paleogeography and paleotectonics |url=https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0012825223001873#s0085 |journal=Earth-Science Reviews |volume=243 |pages=104498 |doi=10.1016/j.earscirev.2023.104498 |bibcode=2023ESRv..24304498M |issn=0012-8252|hdl=10045/136199 |hdl-access=free }}</ref> Convergence between the [[Iberian plate|Iberian]] and European plates led to the [[Pyrenees|Pyrenean orogeny]]<ref name=":4">{{Cite journal |last1=Brunsmann |first1=Quentin |last2=Rosenberg |first2=Claudio Luca |last3=Bellahsen |first3=Nicolas |date=2024 |title=The Western Alpine arc: a review and new kinematic model |journal=Comptes Rendus. Géoscience |language=fr |volume=356 |issue=S2 |pages=231–263 |doi=10.5802/crgeos.253 |issn=1778-7025|doi-access=free }}</ref> and, as Adria pushed northwards the Alps and Carpathian orogens began to develop.<ref name=":5">{{Cite journal |last1=Stephenson |first1=Randell |last2=Schiffer |first2=Christian |last3=Peace |first3=Alexander |last4=Nielsen |first4=Søren Bom |last5=Jess |first5=Scott |date=2020-11-01 |title=Late Cretaceous-Cenozoic basin inversion and palaeostress fields in the North Atlantic-western Alpine-Tethys realm: Implications for intraplate tectonics |url=https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0012825220302981 |journal=Earth-Science Reviews |volume=210 |pages=103252 |doi=10.1016/j.earscirev.2020.103252 |bibcode=2020ESRv..21003252S |hdl=2164/16706 |issn=0012-8252|hdl-access=free }}</ref><ref name=":3" />

[[File:Tectonic map Mediterranean EN.svg|alt=Map shows the location of subduction zones and extensional features of the western Alpine-Himalayan orogenic belt.|thumb|Present day tectonic map of southern Europe, North Africa and the Middle East, showing structures of the western Alpine-Himalayan orogenic belt. ]]

The collision of Adria with Eurasia in the early Palaeocene was followed by a c.10 million year pause in the convergence of Africa and Eurasia, connected with the onset of the opening of the North Atlantic Ocean as [[Greenland plate|Greenland]] rifted from the Eurasian plate in the Palaeocene.<ref name=":5" /> Convergence rates between Africa and Eurasia increased again in the early Eocene and the remaining oceanic basins between Adria and Europe closed.<ref name=":2" /><ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Brombin |first1=Valentina |last2=Bonadiman |first2=Costanza |last3=Jourdan |first3=Fred |last4=Roghi |first4=Guido |last5=Coltorti |first5=Massimo |last6=Webb |first6=Laura E. |last7=Callegaro |first7=Sara |last8=Bellieni |first8=Giuliano |last9=De Vecchi |first9=Giampaolo |last10=Sedea |first10=Roberto |last11=Marzoli |first11=Andrea |date=2019-05-01 |title=Intraplate magmatism at a convergent plate boundary: The case of the Cenozoic northern Adria magmatism |url=https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0012825218305440 |journal=Earth-Science Reviews |volume=192 |pages=355–378 |doi=10.1016/j.earscirev.2019.03.016 |bibcode=2019ESRv..192..355B |hdl=11392/2403525 |issn=0012-8252 |hdl-access=free |access-date=2024-08-19 |archive-date=2024-04-17 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240417162108/https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0012825218305440 |url-status=live }}</ref>

Between about 40 and 30 Ma, subduction began along the western Mediterranean arc of the Tell, Rif, Betic and Apennine mountain chains. The rate of convergence was less than the subduction rate of the dense [[lithosphere]] of the western Mediterranean and [[Subduction|roll-back]] of the subducting slab led to the arcuate structure of these mountain ranges.<ref name=":2" /><ref name=":4" />

In the eastern Mediterranean, c. 35 Ma, the Anatolide-Tauride platform (northern part of Adria) began to enter the [[Subduction|trench]] leading to the development of the Dinarides, Hellenides and Tauride mountain chains as the [[passive margin]] [[Sediment|sediments]] of Adria were scrapped off onto the Eurasia [[Crust (geology)|crust]] during subduction.<ref name=":2" /><ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Schmid |first1=Stefan M. |last2=Fügenschuh |first2=Bernhard |last3=Kounov |first3=Alexandre |last4=Maţenco |first4=Liviu |last5=Nievergelt |first5=Peter |last6=Oberhänsli |first6=Roland |last7=Pleuger |first7=Jan |last8=Schefer |first8=Senecio |last9=Schuster |first9=Ralf |last10=Tomljenović |first10=Bruno |last11=Ustaszewski |first11=Kamil |last12=van Hinsbergen |first12=Douwe J. J. |date=2020-02-01 |title=Tectonic units of the Alpine collision zone between Eastern Alps and western Turkey |url=https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1342937X19302199 |journal=Gondwana Research |volume=78 |pages=308–374 |doi=10.1016/j.gr.2019.07.005 |bibcode=2020GondR..78..308S |hdl=1874/394073 |issn=1342-937X |hdl-access=free |access-date=2024-08-19 |archive-date=2024-04-14 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240414212948/https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1342937X19302199 |url-status=live }}</ref>