An integrated analysis of an orogen-sedimentary basin pair: Latest Cretaceous-Cenozoic evolution of the linked Eastern Cordillera orogen and the Llanos foreland basin of Colombia

摘要

The integration of restored basin geometry and internal features of syntectonic units (e.g., stratal architecture, thickness, sandstone composition) with flexural modeling of the lithosphere constrains the evolution of a basin and its flexural history related to orogenic growth (spatial/temporal loading configuration). Using this approach, we determined the Maastrichtian-Cenozoic polyphase growth of the Eastern Cordillera of Colombia, an inverted Mesozoic extensional basin. The record of this growth occurs in an Andean (post–middle Miocene) thrust belt (the Eastern Cordillera) and in adjacent foreland basins, such as the Llanos Basin to the east. This approach permitted the identification of five tectono-stratigraphic sequences in the foreland basin and five phases of shortening for the Eastern Cordillera. Thermo-chronological and geochronological data support the spatial and temporal evolution of the orogen–foreland basin pair.