The local effects of large plate convergence: Africa-Europe movements and the recent escape tectonic of the Malta Graben in the Sicily Channel (Central Mediterranean Sea)
Year: 2026
Type: article
Abstract: The Malta Graben in the Sicily Channel represents a key structure for understanding how continental forelands accommodate regional convergence. Through a multidisciplinary analysis of seismic reflection profiles combined with bathymetric, seismological, and geodetic datasets, we show that the Malta Graben evolved from a dextral transtensional basin during the Lower Pliocene into a complex kinematic junction characterized by the coexistence of transtension and localized positive inversion in recent times. This inversion is expressed as a prominent seabed bulge, driven by the large-scale NE-directed African Plate push as well as by the regional stress field related to Capo Granitola-Sciacca and Scicli-Ragusa left-lateral strike-slip zones. We suggest that this complex configuration promotes the partitioning of resulting crustal strain into lateral escape toward the Ionian domain. This process is favored by the lower confinement and high-accommodation potential provided by the distal influence of the Ionian slab roll-back. Our findings also demonstrate that the Sicily Channel is not merely a simple rifted foreland zone but is characterized by recurrent extensional and contractional phases during the late Neogene/Plio-Quaternary. This evidence indicates that distinct tectonic regimes can coexist within a foreland area, reinforcing the idea that foreland zones actively record dynamic processes driven by lithospheric plate movement and are prone to tectonic reactivation.
Source: Tectonophysics
Language: English
Subfield: Geophysics
Field: Earth and Planetary Sciences
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: hybrid
Estimated APC paid: $3,190
OpenAlex ID: W7213869875