Associated Project

Institute of Geophysics "S.I. Subbotin" of National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine

Deep lithospheric structure of the Danube basin, deep lithospheric structure of the Western Black Sea basin, the deep seismic study of the PANCAKE project

Investigators: prof. Vitaliy Starostenko, dr. Olga Legostaeva, dr. Iryna Makarenko, dr. Aleksandra Savchenko

Brief description (details available by contacting prof. Vitaliy Starostenko or dr. Olga Legostaeva)

1. Danube basin

The work mainly aimed at studying the deep lithospheric structure of the Danube basin. It will also offer the opportunity to continue and extend research previously within another joint research project which has been made between the Slovak and Ukrainian partners in the frame of the interacademician exchange. Further work will include 3-D gravity modeling of different geophysical lithospheric boundaries in the Danube basin, analysis and geological interpretation of the obtained data. The new stripped gravity map will be very interesting for the understanding of deep-seated structures of the studied region. Participants from Comenius University in Bratislava (dr. Miroslav Bielik) will be included into this work.

2. Western Black Sea Basin

Further work will present the results of the first joint interpretation of gravity and magnetic fields, heat flow, seismic and topographic data for studying the deep structure of the Black Sea Basin and coupling near-surface tectonics and lithospheric features at a regional scale. A new approach will be utilized to reveal lithospheric inhomogeneities, in particular, an innovative technique of 3D gravity modelling which gives possibility to evaluate the crust and mantle structures as well as a penetration depth of faults. The study will be based on the four approaches to interpreting geophysical fields. The magnetic field will be analyzed to delineate tectonic faults and to reveal magnetic inhomogeneities in the consolidated crust. The thermal regime of the lithosphere will be derived from the interpretation of the most detailed heat flow data. Three-dimensional density modeling by implementing an innovative technique will be performed to obtain gravity effect of the consolidated crust and for mapping tectonic faults within them. Seismic information will be used to find the relation between deep and sub-surface tectonic feature. The all data will be integrated to give internally consistent image of geophysical inhomogeneities beneath the sedimentary cover. Finally, new complementary information will be used to discuss the deep structure of the Western Black Sea Basins. Participants from various circum-Western Black Sea Basin countries (for example, Romania, Bulgaria, Turkey) would be included into this work.

3. PANCAKE project

Deep seismic study of the Earth’s crust structure of Carpathian-Pannonian Basin region.