Symposium GEOPANGEA

Abstract

Pangea is the most recent supercontinent to have formed on our planet to date. To decipher the geological evolution of the Mexican territory, it is essential to understand the mechanisms that led to the consolidation and dispersal of this supercontinent between the Late Paleozoic and Early Mesozoic. Indeed, both the assembly process of Pangea and its breakup have substantially forged Mexico's lithospheric architecture, generating orogenic belts, magmatic arcs, and extensional to transtensional basins, many of which host the country's main hydrocarbon reserves. Furthermore, the topographic evolution associated with these tectonic processes has favored the diversification of climatic conditions, which has allowed for the exceptional diversity of fossil flora and fauna that characterizes Mexico.

Despite the progress made in recent decades by the scientific community, several fundamental aspects related to the assembly and dispersal processes of Pangea in the Mexican territory remain to be resolved. Consulting the most recent literature, it is possible to affirm that there is still a significant debate on first-order issues, among which the following stand out: 1) the paleogeographic configuration of the Precambrian and Paleozoic rocks of Mexico for the end of the Paleozoic and the beginning of the Mesozoic (Pangea A1 vs. Pangea A2 vs. Pangea B vs. other models); 2) the location, extension, and thermo-barometry of the sutures produced by the collision between Laurentia, Gondwana, and the peri-Gondwanan terranes (Ouachita-Marathon-Sonora, Huastecano, and other belts); 3) the identification of syn- and post-orogenic sedimentary successions in southern Mexico (e.g., Tecomate and Matzitzi formations?); 4) the occurrence of large left-lateral displacements along NW-SE faults during the dispersal of Pangea (e.g., Mojave-Sonora megashear); 5) the interpretation of the Nazas volcano-sedimentary province (arc vs. rift), and 6) the dynamics and provenance of the marine transgression associated with the breakup of Pangea.

The resolution of these still-open questions is essential for a better understanding of the country's geological evolution. Therefore, the scientific community is invited to present relevant works, with the aim of creating a symposium where it is possible to engage in dialogue, confront ideas, and enjoy a fertile and constructive debate on the dynamics of the assembly and dispersal processes of the last supercontinent that existed on the planet.