Magnetotelluric Study of the Recôncavo-Tucano-Jatobá Rift System in the Southern Tectonic Domain of the Borborema Province, NE Brazil

Abstract

This project aims to investigate the deep tectonic structures of the continental lithosphere in the southern domain of the Borborema province, NE Brazil. Emphasis will be given to the study of the Reconcavo-Tucano-Jatobá basins, a proposed intracontinental rift system which would have developed during the Mesozoic breakup of South America and Africa but whose plate motion reconstruction is still controversial. A large magnetotelluric (MT) survey will be carried out to gather geoelectrical models for the crust and uppermost mantle beneath the study region. MT data from previous surveys will be complemented with data to be collected along several profiles across the main tectonic elements by using available modern broadband and long-period MT systems. The data will be processed and modeled by advanced 2D and 3D techniques currently available for studies of electromagnetic induction within the Earth. Integration with gravity and seismic data will allow to interpret the geoelectrical model in terms of geological structures and help to understand the evolution of the continental crust both under the rift system and in a more regional context.