Late Quaternary Marine Terraces and Tectonic Uplift Rates of the Broader Neapolis Area (SE Peloponnese, Greece)

Abstract

Marine terraces are geomorphic markers largely used to estimate past sea-level positions and surface deformation rates in studies focused on climate and tectonic processes worldwide. This paper aims to investigate the role of tectonic processes in the late Quaternary evolution of the coastal landscape of the broader Neapolis area by assessing long-term vertical deformation rates. To document and estimate coastal uplift, marine terraces are used in conjunction with Optically Stimulated Luminescence (OSL) dating and correlation to late Quaternary eustatic sea-level variations. The study area is located in SE Peloponnese in a tectonically active region. Geodynamic processes in the area are related to the active subduction of the African lithosphere beneath the Eurasian plate. A series of 10 well preserved uplifted marine terraces with inner edges ranging in elevation from 8 ± 2 m to 192 ± 2 m above m.s.l. have been documented, indicating a significant coastal uplift of the study area. Marine terraces have been identified and mapped using topographic maps (at a scale of 1:5000), aerial photographs, and a 2 m resolution Digital Elevation Model (DEM), supported by extensive field observations. OSL dating of selected samples from two of the terraces allowed us to correlate them with late Pleistocene Marine Isotope Stage (MIS) sea-level highstands and to estimate the long-term uplift rate. Based on the findings of the above approach, a long-term uplift rate of 0.36 ± 0.11 mm a−1 over the last 401 ± 10 ka has been suggested for the study area. The spatially uniform uplift of the broader Neapolis area is driven by the active subduction of the African lithosphere beneath the Eurasian plate since the study area is situated very close (~90 km) to the active margin of the Hellenic subduction zone.

Late Pleistocene Geomorphic Evolution of Cephalonia Island, Western Greece, Inferred from Uplifted Marine Terraces

“…Age, before 2016 AD. As this sample was collected from a caprock exposure of terrace V, it can be used to estimate a minimum age of the caprock of 59.1 ± 0.3 ka (e.g., [64][65][66][67][68][69][70][71][72][73][74]). It is generally considered that the sediments covering the palaeosurfaces of the terraces, were deposited immediately after a sea-level highstand (e.g., [1,6]).…”

Mid-Term Monitoring of Suspended Sediment Plumes of Greek Rivers Using Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) Imagery

“…The Pindus Mountain range runs across the center of the country in a northwest-southeast orientation, with its highest peak reaching an elevation of 2637 m. The southern extensions of this mountain range continue across the Peloponnese. The geomorphological diversity of the landscape is strongly influenced by the regional geotectonic context, which is primarily dominated by the subduction of the African plate beneath the Eurasian plate [74].…”

Holocene Relative Sea-Level Changes Along the Southern Coast of Bodrum Peninsula, SW Anatolia

“…The seismically active Aegean Sea is in an extensional tectonic regime controlled by offshore normal faults. Therefore, displaced shorelines along the shores have always been used as indicators of tectonic movements and relative sea-level changes (Desrulles et al, 2009;Evelpidou et al, 2014;Evelpidou et al, 2019Evelpidou et al, , 2021Karkani et al, 2019;Karymbalis et al, 2022;Lambeck, 1995;Ott et al 2021;Sakellariou and Tsampouraki-Kraounaki, 2019;Shaw et al, 2008;Stiros et al, 2000Stiros et al, , 2011Triantafyllou et al, 2022;Yıldırım et al, 2022).…”