Phanerozoic Structural Setting and Tectonic Evolution of Egypt

Abstract

The study of the Phanerozoic structural setting and tectonic evolution in Egypt has gained more attention during the last three decades. The present work reviews the characteristic tectonic/structural features of this succession, with emphasis on different structural geometries and styles. The chapter is divided into three main parts, highlighting the Paleozoic, Mesozoic, and Cenozoic structures of Egypt. Unlike the Mesozoic and Cenozoic structures, the Paleozoic structures are not well understood in Egypt, due to limited exposures and insufficient subsurface data. However, this chapter attempts to present the available data, even if limited. Following the introduction (Sect. 1), the main outline of part one includes: the Precambrian-Cambrian transition, the distribution of Paleozoic sediments, glacial/fluvioglacial deposits, and Paleozoic structural framework (Paleozoic arches and basins). In part two, the Mesozoic structures in Egypt are dealt with in terms of Jurassic-Early Cretaceous rifts, Cretaceous rifts, Late Cretaceous to Recent inverted structures (northern Western Desert, northern Eastern Desert, and North Sinai inverted structures), and Late Mesozoic–Early Tertiary structures in central and southern Egypt (the Bahariya Depression and southern Western Desert inverted structures). The Cenozoic structures in Egypt are discussed in part three throughout the following main topics: Cretaceous-Paleogene (K/P) boundary, Paleocene-Eocene transition, the Oligocene–Miocene rifting (magmatism, the Red Sea and Gulf of Suez Rift System, Cairo-Suez District), the opening of the Gulf of Aqaba, and the Quaternary and neotectonics.