Field trips > FT 1

FT 1: Late Orogenic collapse and Stephanian basins: Decazeville and Saint Perdoux (French Massif Central) 

This two-day excursion will allow us to tackle the problem of the opening of late orogenic basins in the Variscan chain of the French Massif Central. These coal-bearing basins opened at the end of the Carboniferous (Stephanian) in the heart of the axial zone of the Variscan chain, in a strike-slip and/or extensive context related to the late orogenic collapse of the chain.

This field trip will focus on two Stephanian basins in the southwest of the French Massif Central: the Saint Perdoux and Decazeville basins. Using key sections and outcrops to illustrate tectonic/sedimentation relationships, we will discuss the context in which these basins were opened up. Particular emphasis will be placed on the provenance of the sediments that filled these basins and the lessons that can be learned about the development and evolution of drainage networks at the end of the Variscan orogeny.

Date: June, 22^nd – 23^rd

Prize: 250 €

Field trip Leader: Frédérique Christophoul