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Concept
Geology of the Western Carpathians
Summary
The Western Carpathians are an arc-shaped mountain range, the northern branch of the Alpine-Himalayan fold and thrust system called the Alpide belt, which evolved during the Alpine orogeny. In particular, their pre-Cenozoic evolution is very similar to that of the Eastern Alps, and they constitute a transition between the Eastern Alps and the Eastern Carpathians.
The geological evolution of individual parts of the chain is complex, a result of tectonic processes like folding, thrusting and the formation of sedimentary basins of various types during the Mesozoic and Cenozoic. These processes sometimes affected not only the sedimentary fill of the basins, but also, in some cases, the former basement.
Many aspects of the geological structure of the Western Carpathians have not been completely studied and are subject to ongoing research and debate. The appropriate classification of a number of specific tectonic units is still not clear.
The Western Carpathians are separated from the Alps by the valley of the river Danube (only from the geographical point of view; the geological boundary is the so-called Carnuntum gate) and the Raaba line. To the east, the boundary with the Eastern Carpathians is placed formally in the valley of the river Uzh, but many tectonic divisions consider the Hornád fault system on the line Košice – Prešov the real geological boundary. The northern boundary is the thrust front that separates the nappes from the Carpathian Foredeep. In Bohemia the line Znojmo-Přerov-Karviná approximately forms the western boundary of the Western Carpathians. The southern boundary is not distinct (because of the interfingering boundary between the Carpathians and lowlands of the Pannonian Basin). According to some views it is south of the Bükk and Mátra mountains in Hungary.
There are several interpretations of the tectonic structure of the Western Carpathians. For quite a long time, the triple division has been used (Outer, Central and Inner Western Carpathians), while some geologists prefer the classical double division (Outer and Inner Carpathians).
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