New kinematic constraints on the Cantabrian orocline: A paleomagnetic study from the Peñalba and Truchas synclines, NW Spain

The Cantabrian orocline is a large structure that bends the Variscan orogen of Western Europe in NW Iberia. The extensively studied kinematics of its core, the foreland of the orogen, indicates that the structure is secondary, i.e. acquired after the formation of the orogenic edifice. However, the extent of the Cantabrian orocline away from its core is under debate. In this paper we study the kinematics of the Cantabrian orocline beyond the foreland. We collected and analyzed samples from the northern and central parts of the Truchas syncline, which provides new data within the hinterland of the orogen in NW Iberia. The analysis of 320 samples shows a late Carboniferous remagnetization with an E to NE declination and shallow downward inclinations. These results suggest a counter-clockwise rotation of ~60° and peri-equatorial but still southern hemisphere latitude for Iberia during the uppermost Carboniferous–Early Permian. This rotation fits with the expected kinematic evolution of the Truchas syncline if it indeed was part of the Cantabrian orocline. [Display omitted] •New paleomagnetic data further constrains the kinematics of the Cantabrian orocline.•Secondary remagnetization shows shallow dipping E to SE trending directions.•Peñalba and Truchas syncline attitudes result from the CCW rotation of the WALZ.•Tectonic implications for the Cantabrian orocline geometry