Regional structure of the southern segment of Central Iberian Zone (Spanish Variscan Belt) interpreted from potential field images and 2.5 D modelling of Alcudia gravity transect

•A structural interpretation of southern CIZ based on several geophysical datasets.•A new 2.5D potential fields model along a 230 km deep seismic reflection transect.•Ground gravity and petrophysical data specifically acquired for the modelling.•Improved knowledge of the geometry and physical properties for the whole crust.•New insights into crustal CIZ architecture and the relations amid geological domains.

This study presents a structural interpretation of potential field data at the southern segment of the Spanish Central Iberian Zone, where little is known about its geometry and physical properties in depth. We used ground gravity and aeromagnetic data from the Spanish Geological Survey (IGME) databases, together with a gravity survey recently acquired along the Alcudia deep seismic reflection profile, and also petrophysical data from rock samples, in part specifically acquired for this work. The aim is to characterize with potential fields the depth structure and physical properties of a complex area, focusing on features of the upper crust where the potential fields can provide a useful insight, as these features appear to be transparent in the images of seismic surveys carried up to date. After building a 2.5 D model of the magnetic susceptibility and density distribution for the whole crust with the constraints of the Alcudia seismic transect, relationships between lower and upper crustal structures can be better established, and surface geophysical maps allow estimating the lateral extensions of the main structures characterized by the potential field modelling. Interpreted gravity and magnetic Alcudia features consist of: 1) long-wavelength anomalies due to changes in crustal thickness and structure, identified along the Alcudia seismic reflection profile; some crustal boundaries and the seismic Moho have been slightly modified in the potential field model to fit the observed data; and, 2) short wavelength anomalies related to upper crustal features as large NW–SE faults and folds, and plutonic alignments. Northern and southern Alcudia segments show relevant lower-middle crust shortening structures underneath extensive Variscan plutons (Mora, Pedroches) and folded basins (Pedroches). Potential field imaging and modelling of these structures have provided a better understanding of the subsurface geology, particularly in non-reflective areas, unravelling the deep structure of the southern Central Iberian Zone.