Nature of the S reflector beneath the Galicia Banks rifted margin: preliminary results from prestack depth migration

Beneath the tilted fault blocks of the Galicia rifted margin, a bright reflection, termed S, has been interpreted as the master detachment fault controlling the extension of the margin. However, on time-migrated sections, S appears to be locally offset by the steep faults of the upper section. The true geometry of S and its relation to the overlying faults through iterative prestack depth migration are investigated. It is concluded that it is not significantly offset by the faults, which instead appear to stop abruptly at S. Thus S is interpreted as the master detachment and its role during extension is considered. -from Authors