The Moscow Basin is a major sedimentary basin and tectonic structural feature in the stable East European Craton. It has been widely studied by Russian and Scandinavian geologists.

Formation and geological history

The Fennoscandia Shield and its components, the Russian Platform and Baltic Shield make up a large portion of the East European Craton. Crystalline basement rock formed between 2 billion and 1.65 billion years ago, with most activity ending around 1.75 billion years ago. The rocks were then affected by the Svecofennian orogeny. Some of the oldest sedimentary rocks in the Moscow Basin date to the Late Riphean, in the form of siltstone and limestone. During this period the Moscow Rift formed and East European Craton extension followed earlier compression and inversion. A shallow marine environment appeared in the late

Vendian The Ediacaran ( ) is a geological period of the Neoproterozoic geologic era, Era that spans 96 million years from the end of the Cryogenian Period at 635 Million years ago, Mya to the beginning of the Cambrian Period at 538.8 Mya. It is the last ...

extending into the Early Cambrian. By the late Cambrian, deeper marine conditions developed forming shale and siltstone. Carbonates deposited during a return to shallower marine conditions in the

Ordovician The Ordovician ( ) is a geologic period and System (geology), system, the second of six periods of the Paleozoic Era (geology), Era, and the second of twelve periods of the Phanerozoic Eon (geology), Eon. The Ordovician spans 41.6 million years f ...

and

Silurian The Silurian ( ) is a geologic period and system spanning 23.5 million years from the end of the Ordovician Period, at million years ago ( Mya), to the beginning of the Devonian Period, Mya. The Silurian is the third and shortest period of t ...

. A discontinuity from the Silurian into the

Devonian The Devonian ( ) is a period (geology), geologic period and system (stratigraphy), system of the Paleozoic era (geology), era during the Phanerozoic eon (geology), eon, spanning 60.3 million years from the end of the preceding Silurian per ...

suggests uplift and a major inversion, followed by off and on carbonate and shale deposition through the

Carboniferous The Carboniferous ( ) is a Geologic time scale, geologic period and System (stratigraphy), system of the Paleozoic era (geology), era that spans 60 million years, from the end of the Devonian Period Ma (million years ago) to the beginning of the ...

and

Permian The Permian ( ) is a geologic period and System (stratigraphy), stratigraphic system which spans 47 million years, from the end of the Carboniferous Period million years ago (Mya), to the beginning of the Triassic Period 251.902 Mya. It is the s ...

. Large sandstone deposits dating to the

Triassic The Triassic ( ; sometimes symbolized 🝈) is a geologic period and system which spans 50.5 million years from the end of the Permian Period 251.902 million years ago ( Mya), to the beginning of the Jurassic Period 201.4 Mya. The Triassic is t ...

indicate a possible river delta environment. During the

Paleozoic The Paleozoic ( , , ; or Palaeozoic) Era is the first of three Era (geology), geological eras of the Phanerozoic Eon. Beginning 538.8 million years ago (Ma), it succeeds the Neoproterozoic (the last era of the Proterozoic Eon) and ends 251.9 Ma a ...

and through the

Mesozoic The Mesozoic Era is the Era (geology), era of Earth's Geologic time scale, geological history, lasting from about , comprising the Triassic, Jurassic and Cretaceous Period (geology), Periods. It is characterized by the dominance of archosaurian r ...

the Sukhona Swell and Sukhon Arch formed next to the basin over the earlier Soligalich Graben-Trough.

References

{{Geology of Europe Geology of European Russia Sedimentary basins of Russia