An integration of surface geologic data and subsurface seismic reflection data across the southern and central parts of the Appalachian orogene has emphasized that the fundamental structure of the orogene is a low-angle mega-thrust fault system. Documentation of this basic model began in the southern Appalachians, where seismic reflection data indicated that crystalline rocks of the Blue Ridge and Piedmont had been thrust westward burying a 50 mi (80 km) segment of Paleozoic sedimentary rocks. Recently, in a continuing effort to further define and document the regional distribution of the buried Paleozoic section, our seismic reflection studies were shifted from the southern to the central Appalachians in Virginia. Approximately 174 mi (280 km) of seismic data was acquire in a continuous profile along Interstate I-64 from the Valley and Ridge near Staunton, Virginia, eastward across the Blue Ridge, the Piedmont, and most of the coastal plain to Hampton, Virginia.

Our latest data verify the basic mega-thrust framework model by demonstrating that crystalline rocks of the Blue Ridge and Piedmont have been thrust westward burying about 30 mi (50 km) of Paleozoic sedimentary rock. Regional thermal patterns within the Appalachian orogene were disrupted by thrusting, consequently the same patterns must have existed prior to thrusting. Because thermal levels have a direct bearing on organic maturity, palinspastic restoration of these thermal patterns can be used as a general tool to assess the regional hydrocarbon potential of the area.

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