The integrated understanding of processes and mechanisms driving the coupled evolution
of orogens and sedimentary basins and the underlying lithosphere-mantle system, requires
a multi-scale temporal and spatial approach that crosses the traditional boundaries
of disciplines and methodologies. While analysing the sedimentary infill we need to
account for the characteristics and variations of the exhumation, evolving topography
and external forcing in the source area, and the complexity of a transport system
that is often characterized by a massive unidirectional sediment influx during moments
of activity at tipping points or gateways. Such an influx can often span across multiple
depocenters and sedimentary basins and is conditioned by an evolving structural geometry
that can migrate in time, directly related to the evolving lithospheric structure
in orogens that are influenced by their inherited rheology. Depocenters can be fed
from multiple directions, while having an endemic or endorheic character during key
evolutionary moments. The thermal structure and its variability in continental and
oceanic domains conditions the rheology and subsequent structural evolution of the
orogens, subduction zones and sedimentary basins, with significant consequences for
understanding societally relevant issues. Quantifying basin deposition requires analysing
the sediment transport network that can often span multiple interacting orogenic and
sedimentary systems, where understanding the allogenic or autogenic nature of sedimentary
processes can be significantly enhanced by knowing the inherited and evolving structural
and tectonic parameters. Such sedimentary quantification is important for understanding
the orogenic structure and the evolution of subduction systems, that include mechanisms
such as cycles of burial-exhumation, formation of highly arcuate orogens and timings
of nappe stacking events. Deriving processes in orogen - sedimentary basins systems
also requires testing process-oriented hypotheses by focused studies in well-known
natural laboratories, such as the examples from the Pannonian-Carpathians - Alps -
Dinarides system and its analogues used by the numerous contributions in the special
Global and Planetary Change issue entitled Understanding the multi-scale and coupled
evolution of orogens, sedimentary basins and their underlying lithosphere, whose significance
is explained in our review.
