Friday, August 9, 2019

Hungary: Good Explanation for Geothermal Potential in the Pannonian Basin

Global warming on the surface – local warming from plate tectonics: Pannonian Basin (Geoera)

By Gyula Maros, MBFSZ, Magyar Bányászati és Földtani Szolgálat – Mining and Geological Survey of Hungary

While the heat “from above” is a challenge, the heat “from below” can be an opportunity, as long as it provides energy, power for making changes.

What causes the concentration of heat in the middle of Europe? Very simply: a Europe-Africa love story, a dance of two fragments of the two continents in the Carpathian embayment. The two dancers are the Alcapa and the Tisza Megaunits and the leading partner is the former one. Let see them in a bit more professional way.

And what is the lovers’ heritage for us? Relatively thin Earth’s crust (~25 km), anomalously high terrestrial heat flow (~0.09 W/m2), high geothermal gradient (~0.05°C/m) and hundreds of geothermal wells and baths. It is cool (or warm…), isn’t it?