Paleomagnetic record of two successive Miocene geomagnetic reversals in western Crete

Two geomagnetic reversals(R→N followed by N→R) have been recorded in a sequence of Miocene marine clays of Tortonian-Messinian age in western Crete (Greece). The time span of each transition is found to be of the order of 5000–10,000 years. The transitional VGP paths are largely constrained in longitude either near the site longitude(R→N) or opposite to it(N→R). A normalized magnetization intensity record has also been obtained and its variations during reversals are found to be in excellent agreement with the predictions of Hoffman's phenomenological model.