Paleozoic history of the Albuquerque trough--Implications for basement control on the Rio Grande rift
— Donald L. Baars

The Miocene and younger history of the Albuquerque trough and the Rio Grande rift has been discussed endlessly in numerous volumes and conferences. The events leading up to the Miocene adventure are less well known. Kelley (1977) placed considerable emphasis on Laramide compressional structures having preceded rifting, and Read and Wood (1947) inferred north-trending peculiarities in the Pennsylvanian System in the vicinity of Albuquerque. Because of the nature of exposures of Paleozoic strata in and near the Albuquerque basin, only the Pennsylvanian System may be used as diagnostic evidence of paleotectonic ancestry of the rift zone. It is the purpose of this discussion to suggest that the rift may have had a very long tectonic history, dating back at least to Pennsylvanian and probably to Precambrian structural regimes. Perhaps the mystery of the location and significance of the rift will be resolved by the understanding of basement tectonics, rather than by surface structure.