The Borborema, Ibiapaba and Araripe plateaus are extensive tracts of elevated lands (up to 950 meters high) in the interior of the Northeastern Brazil, which have undergone epeirogenetic movements during the Cenozoic. The entire region was previously deformed during the opening of the South Atlantic, in Cretaceous times, leaving behind important tectonic scars.

Outstanding topographic features were developed by the Cenozoic regional epeirogeny. Among them, there is a major, roughly ellyptical alignment of ranges around the Potiguar Basin, defining a large amphitheater surrounding the onshore portion of the basin. This morphologic structure has a NE-trending symmetry axis which follows the Cretaceous rift, being responsible for the capture of many rivers which flow to the north.

Isostatic modelling based on gravimetric data suggests a 30 km thick crust beneath the elevated areas and at least 2 km of crustal thinning beneath the most topographically depressed regions.

The correlation between the major geomorphologic features and the variations in the crustal-mantle interface relief suggests that the present orography of this northern domain of the Northeastern Brazil reflects the crustal response to the Early Cretaceous extensional deformation.