Surface rupture of the Cariaco July 09, 1997 earthquake on the El Pilar fault, northeastern Venezuela

This paper discusses the surface rupture of the Cariaco July 09, 1997 Ms 6.8 earthquake in northeastern Venezuela – located at 10.545°N and 63.515°W and about 10 km deep. The field reconnaissance of the ground breaks confirms that this event took place on the ENE–WSW trending onshore portion of the dextral El Pilar fault (between the Gulfs of Cariaco and Paria), which is part of the major wrenching system within the Caribbean–South America plate boundary zone. Dextral slip along this fault was further supported by the structural style of this rupture (en echelon right-lateral R shears connected by mole tracks at restraining stepovers) and by larger geometric complexities (pop-ups at Las Manoas and Guarapiche), as well as by the focal mechanism solutions determined for the event by several authors. This 1997 surface ruptre comprised two distinct sections, from west to east: (a) a main very conspicuous, continuous, 30-km-long, rather straight, 075°N-trending alignment of en echelon surface breaks, with a rather constant, purely dextral coseismic slip of about 25  cm, but reaching a maximum value of 40 cm slightly northwest of Pantoño; and (b) a secondary discontinuous, 10-km-long, boomerang-shaped rupture, with a maximum coseismic slip of 20 cm at Guarapiche. The onshore extent of the surface rupture totalled 36 km, but may continue westward underwater, as suggested by the very shallow aftershock seismicity. This aftershock activity also clearly defined the steep north dip of the fault plane along the western rupture, suggesting tectonic inheritance on this major fault.From many locals' accounts, the rupture seems to have propagated from Pantoño to the west (highly asymmetric bidirectionality). This suggests that earthquake nucleation happened at or near the Casanay–Guarapiche restraining bend and rupture quickly propagated westward, allowing only a small fraction to progress eastwards beyond the bend. Additionally, the large fraction of after-slip (or creep) released is to be related to such restraining bend, which seems to have partly locked slip during rupture.     

The velocity structure of the Cariaco sedimentary basin,northeastern Venezuela,from refraction seismic data and possible relationship to earthquake hazard

The main damage from the July 9, 1997, Cariaco earthquake (Ms=6.8) was concentrated in the town of Cariaco and surrounding villages, which are located in the western part of the Cariaco sedimentary basin, close to the Gulf of Cariaco. Casanay, located at the eastern end of the sedimentary basin, suffered considerably less damage. The El Pilar fault, a right-lateral strike-slip fault that generated the earthquake, runs parallel to the southern border of the valley and crosses both towns. The determination of the velocity structure of the basin is the main objective of this study. Seismic refraction data were recorded along three lines, one of them along-strike and two perpendicular to the valley axis in the northern and southern bedrocks. Beneath Cariaco, approximately 1 km thick Quaternary sediments with seismic velocities of 1.9–2.1 km/s and bedrock velocities of more than 4 km/s were observed. The thickness of the Quaternary sediments varies within the basin, and Pleistocene sediments outcrop beneath Casanay. The increased thickness of the unconsolidated, water-saturated Quaternary sediments, together with the difference in the quality of buildings prior to the earthquake, probably is responsible for the damage pattern of the Cariaco earthquake.     

Recent crustal movements in The Central Sierra Nevada—Walker lane region of California—Nevada: Part iii, The Olinghouse fault zone

The Olinghouse fault zone is one of several NE—ENE-trending fault zones and lineaments, including the Midas Trench and the Carson—Carson Sink Lineament, which exhibit left-lateral transcurrent movement conjugate to the Walker Lane in western Nevada. The active portion of this fault zone extends for approximately 23 km, from 16 km east of Reno, Nevada, to the southern extent of Pyramid Lake. The fault can be traced for most of its length from its geomorphic expression in the hilly terrain, and it is hidden only where overlain by recent alluvial sediments. Numerous features characteristic of strike-slip faulting can be observed along the fault, including: scarps, vegetation lines, sidehill and shutter ridges, sag ponds, offset stream channels and stone stripes, enclosed rhombohedral and wedge-shaped depressions, and en-echelon fractures.A shear zone having a maximum observable width of 1.3 km is defined principally by Riedel shears and their symmetrical P-shears, with secondary definition by deformed conjugate Riedel shears. Several continuous horizontal shears, or principal displacement shears, occupy the axial portion of the shear zone. The existence of P-shears and principal displacement shears suggests evolution of movement along the fault zone analogous to the “Post-Peak” or “Pre-Residual Structure” stage.Historic activity (1869) has established the seismic potential of this zone. Maximum intensities and plots of the isoseismals indicate the 1869 Olinghouse earthquake had a magnitude of 6.7. Field study indicates the active length of the fault zone is at least 23 km and the maximum 1869 displacement was 3.65 m of left-slip. From maximum fault length and maximum fault displacement to earthquake magnitude relations, this corresponds to an earthquake of about magnitude 7.     

The major features of the crustal structure in north-eastern Venezuela from deep wide-angle seismic observations and gravity modelling

Venezuela is located on the plate boundary zone between the South American continent and the Caribbean plate. A relative movement of 2 cm/year is accommodated by a system of strike–slip faults running from the Andes to the Gulf of Paria. The Interior Range, a moderate-height mountain range, separates the Oriental Basin from the Caribbean. To the south, predominantly Precambrian rocks are outcropping in the Guayana Shield south of the Orinoco River. Results of deep wide-angle seismic measurements for the region were obtained during field campaigns in 1998 (ECOGUAY) for the Guayana Shield and in 2001 (ECCO) for the Oriental Basin. The total crustal thickness decreases from 45 km beneath the Guayana Shield, to 39 km at the Orinoco River, and 36 km close to El Tigre, in the center of the Oriental Basin. The average crustal velocity decreases in the same sense from 6.5 to 5.95 km/s. Detailed information was obtained on the velocity distribution within the Oriental Basin. Velocities are as low as 2.2 km/s for the uppermost 2 km, 4.5 km/s down to 4 km in depth, and a maximum depth of 13 km was derived for material with seismic velocities up to 5.9 km/s, interpreted as the base of the sedimentary basin. A gravimetric model confirms the structures derived from the seismic data. Discrete increases in sedimentary thickness along the basin may be associated to extension processes during the passive margin phase in the Cretaceous, or during earlier extension phases.     

Quaternary faulting along the Caribbean-North American plate boundary in Central America

Recent detailed mapping along the Motagua fault zone and reconnaissance along the Chixoy—Polochic and Jocotán—Chamelecón fault zones provide new information regarding the nature of Quaternary deformation along the Caribbean—North American plate boundary in Central America.The southern boundary of the Motagua fault zone is defined by a major active left-slip fault that ruptured during the February 4, 1976 Guatemala earthquake. The recurrent nature of slip along the fault is dramatically demonstrated where stream terraces of the Río El Tambor show progressive left-slip and vertical (up-to-the-north) slip. Left-slip increases from 23.7 m (youngest mappable terrace) to 58.3 m (oldest mappable terrace) and vertical slip increases from 0.6 m to 2.5 m. The oldest mappable terrace crossed by the fault appears to be younger than 40,000 years and older than 10,000 years.Reconnaissance along the Chixoy—Polochic fault zone between Chiantla and Lago de Izabal has located the traces of a previously unmapped major active left-slip fault. Geomorphic features along this fault are similar to those observed along the active trace of the Motagua fault zone. Consistent and significant features suggestive of left-slip have so far not been observed along the Guatemala section of the Jocotán—Chamelecón fault zone.In Central America, the active Caribbean—North American plate boundary is comprised of the Motagua, Chixoy—Polochic, and probably the Jocotán—Chamelecón fault zones, with each accommodating part of the slip produced at the mid-Cayman spreading center. Similarities in geomorphic expression, apparent amount of left-slip, and frequency and magnitude of historical and instrumentally recorded earthquakes between the active traces of the Motagua and Chixoy—Polochic fault zones suggest a comparable degree of activity during Quaternary time; the sense and amount of Quaternary slip on the Jocotán—Chamelecón fault zone remain uncertain, although it appears to be an active earthquake source. Uplift of major mountain ranges on the north side of each fault zone reflects the small but consistent up-to-the-north vertical component (up to 5% of the lateral component) of slip along the plate boundary. Preliminary findings, based on offset stream terraces, indicate a late Quaternary slip rate along the Caribbean—North American plate boundary of between 0.45 and 1.8 cm/yr. Age dating of offset Quaternary terraces in Guatemala will allow refinement of this rate.     

郯庐断裂带的形成与演化：综述

从历史的与整体的观点出发，综合了地质、地貌、地球化学与地球物理的资料，系统地研究了郯庐断裂带各阶段的形态学、运动学以及动力学机制。认为此断裂带开始形成于中、晚三叠世，其长度小于１５００ｋｍ，切割深度小于１５～２０ｋｍ，此时最大左行走滑断距为４３０ｋｍ左右。侏罗纪（２０８～１３５Ｍａ）与中始新世－渐新世（５２～２３．３Ｍａ），此断裂带表现为逆断层活动，断层面受挤压较紧闭。白垩纪－早始新世（１３５～５２Ｍａ），郯庐断裂呈现为略带右行走滑的正断层（走滑断距不超过１００ｋｍ），郯庐断裂带与其北部切割深度约为３０～４０ｋｍ。中新世－更新世（２３．３～０．７３Ｍａ）断裂带表现为带有左行走滑的正断层，走滑断距约５０ｋｍ，断裂带切割深度在５０～８０ｋｍ之间。中更新世（０．７３Ｍａ以来）断裂带又变成略带右行走滑的逆断层，走滑断距不足１００ｍ。由于断裂带形成以来的剥蚀深度不大，地表的断层岩都是碎裂岩与断层泥。沿此断裂带在早白垩世构成了中国东部重要的内生金属成矿带。     

The Denali fault system and the tectonic development of Southern Alaska

The Denali fault system forms an arc, convex to the north, across southern Alaska. In the central Alaska Range, the system consists of a northern Hines Creek strand and a southern McKinley strand, up to 30 km apart. The Hines Creek fault may preserve a record of the early history of the fault system. Strong contrasts between juxtaposed lower Paleozoic rocks appear to require large dextral strike-slip or a combination of dipslip and strike-slip displacements along this fault. Thus the fault system may mark a reactivated suture zone between continental rocks to the north and a late Paleozoic island arc to the south, as suggested by Richter and Jones (1973). Major movements on the Hines Creek fault ceased by the Late Cretaceous, but local dip-slip movements continued into the Cenozoic.The McKinley fault is an active dextral strike-slip fault with a mean Holocene displacement rate of 1–2 cm/y. Post-Late Cretaceous dextral offset on this fault is probably at least 30 km and possibly as great as 400 km. Patterns of early Tertiary folding and reverse faulting indicate that the McKinley fault was active at that time and suggest that this fault developed shortly after strike-slip activity ceased on the Hines Creek fault. Oligocene — middle Miocene tectonic stability and late Miocene—Pliocene uplift of crustal blocks may reflect periods of quiescence and activity, on the McKinley fault.The two strands of the Denali fault divide the central Alaska Range into northern, central, and southern terranes. During the Paleozoic—Mesozoic there is evidence for at least two episodes of compressive deformation in the northern terrane, four in the central terrane, and two in the southern. During each, the axis of maximum compressive strain was subhorizontal and about north—south. This pattern suggests a Paleozoic and Mesozoic setting dominated by plate convergence, despite the possible large pre-Late Cretaceous lateral movement on the Hines Creek fault.The Cenozoic pattern of faulting and folding appears compatible with a plate tectonic model of (1) rapid northward movement of the Pacific plate relative to Alaska during the early Tertiary; (2) slow northwestward movement of the Pacific plate during the Oligicene and (3) rapid northwestward movement of the Pacific plate from the end of the Oligocene to the present.     

郯庐断裂带的最大左行走滑断距及其形成时期

作者采用断裂带两盘地壳变形速度的估算方法,求得郯庐断裂带最大左行走滑断距为３９０ｋｍ;根据中朝地块南缘断裂被错断的现象来判断,最大左行走滑断距为４３０ｋｍ;采用古地磁学方法求得最大左行走滑断距约为３００－４００ｋｍ。最大左行走滑活动时期当在中晚三叠世。侏罗纪时期郯断裂带为逆断层,白垩纪时期的走滑活动量不大于１００ｋｍ,早第三纪的走滑断距不明显,晚第三纪－早更新世可能有５０ｋｍ左右的左行走滑断距,新构造期（<0.73Ma以来)的右行走滑断距小于lOOm。     

Quaternary crustal deformation along a major branch of the San Andreas fault in central California

Deformed marine terraces and alluvial deposits record Quaternary crustal deformation along segments of a major, seismically active branch of the San Andreas fault which extends 190 km SSE roughly parallel to the California coastline from Bolinas Lagoon to the Point Sur area. Most of this complex fault zone lies offshore (mapped by others using acoustical techniques), but a 4-km segment (Seal Cove fault) near Half Moon Bay and a 26-km segment (San Gregorio fault) between San Gregorio and Point Ano Nuevo lie onshore.At Half Moon Bay, right-lateral slip and N—S horizontal compression are expressed by a broad, synclinal warp in the first (lowest: 125 ka?) and second marine terraces on the NE side of the Seal Cove fault. This structure plunges to the west at an oblique angle into the fault plane. Linear, joint0controlled stream courses draining the coastal uplands are deflected toward the topographic depression along the synclinal axis where they emerge from the hills to cross the lowest terrace. Streams crossing the downwarped part of this terrace adjacent to Half Moon Bay are depositing alluvial fans, whereas streams crossing the uplifted southern limb of the syncline southwest of the bay are deeply incised. Minimum crustal shortening across this syncline parallel to the fault is 0.7% over the past 125 ka, based on deformation of the shoreline angle of the first terrace.Between San Gregorio and Point Ano Nuevo the entire fault zone is 2.5–3.0 km wide and has three primary traces or zones of faulting consisting of numerous en-echelon and anastomozing secondary fault traces. Lateral discontinuities and variable deformation of well-preserved marine terrace sequences help define major structural blocks and document differential motions in this area and south to Santa Cruz. Vertical displacement occurs on all of the fault traces, but is small compared to horizontal displacement. Some blocks within the fault zone are intensely faulted and steeply tilted. One major block 0.8 km wide east of Point Ano Nuevo is downdropped as much as 20 m between two primary traces to form a graben presently filling with Holocene deposits. Where exposed in the sea cliff, these deposits are folded into a vertical attitude adjacent to the fault plane forming the south-west margin of the graben. Near Point Ano Nuevo sedimentary deposits and fault rubble beneath a secondary high-angle reverse fault record three and possibly six distinct offset events in the past 125 ka.The three primary fault traces offset in a right-lateral sense the shoreline angles of the two lowest terraces east of Point Ano Nuevo. The rates of displacement on the three traces are similar. The average rate of horizontal offset across the entire zone is between 0.63 and 1.30 cm/yr, based on an amino-acid age estimate of 125 ka for the first terrace, and a reasonable guess of 200–400 ka for the second terrace. Rates of this magnitude make up a significant part of the deficit between long-term relative plate motions (estimated by others to be about 6 cm/yr) and present displacement rates along other parts of the San Andreas fault system (about 3.2 cm/yr).Northwestward tilt and convergence of six marine terraces northeast of Ano Nuevo (southwest side of the fault zone) indicate continuous gentle warping associated with right-lateral displacement since early or middle Pleistocene time. Minimum local crustal shortening of this block parallel to the fault is 0.2% based on tilt of the highest terrace. Five major, evenly spaced terraces southeast of Ano Nuevo on the southwest flank of Mt. Ben Lomond (northeast side of the fault zone) rise to an elevation of 240 m, indicating relatively constant uplift (about 0.19 m/ka and southwestward tilt since Early or Middle Pleistocene time (Bradley and Griggs, 1976).     

Review of the tectonics of the Levant Rift system: the structural significance of oblique continental breakup

The Levant Rift system is an elongated series of structural basins that extends for more than 1000 km from the northern Red Sea to southern Anatolia. The system consists of three major segments, the Jordan Rift in the south, El Gharb–Kara-Su Rift in the north, and the Lebanese Fault splay in between. The rifted parts of this structural system are accompanied by intensively uplifted margins that mirror-image the basinal pattern, namely, the deeper the basin—the higher its margins, and vice versa. Uplifts also occur along the fault splay section. The Jordan Rift comprises axial basins that diminish in size from the south northwards, and are separated from each other by shallow threshold zones along the axis of the rift, where the margins are also subdued. The Lebanese Fault splay consists of five faults that emerge from the northern edge of the Jordan Rift and trend like a fan between the north and the northeast. One of these faults connects the Jordan and El Gharb–Kara-Su rifts. The Levant Rift and its uplifted margins started to develop in the middle-late Miocene, and most of the structural development occurred in the Plio-Pleistocene.The Levant Rift system is characterized by its oblique displacement, and evidence for both dip-slip and strike-slip displacement was measured on its faults. Earthquakes also indicate that same mixed pattern, some of them show strike-slip offset, and others normal. It is generally conceded that the amount of normal offset along the boundary faults of the Rift system reaches 8–10 km, but the lateral displacement is disputed, and offsets ranging from 11 to 107 km were suggested. Assessment of the available data led us to suggest that the sinistral offset along the Levant Rift system is approximately 10–20 km. The similarity between the vertical and the lateral displacements, the basin and threshold structural pattern of the Rift, model experiments in oblique rifting, as well as the significant tectonic resemblance to the Red Sea and the East African rifts, indicate that the Levant Rift is the product of continental breakup, and it is probably an emerging oceanic spreading center.     

Active faults and magnitudes of left-lateral displacement along the northern margin of the Tibetan Plateau

The northern margin of the Tibetan Plateau (NMTP) is a major intracontinental Cenozoic transpressional zone that comprises a series of active strike-slip faults and thrust faults. It is important to document cumulative horizontal displacements along the NMTP in order to understand quantitatively strain partitioning in East Asia since the India–Eurasia collision. Based on an analysis of horizontal slip along major active faults, the total amount of horizontal displacements is estimated up to 700 km between the Tibetan Plateau and the Tarim Basin since the convergence of India and Eurasia. Along the western and middle segment of the Altyn Tagh fault to the northern margin of the Qaidam Basin, there are abundant evidence that show that the net displacement is 400 km since 40–35 Ma, and along the Shulenan Shan and southeast of middle Qilian Shan since 25–17 Ma, the amount of offset is 150 km. The largest horizontal slip in Qilian Shan–Hexi Corridor to the northeast of the Altyn Tagh fault is also 150 km since late Oligocene to early Miocene. It decreases to only 60 km along the Haiyuan fault (since late Miocene) and to 25 km along the Zhongwei–Tongxin fault since the Pliocene (about 5.3–3.4 Ma), at the northeast margin of the Tibetan Plateau. This clearly implies northeastward diminishing of the total horizontal displacement and temporal getting younger of the fault slip along the NMTP. However, this tendency is very complicated at different times and different segments as a result of the uplift, growth and rotation of different segments of the NMTP at different stages during the convergence of India and Eurasia.     

Recent crustal movements in the Central Sierra Nevada—Walker lane region of California—Nevada: Part ii, The pyramid lake right-slip fault zone segment of the Walker lane

The Pyramid Lake fault zone is within the Honey Lake—Walker Lake segment of the Walker Lane, a NW-trending zone of right-slip transcurrent faulting, which extends for more than 600 km from Las Vegas, Nevada, to beyond Honey Lake, California. Multiscale, multiformat analysis of Landsat imagery and large-scale (1: 12,000) lowsun angle aerial photography, delineated both regional and site-specific evidence for faults in Late Cenozoic sedimentary deposits southwest of Pyramid Lake. The fault zone is coincident with a portion of a distinct NW-trending topographic discontinuity on the Landsat mosaic of Nevada. The zone exhibits numerous geomorphic features characteristic of strike-slip fault zones, including: recent scarps, offset stream channels, linear gullies, elongate troughs and depressions, sag ponds, vegetation alignments, transcurrent buckles, and rhombohedral and wedge-shaped enclosed depressions. These features are conspicuously developed in Late Pleistocene and Holocene sedimentary deposits and landforms.The Pyramid Lake shear zone has a maximum observable width of 5 km, defined by Riedel and conjugate Riedel shears with maximum observable lenghts of 10 and 3 km, respectively. P-shears have formed symmetrical to the Riedel shears and the principal displacement shears, or continuous horizontal shears, isolate elongate lenses of essentially passive material; most of the shears are inclined at an angle of approximately 4° to the principal direction of displacement. This suggests that the shear zone is in an early “PreResidual Structure” stage of evolution, with the principal deformation mechanism of direct shear replacing the kinematic restraints inherent in the strain field.Historic seismic activity includes microseismic events and may include the earthquake of about 1850 reported for the Pyramid Lake area with an estimated Richter magnitude of 7.0. Based on worldwide relations of earthquake magnitude to length of the zone of surface rupture, the Pyramid Lake fault zone is inferred to be capable of generating a 7.0–7.5-magnitude event for a maximum observable length of approximately 6 km and a 6.75–7.25-magnitude event for a half length of approximately 30 km.     

玉树地震地表破裂与宏观震中

2010年4月14日07时49分40.7秒, 青海省玉树藏族自治州玉树县发生M_S7.1级地震。通过现场调查发现, 玉树地震形成了东西两条地表破裂带——玉树地表破裂带和隆宝滩地表破裂带, 分别沿玉树活动断裂、隆宝滩活动断裂的上盘发育, 两条地表破裂带均呈NW向延伸, 二者之间相距22km。隆宝滩地表破裂带, 总体走向290°, 长21.5km, 呈左旋走滑运动, 左旋走滑位移量约1m。玉树地表破裂带, 总体走向310°, 长度23km, 可进一步分为三段。西段和中段表现为左旋走滑, 东段表现为左旋走滑逆冲运动。最大左旋走滑位移量在郭央烟宋多附近, 达2.4m。根据地震地表破裂的位移量大小和建筑物破坏情况认为, 玉树地震宏观震中在郭央烟宋多附近, 宏观震中坐标为:北纬33°03′11″、东经96°51′26″。      

Four-dimensional transform fault processes: progressive evolution of step-overs and bends

Many bends or step-overs along strike–slip faults may evolve by propagation of the strike–slip fault on one side of the structure and progressive shut-off of the strike–slip fault on the other side. In such a process, new transverse structures form, and the bend or step-over region migrates with respect to materials that were once affected by it. This process is the progressive asymmetric development of a strike–slip duplex. Consequences of this type of step-over evolution include: (1) the amount of structural relief in the restraining step-over or bend region is less than expected; (2) pull-apart basin deposits are left outside of the active basin; and (3) local tectonic inversion occurs that is not linked to regional plate boundary kinematic changes. This type of evolution of step-overs and bends may be common along the dextral San Andreas fault system of California; we present evidence at different scales for the evolution of bends and step-overs along this fault system. Examples of pull-apart basin deposits related to migrating releasing (right) bends or step-overs are the Plio-Pleistocene Merced Formation (tens of km along strike), the Pleistocene Olema Creek Formation (several km along strike) along the San Andreas fault in the San Francisco Bay area, and an inverted colluvial graben exposed in a paleoseismic trench across the Miller Creek fault (meters to tens of meters along strike) in the eastern San Francisco Bay area. Examples of migrating restraining bends or step-overs include the transfer of slip from the Calaveras to Hayward fault, and the Greenville to the Concord fault (ten km or more along strike), the offshore San Gregorio fold and thrust belt (40 km along strike), and the progressive transfer of slip from the eastern faults of the San Andreas system to the migrating Mendocino triple junction (over 150 km along strike). Similar 4D evolution may characterize the evolution of other regions in the world, including the Dead Sea pull-apart, the Gulf of Paria pull-apart basin of northern Venezuela, and the Hanmer and Dagg basins of New Zealand.     

Neogene north American-Caribbean plate boundary across Northern Central America: Offset along the polochic fault

The Polochic fault was a segment of the North American-Caribbean plate boundary across Central America in the Neogene. Its 130 km of left slip was previously determined by matching structures and stratigraphie outcrop patterns of northwest and central Guatemala across the fault. Additional support for the model and the youthfulness of the recorded offset comes from an essentially perfect match of major geomorphic features across the fault. A reconstruction process which eliminates 123 km of left slip brings together rivers and drainage divides that existed before the Polochic became active.With the reconstruction carried across the isthmus on an east-west fault the regional structural geology assumes the coherent pattern of a continuous orogenic belt whose geometry is compatible with the model of collisional tectonics centered on the Motagua “suture zone”. Confined within this belt, narrowed to some 60 km by the reconstruction, lie the major Laramide thrusts, folds and tectonically emplaced serpentinites of Guatemala. Crystalline rocks of Guatemala re-join the Chiapas Massif and Paleozoic sedimentary rocks, exposed in the core of an almost-continuous anticlinorium, extend from southern Chiapas to Lake Izabal.The Polochic does not bend in eastern Guatemala but continues eastward to the Motagua fault where it dies. Westward drift of the northern block resulted in rifting which extended from eastern Guatemala into the Caribbean along the Cayman trough. The Honduras depression may represent an element of a triple junction along with the Polochic and Izabal-Cayman rift.The Polochic continues westward into the Pacific Ocean and offsets the Middle America trench. The Polochic has offset the Miocene volcanic belt of northern Central America, confirming the previous estimate of a Neogene time of movement.About 300 km of relative east-west Neogene displacement has been recorded on the Mid-Cayman rise, only 130 km of which can be accounted for across the Polochic. It is suggested that cumulative extension on north-south faults south of the Motagua fault zone between the trench and the Honduras depression might make up that difference.     

Structural study of a semiductile strike-slip system in the Central Iberian Zone (Variscan Fold Belt,Spain): structural controls on gold deposits

The Villalcampo shear system is a regional dextral strike-slip fault zone that affects Late Variscan granites and their metamorphic country rocks over an area of about 150 km². The detailed geometry of this subvertical north-west—south-east shear zone is outlined. The system forms an extensional fan to the northwest and extends to the south-east as a broad extensional duplex. Particular attention is focused on the distribution of fault rocks and associated veins in its north-west splay. A structural study of the shear bands (encompassing both geometric and kinematic criteria) and a microscopic study of the fault rocks has led to the interpretation of the system as a brittle—ductile shear zone. Calculations give a shear strain value of = 1.5 and a minimum displacement of s = 3700 m. The localization of gold mineralization in mylonite-filled subvertical extensional veins is a product of the formation of the Villalcampo shear system. The subvertical faults and veins underwent a process of cyclical sealing and reopening. As such they acted as valves controlled by fluid pressure regulating fluid—rock interactions and gold deposition. Conditions favouring these processes occur near the base of the seismogenic zone in the vicinity of the frictional—quasi-plastic transition at mid-greenschist metamorphic conditions (T = 350°C and 10–15 km depth).     

辽宁寒岭-偏岭平移断裂带特征及其形成动力机制

寒岭—偏岭平移断裂带位于辽宁东部 ,是中国东部郯庐断裂东盘的一个次级断裂。它控制着辽东鞍山—本溪地区地质体的分布。通过对平移断裂的展布、形态、伴随构造、牵引构造、位移方向和幅度、平移时间、断层尾端及动力学演化等特征研究 ,认为该断裂主要活动于晚三叠世 ,在晚侏罗世—早白垩世最为活跃 ,伴随岩浆侵入活动、火山喷发及陆相沉积。断裂带长约 1 3 0km ,中段位移最大可达 3 1km ,向东西两端逐渐减少。该断裂活跃时期主要表现为左行平移性质。构造的活动 ,主要与中生代时期欧亚大陆与伊佐奈岐板块、太平洋板块的相互作用有关     

Normal faulting and flexure in an elastic-perfectly plastic plate

An elastic-perfectly plastic plate model has been developed to analyze the flexure associated with normal faulting. The model consists of a thin layer, which is completely cut by a normal fault, overlying a fluid substratum. For a given applied bending moment at the fault, the relationship between the amount of displacement on the fault and the extent of the failure zone can be calculated. The model is applied to the Wasatch Front region in the eastern Basin and Range Province, USA to determine the correlation of its parameters with geological and geophysical data in the vicinity of a major normal fault, the Wasatch fault, along which there has been 3–4 km of Late Cenozoic uplift. In this region, most seismic activity occurs away from the Wasatch fault in a zone 30 km wide, roughly centered 30 km east of the fault. This activity occurs at depths of 15 km or less. In order to match the observations, the lithospheric layer must have a flexural rigidity of 0.5 to 1.1 · 10²² n-m and a yield stress of 1–2 kb and must have zero applied bending moment at the fault. The effective mechanical thickness of the lithosphere in this region is 20–25 km. These results indicate that the lithosphere in long-term mechanical studies in the eastern Basin and Range is thin and weak. Evaluating these results as compared to the seismic lithospheric thickness and temperature regime of the region produces some interesting correlations with studies in oceanic regions.     

Current states of stress in the northern Andes as indicated by focal mechanisms of earthquakes

Systematic inversion of double couple focal mechanisms of shallow earthquakes in the northern Andes reveals relatively homogeneous patterns of crustal stress in three main regions. The first region, presently under the influence of the Caribbean plate, includes the northern segment of the Eastern Cordillera of Colombia and the western flank of the Central Cordillera (north of 4°N). It is characterized by WNW–ESE compression of dominantly reverse type that deflects to NW–SE in the Merida Andes of Venezuela, where it becomes mainly strike–slip in type. A major bend of the Eastern thrust front of the Eastern Cordillera, near its junction with the Merida Andes, coincides with a local deflection of the stress regime (SW–NE compression), suggesting local accommodation of the thrust belt to a rigid indenter in this area. The second region includes the SW Pacific coast of Colombia and Ecuador, currently under the influence of the Nazca plate. In this area, approximately E–W compression is mainly reverse in type. It deflects to WSW–ENE in the northern Andes south of 4°N, where it is accommodated by right-lateral displacement of the Romeral fault complex and the Eastern front of the northern Andes. The third, and most complex, region is the area of the triple junction between the South American, Nazca and Caribbean plates. It reveals two major stress regimes, both mainly strike–slip in type. The first regime involves SW–NE compression related to the interaction between the Nazca and Caribbean plates and the Panama micro-plate, typically accommodated in an E–W left-lateral shear zone. The second regime involves NW–SE compression, mainly related to the interaction between the Caribbean plate and the North Andes block which induces left-lateral displacement on the Uramita and Romeral faults north of 4°N.Deep seismicity (about 150–170 km) concentrates in the Bucaramanga nest and Cauca Valley areas. The inversion reveals a rather homogeneous attitude of the minimum stress axis, which dips towards the E. This extension is consistent with the present plunge of the Nazca and Caribbean slabs, suggesting that a broken slab may be torn under gravitational stresses in the Bucaramanga nest. This model is compatible with current blocking of the subduction in the western northern Andes, inhibiting the eastward displacement of slabs, which are forced to break and sink in to the asthenosphere under their own weight.     

2022年1月8日青海门源MS 6.9地震地表破裂考察的初步结果及对冷龙岭断裂活动行为和区域强震危险性的启示

2022年1月8日青海门源M_S 6.9地震发生在青藏高原东北缘的祁连山断块内部,仪器震中位于海原活动断裂系西段的冷龙岭断裂带上,是该断裂系自1920年海原8.5级大地震后再次发生M>6.5的强震。考察结果的初步总结表明,此次门源地震产生了呈左阶斜列分布、总长度近23 km的南北两条破裂,在两者之间存在长约3.2 km、宽近2 km的地表破裂空区。南支破裂(F₁)出现在托来山断裂的东段,走向91°,长约2.4 km,以兼具向南逆冲的左旋走滑变形为主,最大走滑位移近0.4 m。北支主破裂(F₂)出现在冷龙岭断裂的西段,总长度近20 km,以左旋走滑变形为主,呈整体微凸向北东的弧形展布,包含了走向分别为102°、109°和118°的西、中、东三段,最大走滑位移出现在中段,为3.0±0.2 m。此外,在北支主破裂中—东段的北侧新发现一条累计长度约7.6 km、以右旋正断为主的北支次级破裂(F₃),累计最大走滑量约0.8 m,最大正断位移约1.5 m。综合分析认为,整个同震破裂以左旋走滑变形为主,具有双侧破裂特点,宏观震中位于北支主破裂的中段,其地表走滑位移很大可能与震源破裂深度浅有关,其中的右旋正断次级破裂可能是南侧主动盘向东运移过程中拖曳北侧块体发生差异运动所引起的特殊变形现象。印度与欧亚板块近南北向强烈碰撞挤压导致南祁连断块沿海原左旋走滑断裂系向东挤出,从而引发该断裂系中的托来山断裂与冷龙岭断裂同时发生破裂,成为导致此次强震的主要动力机制。在此大陆动力学背景下,以海原左旋走滑断裂系为主边界的祁连山断块及其周边的未来强震危险性需得到进一步重视。