Basin-scale structure control of Carlin-style gold deposits in central Southwestern Guizhou,China: Insights from seismic reflection profiles and gravity data

Carlin-style gold deposits are widely distributed in Southwestern Guizhou, China. Research has dominantly focused on deposit-scale geology and structural control of mineralization. The relationship between the gold deposits and regional structures, in particular their control on the formation and distribution of those deposits is less well understood. Here we use seismic survey and gravity data to reveal the basin-scale structure control of the gold deposits in central Southwestern Guizhou. The seismic reflection profiles show strong reflection horizons including Upper Permian coal measures, and Dongwu and Guangxi unconformities. The seismic data provide important evidence of the basinal structural style and the relationship between fault-related folding and the Carlin-style gold deposits. Regional gravity data also revealed several paleo-uplifts, which appear to control the distribution of Carlin-style gold deposits.The Carlin-style gold deposits are spatially and temporally associated with fault-related folds. Based on their location, we classify the gold deposits into two types, (1) low-angle thrust-controlled deposits; and (2) high-angle reverse fault-related deposits. In the low-angle thrust-controlled deposits, main thrusts are listric, strike NW-SE and dip southwest. These thrusts detach into coal measures, tuffs and volcanic rocks and are bedding-parallel in the vicinity of the Dongwu unconformity. Gold ore bodies are found in the thrusts and characterized by cutting-layer veins near the surface and bedding-parallel veins at depth. The high-angle reverse fault-related deposits are located in the hinge of northeast-southwest-striking fault-related folds, with high-angle reverse faults near the hinge of folds crosscutting the Upper Permian coal measures, volcanic rocks and Dongwu unconformity, and then into the limestone of Middle Permian Maokou Formation. Ore bodies are bedding-parallel in anticline culminations where interlayer fracture zones in Upper Permian coal measures and volcanic rocks are generated by high-angle reverse faulting.We consider that the formation of the gold deposits is part of the tectonic evolution in the area. The two sets of NW-SE- and NE-SW-striking fault-related folds were successively formed during the closure of eastern Tethys Ocean in Late Triassic, and major gold deposits formed in the fault-related folds. The Dongwu unconformity and faults provided conduits for ore fluid flow, and the coal measures and the tuffs of Dachang Member acted as detachment layers and hosts for ore deposition.     

Crustal structure and sedimentation history over the Alleppey platform,southwest continental margin of India:Constraints from multichannel seismic and gravity data

The Alleppey Platform is an important morphological feature located in the Kerala-Konkan basin off the southwest coast of India. In the present study, seismic reflection data available in the basin were used to understand the sedimentation history and also to carry out integrated gravity interpretation. Detailed seismic reflection data in the basin reveals that:(1) the Alleppey Platform is associated with a basement high in the west of its present-day geometry(as observed in the time-structure map of the Trap Top(K/T boundary)),(2) the platform subsequently started developing during the Eocene period and attained the present geometry by the Miocene and,(3) both the Alleppey platform and the Vishnu fracture zone have had significant impact on the sedimentation patterns(as shown by the time-structure and the isochron maps of the major sedimentary horizons in the region). The 3-D sediment gravity effect computed from the sedimentary layer geometry was used to construct the crustal Bouguer anomaly map of the region.The 3-D gravity inversion of crustal Bouguer anomaly exhibits a Moho depression below the western border of the platform and a minor rise towards the east which then deepens again below the Indian shield. The 2-D gravity modelling across the Alleppey platform reveals the geometry of crustal extension,in which there are patches of thin and thick crust. The Vishnu Fracture Zone appears as a crustal-scale feature at the western boundary of the Alleppey platform. Based on the gravity model and the seismic reflection data, we suggest that the basement high to the west of the present day Alleppey platform remained as a piece of continental block very close to the mainland with the intervening depression filling up with sediments during the rifting. In order to place the Alleppey platform in the overall perspective of tectonic evolution of the Kerala-Konkan basin, we propose its candidature as a continental fragment.     

The crustal structure of the Guayana Shield, Venezuela, from seismic refraction and gravity data

We present results from a seismic refraction experiment on the northern margin of the Guayana Shield performed during June 1998, along nine profiles of up to 320 km length, using the daily blasts of the Cerro Bolívar mines as energy source, as well as from gravimetric measurements. Clear Moho arrivals can be observed on the main E–W profile on the shield, whereas the profiles entering the Oriental Basin to the north are more noisy. The crustal thickness of the shield is unusually high with up to 46 km on the Archean segment in the west and 43 km on the Proterozoic segment in the east. A 20 km thick upper crust with P-wave velocities between 6.0 and 6.3 km/s can be separated from a lower crust with velocities ranging from 6.5 to 7.2 km/s. A lower crustal low velocity zone with a velocity reduction to 6.3 km/s is observed between 25 and 25 km depth. The average crustal velocity is 6.5 km/s. The changes in the Bouguer Anomaly, positive (30 mGal) in the west and negative (−20 mGal) in the east, cannot be explained by the observed seismic crustal features alone. Lateral variations in the crust or in the upper mantle must be responsible for these observations.     

宽角反射、折射地震数据与重力数据综合解释龙门山及邻近地区地壳结构

青藏高原东部的隆升机制一直都是地学界的研究热点,研究学者们提出和发展了多种岩石圈变形模型,而存在多种模型的主要原因之一是对青藏高原东部地壳及岩石圈结构认识不足。本文主要针对SinoProbe-02项目横跨龙门山断裂带、全长400多公里的宽角、折射地震数据及重力数据进行联合反演和综合解释。研究结果表明,龙门山及邻近地区地壳结构可明确划分为上地壳、中地壳和下地壳。上地壳上层为沉积层,龙门山断裂带以西大部分区域被三叠纪复理岩覆盖,而在龙日坝断裂与岷江断裂之间出现了密度为2.7g/cm³的高速异常体;向东靠近龙门山地区,沉积层厚度逐渐减薄。中地壳速度变化不均一,而且变形强烈;若尔盖盆地和龙门山断裂带下方出现明显低速带;中地壳在龙门山西侧厚度加厚,在岷江断裂下方和四川盆地靠近龙门山断裂带地区附近厚度达到最大。莫霍面整体深度从东往西增厚,最厚可达56 km。本次研究得到的地壳结构和密度分布分析结果表明现有的地壳厚度和物质组成不足以支撑龙门山及邻近地区目前所达到的隆升高度,因此四川盆地刚性基底西缘因挤压作用产生的弯曲应力也是该地区抬升的重要条件之一。     

Plio-Quaternary reactivation of the Neogene margin off NW Algiers, Algeria: The Khayr al Din bank

The Algiers region, northern Algeria, is known to be seismically active, with recurrent large (M>6) earthquakes. Because of the lack of high-resolution bathymetry, the offshore structures remained for a long time poorly known. Thanks to a new marine data base (MARADJA 2003 cruise), the offshore part of the margin is accurately mapped, and new active and recent structures are described. West of the bay of Algiers, the margin enlarges, forming the Khayr al Din bank, interpreted as a tilted block of the passive margin born during the opening of the Algero-Provençal basin. At the slope break, a 80 km-long fault-tip Quaternary fold, namely the Khayr al Din fault, extends at the foot of the margin off NW Algiers and represents the largest active structure of the coastal area, together with the Sahel anticline. We also map for the first time a set of overlapping, en echelon active folds in the upper part of the Khayr al Din bank, located off previously known active structures on land. Most of these faults represent actually a threat for the Algiers region in terms of seismic hazard but also geological hazards, such as tsunamis, as most of them depicts significant dimensions and slip rates. The highest long-term horizontal shortening rate is found on the Khayr al Din fault and is estimated at 0.5 ± 0.1 mm/yr, with a maximal magnitude of 7.3, which provides one of the highest seismogenic potential in the region.A new tectonic framework for the Algiers region is proposed, in which the main south-dipping offshore structure, of opposite vergence relative to most thrusts on land, appears to be nowadays the main driving fault system, as also found further east in the Boumerdès (M 6.8) 2003 rupture zone. The overall apparent pop-up structure of the recent and active faults may result from a progressive migration of the plate limit from the Late Miocene, north-dipping suture zone on land, to the Quaternary, south-dipping main Khayr al Din fault at sea, suggesting a process of subduction inception.     

青藏高原羌塘盆地基底结构与南北向变化——基于一条270km反射地震剖面的认识

通过收集并重新处理已有的反射地震剖面,获得了一条南北向横贯羌塘盆地主体的270km长反射地震剖面.剖面显示;羌塘盆地可能具有元古代的基底并且南羌塘盆地较北羌塘盆地深.在南、北羌塘地壳浅部(约0～3s)变形差异较大,北羌塘褶皱变形强烈,呈现出隆凹变形相间的格局,南羌塘则相对较平缓.羌塘中央隆起之下为连贯的弧形反射,其北侧发育一个深度达8km的半地堑构造,规模较大,可为油气资源储存提供有利空间.     

Structural interpretation of the Marmara region, NW Turkey, from aeromagnetic, seismic and gravity data

The seismically active Marmara region, located in NW Turkey, lies on the westward end of the North Anatolian Fault (NAF). The NAF is well defined on land. Previous investigations of its extension in the Marmara Sea include marine bathymetry, seismological activity and seismic profiles. In this study, faults and their configurations identified inland are extended into the Marmara Sea by means of aeromagnetic anomalies, as well as seismic and gravity profiles. The deep structure was resolved by constructing a map of the Tertiary bottom. Shallow Curie isotherm was determined by spectral analysis, indicating a thinner crust in the northern Marmara depression area with respect to the continental crust. A combination of the geophysical data allows us to propose the existence of subsidence and isostatic equilibrium in the northern Marmara Sea. A less-active zone identified in the central high zone dividing the Marmara Sea into two parts may also be deduced from the seismic data. This structural arrangement may play a key role in earthquakes that will affect the surrounding regions.     

逆序断裂的发育特征与地震反射识别

在具有盆地基底和未固结盖层的双层结构的盆地里,由于松散盖层对基底断裂应变的吸收,晚期发育的基底断裂在进入盖层后,应变会逐渐减小甚至消失,形成下部错动大、上部错动小的特点,本文把这样的后期断裂称之为逆序断裂。当基底断裂为走滑断裂时,逆序断裂具有双层空间构造样式,即在盆地基底发育主干走滑断裂、而在盖层优先发育另外走向的次级雁行断裂。逆序断裂在渤海湾盆地普遍发育,本文以歧口凹陷的张北断裂带和白水头断裂带为例（这两处断裂带都在下构造层发育北东向基底走滑断裂、而在上构造层发育近东西向盖层次级正断裂）,运用三维地震资料,结合沿层属性和垂直剖面,阐述了逆序断裂的发育特征和对地震反射剖面的识别。由于之前晚期的逆序断裂一般被当作早期同沉积生长断裂对待,本文希望能帮助重新认识渤海湾地区的区域断裂期次和构造发育演化过程。     

Integration of P- and SH-wave high-resolution seismic reflection and micro-gravity techniques to improve interpretation of shallow subsurface structure: New Madrid seismic zone

Shallow high-resolution seismic reflection surveys have traditionally been restricted to either compressional (P) or horizontally polarized shear (SH) waves in order to produce 2-D images of subsurface structure. The northernmost Mississippi embayment and coincident New Madrid seismic zone (NMSZ) provide an ideal laboratory to study the experimental use of integrating P- and SH-wave seismic profiles, integrated, where practicable, with micro-gravity data. In this area, the relation between “deeper” deformation of Paleozoic bedrock associated with the formation of the Reelfoot rift and NMSZ seismicity and “shallower” deformation of overlying sediments has remained elusive, but could be revealed using integrated P- and SH-wave reflection. Surface expressions of deformation are almost non-existent in this region, which makes seismic reflection surveying the only means of detecting structures that are possibly pertinent to seismic hazard assessment. Since P- and SH-waves respond differently to the rock and fluid properties and travel at dissimilar speeds, the resulting seismic profiles provide complementary views of the subsurface based on different levels of resolution and imaging capability. P-wave profiles acquired in southwestern Illinois and western Kentucky (USA) detect faulting of deep, Paleozoic bedrock and Cretaceous reflectors while coincident SH-wave surveys show that this deformation propagates higher into overlying Tertiary and Quaternary strata. Forward modeling of micro-gravity data acquired along one of the seismic profiles further supports an interpretation of faulting of bedrock and Cretaceous strata. The integration of the two seismic and the micro-gravity methods therefore increases the scope for investigating the relation between the older and younger deformation in an area of critical seismic hazard.     

Interpretation of seismic and potential field data from western New York State and Lake Ontario

Lithoprobe and industry seismic profiles have furnished evidence of major zones of easterly dipping Grenville deformed crust extending southwest from exposed Grenville rocks north of Lake Ontario. Additional constraints on subsurface structure limited to the postulated Clarendon–Linden fault system south of Lake Ontario are provided by five east–west reflection lines recorded in 1976. Spatial correlations between seismic structure and magnetic anomalies are described from both Lake Ontario and the newly reprocessed New York lines.In the Paleozoic to Precambrian upper crust, the New York seismic sections show: (1) An easterly thickening wedge of subhorizontal Paleozoic strata unconformably overlying a Precambrian basement whose surface has an apparent regional easterly dip of 1–2°. Minor apparent normal offsets, possibly on the order of tens of meters, occur within the Paleozoic section. The generally poorly reflective unconformity may be locally characterized by topographic relief on the order of 100 m; (2) Apparent local displacement on the order of 90 m at the level of the Black River Group diminishes upward to little or no apparent offset of Queenston Shale; (3) Within the limited seismic sections, there appears to be no evidence that the complete upper crustal section is vertically or subvertically offset; (4) Dipping structure in the Paleozoic strata (15° to 35°) resembles some underlying Precambrian basement elements; (5) The surface continuity of inferred faults constituting the Clarendon–Linden system is not strongly supported by the seismic data.Beneath the Paleozoic strata, the seismic sections show both linear and arcuate reflector geometry with easterly apparent dips of 15° to 35° similar to the deep structures imaged on seismic lines from nearby Lake Ontario and on Lithoprobe lines to the north. The similarity supports an extension of easterly dipping Central Metasedimentary Belt structures of the Grenville orogen from southern Ontario to beneath western New York State.From a comparison of the magnetic and gravity fields with the New York seismic sections, we suggest: (1) The largely nonmagnetic Paleozoic strata appear to contribute negligibly to magnetic anomalies. Seismically imaged fractures in the New York Paleozoic strata appear to lie mainly west of a positive gravity anomaly. The relationship between magnetic and gravity anomalies and the changes in the geometry of interpreted Precambrian structures remains enigmatic; (2) North to northeast trending curvilinear magnetic and gravity anomalies parallel, but are not restricted to the principal trend of the postulated Clarendon–Linden fault system. Paleozoic fractures of the Clarendon–Linden system may partly overlie a southward extension of the Composite Arc Belt boundary zone.     

Structural architecture of the ocean–continent boundary at an oblique transform margin through deep-imaging seismic interpretation and gravity modelling: Equatorial Guinea, West Africa

Along the Rio Muni transform margin, the transition from continental to oceanic crust occurs across a region of approximately 75-km width. The crust in this transition region, termed proto-oceanic crust (POC), is neither purely oceanic nor continental in composition and structure. Improved seismic reflection images from the PROBE deep-imaging dataset, combined with gravity modelling, have shed new light on the structural architecture of the margin and the composition of the POC. On these newly migrated seismic reflection sections, four fracture zones associated with large steps in the Moho are identified, splitting the POC into three segments. Models in which these segments are composed of oceanic or stretched continental crust do not provide satisfactory predictions of the gravity anomaly. A model of serpentinized peridotite for two segments of POC, with the third segment composed of oceanic crust in between, does satisfy the observed gravity anomaly. Three alternative geological scenarios are proposed to explain the segmentation and composition of the POC: (a) serpentinized upper mantle becoming unroofed and emplaced at basement surface level along detachment surfaces confined to discrete segments by the fracture zones, (b) oblique-slip on transform faults that allow the circulation of water into the mantle and emplacement of serpentinized upper mantle material; or (c) intense faulting of anomalous oceanic crust as a result of magma depletion allowing hydrothermal circulation and the emplacement of serpentinized peridotites.     

Structural setting of the Bay of Naples (Italy) seismic reflection data: implications for Campanian volcanism

This paper focuses on the recent tectonic evolution of the Bay of Naples with the aim of exploring the connection between local tectonics and volcanism. We reprocessed the seismic reflection dataset acquired in the area in the late 1973. The new processing was highly successful in obtaining a decisive strong reduction of random noise, removal of coherent noise and reduction of spatial aliasing. Classical interpretative schemes and complex attributes of seismic traces were used to reconstruct fault kinematics and reflector patterns. The results show that the faults affecting the Bay of Naples exhibit prevailing NE structural strikes, with the exception of the Pozzuoli Caldera where NW patterns are also common. Many faults are subvertical and show seismic evidence of volcanic activity along them. A main alignment of conjugate NE–SW faults, named here as “Magnaghi–Sebeto line”, intersects several submarine volcanic banks and separates the bay into two sectors, characterized by important geological, geophysical and petrochemical differences. The structural configuration of the bay may reflect the occurrence of either oblique extension or a transfer zone of the NW–SE fault system, along which, in the Campanian–Lucanian Apennine chain, great vertical displacements occur.     

On the tectonics of the Neocomian Rio do Peixe Rift Basin, NE Brazil: Lessons from gravity, magnetics, and radiometric data

A geophysical perspective based on well-acquired gravity, magnetic, and radiometric data provides good insights into the basin architectural elements and tectonic evolution of the Rio do Peixe Basin (RPB), an Early Cretaceous intracontinental basin in the northeast Brazilian rift system, which developed during the opening of the South Atlantic. NW–SE-trending extensional forces acting over an intensively deformed Precambrian basement yielded a composite basin architecture strongly controlled by preexisting, mechanically weak fault zones in the upper crust. Reactivated NE–SW and E–W ductile shear zones of Brasiliano age (0.6 Ga) divided the RPB into three asymmetrical half-grabens (Brejo das Freiras, Sousa, and Pombal subbasins), separated by basement highs of granite bodies that seem to anchor and distinguish the mechanical subsidence of the subbasins. Radiometric and geopotential field data highlight the relationship between the tectonic stress field and the role of a preexisting structural framework inserted in the final rift geometry. The up-to-2000 m thick half-grabens are sequentially located at the inflexion of sigmoidal-shaped shear zones and acquire a typical NE–SW-oriented elliptic shape. The Sousa Subbasin is the single exception. Because of its uncommon E–W elongated form, three-dimensional gravity modeling reveals an E–W axis of depocenters within the Sousa Subbasin framework, in which the eastern shoulders are controlled by NE–SW-trending faults. These faults belong to the Precambrian structural fabric, as is well illustrated by the gamma ray and magnetic signatures of the basement grain. Release faults were identified nearly perpendicular or oblique to master faults, forming marginal strike ramps and horst structures in all subbasins. The emplacement mechanism of Brasiliano granites around the RPB was partially oriented by the same structural framework, as is indicated by the gravity signature of the granitic bodies after removal of the gravity effect of the basin-filling deposits. The RPB major-fault occurrence along the releasing bend of a strong discontinuity – the so-called Portalegre Shear Zone – in addition to the configuration of a gentle crustal thinning, according to gravity field studies, suggests that a crustal discontinuity governs the nucleation of the RPB, followed probably by small displacement in deep crustal levels accommodating low-rate stretching during basin subsidence.     

Structural evolution of the Rides Prerifaines (Morocco): structural and seismic interpretation and analogue modelling experiments

The Rides Prerifaines (RP) of Morocco constitute the leading edge of the Rif chain. They involve a Triassic–Palaeocene succession deposited on a peneplained Palaeozoic fold belt and accumulated in basins delimited by NE–SW-trending normal fault systems. A significant hiatus separates an overlying Middle Miocene–Upper Miocene foredeep sequence. The reconstruction of the complex structural evolution of the RP during the later compressive phases that affected the Rif chain since Middle Miocene time has been the aim of this paper. We integrated field structural analyses, seismic line interpretation, and analogue modelling in order to evaluate the control exerted by the Late Triassic–Jurassic normal fault systems onto the later compressive tectonics. The maximum compression direction associated with the first compressive phase is roughly NE–SW to ENE–WSW oriented. During this phase the Mesozoic basin fill was scooped-out from the graben and the main décollement level were the Triassic evaporites. Since Pliocene times the maximum compression direction was oriented roughly N–S. During this phase the RP assumed their present structural setting. The earlier normal faults delimiting the Mesozoic graben were reactivated in a strike–slip mode also involving the Palaeozoic basement. The analogue modelling experiments demonstrated that the basement reactivation promoted salt tectonics and favoured fluid circulation.     

The effect of crustal anisotropy on reflector depth and velocity determination from wide-angle seismic data: a synthetic example based on South Island, New Zealand

When deriving velocity models by forward modelling or inverting travel time arrivals from seismic refraction data, a heterogeneous but isotropic earth is usually assumed. In regions where the earth is not isotropic at the scale at which it is being sampled, the assumption of isotropy can lead to significant errors in the velocities determined for the crust and the depths calculated to reflecting boundaries. Laboratory velocity measurements on rocks collected from the Haast Schist terrane of South Island, New Zealand, show significant (up to 20%) compressional (P) wave velocity anisotropy. Field data collected parallel and perpendicular to the foliation of the Haast Schist exhibit as much as 11% P-wave velocity anisotropy. We demonstrate, using finite-difference full-wavefield modelling, the types of errors and problems that might be encountered if isotropic methods are used to create velocity models from data collected in anisotropic regions. These reflector depth errors could be as much as 10–15% for a 10-km thick layer with significant (20%) P-wave velocity anisotropy. The implications for South Island, New Zealand, where the problem is compounded by extreme orientations of highly anisotropic rocks (foliation which varies from horizontal to near vertical), are considered. Finally, we discuss how the presence of a significant subsurface anisotropic body might manifest itself in wide-angle reflection/refraction and passive seismic datasets, and suggest ways in which such datasets may be used to determine the presence and extent of such anisotropic bodies.     

Microstructures, petrofabrics and seismic properties of ultra high-pressure eclogites from Sulu region, China: implications for rheology of subducted continental crust and origin of mantle reflections

Ultra high-pressure (UHP) eclogites from Sulu region (China) represent mafic components of the continental crust, which were first subducted to mantle depths greater than 100 km and then exhumed to the earth's surface. Detailed investigation of microstructures, chemical compositions, petrofabrics and seismic properties of the UHP eclogites can provide important information on the operating deformation mechanisms and rheology of subducted continental crust and on the origin of seismic reflections within the upper mantle. We present here results from field, optical and TEM observations, electron back-scattered diffraction (EBSD) measurements and numerical computations of the seismic properties of UHP eclogites collected from fresh surface outcrops at the drill site (Maobei, Donghai County, Jiangsu Province) of the Chinese Continental Scientific Drilling Program (CCSD). Two types of eclogites have been distinguished: Type-1 (coarse-grained) eclogites deformed by recovery-accommodated dislocation creep at the peak metamorphic conditions, and Type-2 (fine-grained) eclogites which are composed of reworked Type-1 materials during recrystallization-accommodated dislocation creep in shear zones which were active during the exhumation of the UHP metamorphic rocks. Both garnet and omphacite in these eclogites deformed plastically and the flow strength contrast between these two constituent minerals is apparently much less than an order of magnitude under the UHP metamorphic conditions. Plasticity of eclogites under UHP conditions can effectively facilitate channeled flow along the interplate shear zone. The preservation of the relict crustal materials within the continental lithosphere may produce regionally extensive, strong, seismic reflections in the upper mantle. This may explain the origin of mantle reflections observed in many areas of the world.     

Crustal structure of the ancestral northwestern California forearc region from seismic reflection imaging: implications for convergent margin tectonics

Analysis of a suite of 2-D seismic reflection profiles reveals that the northwestern Sacramento Valley and eastern Coast Range foothills, northern California, are underlain by a system of blind, west-dipping thrust faults. Homoclinally east-dipping and folded Mesozoic marine forearc strata exposed along the western valley margin define the forelimbs of northeast-vergent fault-propagation folds developed in the hanging walls of the thrusts. Exhumed coherent blueschists of the accretionary complex and attenuated remnants of the ophiolitic forearc basement presently exposed in the eastern Coast Ranges are in the hanging wall of the blind thrust system, and have been displaced from their roots in the footwall. Deep, east-dipping magnetic reflectors in the footwall of the thrust system may be fragments of sheared, serpentinized and attenuated ophiolitic basement. Restoration of slip on the thrusts suggests that the Coast Range fault, which is the exposed structural contact between the coherent blueschists and attenuated ophiolite, originally dipped east and is associated with the east-dipping magnetic reflectors in the footwall. This interpretation of the reflection data is consistent with previous inferences about the deep structure in this region, and supports a two-stage model for blueschist exposure in the eastern Coast Ranges: (1) blueschist exhumation relative to the forearc basin by attenuation of the ophiolitic basement along the east-dipping Coast Range fault system in late Cretaceous; (2) blueschists, attenuated ophiolite, and forearc strata all were subsequently uplifted and folded in the hanging wall of the blind thrust system beginning in latest Cretaceous–early Tertiary. The blind thrust system probably rooted in, and was antithetic to, the east-dipping subduction zone beneath the forearc region. Active transpressional plate motion in western California is locally accommodated, in part, by reactivation of blind thrust faults that originally developed during the convergent regime.     

Crustal density model across West Bengal basin,India: An integrated interpretation of seismic and gravity data

An integrated interpretation of the seismic refraction and wide-angle reflection data, geological and structural details, bore-hole litholog information and gravity particulars along Beliator-Burdwan-Bangaon deep seismic sounding (DSS) profile in West Bengal basin has helped in getting a crustal density model. This model is consistent with all available surface and bore-hole geophysical data that can realistically explain the trend, shape and magnitude of gravity data across the West Bengal basin. The present exercise pointed out that the thick sedimentary column (with thickening trend towards east), conspicuous lateral variations in the Moho configuration (with a prominent 40 km wide domal feature covering the eastern part of the stable shelf and trie western segment of the deep basinal part) coupled with the structural trends in the basement, mid and lower crustal columns have combinedly contributed to the gravity effect and as such the prominent lateral variations in the Bouguer gravity anomalies could be mainly attributed to regionally extending causative factors. The synthesis clearly points out the need to take proper care in selecting the density values as direct conversion of velocities into densities, adapting well-known conversion formulae, does not always hold good specially in the eastern part of the West Bengal basin where a huge thickness of sediments (velocities ranging between 4 to 5 km/sec) of high density 2.6 to 2.8 g/cm³ are sandwiched between younger sediments and the crystalline basement.     

Geochemistry,Petrography and Spectroscopy of Organic Matter of Clay‐Associated Kerogen of Ypresian Series: Gafsa‐Metlaoui Phosphatic Basin,Tunisia

This work presents geochemical characterization of isolated kerogen out of clay fraction using petrography studies, infrared absorption and solid state ¹³C nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy, with N‐alkane distributions of saturated hydrocarbon. Mineralogical study of clay mineral associations was carried out using X‐ray diffraction (XRD), on Ypresian phosphatic series from Gafsa‐Metlaoui basin, Tunisia. The XRD data indicate that smectite, palygorskite and sepiolite are the prevalent clay minerals in the selected samples. In this clay mineral association, the N‐alkane (m/z = 57) distribution indicates that the marine organic matter is plankton and bacterial in origin. The kerogens observed on transmitted light microscopy, however, appear to be totally amorphous organic matter, without any appearance of biological form. The orange gel‐like amorphous organic matter with distinct edges and homogenous texture is consistent with a high degree of aliphaticity. This material has relatively intense CH₂ and CH₃ infrared bands in ¹³C NMR peaks. This aliphatic character is related to bacterial origin. Brown amorphous organic matter with diffuse edges has a lower aliphatic character than the previous kerogen, deduced from relatively low CH₂ and CH₃ infrared and ¹³C NMR band intensities.     

Late Neogene–Quaternary evolution of the intermontane Clusone Basin (Southern Alps,Italy): integration of seismic and geological data

In the Clusone Basin (a large intermontane basin filled by thick late Neogene–Quaternary sediments in the Middle Val Seriana, Southern Alps), two high‐resolution seismic profiles have been acquired in order to reconstruct the geometries of the sediments that fill the depression, with a maximum thickness of more than 200 m as documented by available well data, and to define their relationships with the bedrock, consisting of Late Triassic carbonates. In addition to standard seismic reflection processing, a seismic refraction inversion technique has been applied. The integration of geological (both surface and well data) and seismic data indicates a complex history of the drainage patterns of the Clusone Basin, documenting a shift of the Serio River from a palaeodrainage toward the southeast (Val Borlezza) to the present situation, toward the south (Val Seriana): between the older and the present‐day drainages an important depositional stage occurred, as documented by the thick sediments that fill the Clusone Basin, controlling the capture of the Serio River along the Val Seriana. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.