Present-day tectonics of the western part of the Dzhugdzhur–Stanovoi Terrane of the southeastern frame of the North Asian Craton

The first results on current movements are presented for the western part of the Dzhugdzhur–Stanovoi Terrane based on GPS geodesy of a geodynamic survey area of the Upper Amur region. Processing of the GPS data resulted in a vector field of the displacement rates of points of the geodynamic survey area with zones of intense deformations. It was concluded from a comprehensive analysis of geological–geophysical data and estimates of the displacement rates that the terrane is characterized by kinematic integrity and was subjected to a complex of tectonic factors related to the evolution of the eastern segment of Baikal Rift Zone in the area of transpression interaction of the Eurasian and Amur plates.     

Late Paleozoic and Mesozoic deformations in the southwestern Primorye region

Two types of tectonic deformations indicating different geodynamic settings are defined in the southwestern Primorye region. Near-latitudinal compression forces were responsible for the oldest, Late Paleozoic deformations. The Permian stratified complexes host a near-meridional system of folds and zones of dynamothermal metamorphism, cleavage, and foliation oriented orthogonally relative to the compression. Late Proterozoic (?) mafic-ultramafic rocks are characterized by similar deformations. In the Late Permian, the deformations were accompanied by granitoid magmatism controlled by fold and cleavage structures. The younger, Mesozoic deformations produced by near-meridional compression are represented by NE-trending sinistral strike-slip faults and their structural parageneses: an ENE-trending system of folds and downdip-thrusts both superimposed on Paleozoic protostructures and manifested in Mesozoic and Cenozoic sequences. It is inferred that, at the Paleozoic-Mesozoic boundary, near-latitudinal compression was replaced by near-meridional compression, probably, in response to the corresponding change in direction of the lateral displacement of the interacting Asian continent and (or) Pacific Plate.     

沿阿穆尔板块西边界的活动断层(蒙古领土)

阿穆尔板块西部边界在蒙古境内的空间位置尚不清楚,并且活动断层构造及其沿线地壳的应力状态研究较少。本文在沿此边界的三个区域——杭爱—肯特构造鞍部、布尔古特地块(鄂尔浑—土拉交汇处)和色楞格地块(包括色楞格凹陷和布伦—努鲁隆起),利用空间图像解译、地形起伏度分析、地质构造资料以及构造压裂和沿裂缝位移资料重建构造古应力,对活动断层进行研究。研究表明,活动断裂继承了古生代和中生代古构造的非均质性。这些断层沿着板块边界并不是单一的带,而是成簇的。它们的运动取决于走向:亚纬向断层是具有一定逆分量的左旋走滑断层,北西向断层是逆断层或逆冲断层,通常具有右旋走滑分量,海底断层是右旋走滑断层,北东向断层是正断层。位于色楞格凹陷和杭爱东部的断裂构造的活动始于上新世。逆断层和走滑断层与上新世情况不符,但多与更新世地貌相符,表明其活动年代较晚,为更新世时期。利用构造断裂和沿断裂的位移,重建活动断裂带变形末阶段的应力应变状态,结果表明断裂在最大挤压轴的北北东和北东方向上以压缩和走滑为主。只有在色楞格凹陷内,以扩张和走滑类型的应力张量为主,且在最小挤压轴的北西走向尤为显著。在南部,杭爱东部(鄂尔浑地堑)内有1个以扩张机制为主的局部区域,说明蒙古中部断裂在更新世—全新世阶段的活动以及现代地震活动主要受与印度斯坦和欧亚大陆汇聚过程相关的东北方向的附加水平挤压的控制。使研究区地壳产生走滑变形、贝加尔湖裂谷发散活动以及阿穆尔板块东南运动的另一个因素是东南方向软流圈流动对岩石圈底部的影响。阿穆尔板块和蒙古地块之间的边界在构造结构上是零碎的,代表了覆盖整个蒙古西部变形带的边缘部分。     

Seismogeodynamics of the Aldan-Stanovoi block

New geological-structural, seismological, seismotectonic, land geodetic, and GPS data were summirized to study the general geodynamic position of the Aldan-Stanovoi block, its recent structural-tectonic patterns, and the tendencies in the structural formation of active faults in the heterogeneous field of tectonic stresses determined by the interaction between the Eurasian and Amur lithospheric plates in southern East Siberia (Transbaikal region), southern Yakutia, and the Amur region.     

Sources of clastic material of Cretaceous–Paleogene deposits in the southwestern part of the Amur–Zeya Basin: results of dating U–Pb detrital zircons

The results of our study indicate that at the Late Cretaceous–Paleogene boundary in the southeastern part of the Amur–Zeya Basin, the sedimentation conditions changed drastically, namely, the change of provenance areas of debris. In the Maastrichtian, the clastic material was mainly transported from the Bureya–Jiamusi Superterrane and the volcanic–plutonic belts of Khingan–Okhotsk and East Sikhote–Alin located to the east: sedimentation occurred simultaneously with magmatic activity. During the Danian Stage, the major source of debris to the southern part of the basin was located to the south of the young mountain system of the Lesser Khingan (the uplifted part of the basement of the Songliao Block).     

Geochemistry and provenances of the Jurassic terrigenous rocks of the Upper Amur and Zeya–Dep troughs,eastern Central Asian fold belt

This paper reports the results of complex geochemical and Sm–Nd isotope-geochemical studies of terrigenous rocks of the Upper Amur and Zeya–Dep troughs, as well as U–Pb geochronological studies of detrital zircons. It is established that the studied troughs have orogenic nature, which is of key significance for understanding the geodynamic evolution of East Asia in the Mesozoic. Such interpretation is consistent with structural features of the troughs (migration of basin axis inward the continent with time, stratigraphic rejuvenation in the same direction), which are typical of foreland basins regarded as analogues of foreland (marginal) troughs. Obtained data indicate that orogenic processes responsible for the formation of the Mongol-Okhotsk fold belt began in the Early Jurassic.     

Deep roots of seismotectonics in the Far East: The Sakhalin zone

It is shown that the deep structure of the lithosphere played a decisive role in the recent deformations and seismicity in the Far East. The regional variations in the composition of the mantle xenoliths and Neogene-Quaternary basalts provided grounds for mapping the NE-extending wedge-shaped block of the Fe-rich mantle at the base of Sikhote Alin. Its boundaries continue the Yilan-Yiton and Fushun-Mishan strike-slip faults of the Tan-Lu zone, along which this mantle block was displaced along the continental margin in the Jurassic-Cretaceous. The localization of strong (M ≥ 5.0) earthquake epicenters in the Amur region shows that such a mantle structure determines the key features of the regional deformations and seismotectonics. Under the dominant western compression due to the Amur Plate’s motion, the mantle wedge is extruded in the northeastern direction to provide an additional stress at the Okhotsk Plate boundary. This process resulted in the formation of the Sakhalin high-seismicity zone at the front of the mantle block. In its characteristics, the zone is similar to the convergence area between the Indian and Eurasian plates. In both cases, the main deformation and seismicity features were caused by the horizontal pressure of the tectonic block, the frontal part of which is marked by regularly alternating compression and extension zones. In Sakhalin, strong earthquakes with M ≥ 6.0 are confined to the seismic suture 50 km wide with concentrated compression. This structure is discordant relative to the main faults of the island, being parallel to the front of the mantle wedge. The two migration cycles established for the Sakhalin earthquakes with M ≥ 6.0 correspond to periods of 1907–1971 and 1995–2007. During both cycles, the first shocks occurred in the north and subsequently migrated in the southeastern direction simultaneously decreasing in the depths of the earthquake foci. The systematic migration implies that asymmetrical compression is responsible for both the extrusion of the mantle wedge and its southeastward clockwise rotation. The latter plays the decisive role in the initiation of strong earthquakes on Sakhalin.     

Active rifting in the Japan and Okhotsk seas and the tectonic evolution of the Central Sakhalin Fault zone in the Cenozoic

Large-scale geological maps available for individual areas in the Central Sakhalin Fault zone and geological-geophysical maps of Sakhalin and surrounding sea areas were analyzed to elucidate the tectonic evolution of the fault zone determined by movements of crustal blocks due to the opening of rift basins. Changes in the direction of horizontal compression in the Sakhalin fold system from diagonal (NW-SE) to near-latitudinal resulted in the transformation of near-meridional right-lateral strike-slip faults into reversed faults in the Late Miocene. This allows Sakhalin faults to be interpreted as a zone of recent right-lateral shear between Eurasian and Sea of Okhotsk plates.     

Model of crustal block movement in the South Yakutia geodynamic testing area based on GPS data

The results of the analysis of crustal block movement obtained from the GPS data in 2009–2012 in the South Yakutia geodynamic testing area located at the junction of two major tectonic structures—the Aldan shield of the Siberian platform and the Stanovoi fold-block area—are presented. The drift of the block in the southeastern direction corresponds to the main azimuth of the strike of the activated fault systems and is consistent with the results of the geodetic observations performed in the 1970–1980s. Based on the periodic components of the complete displacement vector, hinge-type movements along the local faults are established. It is shown that, in the annual cycles, the rotational, oscillational, and translational movements of the block have a nonlinear character, and solitary strain waves are likely to be formed in the zones of activated faults.     

新构造运动在南黄海盆地的表现及其对油气成藏的影响

在精细地震资料构造解释基础上,认为上新世—第四纪是南黄海盆地新构造运动的主要活动期,对应南黄海盆地第二个阶段的断裂活动期。垂向上,新构造运动具有早晚构造响应差异:早期南北向弱挤压背景下以张性正断层为主,晚期东西向两幕挤压背景下以逆断层和褶皱为主;平面上,新构造运动影响亦具有差异:北部坳陷活动强烈、正断层发育、逆断层少量,而南部坳陷活动较弱。新构造运动与北部坳陷烃源岩的生排烃时期吻合,断裂带是重要输导体系,也是重要的潜在成藏区。     

Present-Day Kinematics of the Northern Margin of the Argun Continental Massif (Eastern Part of the Central Asian Belt)

This paper reports the first data on present-day movements in the northern margin of the Argun Continental Massif, obtained on the basis of GPS measurements. The processed GPS data have been obtained to calculate the vector field of displacement velocities in the geodynamic survey site of the Upper Amur Region. The estimated displacement parameters (direction and magnitude) are indicative of the uniform velocity vector field of the points in the northern margin of the Argun Massif and the absence of considerable motions within its range (differences in the vector components do not exceed a few millimeters per year). A conclusion is made on the present-day kinematic integrity of the northern margin of the Argun Massif.     

Geodynamic hazard and risk assessments for sites close or in tectonic zones with shear movements

No region is excluded from actions of recent geodynamic short- or long-term effects which can be observed even on the Earth’s surface. The article delivers a geodynamic hazard assessment for the anthropogenic objects threatened by permanent shear movements occurring along tectonic faults and a way how to mitigate and/or eliminate the object risk. The proposed approach is applied to a case example of a motorway tunnel leading through rock masses where dynamically active zones with shear movements along their faults are expected. To detect the shear movements among rock masses, the contemporary satellite geodetic GPS methodology was used.     

Quaternary tectonics of recent basins in northwestern Armenia

New data on the stratigraphy, faults, and formation history of lower to middle Pleistocene rocks in Late Cenozoic basins of northwestern Armenia are presented. It has been established that the low-mountain topography created by tectonic movements and volcanic activity existed in the region by the onset of the Pleistocene. The manifestations of two geodynamic structure-forming factors became clear in Pleistocene: (i) collisional interaction of plates due to near-meridional compression and (ii) deep tectogenesis and magma formation expressed in the distribution of vertical movements and volcanism. The general uplift of the territory, which was also related to deep processes, reached 350–500 m in basins and 600–800 m in mountain ranges over the last 0.5 Ma. The early Pleistocene (~1.8 Ma) low- and medium-mountain topography has been reconstructed by subtraction of the latest deformations and uplift of the territory. Ancient human ancestry appeared at that time.     

Deep structure,genesis, and seismic activation of the Bureya orogen,Russian Far East

The Bureya orogen is a special object among the geodynamic factors determining the high seismicity of the Lower Amur region. Its location and deep structure are studied on the basis of comprehensive geophysical and tectonic data. This orogen is a low-density lithospheric domain expressed by an intensive negative gravity anomaly and Moho sunken down to 40 km depth. Within the limits of this lithospheric structure, contemporary uplifting takes place to form a meridional dome peaking at more than 2000 m altitude. The position of the orogen in the regional structure gives us grounds to think that the Bureya orogen formed in the Paleogene, at the finishing stage of tectonic block movement along the Pacific margin represented by the NE-trending strike-slip faults of the Tang Lu Fault Zone. Compression was concentrated at the triple junction between the Central Asian, Mongolian–Okhotian, and Sikhote Alin tectonic belts. The meridional orientation of the Bureya orogen is associated with the parallel elongated Cenozoic depressions in the region. The united morphotectonic system may have formed resulting from lithospheric folding under horizontal shortening in the Paleocene–Eocene. The wavelength of the Lower Amurian fold system is 250 km, which is consistent with the theoretical estimates and examples of lithospheric folds in other regions. The contemporary activation of the Bureya orogen began in the Miocene, under the effect of the Amurian Plate front moving in the northeastern direction. As a result of shortening, the meridional cluster of weak (M ≥ 2.0) earthquakes formed along the western boundary of the orogenic dome. The most intensive deformations caused another type of seismicity associated with the activation-related uplift of the mentioned orogen. As a result, the so-called Bureya seismic zone formed above the apex of the dome, and it is here that the strongest regional earthquakes (M ≥ 4.5) occur.     

Deformations and Manifestations of Degassing in the Sedimentary Cover of the Equatorial Segment of the West Atlantic: Implications for Lithospheric Geodynamics

Manifestations of fluids and deformations in the sedimentary cover, which are both factors of brightening (blanking anomalies) in seismoacoustic records, in the equatorial segment of the Atlantic coincide with the sublatitudinal zones of the activated passive parts of transform faults and with zones of lower gravity anomalies and higher values of remnant magnetization, which form as a result of serpentinization. The cause-and-effect sequence of intraplate phenomena includes: the contrasting geodynamic state → horizontal movements that form macrofractures → water supply to the upper mantle → serpentinization of rocks in the upper mantle → deformations associated with vertical uplift of basement and sedimentary cover blocks, coupled with fluid generation → and fluid accumulation in the sedimentary cover, accompanied by the formation of anomalies in seismoacoustic records. Based on the seismic data, we have identified imbricate-thrust deformations, diapir structures, stamp folds, and positive and negative flower structures, indicating the presence of strike-slip faults in the passive parts of transform faults. The general spatial distribution of deformation structures shows their concentration in cold mantle zones. Correlative comparison of the structural characteristics of deformations shows the direct relationship between the heights of structures and the development of serpentinization processes. As per the age of the basement, deformations range from 27–38 to 43–53 Ma; a quite thick sedimentary cover makes it possible to reveal them based on the characteristic types of seismoacoustic records. The formation of the Antilles arc ca. 10 Ma ago affected the equatorial segment of the Atlantic; it formed kink bands where lithospheric blocks underwent displacements with counterclockwise rotations, deformations related to compression and vertical uplift of crustal fragments, and local extension that favored degassing of endogenous fluids. Sublatitudinally oriented imbricate-thrust deformations with different vergences indicate irregularity and alternating strike-slip directions as blocks between fractures were laterally influenced.     

Preliminary Study of Geology and Geomorphology of Luonan Basin

PRELIMINARY STUDY OF GEOLOGY AND GEOMORPHOLOGY OF LUONAN BASIN     

新构造运动对藏北羌塘盆地油气保存条件的影响

羌塘盆地是一个中—新生代海相残留盆地,泥盆系至侏罗系以海相沉积为主,白垩系至第四系则以陆相沉积为主。分布最广的上三叠统和侏罗系是主要勘探目的层。喜马拉雅运动以来,羌塘盆地的中生代变形格架受到改造。晚白垩世以来至少有过四次强烈活动,走滑、逆冲与伸展三种构造变形形式共存,以逆冲断层和扭压断层占主导,正断层或扭张断层较少分布。断层发育程度是东、西两头强,中间相对较弱,在E89°～E91°中间区块受新构造应力破坏较弱。青藏高原以整体升降为主,羌塘盆地更是相对稳定,其二级夷平面依然平整,位于海拔5200～5300m之间,说明高原在隆升时保持着整体的稳定性。认为羌塘盆地受新生代动力作用的影响不大,仍具有良好的油气勘探潜力。     

大杨树盆地的构造特征及变形期次

大杨树盆地是叠置于大兴安岭造山带的东部,与松辽盆地紧邻,呈北北东向长条带状展布的中新生代断陷-坳陷型盆地。大杨树盆地经历了多期变形作用,具有以伸展构造为主、并被挤压构造和反转构造叠加的构造特征。早白垩世龙江期主要受到了NWW—SEE向的拉伸作用,形成一系列北北东向控陷犁式正断层组合,在控陷断层的上盘发育小型箕状断陷;早白垩世九峰山期,大杨树盆地受挤压作用控制,使早期形成的断陷盆地发生反转作用,形成正反转构造,同时在某些地段形成逆冲断层和断层传播褶皱;早白垩世甘河期,大杨树盆地再次受到伸展作用,形成了一系列北北东向小型断陷。早白垩世晚期(甘河期之后)—晚白垩世早期,大杨树盆地受到强烈的挤压作用,使早期控陷正断层出现正反转作用,在盆地的浅部形成大型断层传播褶皱,使大杨树盆地全面隆升遭受剥蚀。第四纪大杨树盆地具有伸展的特征,发育一系列小型伸展断陷。     

Structure and evolution of the Sunwu-Jiayin basin in NE China and its relation to the Zeya-Bureya basin in the Far East of Russia

The Sunwu-Jiayin Basin is located on the Amur River’s right side and comprises four depressions separated by two NE-trending uplifts. The basin is bounded by first-order steep to vertical faults (mostly normal faults) formed under extension conditions. These faults control the structural pattern of the basin. The sedimentary cover of the depressions developed during five stages: extension, early inversion, thermal subsidence, late inversion, and formation of depressions. The Late Paleozoic and Precambrian basement of the Sunwu-Jiayin basin composed of granitoides and metamorphosed shales crops out within the uplifts and plunges within the depressions to a depth ranging from 0.5 to 3.4 km. The basin under consideration is considered to be the southern margin of the Zeya-Bureya Basin according to the conditions of its formation and the structural features.     

西昆仑-塔西南坳陷晚古生代以来的沉积构造演化

自柯克亚深层油气勘探取得突破以来,塔西南坳陷一直受到各类地质学家的广泛关注,有关该盆地的形成和演化历史及其油气资源评价近年来更是成为人们的研究热点.本文在总结前人资料的基础上,探讨塔西南和西昆仑地区自晚古生代以来所经历的构造及沉积格架的演变过程,对塔西南坳陷性质及其演化阶段划分所存在的争议进行了归纳,分析了塔西南-西昆仑这一盆山体系形成和演化中的构造变形和沉积记录.总体来说,根据现有沉积和构造变形资料,中生代之前西昆仑和塔西南坳陷分别处于同一构造背景下的不同沉积单元;二者之间盆山体系的形成主要自晚侏罗世-早白垩世,中-上新世是造盆造山作用机制发生重大转折的时期,或者说早更新世末的构造运动基本上奠定了西昆仑.塔里木盆地南缘现今的盆-山构造格架.