Some faulting patterns along the continental slope off Israel and their tectonic significance

A high resolution seismic survey was carried out on the continental slope of Israel, NW of Caesarea. The area was studied in order to map the tectonic elements of the Dor structure, and to extrapolate and suggest a structural model of the tectonics of the continental slope of the SE Mediterranean since the Late Miocene. It was found that the continental slope was affected by two faulting systems—NW trending strike-slip faults and NNE trending normal faults. Faults of both systems are associated with numerous slumps along the slope. However, the NW trending faults belong to a faulting system of similar trend that abounds in the adjacent continent and extends northwestwards across the continental shelf and slope to the continental rise. The NNE trending faults form the shelf-edge faulting system that was associated with the subsidence of the eastern Mediterranean basin since the Pliocene. Thus the continental slope is not only a morphological transition zone but also a tectonic one, showing the influence of both the continental and the oceanic structural regimes in the SE Mediterranean region.     

大陆岩石圈在张裂和分离时的变形模式

通过对南海南北共轭边缘地壳剖面的对比研究,发现大陆岩石圈的物理性质是分层的：上、中地壳呈脆性,下地壳表现出塑性,而岩石圈上地幔则仍呈脆性。因此,在它受张性应力场作用时,其变形和破裂分离方式也是分层进行的：上、中地壳能发生犁式断裂,产生的断块沿断面转动在地表产生一系列半地堑,并使地壳厚度减薄;如拉张应力继续作用时,上、中地壳将沿犁式断裂被拉开,从而形成上、下板块边缘,并彼此分开。下地壳则发生塑性变形,使地壳厚度减薄,并最终将其拉断。岩石圈上地幔亦可产生陡倾断裂,形成的断块沿断面转动亦使其厚度减薄,并最终沿陡倾断裂被拉断。这就是我们称之为岩石圈变形和破裂分 离时的分层变形及分层破裂分离模式。     

扭断裂及基底掀斜控制上覆地层的褶皱——东海Y构造的一种解释模式

位于东海XH凹陷的Y构造,以其两侧发育的NE—NNE向高角度逆冲断层和构造顶部发育的NW、近EW向的正断层、平面展布的“S”型构成其独特的构造风格。本文致力于应用T.P.Harding的扭动构造理论,结合该构造的成因机制进行了分析,并得出结论:Y构造为中新世末期的龙井运动压扭作用的产物。     

Northern Gulf of Mexico continental slope

The hummocky continental slope in the northwestern Gulf of Mexico is the result of active salt tectonism and accompanying faulting. Fluid and gassy hydrocarbons rise through the sediment column and along faults causing the formation of gas hydrates, gassy sediments, mud volcanoes and mounds, chemosynthetic communities and authigenic carbonates, reefs, and hardgrounds. Salt activity coupled with processes associated with relative sea level fluctuations create a feedback relationship resulting in the above-mentioned phenomena as well as others such as seafloor erosion at great water depths.     

Tectonics of a fast spreading center: A Deep-Tow and sea beam survey on the East Pacific rise at 19°30′ S

Sea Beam and Deep-Tow were used in a tectonic investigation of the fast-spreading (151 mm yr^-1) East Pacific Rise (EPR) at 19°30 S. Detailed surveys were conducted at the EPR axis and at the Brunhes/Matuyama magnetic reversal boundary, while four long traverses (the longest 96 km) surveyed the rise flanks. Faulting accounts for the vast majority of the relief. Both inward and outward facing fault scarps appear in almost equal numbers, and they form the horsts and grabens which compose the abyssal hills. This mechanism for abyssal hill formation differs from that observed at slow and intermediate spreading rates where abyssal hills are formed by back-tilted inward facing normal faults or by volcanic bow-forms. At 19°30 S, systematic back tilting of fault blocks is not observed, and volcanic constructional relief is a short wavelength signal (less than a few hundred meters) superimposed upon the dominant faulted structure (wavelength 2–8 km). Active faulting is confined to within approximately 5–8 km of the rise axis. In terms of frequency, more faulting occurs at fast spreading rates than at slow. The half extension rate due to faulting is 4.1 mm yr^-1 at 19°30 S versus 1.6 mm yr^-1 in the FAMOUS area on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge (MAR). Both spreading and horizontal extension are asymmetric at 19°30 S, and both are greater on the east flank of the rise axis. The fault density observed at 19°30 S is not constant, and zones with very high fault density follow zones with very little faulting. Three mechanisms are proposed which might account for these observations. In the first, faults are buried episodically by massive eruptions which flow more than 5–8 km from the spreading axis, beyond the outer boundary of the active fault zone. This is the least favored mechanism as there is no evidence that lavas which flow that far off axis are sufficiently thick to bury 50–150 m high fault scarps. In the second mechanism, the rate of faulting is reduced during major episodes of volcanism due to changes in the near axis thermal structure associated with swelling of the axial magma chamber. Thus the variation in fault spacing is caused by alternate episodes of faulting and volcanism. In the third mechanism, the rate of faulting may be constant (down to a time scale of decades), but the locus of faulting shifts relative to the axis. A master fault forms near the axis and takes up most of the strain release until the fault or fault set is transported into lithosphere which is sufficiently thick so that the faults become locked. At this point, the locus of faulting shifts to the thinnest, weakest lithosphere near the axis, and the cycle repeats.     

莱州湾凹陷东部新生代走滑构造特征及油气勘探意义

莱州湾凹陷位于渤海南部海域,为中生界基底之上发育的新生代半地堑.郯庐断裂带分东西两支穿过莱州湾凹陷东部,在新生代盖层中表现出渤海最复杂最典型的为NNE向的右旋走滑断裂特征.其中东支断裂在渐新世以后活动强烈,发育多条NNE向走滑断层及NE向伴生断层组成的复杂断裂带.走滑断裂带内断层展布符合右旋单剪作用下的脆性走滑剪切模式,地震方差切片存在右旋运动拖拽断裂证据.通过对主断裂活动期次分析表明,研究区主要有三期大的构造活动,同时形成了三期构造反转.应力分布的局域性导致了形变特征的差异性,产生了褶皱、挤压反转、掀斜断块、花状构造等典型的构造类型.研究区首次利用三维地震资料对本区构造特征进行了分析,研究认为走滑活动形成了良好的构造背景、优越的油源及运移等成藏条件,具有较大的油气勘探潜力.     

Role of the shale tectonics on the evolution of the Eastern Venezuelan Cenozoic thrust and fold belt

This paper presents a structural and stratigraphic analysis of the foreland-fold-belt of the Eastern Venezuelan Basin and the main conclusions about shale tectonic mechanisms in the area. The deformation of the foreland-fold-belt has been investigated analyzing the growth strata architecture preserved on the structure fold limbs. Three contractional episodes are proposed for the Eastern Venezuelan Basin: 1) Oligocene to middle Miocene, 2) late Miocene to Pliocene and 3) Pleistocene. The first episode produced contractional listric faults inside the shale and long displacement blind thrusts in the underlying Cretaceous units. The second episode produced the deformation of the Cenozoic strata into overlapping east-west-trending, convex northward anticlines that covers more than 200 kilometers in length and 40 kilometers wide, break-through normal faults product of a high sedimentary load that overcomes contraction and the formation of short-displacement blind thrusts in the underlying Cretaceous units. The last episode is related to an oblique compression and the formation of high angle extensional faults with dextral movement and NW-SE strike. The role of the shale tectonics in the evolution implies that shale deforms in two stages: 1) folding and 2) normal faulting of the crest of the anticline (Break through normal faulting). Folding controlled the sediment distribution during most of the Neogene strata, while the normal faulting of the anticlines represent basin potential for hydrocarbon. The best potential hydrocarbon plays in the basin are related to oblique-collision restricted basins and controlled by break-through normal faults and the presence of NW-SE strike faults that connect the HC source with the reservoirs. Results from this research imply that the role of sedimentation is fundamental for the overburden sand distribution and tectonic constrain of the folds.     

Fault patterns at outer trench walls

Profiles across subduction-related trenches commonly show normal faulting of the outer trench wall. Such faulting is generally parallel or sub-parallel to the trench and is ascribed to tension in the upper part of the oceanic plate as it is bent into the subduction zone. A number of authors have noted that outer trench wall faulting may involve re-activation of the oceanic spreading fabric of the subducting plate, even when the trend of this fabric is noticeably oblique to the extensional stress direction. However, one previous review of outer trench wall fault patterns questioned the occurrence of a consistent link between fault orientation and such controlling factors. This latter study predated the widespread availability of swath bathymetry and longrange sidescan sonar data over trenches. Based only on profile data, it was unable to analyse fault patterns with the accuracy now possible. This paper therefore re-examines the relationship between outer trench wall faulting and the structure of the subduction zone and subducting plate using GLORIA and Seabeam swath mapping data from several locations around the Pacific and Indian Oceans. The principal conclusions is that the trend of outer trench wall faults is almost always controlled by either the subducting slab strike or by the inherited oceanic spreading fabric in the subducting plate. The latter control operates when the spreading fabric is oblique to the subducting slab strike by less than 25–30°; in all other cases the faults are parallel to slab strike (and parallel or sub-parallel to the trench). Where the angle between spreading fabric and slab strike is close to 30°, two fault trends may coexist; evidence from the Aleutian Trench indicates a gradual change from spreading fabric to slab strike control of fault trend as the angle between the two increases from 25 to 30°. The only observed exception to the above rule of fault control comes from the western Aleutian Trench, where outer trench wall faults are oblique to the slab strike, almost perpendicular to the spreading fabric, and parallel to the convergence direction. Re-orientation of the extensional stress direction due to right-lateral shear at this highly oblique plate boundary is the best explanation of this apparently anomalous observation.     

Tectonics of an incipient oceanic rift

The results of 26 dives with the diving saucer Cyana in the Gulf of Tadjoura and Ghoubbet al Kharab (Republic of Djibouti) are presented. One can demonstrate that the sites of recent volcanism, tectonics and hydrothermal activity within the axial part of the Gulf of Tadjoura coincide with topographic highs trending at a high angle (azimuth 135°) with respect to the average trend of the axial trough of the Gulf (azimuth 080°). The highs owe their relief to both volcanism and normal faulting along a trend of 130–140°. Recent faulting on the bounding walls of the axial trough is also found along a trend of 130–140° where the faults interfere with another set of apparently older faults trending 070° parallel to the axial trough. Spacing between the active zones of the Gulf is regular and about 30 km. No evidence for transform faulting has been found, in contradiction to all previous kinematic models of the Gulf of Tadjoura. There is evidence that the presently active phase of opening associated with 130–140° faults is less than 0.7 my old and that there was an older phase associated with 070°–080° faults creating the main trough of the Gulf. The basaltic lavas created during the two phases have evolved from transitional to tholeiitic.     

Morphology and structure of the Camarinal Sill from high-resolution bathymetry: evidence of fault zones in the Gibraltar Strait

The Gibraltar Strait is the very narrow neck which connects the Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea. The causes and mode of its opening at the end of the Messinian Salinity Crisis are still a matter of debate, and models based on eustatic rise and/or topographic lowering due to either erosion or faulting are generally evoked. We investigated the presence of faults based on a morphological and structural analysis of the Camarinal Sill, the shallowest passage in the Gibraltar Strait (<100 m water depth in places). This sill connects the Spanish and Moroccan shelves, and probably represents a structural high inherited from the Miocene compressive tectonics which took place in the external zones of the Betic-Rif orogenic arc. Our high-resolution bathymetric data enabled us to identify and interpret the origin of major morphological features in the area, including canyons, channels and a landslide, which we name the Tarifa landslide. Topographic arguments suggest that the Camarinal Sill is crossed by two main E-W- to ENE-WSW-directed fault zones which bound areas with different distribution, orientation and slopes of both scarps and crests. We name these the Hercules and Tarik fault zones, north and south of the sill respectively. The Hercules fault zone probably incorporates a normal movement component, whereas kinematic indicators are poor along the Tarik fault zone. The age of faulting is poorly constrained in both cases. Together with existing evidence of faults onland, the presence of these fault zones implies that they could be responsible for, or have contributed to, the opening of the Gibraltar Strait.     

Slumping and shallow faulting related to the presence of salt on the Continental Slope and Rise off North Carolina

Seismic reflection profiles and long- and medium-range sidescan sonar were used to investigate a salt diapir complex and area of slope instability near the base of the Continental Slope off North Carolina. Within the area of investigation three diapirs are bounded on their upslope side by a scarp 60 m high and 50 km long. The slope above the scarp is characterized by a series of shallow rotational normal faults. The bottom below the scarp is furrowed by slide tracks, which were probably carved by large blocks that broke off the scarp face and slid downslope leaving rubble and scree lobes.Extensive slumping in this area appears to be a result of uplift and faulting associated with salt intrusion, which has fractured and oversteepened the slope leading to instability and failure. Sharply defined slide tracks suggest that slope failure above the breached diapir complex is a continuing process, in contrast to much of the surrounding slope area where few instability features were observed.     

华北板块东部新生代断裂构造特征与盆地成因

华北板块东部新生代的构造特征及动力学演化主要受左行郯庐断裂带和右行兰考-聊城-台安-大洼-法哈牛断裂带的控制。这两条断裂都是新生代岩石圈断裂。在兰考-聊城-台安-大洼-法哈牛断裂带以西,新生代伸展盆地为NNE走向的铲形正断层控制的箕状断陷;两断裂之间为北断南超的NWW走向的断陷盆地;郯庐断裂以东的北黄海盆地为南断北超的Nww走向的断陷盆地。这些构造特征继承了该区中生代的构造格局,但其构造性质发生了根本变化,在这两条走滑方向相反的断裂带控制下,这两条断裂带内古近纪以张扭作用下的裂陷为主,随后以伸展断陷为主,第四纪沿两断裂带局部发生挤压,而鲁西地块和渤海湾盆地区仍然为伸展正断。渤海湾盆地及邻区这些新生代复杂的断块或断裂构造格局受控于应力-应变-基底格局3个基本要素。     

东海陆架盆地北部新构造运动特征

根据最新单道地震剖面及解释成果,分析了东海陆架盆地北部新构造运动特征。研究表明:研究区新构造期差异升降运动明显,从中新世到第四纪,沉降中心自西向东迁移;研究区活动断裂以NE—NNE和近EW向为主,新构造期的活动性自西向东逐渐变新;研究区新构造期岩浆活动频繁,多沿断裂分布,大致可划分为3期,平面上自西向东逐渐变新,且侵入活动逐渐减弱,喷发活动逐渐增强。     

Styles of compressional neotectonics in the eastern Alboran Sea

The preliminary interpretation of new high-resolution seismic reflection profiles from the eastern Alboran Sea indicates strong geological similarities between this region and southeastern Spain. The principal neotectonic elements, which result from roughly north-south compression, are defined by northeast-southwest oriented wrenches separated by intervening north-south and west-northwest-east-southeast strike-slip faults. Variations in direction of principal stress axes have permitted faulting to alternate between these two systems, and for reverse faulting to occur within some wrench zones during periods when there was a component of compression perpendicular to them.     

Structural patterns of the Lake Erçek Basin,eastern Anatolia (Turkey): evidence from single-channel seismic interpretation

This study presents an analysis of the single-channel high-resolution shallow seismic reflection data from Lake Erçek, eastern Anatolia, to provide key information on the deformational elements, on the fault patterns and on the overall tectonic structure of the Lake Erçek Basin. High-resolution seismic data reveal major structural and deformational features, including N–S trending normal faults and W–E trending reverse faults bounding the Lake Erçek Basin, basement highs and folded structures along the marginal sections of the lake. The N–S trending normal faults asymmetrically control the steep western margin and the gentle eastern deltaic section, while the W–E trending reverse faults appear at the northern and southern margins. The N–S trending normal faults, half-graben structure, and the gradual thickening of sediments in the Erçek Basin toward the fault scarps strongly suggest an extensional tectonic regime resulting from an N–S compression. The Erçek Basin is an extension-controlled depocenter; it is a relatively undeformed and flat-lying deep Basin, forming a typical example of the half-graben structure. The N–S trending normal faults appear to be currently active and control the lake center and the E-delta section, resulting in subsidence in the lake floor. In the N- and S-margins of the lake, there is evidence of folding, faulting and accompanying block uplifting, suggesting a significant N–S compressional regime that results in the reverse faulting and basement highs along the marginal sections. The folding and faulting caused strong uplift of the basement blocks in the N- and S- margins, subsequently exposing the shelf and slope areas. The exposed areas are evident in the erosional unconformity of the surface of the basement highs and thinned sediments. The tilted basement strata and subsequent erosion over the basement block highs suggest prominent structural inversion, probably long before the formation of the lake. New high-resolution seismic data reveal the fault patterns and structural lineaments of the Lake Erçek and provide strong evidence for an ongoing extension and subsidence. The present study provides new structural insights that will support future tectonic and sedimentary studies and the development of strategies related to active earthquake faults and major seismic events in the region of Lake Erçek.     

Rifted margin architecture and crustal rheology: Reviewing Iberia-Newfoundland,Central South Atlantic,and South China Sea

Crustal rheology controls the style of rifting and ultimately the architecture of rifted margins. Here we review the formation of three magma-poor margin pairs, Iberia-Newfoundland, the central segment of the South Atlantic Rift, and the South China Sea by integrating observational data into a numerical forward modelling framework. We utilise a 2D version of the finite element code SLIM3D, which includes nonlinear temperature- and stress-dependent elasto-visco-plastic rheology and is able to reproduce a wide range of rift-related deformation processes such as flexure, lower crustal flow, and faulting.Extension in cold, strong, or thin crust is accommodated by brittle faults and ductile shear zones that facilitate narrow rifts with asymmetric fault geometries. Hot, weak, or thick continental crust is dominated by ductile deformation and often extends symmetrically into a wide rift system. This simple recipe provides the standard framework to understand initial rift geometry, however, it is insufficient to account for the dynamics of intermediate and late rift stages that shape the final margin architecture.Asymmetric conjugate margins where one side is wide and the other narrow can be formed via both wide and narrow rift styles, which we reproduce with weak and strong crustal rheologies, respectively. Exemplified by the Iberia-Newfoundland conjugates and the Central South Atlantic, we define three characteristic rift phases: an initial phase of simultaneous faulting, an intermediate phase of rift migration that involves sequential fault activity, and finally, the breakup phase. Crustal rheology plays an overarching role in governing the dynamics of these asymmetric margins: we illustrate that weak rheologies generally prolong the phase of simultaneous faulting, while rift migration is enabled by initial fault asymmetry as well as relatively weak crust.Formation of the predominantly symmetric and wide margins of the South China Sea was controlled by extraordinarily weak crust that extended the phase of simultaneous faulting until breakup. The weak crustal rheology of this region relates to the South China Sea's pre-rift history where plate convergence lead to crustal thickening and magmatic additions in a back-arc regime shortly before the onset of rifting.     

汤加、日本、伊豆-小笠原与马里亚纳海沟俯冲板块正断层模拟：对俯冲板块弱化的影响

通过对比实际观测与弹塑性变形模型,研究了沿着汤加、日本、伊豆-小笠原、马里亚纳海沟的板块挠曲与正断层特征。观测表明,平均海沟挠曲量在日本海沟最小（3公里）,马里亚纳海沟最大（4.9公里）,而平均正断层垂直断距在日本海沟最小（113米）,汤加海沟最大（284米）。模拟了俯冲板块在三种构造加载的作用下发生弯曲变形并产生正断层的过程：垂向加载（V₀）、弯矩（M₀）和水平拉张力（F₀）。在板块挠曲与正断层特征的双重约束下,反演得到了四个海沟的最佳模型解。结果显示,日本海沟的水平张力分别比马里亚纳、汤加和伊豆-小笠原海沟小33%、50%和60%。汤加、日本、伊豆-小笠原、马里亚纳海沟的正断层最深可达海底以下29,23,32和32公里,这与重新定位后的日本与伊豆-小笠原地震深度一致。此外,反演得到的水平张拉力与观测到的平均垂直断距呈一定正相关性,而计算得到的有效弹性厚度减少量与观测到的海沟挠曲量也相关。这些结果表明,水平张拉力在正断层发展过程中起着关键控制作用,板块弱化可导致板块挠曲量的显著增加。     

Deformation mechanisms in a continental rift up to mantle exhumation. Field evidence from the western Betics,Spain

The identification of the structures and deformation patterns in magma-poor continental rifted margins is essential to characterize the processes of continental lithosphere necking. Brittle faults, often termed mantle detachments, are believed to play an essential role in the rifting processes that lead to mantle exhumation. However, ductile shear zones in the deep crust and mantle are rarely identified and their mechanical role remains to be established. The western Betics (Southern Spain) provide an exceptional exposure of a strongly thinned continental lithosphere, formed in a supra-subduction setting during Oligocene-Lower Miocene. A full section of the entire crust and the upper part of the mantle is investigated. Variations in crustal thickness are used to quantify crustal stretching that may reach values larger than 2000% where the ductile crust almost disappears, defining a stage of hyper-stretching. Opposite senses of shear top-to-W and top-to-E are observed in two extensional shear zones located close to the crust-mantle boundary and along the brittle-ductile transition in the crust, respectively. Where the ductile crust almost disappears, concordant top-to-E-NE senses of shear are observed in both upper crust and serpentinized mantle. Late high-angle normal faults with ages of ca. 21 Ma or older (⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar on white mica) crosscut the previously hyper-stretched domain, involving both crust and mantle in tilted blocks. The western Betics exemplify, probably better than any previous field example, the changes in deformation processes that accommodate the progressive necking of a continental lithosphere. Three successive steps can be identified: i/a mid-crustal shear zone and a crust-mantle shear zone, acting synchronously but with opposite senses of shear, accommodate ductile crust thinning and ascent of subcontinental mantle; ii/hyper-stretching localizes in the neck, leading to an almost disappearance of the ductile crust and bringing the upper crust in contact with the subcontinental mantle, each of them with their already acquired opposite senses of shear; and iii/high-angle normal faulting, cutting through the Moho, with related block tilting, ends the full exhumation of the mantle in the zone of localized stretching. The presence of a high strength sub-Moho mantle is responsible for the change in sense of shear with depth. Whereas mantle exhumation in the western Betics occurred in a backarc setting, this deformation pattern controlled by a high-strength layer at the top of the lithosphere mantle makes it directly comparable to most passive margins whose formation lead to mantle exhumation. This unique field analogue has therefore a strong potential for the seismic interpretation of the so-called “hyper-extended margins”.     

Tectonic effects of a subducting aseismic ridge: The subduction of the Nazca Ridge at the Peru Trench

A 1987 survey of the offshore Peru forearc using the SeaMARC II seafloor mapping system reveals that subduction of the Nazca Ridge has resulted in uplift of the lowermost forearc by as much as 1500 m. This uplift is seen in the varied depths of two forearc terraces opposite the subducting ridge. Uplift of the forearc has caused fracturing, minor surficial slumping, and increased erosion through small canyons and gullies. Oblique trending linear features on the forearc may be faults with a strike-slip component of motion caused by the oblique subduction of the Nazca Ridge. The trench in the zone of ridge subduction is nearly linear, with no re-entrant in the forearc due to subduction of the Nazca Ridge. Compressional deformation of the forearc due to subduction of the ridge is relatively minor, suggesting that the gently sloping Nazca Ridge is able to slide beneath the forearc without significantly deforming it. The structure of the forearc is similar to that revealed by other SeaMARC II surveys to the north, consisting of: 1) a narrow zone (10 to 15 km across) of accreted material making up the lower forearc; 2) a chaotic middle forearc; 3) outcropping consolidated material and draping sediment on the upper forearc; and 4) the smooth, sedimented forearc shelf.The subducting Nazca plate and the Nazca Ridge are fractured by subduction-induced faults with offsets of up to 500 m. Normal faulting is dominant and begins about 50 km from the trench axis, increasing in frequency and offset toward the trench. These faults are predominantly trench-parallel. Reverse faults become more common in the deepest portion of the trench and often form at slight angles to the trench axis.Intrusive and extrusive volcanic areas on the Nazca plate appear to have formed well after the seafloor was created at the ridge crest. Many of the areas show evidence of current scour and are cut by faulting, however, indicating that they formed before the seafloor entered the zone of subduction-induced faulting.     

Large-scale in situ rotational failure on a low-angle delta slope: The Foreslope Hills,Fraser Delta,British Columbia,Canada

The Foreslope Hills are a series of ridges and troughs covering over 60 km² of the sea floor at the base of the Fraser Delta slope. Internally, the hills consist of blocks of prodelta and delta slope sediment (> 10.6 km³) bounded by offshore dipping faults and shear planes. Stratification within each block generally dips landward, indicating rotational failure. The amount of downslope translation of delta slope sediments was relatively minor. Deformation is restricted to a deep structural trough, suggesting failure resulted from yielding of soft underlying (early Holocene) prodelta sediments in the trough.