The structure and timing of lateral escape during the Scandian Orogeny: A combined strain and geochronological investigation in Finnmark, Arctic Norwegian Caledonides

Determining the timing, duration and mechanism of tectonic events within an orogenic cycle, such as ocean subduction, continent–continent collision or gravitational collapse, is challenging, especially in ancient orogenic belts. Variations in the tectonic transport direction, however, can be used as a guide to these stages of orogeny. While thrust sheets within the Caledonian allochthon in north Norway were emplaced broadly eastwards perpendicular to the trend of the orogen, many features indicate material transport in other orientations. One dominant feature of the Magerøy Nappe, sitting above and infolded with the Kalak Nappe Complex, is the development of a strong N–S lineation orthogonal to the main transport direction. Strain measurements, in part determined by a new method, are used, in the context of the regional structural data to identify the critical stage in orogeny when compressional forces are balanced by orogen-parallel lateral escape. Quantitative 3-D strain estimation in the Magerøy Nappe indicates prolate deformation with c. 50% horizontal shortening parallel to the thrusting direction (E–W) and c. 200% extension along the orogenic strike (N–S) with c. 30% vertical shortening. Temporal constraint on this fabric is provided by Ar–Ar isotopic analysis of undeformed white mica in cross-cutting granitic pegmatites. These data show that prolate deformation occurred before the white mica cooling age of 416 ± 4 Ma, while the previously determined depositional age of the Hellefjord Schist indicates that it occurred after 438 ± 4 Ma. A granitic pegmatite that intruded the Hellefjord Schist after an initial deformation phase but during or prior to a later deformation, has been dated at 431 ± 2 Ma by U–Pb zircon. A previous lower age constraint on this deformation of 428 ± 5 Ma is given by metamorphic zircon overgrowths on fractured grains. These results constrain the continental collision between Baltica and Laurentia in Finnmark to the interval c. 431–428 Ma. Placed in a regional context, these results indicate that lateral escape was orthogonal to the thrusting direction and occurred during the continent–continent collision stage in the Scandian Orogeny before gravitationally driven collapse.     

On the influence of the polarization and the shape of the strain loop on strain accumulation in sand under high-cyclic loading

This paper presents results of cyclic triaxial (CT) tests on sand with a simultaneous variation of the axial and the lateral stresses. Furthermore, a cyclic multidimensional simple shear (CMDSS) device and corresponding test results are discussed. For in-phase cycles with a constant strain amplitude it is demonstrated that the accumulation rate is independent of the polarization of the cycles in the strain space. Polarization changes lead to a temporary increase of the accumulation rate: they increase the effectiveness of compaction. For out-of-phase (e.g. elliptical) cycles the shape of the strain loop significantly influences the residual strain. A circular strain loop generates twice larger accumulation rates than a one-dimensional strain loop with identical span. The accumulation rate is not influenced by the circulation of the strain loop. It is shown that the direction of accumulation (so-called “cyclic flow rule”) is only moderately affected by the polarization and the shape of the cycles.     

Robust and exploratory analysis of active mesoscale tectonic zones in Japan utilizing the nationwide GPS array

A monitoring GPS array recently developed in Japan can yield nationwide maps of active inland tectonic zones (ATZs) on a mesoscale, approximately 70 to several hundred kilometers in lateral extent. But it has been difficult to characterize ATZs in Japan, as they are in fact operational on multiple scales and our efforts are often hindered by various irregularities in the data. The key to overcoming these problems would be to gain an insight into the available data before any precise kinematic modeling is performed with indefinite assumptions. In this study, horizontal velocity fields, deduced from the nationwide GPS array, were treated with a set of techniques in robust smoothing and exploratory data analysis that brought out exceptionally powerful mesoscale ATZs, and made them easier to characterize. The resolved ATZs were then retrospectively monitored to study their regional and temporal variations, using a set of approx. 840 observation stations, about 30 km apart, for a 4-year series of fixed observation time-intervals, 810 days each. The smoothing operation involved three steps: (1) imputation of the velocity fields for the purpose of anti-aliasing, (2) robust smoothing of the velocity fields with the median operative, and (3) visualization of deformation-rate distributions in several coordinate independent parameters, and post-filtering. The geometrical resolvability of mesoscale ATZs was confirmed by calibrating the smoothing scheme against synthetic tectonic boundary models before it was applied to the case study in Japan. ATZs in Japan, which are essentially visible as systematic deviations in the velocity fields on the International Terrestrial Reference Frame (ITRF) and as strain rate anomalies, were highlighted sharply along some known tectonic zones, chains of active volcanoes, and areas above low seismic velocity anomalies in the crust and upper mantle, all of which generally paralleled the offshore trench axes. The geometrical agreements among the mapped ATZs and the physical anomalies in the crust are presumably due to their common structural weakness on the mesoscale. In the four main islands of Japan, all but 30–40% of the strain rate anomalies persisted during the entire 6 years of the case study period, while the rest sporadically appeared or disappeared in a period from several months to a few years. The transient shifts in the deformation rates were remarkably synchronous with some nearby major tectonic episodes: large earthquakes and slow events. Differential plate coupling strengths along the subduction zones can also be inferred from the persistent pattern of rotational strain rate anomalies forming clockwise and counterclockwise pairs along the Pacific. Our empirical observations suggest that the first-order features of interseismic crustal deformations in Japan can be characterized as collateral processes behaving in response to fluctuations of the tectonic stresses on multiple scales, likely influenced by changes of plate coupling strengths on the contiguous subduction faults.     

Fault zone development and strain partitioning in an extensional strike-slip duplex: A case study from the Mesozoic Atacama fault system, Northern Chile

Upper crustal strike-slip duplexes provide an excellent opportunity to address the fundamental question of fault zone development and strain partitioning in an evolving system. Detailed field mapping of the Mesozoic Atacama fault system in the Coastal Cordillera of Northern Chile documents the progressive development of second- and third-order faults forming a duplex at a dilational jog between two overstepping master faults: the sinistral strike-slip, NNW-striking, Jorgillo and Bolfin faults. These are constituted by a meter-wide core of foliated S-C ultracataclasite and cataclasite, flanked by a damage zone of protocataclasite, splay faults and veins. Lateral separation of markers along master faults is on the order of a few kilometers. Second-order, NW-striking, oblique-slip subsidiary fault zones do not show foliated ultracataclasite; lateral sinistral separations are in the range of  10 to 200 m with a relatively minor normal dip-slip component. In turn, third-order, east–west striking normal faults exhibit centimetric displacement. Oblique-slip (sinistral–normal) fault zones located at the southern termination of the Bolfin fault form a well-developed imbricate fan structure. They exhibit a relatively simple architecture of extensional and extensional-shear fractures bound by low displacement shear fractures. Kinematic analysis of fault slip data from mesoscopic faults within the duplex area, document that the NW-striking and the EW-striking faults accommodate transtension and extension, respectively. Examination of master and subsidiary faults of the duplex indicates a strong correlation between total displacement and internal fault structure. Faults started from arrays of en echelon extensional/extensional-shear fractures that then coalesced into throughgoing strike-slip faults. Further displacement leads to the formation of discrete bands of cataclasite and ultracataclasite that take up a significant part of the total displacement. We interpret that the duplex formed by progressive linkage of horsetail-like structures at the southern tip of the Bolfin fault that joined splay faults coming from the Jorgillo and Coloso faults. The geometry and kinematics of faults is compared with that observed in analog models to gain an insight into the kinematic processes leading to complex strike-slip fault zones in the upper crust.     

An autochthonous geological model for the eastern Andes of Ecuador

We describe a traverse across the Cordillera Real and sub-Andean Zone of Ecuador, poorly known areas with very little detailed mapping and very little age control. The spine of the Cordillera comprises deeply eroded Triassic and Jurassic plutons, the roots of a major arc, emplaced into probable Palaeozoic pelites and metamorphosed volcanic rocks. The W flank comprises a Jurassic (?) submarine basaltic–andesitic volcanic sequence, which grades up into mixed Jurassic/Cretaceous volcanic and sedimentary rocks of the Inter-Andean Valley. The sub-Andean Zone, on the E flank of the Cordillera, comprises a newly recognized Cretaceous basin of cleaved mudrocks, quartz arenites and limestones. East of the syndepositional Cosanga Fault, the Cretaceous basin thins into a condensed sequence that is indistinguishable from the rocks of the adjacent hydrocarbon-bearing Oriente Basin. The principal penetrative deformation of the Cordillera Real was probably latest Cretaceous/Palaeocene. It telescoped the magmatic belts, but shortening was largely partitioned into the pelites between plutons. The plutons suffered inhomogenous deformation; some portions completely escaped tectonism. The pelites conserve two foliations. The earliest comprises slaty cleavage formed under low- or sub-greenschist conditions. The later is a strong schistosity defined by new mica growth. It largely transposed and obliterated the first. Both foliations may have developed during a single progressive deformation. We find inappropriate recent terrane models for the Cordillera Real and sub-Andean Zone of Ecuador. Instead we find remarkable similarities from one side of the Cordillera to the other, including a common structural history. In place of sutures, we find mostly intrusive contacts between major plutons and pelites. Triassic to Cretaceous events occurred on the autochthonous western edge of the Archaean Guyana Shield. The latest Cretaceous–Paleocene deformation is interpreted as the progressive collision of an oceanic terrane(s) with the South American continent. Young fault movements have subsequently juxtaposed different structural levels through the Cordillera Real orogen.     

Thin-sheet modelling of lithospheric deformation and surface mass transport

We study the effects of incorporating surface mass transport and the gravitational potential energy of both crust and lithospheric mantle to the viscous thin sheet approach. Recent 2D (cross-section) numerical models show that surface erosion and sediment transport can play a major role in shaping the large-scale deformation of the crust. In order to study these effects in 3D (planform view), we develop a numerical model in which both the dynamics of lithospheric deformation and surface processes are fully coupled. Deformation is calculated as a thin viscous layer with a vertically-averaged rheology and subjected to plane stresses. The coupled system of equations for momentum and energy conservation is solved numerically. This model accounts for the isostatic and potential-energy effects due to crustal and lithospheric thickness variations. The results show that the variations of gravitational potential energy due to the lateral changes of the lithosphere–asthenosphere boundary can modify the mode of deformation of the lithosphere. Surface processes, incorporated to the model via a diffusive transport equation, rather than just passively reacting to changes in topography, play an active role in controlling the lateral variations of the effective viscosity and hence of the deformation of the lithosphere.     

Structure of the rift basins in the central Gulf of California: Kinematic implications for oblique rifting

We use structural and seismostratigraphic interpretation of multichannel seismic reflection data to understand the structure and kinematic history of the central Gulf of California. Our analysis reveals that oblique strain in the central Gulf formed two tectono–sedimentary domains during distinct deformation stages. The eastern domain, offshore Sonora, is bounded by the East and West Pedro Nolasco faults that may constitute the southernmost segments of the Tiburón Fault System. Within this domain, the dip-slip Yaqui Fault controlled deposition of 3.9 km of sediments in the half-graben Yaqui Basin. The western domain, offshore Baja California, is bounded by the Guaymas Transform Fault, which controlled the accumulation of 1.45 km of sediments within a half-graben that formed the early Guaymas Basin. The tectono–sedimentary activity offshore Sonoran likely ranges from Late Miocene–Pliocene to Late Pliocene time, while activity in the Guaymas Basin commenced in Late Pliocene time. Extinction of the main faults offshore Sonora was nearly coeval to the initiation of the Guaymas Transform Fault. Our results suggest that oblique strain has been accommodated by strain partition since the onset of rifting in the central Gulf. The Guaymas Basin is now a nascent spreading center, but prior to this, it evolved as a half-graben controlled by the Guaymas Transform Fault; such drastic transition is not constrained, but likely occurred during the Pleistocene time and must be localized < 30 km north of the axial troughs. The faults within the central Gulf transpose the Miocene N–S oriented grabens of Basin and Range style preserved onshore in the conjugate rifted margins.     

城市生活垃圾卫生填埋场的综合勘查

城市生活垃圾卫生填埋场，必须进行水文地质工程地质环境地质综合勘查。长沙市的生活垃圾卫生填埋场勘查，采用了地形测量、水工环地质综合测绘、工程物探、工程钻探、压（注、抽）水试验、原位测试及室内试验等方法手段，提交的技术成果满足了设计、施工要求。     

行星尺度地磁异常的长期变化

为了综合反映地球表面行星尺度磁异常的展布面积、磁场极值以及磁场分布特征等多种因素及其与磁能的关系，本文用穿过各异常区的“无符号磁通量”为特征参数来表征磁异常区强度.用第八代国际参考地磁场模型(IGRF)，分析了1900年到2000年全球最大的5个磁异常区的长期变化，结果表明，在一百年中，南大西洋(SAT)、大洋洲(AUS)和非洲(AF)3个异常区的磁通量均增加了200MWb以上，欧亚异常(EA)磁通量增加幅度稍小(157MWb)，上述4个异常区磁通量增幅为30%-60%，而北美异常(NAM)的磁通量则减小了50MWb.各异常区面积虽有变化，但最大变化仅为%左右.对磁异常区的西向漂移研究表明，地球表面和核幔界面的西漂明显存在差异：地表磁场有持续而稳定的西向漂移，全球平均西漂速度为0.2°/a；但核幔界面磁场的西向漂移速度要小得多，最大不超过0.1°/a.形成这种差异的原因可能是组成地磁场的不同球谐分量有不同的漂移速度；地表磁场的西漂主要决定于占优势的低阶分量，而核幔界面的西漂则受到高阶分量的重大影响.本文指出，在把地表西漂值用作地核磁流体运动速度的典型值时必须十分谨慎.     

Do reduction spots predate finite strain? A magnetic diagnosis of Cambrian slates in North Wales

The purple Cambrian slates of North Wales contain green-colored, irregular patches drawn out along cleavage and the more familiar ellipsoidal reduction spots that are parallel to cleavage. Because parallelism of pre-strain ellipsoids could only be produced by extremely high strain, we reject the hypothesis that these are strain markers. Here, we use magnetic methods to resolve this argument. The magnetic analysis reveals that the magnetic fabric of purple slate differs from the green variety of the slate only in the oxidation state, and indicates that the reduction process postdates cleavage. This suggests that the shape of reduction spots reflects the anisotropy of diffusion during reduction, not finite strain and alignment of an initially ellipsoidal object in the slates.