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The combined passive and active seismic TRANSALP experiment produced an unprecedented high-resolution crustal image of the Eastern Alps between Munich and Venice. The European and Adriatic Mohos (EM and AM, respectively) are clearly imaged with different seismic techniques: near-vertical incidence reflections and receiver functions (RFs). The European Moho dips gently southward from 35 km beneath the northern foreland to a maximum depth of 55 km beneath the central part of the Eastern Alps, whereas the Adriatic Moho is imaged primarily by receiver functions at a relatively constant depth of about 40 km. In both data sets, we have also detected first-order Alpine shear zones, such as the Helvetic detachment, Inntal fault and SubTauern ramp in the north. Apart from the Valsugana thrust, receiver functions in the southern part of the Eastern Alps have also observed a north dipping interface, which may penetrate the entire Adriatic crust [Adriatic Crust Interface (ACI)]. Deep crustal seismicity may be related to the ACI. We interpret the ACI as the currently active retroshear zone in the doubly vergent Alpine collisional belt. (C) 2004 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved
This study presents results of ambient noise measurements from temporary single station and small-scale array deployments in the northeast of Basle. H/V spectral ratios were determined along various profiles crossing the eastern masterfault of the Rhine Rift Valley and the adjacent sedimentary rift fills. The fundamental H/V peak frequencies are decreasing along the profile towards the eastern direction being consistent with the dip of the tertiary sediments within the rift. Using existing empirical relationships between H/V frequency peaks and the depth of the dominant seismic contrast, derived on basis of the lambda/4-resonance hypothesis and a power law depth dependence of the S-wave velocity, we obtain thicknesses of the rift fill from about 155 m in the west to 280 in in the east. This is in agreement with previous studies. The array analysis of the ambient noise wavefield yielded a stable dispersion relation consistent with Rayleigh wave propagation velocities. We conclude that a significant amount of surface waves is contained in the observed wavefield. The computed ellipticity for fundamental mode Rayleigh waves for the velocity depth models used for the estimation of the sediment thicknesses is in agreement with the observed H/V spectra over a large frequency band
Anisotropic material properties are usually neglected during inversions for source parameters of earthquakes. In general anisotropic media, however, moment tensors for pure-shear sources can exhibit significant non-double-couple components. Such effects may be erroneously interpreted as an indication for volumetric changes at the source. Here we investigate effects of anisotropy on seismic moment tensors and radiation patterns for pure-shear and tensile-type sources. Anisotropy can significantly influence the interpretation of the source mechanisms. For example, the orientation of the slip within the fault plane may affect the total seismic moment. Also, moment tensors due to pure- shear and tensile faulting can have similar characteristics depending on the orientation of the elastic tensor. Furthermore, the tensile nature of an earthquake can be obscured by near-source anisotropic properties. As an application, we consider effects of inhomogeneous anisotropic properties on the seismic moment tensor and the radiation patterns of a selected type of micro-earthquakes observed in W-Bohemia. The combined effects of near-source and along- path anisotropy cause characteristic amplitude distortions of the P, S1 and S2 waves. However, the modeling suggests that neither homogeneous nor inhomogeneous anisotropic properties alone can explain the observed large non-double-couple components. The results also indicate that a correct analysis of the source mechanism, in principle, is achievable by application of anisotropic moment tensor inversion
Along the Southern Himalayan Front (SHF), areas with concentrated precipitation coincide with rapid exhumation, as indicated by young mineral cooling ages. Twenty new, young ( < 1-5 Ma) apatite fission track (AFT) ages have been obtained from the Himalayan Crystalline Core along the Sutlej Valley, NW India. The AFT ages correlate with elevation, but show no spatial relationship to tectonic structures, such as the Main Central Thrust or the Southern Tibetan Fault System. Monsoonal precipitation in this region exerts a strong influence on erosional surface processes. Fluvial erosional unloading along the SHF is focused on high mountainous areas, where the orographic barrier forces out > 80% of the annual precipitation. AFT cooling ages reveal a coincidence between rapid erosion and exhumation that is focused in a similar to 50-70-km-wide sector of the Himalaya, rather than encompassing the entire orogen. Assuming simplified constant exhumation rates, the rocks of two age vs. elevation transects were exhumed at similar to 1.4 +/- 0.2 and similar to 1.1 +/- 0.4 mm/a with an average cooling rate of similar to 40-50degreesC/Ma during Pliocene-Quarternary time. Following other recently published hypotheses regarding the relation between tectonics and climate in the Himalaya, we suggest that this concentrated loss of material was accommodated by motion along a back-stepping thrust to the south and a normal fault zone to the north as part of an extruding wedge. Climatically controlled erosional processes focus on this wedge and suggest that climatically controlled surface processes determine tectonic deformation in the internal part of the Himalaya. (C) 2004 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved
The displacement histories of the San Jacinto and southernmost San Andreas fault zones are constrained by offset data with ages in the range of 5 Ma to 5 ka. Apparent discrepancies between long- and short-term average displacement rates can be reconciled with a time-variable rate model. In this model, the displacement rate on the San Andreas decelerated from similar to35 mm/yr at 1.5 Ma to as low as 9 +/- 4 mm/yr by 90 ka. Over this same time period, the rate on the San Jacinto fault zone accelerated from an initial value of zero to a rate of 26 +/- 4 mm/yr. The data also imply that the rate of the San Andreas fault accelerated since ca. 90 ka, from similar to9 mm/yr to the modern rate of 27 +/- 4 mm/yr, whereas the San Jacinto decelerated from 26 +/- 4 mm/yr to the modern rate of 8 +/- 4 mm/yr. The time scale of these changes is significantly longer than the earthquake cycle, but shorter than time scales characteristic of lithospheric-scalle dynamics. The emergence of the San Jacinto fault zone ca. 1.5 Ma coincided with the development of a major restraining bend in the San Andreas fault zone, suggesting that the formation of new subparallell faults could be driven by conditions that inhibit displacement on preexisting faults
Three diatomite beds exposed in the Ol Njorowa Gorge south of Lake Naivasha, Central Kenya Rift, document three major lake-level highstands between 175 and 60 kyr BP. Diatom transfer-function estimates of hydrological and hydrochemical parameters suggest that a deep and large freshwater lake existed during the highstands at 135 and 80 kyr BP. In contrast, a shallower but more expanded freshwater lake existed at 110 kyr BP. The best analog for the most extreme highstand at 135 kyr BP is the highstand during the Early Holocene humid period from 10 to 6 kyr BP. The environmental conditions as reconstructed from diatom assemblages suggest long-lasting episodes of increased humidity during the high lake periods. This contrasts to the modern situation with a relatively shallow Lake Naivasha characterized by rapid water level fluctuations within a few decades. The most likely cause for the variable hydrological conditions since 175 kyr BP is orbitally driven insolation changes on the equator and increased lateral moisture transport from the ocean.
In this paper we present densely sampled fumarole temperature data, recorded continuously at a high-temperature fumarole of Mt. Merapi volcano (Indonesia). These temperature time series are correlated with continuous records of rainfall and seismic waveform data collected at the Indonesian - German multi-parameter monitoring network. The correlation analysis of fumarole temperature and precipitation data shows a clear influence of tropical rain events on fumarole temperature. In addition, there is some evidence that rainfall may influence seismicity rates, indicating interaction of meteoric water with the volcanic system. Knowledge about such interactions is important, as lava dome instabilities caused by heavy-precipitation events may result in pyroclastic flows. Apart from the strong external influences on fumarole temperature and seismicity rate, which may conceal smaller signals caused by volcanic degassing processes, the analysis of fumarole temperature and seismic data indicates a statistically significant correlation between a certain type of seismic activity and an increase in fumarole temperature. This certain type of seismic activity consists of a seismic cluster of several high-frequency transients and an ultra-long-period signal (< 0.002 Hz), which are best observed using a broadband seismometer deployed at a distance of 600 m from the active lava dome. The corresponding change in fumarole temperature starts a few minutes after the ultra-long-period signal and simultaneously with the high-frequency seismic cluster. The change in fumarole temperature, an increase of 5 degreesC on average, resembles a smoothed step. Fifty-four occurrences of simultaneous high-frequency seismic cluster, ultra-long period signal and increase of fumarole temperature have been identified in the data set from August 2000 to January 2001. The observed signals appear to correspond to degassing processes in the summit region of Mt. Merapi. (C) 2004 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved
The recent discovery of HP-LT parageneses in the basal unit of the Lycian nappes and in the Mesozoic cover of the Menderes massif leads us to reconsider and discuss the correlation of this region with the nearby collapsed Hellenides in the Aegean domain. Although similarities have long been pointed Out by various authors, a clear correlation has not yet been proposed and most authors insist more on differences than similarities. The Menderes massif is the eastern extension of the Aegean region but it has been less severely affected by the Aegean extension during the Oligo-Miocene. It would thus be useful to use the structure of the Menderes massif as an image of the Aegean region before a significant extension has considerably reduced its crustal thickness. But the lack of correlation between the two regions has so far hampered Such comparisons. We describe the main tectonic units and metamorphic events in the two regions and propose a correlation. We then show possible sections of the two regions before the Aegean extension and discuss the involvement of continental basement in the Hellenic accretionary complex. In our interpretation the Hellenic- Tauric accretionary complex was composed of stacked basement and cover units which underwent variable P-T histories. Those which were not exhumed early enough later followed a high-T evolution which led to partial melting in the Cyclades during post-orogenic extension. Although the Menderes massif contains a larger volume of basement units it does not show significant evidence for the Oligo-Miocene migmatites observed in the center of the Cyclades suggesting that crustal partial melting is strictly related to post-orogenic extension in this case
delta(18)O(benthic), values from Leg 194 Ocean Drilling Program Sites 1192 and 1195, (drilled on the Marion Plateau) were combined with deep-sea values to reconstruct the magnitude range of the late middle Miocene sea-level fall (13.6-11.4 Ma). In parallel, an estimate for the late middle Miocene sea-level fall was calculated from the stratigraphic relationship identified during Leg 194 and the structural relief of carbonate platforms that form the Marion Plateau. Corrections for thermal subsidence induced by Late Cretaceous rifting, flexural sediment loading, and sediment compaction were taken into account. The response of the lithosphere to sediment loading was considered for a range of effective elastic thicknesses (10 < T-e < 40 km). By overlapping the sea-level range of both the deep-sea isotopes and the results from the backstripping analysis, we demonstrate that the amplitude of the late middle Miocene sea-level fall was 45-68 m (56.5 +/- 11.5 m). Including an estimate for sea-level variation using the delta(18)O(benthic) results from the subtropical Marion Plateau, the range of sea-level fall is tightly constrained between 45 and 55 in (50.0 +/- 5.0 m). This result is the first precise quantitative estimate for the amplitude of the late middle Miocene eustatic fall that sidesteps the errors inherent in using benthic foraminifera assemblages to predict paleo-water depth. The estimate also includes an error analysis for the flexural response of the lithosphere to both water and sediment loads. Our result implies that the extent of ice buildup in the Miocene was larger than previously estimated, and conversely that the amount of cooling associated with this event was less important
Fe K-edge X-ray absorption near edge structure (XANES) and Mossbauer spectra were collected on synthetic glasses of basaltic composition and of glasses on the sodium oxide-silica binary to establish a relation between the pre- edge of the XANES at the K-edge and the Fe oxidation state of depolymerised glasses. Charges of sample material were equilibrated at ambient pressure, superliquidus temperatures and oxygen fugacities that were varied over a range of about 15 orders of magnitude. Most experiments were carried out in gas-flow furnaces, either with pure oxygen, air, or different CO/CO2 mixtures. For the most reduced conditions, the samples charges were enclosed together with a pellet of the IQF oxygen buffer in an evacuated silica glass ampoule. Fe3+/SigmaFe x 100 of the samples determined by Mossbauer spectroscopy range between 0% and 100%. Position and intensity of the pre-edge centroid position vary strongly depending on the Fe oxidation state. The pre-edge centroid position and the Fe oxidation state determined by Mossbauer spectroscopy are nonlinearly related and have been fitted by a quadratic polynomial. Alternatively, the ratio of intensities measured at positions sensitive to Fe2+ and Fe3+, respectively, provides an even more sensitive method. Pre- edge intensities of the sample suite indicate average Fe co-ordination between 4 and 6 for all samples regardless of oxidation state. A potential application of the calibration given here opens the possibility of determining Fe oxidation state in glasses of similar compositions with high spatial resolution by use of a Micro-XANES setup (e.g., glass inclusions in natural minerals). (C) 2004 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved
We remelted and analyzed crystallized silicate melt inclusions in quartz from a porphyritic albitezinnwaldite microgranite dike to determine the composition of highly evolved, shallowly intruded, Li- and F-rich granitic magma and to investigate the role of crystal fractionation and aqueous fluid exsolution in causing the extreme extent of magma differentiation. This dike is intimately associated with tin- and tungsten-mineralized granites of Zinnwald, Erzgebirge, Germany. Prior research on Zinnwald granite geochemistry was limited by the effects of strong and pervasive greisenization and alkali-feldspar metasomatism of the rocks. These melt inclusions, however, provide important new constraints on magmatic and mineralizing processes in Zinnwald magmas. The mildly peraluminous granitic melt inclusions are strongly depleted in CAFEMIC constituents (e.g., CaO, FeO, MgO, TiO2), highly enriched in lithophile trace elements, and highly but variably enriched in F and Cl. The melt inclusions contain up to several thousand ppm Cl and nearly 3 wt% F, on average; several inclusions contain more than 5 wt% F. The melt inclusions are geochemically similar to the corresponding whole-rock sample, except that the former contain much more F and less CaO, FeO, Zr, Nb, Sr, and Ba. The Sr and Ba abundances are very low implying the melt inclusions represent magma that was more evolved than that represented by the bulk rock. Relationships involving melt constituents reflect increasing lithophile-element and halogen abundances in residual melt with progressive magma differentiation. Modeling demonstrates that differentiation was dominated by crystal fractionation involving quartz and feldspar and significant quantities of topaz and F-rich zinnwaldite. The computed abundances of the latter phases greatly exceed their abundances in the rocks, suggesting that the residual melt was separated physically from phenocrysts during magma movement and evolution. Interactions of aqueous fluids with silicate melt were also critical to magma evolution. To better understand the role of halogen-charged, aqueous fluids in magmatic differentiation and in subsequent mineralization and metasomatism of the Zinnwald granites, Cl-partitioning experiments were conducted with a F-enriched silicate melt and aqueous fluids at 2,000 bar (200 MPa). The results of the experimentally determined partition coefficients for Cl and F, the compositions of fluid inclusions in quartz and other phenocrysts, and associated geochemical modeling point to an important role of magmatic-hydrothermal fluids in influencing magma geochemistry and evolution. The exsolution of halogen-charged fluids from the Li- and F- enriched Zinnwald granitic magma modified the Cl, alkali, and F contents of the residual melt, and may have also sequestered Li, Sri, and W from the melt. Many of these fluids contained strongly elevated F concentrations that were equivalent to or greater than their Cl abundances. The exsolution of F-, Cl-, Li-, +/- W- and Sn-bearing hydrothermal fluids from Zinnwald granite magmas was important in effecting the greisenizing and alkali-feldspathizing metasomatism of the granites and the concomitant mineralization
Geologic context of geodetic data across a Basin and Range normal fault, Crescent Valley, Nevada
(2004)
[1] Geodetic strain and late Quaternary faulting in the Basin and Range province is distributed over a region much wider than historic seismicity, which is localized near the margins of the province. In the relatively aseismic interior, both the magnitude and direction of geodetic strain may be inconsistent with the Holocene faulting record. We document the best example of such a disagreement across the NE striking, similar to55degrees NW dipping Crescent normal fault, where a NW oriented, 70 km geodetic baseline records contemporary shortening of similar to2 mm/yr orthogonal to the fault trace. In contrast, our geomorphic, paleoseismic, and geochronologic analyses of the Crescent fault suggest that a large extensional rupture occurred during the late Holocene epoch. An excavation across the fault at Fourmile Canyon reveals that the most recent event occurred at 2.8 +/- 0.1 ka, with net vertical tectonic displacement of 4.6 +/- 0.4 m at this location, corresponding to the release of similar to3 m of accumulated NW-SE extension. Measured alluvial scarp profiles suggest a minimum rupture length of 30 km along the range front for the event, implying a moment magnitude M-w of at least 6.6. No prior event occurred between similar to2.8 ka and similar to6.4 +/- 0.1 ka, the C-14 calender age of strata near the base of the exposed section. Assuming typical slip rates for Basin and Range faults (similar to0.3 mm/yr), these results imply that up to one third, or similar to1 m, of the extensional strain released in the previous earthquake could have reaccumulated across the fault since similar to2.8 ka. However, the contemporary shortening implies that the fault is unloading due to a transient process, whose duration is limited to between 6 years ( geodetic recording time) and 2.8 ka ( the age of the most recent event). These results emphasize the importance of providing accurate geologic data on the timescale of the earthquake cycle in order to evaluate geodetic measurements
Field observations, digital elevation model (DEM) data, and longitudinal profile analysis reveal a perched low- relief upland landscape in the Red River region, Yunnan Province, China, which correlates to an uplifted, regional low- relief landscape preserved over the eastern margin of the Tibetan Plateau. As with other major rivers of the plateau margin, the Red River has deeply incised the low-relief upland landscape, which we interpret to be the remnants of a pre- uplift or relict landscape. We examine longitudinal river profiles for 97 tributaries of the Red River. Most profiles consist of three segments separated by sharp knickpoints: an upper, low-gradient channel segment, a steeper middle channel segment, and a very steep lower channel segment. Upper channel segments correspond to the relict landscape and have not yet experienced river incision. Steeper middle and lower segments indicate onset of rapid, two-phase river incision, on the basis of which changes in external forcings, such as climate or uplift, can be inferred. In terms of two end-member scenarios, two-phase incision could be the result of pulsed plateau growth, in which relatively slow uplift during the first phase is followed by rapid uplift during the second phase, or it could reflect adjustments of the main channel to changing climate conditions against the backdrop of steady plateau growth. Reconstruction of the paleo-Red River indicates 1400 m river incision, 1400-1500 m surface uplift, and a maximum of 750 m vertical displacement across the northern Red River fault, elevating the northern Ailao Shan range above the surrounding relict landscape. On the basis of stratigraphic constraints, incision along the Red River likely began in Pliocene time
[1] The development of topography within and erosional removal of material from an orogen exerts a primary control on its structure. We develop a model that describes the temporal development of a frontally accreting, critically growing Coulomb wedge whose topography is largely limited by bedrock fluvial incision. We present general results for arbitrary initial critical wedge geometries and investigate the temporal development of a critical wedge with no initial topography. Increasing rock erodibility and/or precipitation, decreasing mass flux accreting to the wedge front, increasing wedge sole-out depth, decreasing wedge and basal decollement overpressure, and increasing basal decollement friction lead to narrow wedges. Large power law exponent values cause the wedge geometry to quickly reach a condition in which all material accreted to the front of the wedge is removed by erosion. We apply our model to the Aconcagua fold-and-thrust belt in the central Andes of Argentina where wedge development over time is well constrained. We solve for the erosional coefficient K that is required to recreate the field-constrained wedge growth history, and these values are within the range of independently determined values in analogous rock types. Using qualitative observations of rock erodibilities within the wedge, we speculate that power law exponents of 1/3 less than or equal to m less than or equal to 0.4 and 2/3 less than or equal to n less than or equal to 1 characterize the erosional growth of the Aconcagua fold-and-thrust belt. This general model may be used to understand the development of mountain belts where orogenic wedges grow as they deform at their Coulomb failure limit
With controlled seismic sources and specifically designed receiver arrays, we image a subvertical boundary between two lithological blocks at the Arava Fault (AF) in the Middle East. The AF is the main strike-slip fault of the Dead Sea Transform (DST) in the segment between the Dead Sea and the Red Sea. Our imaging (migration) method is based on array beamforming and coherence analysis of P to P scattered seismic phases. We use a 1-D background velocity model and the direct P arrival as a reference phase. Careful resolution testing is necessary, because the target volume is irregularly sampled by rays. A spread function describing energy dispersion at localized point scatterers and synthetic calculations for large planar structures provides estimates of the resolution of the images. We resolve a 7 km long steeply dipping reflector offset roughly 1 km from the surface trace of the AF. The reflector can be imaged from about 1 km down to 4 km depth. Previous and ongoing studies in this region have shown a strong contrast across the fault: low seismic velocities and electrical resistivities to the west and high velocities and resistivities to the east of it. We therefore suggest that the imaged reflector marks the contrast between young sedimentary fill in the west and Precambrian rocks in the east. If correct, the boundary between the two blocks is offset about 1 km east of the current surface trace of the AF
A fault scaling law suggests that, over eight orders of magnitude, fault length L is linearly related to maximum displacement D. Individual faults may therefore retain a constant ratio of D/L as they grow. If erosion is minor compared with tectonic uplift, the length and along-strike relief of young mountain ranges should thus reflect fault growth. Topographic profiles along the crests of mountain ranges in the actively deforming foreland of north-east Tibet exhibit a characteristic shape with maximum height near their centre and decreasing elevation toward the tips. We interpret the along-strike relief of these ranges to reflect the slip distribution on high-angle reverse faults. A geometric model illustrates that the lateral propagation rate of such mountain ranges may be deciphered if their length- to-height ratio has remained constant. As an application of the model, we reconstruct the growth of the Heli Shan using a long-term uplift rate of similar to1.3 mm yr(-1) derived from Ne-21 and Be-10 exposure dating
K-Ar ages of 37 samples collected from the Bicol peninsula, the Luzon island, Philippines, were determined by the unspiked sensitivity method in order to constrain the timing of initiation of subduction along the Philippine Trench. The measured K-Ar ages range from 0 to 7 Ma with two old outliers of 27 and 43 Ma. Together with K-Ar ages previously reported on volcanics in Leyte and eastern Mindanao, subduction volcanism has likely propagated from north to south: similar to 6.6 Ma in Bicol and similar to 3.5 Ma in Leyte and its vicinity. The temporal and spatial distribution suggests that the subduction volcanism started earlier in the north than in the south. This is consistent with the southern propagation of subduction along the Philippine Trench from similar to 8 Ma. (C) 2003 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved