Neotectonic regime on the passive continental margin of the northern South China Sea

Abstract

Between 1989 and 1994, more than 6600 km of reflection seismic profiles were obtained in the South China Sea off Hong Kong with the German research vessel Sonne during cruises SO-50B, SO-72A and SO-95. A seismo-stratigraphic interpretation of this data set leads to a new age assignment of the unconformity T 0 which we place within the Pleistocene. Both Neogene unconformities T 1 and T 0 are generated by uplift of the Dongsha Rise and truncation of their overlying strata. This uplift is caused by intrusion of magma into the upper crust. Our seismic profiles show plutons which have penetrated the sedimentary cover, whereby their original stratification in the contact zone is eliminated. These magmato–tectonic events may be correlated to the two main collision phases between Taiwan and the continental margin of East China 5–3 and 3–0 ma ago. The collisional events subsequent to the NNW to WNW drift of Taiwan transformed the compression into strike–slip movements along the continental margin of Southeastern China. The accompanying stress regime is transtensional, with subsidence of the cooling oceanic crust since the cessation of rifting and its consumption beneath the Manila Trench providing the extensional stress. The strike–slip movements remobilized many of the rift and drift faults providing pathways for magma ascent. The tectonic framework of the northern South China Sea is characterized by Miocene faults trending NE–SW. These faults are scarce but are distributed throughout the study area. Pliocene faults striking ENE–WSW to NE–SW are concentrated west of the Dongsha Islands and are mostly strike–slip in character. Recent faults are generally oriented NE–SW subparallel to the synrift faults. They result in part from local uplifts where they are normal in character, but strike–slip motion also occurs. Most of the faults involve the basement and represent reactivated zones of weakness of the rift and drift phases.