Tectonic division of the pre-cenozoic basement of the South China Sea in earth monitoring

Abstract

The past five decades have witnessed satellite remote sensing become one of most efficient tools for surveying the Earth at local, regional, and global spatial scales. The nature of the basement tectonic unit is closely related to the origin and evolution of the basin. However, such research carried out in the South China Sea (SCS) is relatively limited. In this research, by analyzing the fault structure, gravity and magnetic anomaly characteristics of the SCS, the ophiolite belts, spreading edge zones and the regional deep faults are considered as the boundaries of the tectonic units, and the SCS area can be divided into seven basement tectonic units: Cathaysia massif, Indochina massif, the SCS basin, Philippine island arc belt, Nansha massif, Sunda massif and Sibu accretionary prism. These tectonic units have different tectonic sequences, sedimentary formations and metamorphic types, in addition, they affect the Cenozoic basins overlying them to form different structural types. The research results will help to further understand the pre-Cenozoic basement structure and the tectonic evolution history of the SCS.