The Elbe Fault System in North Central Europe—a basement controlled zone of crustal weakness

Abstract

The Elbe Fault System (EFS) is a WNW-striking zone extending from the southeastern North Sea to southwestern Poland along the present southern margin of the North German Basin and the northern margin of the Sudetes Mountains. Although details are still under debate, geological and geophysical data reveal that upper crustal deformation along the Elbe Fault System has taken place repeatedly since Late Carboniferous times with changing kinematic activity in response to variation in the stress regime. In Late Carboniferous to early Permian times, the Elbe Fault System was part of a post-Variscan wrench fault system and acted as the southern boundary fault during the formation of the Permian Basins along the Trans-European Suture Zone (sensu [Geol. Mag. 134 (5) (1997) 585]). The Teisseyre–Tornquist Zone (TTZ) most probably provided the northern counterpart in a pull-apart scenario at that time. Further strain localisation took place during late Mesozoic transtension, when local shear within the Elbe Fault System caused subsidence and basin formation along and parallel to the fault system. The most intense deformation took place along the system during late Cretaceous–early Cenozoic time, when the Elbe Fault System responded to regional compression with up to 4 km of uplift and formation of internal flexural highs. Compressional deformation continued during early Cenozoic time and actually may be ongoing. The upper crust of the Elbe Fault System, which itself reacted in a more or less ductile fashion, is underlain by a lower crust characterised by low P-wave velocities, low densities and a weak rheology. Structural, seismic and gravimetric data as well as rheology models support the assumption that a weak, stress-sensitive zone in the lower crust is the reason for the high mobility of the area and repeated strain localisation along the Elbe Fault System.