East-dipping Reflections Research Articles

Present activity and seismogenic potential of a low-angle normal fault system (Città di Castello, Italy): Constraints from surface geology, seismic reflection data and seismicity

We present new constraints on an active low-angle normal fault system in the Città di Castello–Sansepolcro basin (CSB) of the northern Apennines of Italy. New field data from the geological survey of the Carta Geologica d' Italia (CARG project) define the surface geometry of the normal fault system and lead to an interpretation of the CROP 03 deep-crust seismic reflection profile (Castiglion Fiorentino–Urbania segment), with particular attention paid to the geometry of the Plio-Quaternary extensional structures. Surface and sub-surface geological data are integrated with instrumental and historical seismicity in order to define the seismotectonics of the area. Low-angle east-dipping reflectors are the seismic expression of the well-known Altotiberina Fault (AF), a regional extensional detachment on which both east- and west-dipping high-angle faults, bounding the CSB, sole out. The AF breakaway zone is located ∼ 10 km west of the CSB. Within the extensional allochthon, synthetic east-dipping planes prevail. Displacement along the AF is ∼ 4.5 km, which agrees with the cumulative offset due to its synthetic splays. The evolution of the CSB has mainly been controlled by the east-dipping fault system, at least since Early Pleistocene time; this system is still active and responsible for the seismicity of the area. A low level of seismic activity was recorded instrumentally within the CSB, but several damaging earthquakes have occurred in historical times. The instrumental seismicity and the intensity data points of the largest historical earthquakes (5 events with maximum MCS intensity of IX to IX–X) allow us to propose two main seismogenic structures: the Monte Santa Maria Tiberina (Mmax = 5.9) and Città di Castello (Mmax up to 6.5) normal faults. Both are synthetic splays of the AF detachment, dipping to the NE at moderate (45–50°) to low (25–30°) angles and cutting the upper crust up to the surface. This study suggests that low-angle normal faults (at least with dips of 25–30°) may be seismogenic.

Deep structure of the southeastern margin of the West African craton from seismic reflection data, offshore Ghana

Abstract Seismic reflection data, acquired as part of an oil exploration survey offshore Ghana, have been reprocessed to reveal the deep structure of the Proterozoic continental crust on the continental shelf, off West Africa. The seismic profiles presented are located across the Romanche transform margin, which transects the West African craton (WAC) margin where it is bounded by the Pan-African Dahomeyide orogen. The seismic data reveal highly reflective middle–lower crust of the WAC but a nearly transparent upper crust of c . 10 km thickness. Bundles of discontinuous reflections are located at the base of the unreflective upper crust and locally define the trough of a synformal structure interpreted as the keel of a Palaeoproterozoic (Birimian) greenstone belt exposed onshore. The deepest crust imaged is characterized by more continuous, subhorizontal reflections that are very similar to those observed in the lower crust of cratonic areas such as the Superior Province. Near the WAC margin the subhorizontal reflections are truncated by east-dipping reflections in the Pan-African domain, which are correlated with cratonward directed fold-and-thrust structures formed during the c . 600 Ma Pan-African orogeny. These seismic observations represent, to date, the first deep seismic reflection images of the West African craton margin and the continental lithosphere in the region.

Seismic evidence for Late Proterozoic orogenic structures below the Phanerozoic sedimentary cover in the Kattegat area, SW Scandinavia

Commercial seismic reflection profiles from SW Scandinavia image Sveconorwegian orogenic structures in the late Precambrian basement beneath the thin Phanerozoic cover. We interpret (1) pronounced west to WNW dipping reflections as Sveconorwegian localized ductile shear which overprint; (2) weaker east dipping reflections, interpreted as Gothian or early Sveconorwegian compressional structures. Folded and laminar seismic fabrics may represent F and C type crystalline thrust sheets emplaced during the Gothian and Sveconorwegian events. Some of the dipping reflections are observed to sole into (3) an interval of subhorizontal reflections at 2.5–4.5 s two‐way travel time, which we interpret as a “fossil” ductile to brittle transition that was unroofed during the Gothian Orogeny. (4) NW‐SE striking thrusts cutting the Sveconorwegian structures may indicate a shift in the late Sveconorwegian stress field. They may represent an early stage in the subsequent Phanerozoic basin evolution in the Danish area.

Contrasts in Tectonic style of the Central and Southern Appalachians, United States: Insights from seismic reflection data

Two reflection seismic transects, one across the central Appalachians in Virginia and the other across the southern Appalachians in Georgia, reveal a significant contrast in mid- and lower crustal reflectivity from east to west. Data from east of the Blue Ridge geologic province in Virginia and to the east of the Inner Piedmont in Georgia show a highly reflective crust extending from the near-surface to the Moho, including zones of east-dipping reflections, a sub-horizontal reflection signature at ∼7 seconds, and a west-dipping Moho. Reflection seismic data from west of the Blue Ridge in Virginia and Inner Piedmont farther south are characterized by reflector geometries related to deformation above a master decollement, leading to classic ‘thin-skinned’ tectonic structures in the overlying allochthon, and few if any apparent structures in the underlying basement. The location of the Iapetan rifted margin, the preexistence of favorably oriented structures to the east of this point, and sub-horizontal weak zones within the lower Paleozoic shelf strata have played critical roles in the distribution of seismic reflector geometry. Seismic reflection signatures seen in the southeastern United States are a result of multiple episodes of deformation from the early Paleozoic through the middle Mesozoic. Oblique stresses during late Paleozoic time produced transpression that manifested itself as predominantly strike-slip faulting to the east of the Blue Ridge/Inner Piedmont. Onlapping lower Paleozoic shelf strata responded to tectonic stresses through thin-skinned deformation above a master decollement during the late Paleozoic Alleghanian orogeny, aided in part by sub-horizontal zones of weakness in the strata. This partitioning of strain was supported via tectonic buttressing provided by Precambrian continental crust that was little deformed in the Taconic orogeny. During the Alleghanian orogeny, the variations in Valley and Ridge deformational style between the central and southern Appalachians were controlled by the original shape of the continental edge. Further deformation during Mesozoic extension occurred to the east of the Precambrian rift margin in the region where favorably oriented faults were reactivated, leading to the rotation of the fault zones from more steeply dipping initial orientations, the merging of the mid-crustal reflection zone with the Moho, and the formation of Mesozoic basins and antiformal reflections in the seismic sections.

Thermohaline fine structure in an oceanographic front from seismic reflection profiling.

We present acoustic images of oceanic thermohaline structure created from marine seismic reflection profiles across the major oceanographic front between the Labrador Current and the North Atlantic Current. The images show that distinct water masses can be mapped, and their internal structure imaged, using low-frequency acoustic reflections from sound speed contrasts at interfaces across which temperature changes. The warm/cold front is characterized by east-dipping reflections generated by thermohaline intrusions in the uppermost 1000 meters of the ocean. Our results imply that marine seismic reflection techniques can provide excellent spatial resolution of important oceanic phenomena, including thermohaline intrusions, internal waves, and eddies.

Products of 2.65–2.58 Ga orogenesis in the Slave Province correlated with Slave – Northern Cordillera Lithospheric Evolution (SNORCLE) seismic reflection patterns

Reflection patterns along Lithoprobe Slave – Northern Cordillera Lithospheric Evolution (SNORCLE) seismic reflection line 1 in the southwestern Slave Province are interpreted as products of tectonic wedging during late Archean lithospheric convergence. The interpretation is aided by application of new seismic imaging techniques, by correlation of upper crustal reflection patterns to known geology, and by a comparison of lithospheric reflection patterns to similar convergent zones elsewhere. In the Yellowknife area, reflection patterns consist of (1) east-dipping reflections at 12–14 s that project into the upper mantle, (2) a wedge-shaped body in the lower crust with an east-dipping reflection fabric that is truncated on the west by (3) a series of west-dipping reflections that outline thrust-and-fold structures in the upper crust. The similarity of these reflection patterns to those of the Proterozoic Fort Simpson – Hottah collision zone ~300 km to the west provides support for the interpretation that reflection patterns beneath the Slave Province are also products of collisional tectonics. Rocks within the Slave Province preserve evidence of a ~2.65–2.58 Ga pan-Slave orogenic event, in which the >2.9 Ga Central Slave Basement collided with the ~2.7 Ga juvenile eastern Slave Province. Their suture is interpreted to be a west-dipping surface at 4–5 s (12–15 km) beneath Yellowknife and to project to the surface east of the profile. In the lower crust and upper mantle, east-dipping reflections are interpreted to delineate a coeval subduction zone and accretionary wedge. The upper crustal thrust-and-fold structures are likely linked to gold-bearing shear zones at Yellowknife. These results provide tantalizing evidence that processes similar to those of modern convergent zones were operational at 2.65–2.58 Ga.

The character and reactivation history of the southern extension of the seismically active Clarendon–Linden Fault System, western New York State

Integration of 11 types of data sets enabled us to determine the location, character and fault history of the southern extension of the Clarendon–Linden Fault System (CLF) in southwestern New York State. The data sets utilized include detailed stratigraphic and fracture measurements at more than 1000 sites, soil gas anomalies, seismic reflection profiles, well logs and lineaments on air photos, topographic maps, Landsat and SLAR images. The seismically active CLF consists of as many as 10 parallel, segmented faults across the fault system. The fault segments are truncated by NW-striking cross-strike discontinuities (CSDs). The faults of the CLF and intersecting CSDs form fault blocks that have semi-independent subsidence and uplift histories. East-dipping reflectors in the Precambrian basement indicate the southward continuation of thrusts of the intra-Grenvillian Elzevir–Frontenac Boundary Zone. These thrusts were reactivated during Iapetan rifting as normal (listric) growth faults. In Ordovician Black River to Trenton time, the southern CLF segments experienced a second phase of growth fault activity, with faults displaying a cumulative stratigraphic throw of as much as ∼170 m. Thrusting on the same east-dipping Precambrian reflectors typified the CLF in Taconic (post-Trenton) times. Detailed comparisons among the fault segments show that the fault activity in Silurian and Devonian times generally alternated between the western and central main faults. In Late Devonian time, the fault motion reversed from down-on-the-east to down-on-the-west about the time the Appalachian Basin axis passed across the CLF in its westward migration. The deep Precambrian faults of the CLF were thus reactivated as the Appalachian Basin developed in Acadian times. Finally, the CLF thrust fault imaged on seismic line CLF-1 offsets all bedrock (Devonian) units; thus, significant motion occurred along this fault during Late Acadian, or more likely, Alleghanian time.

Suture-zone geometry along an irregular Paleoproterozoic margin: The Superior boundary zone, Manitoba, Canada

Research Article| August 01, 2002 Suture-zone geometry along an irregular Paleoproterozoic margin: The Superior boundary zone, Manitoba, Canada D.J. White; D.J. White 1Geological Survey of Canada, 601 Booth Street, Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0E8, Canada Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar S.B. Lucas; S.B. Lucas 1Geological Survey of Canada, 601 Booth Street, Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0E8, Canada Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar W. Bleeker; W. Bleeker 1Geological Survey of Canada, 601 Booth Street, Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0E8, Canada Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Z. Hajnal; Z. Hajnal 2University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan S7N 0W0, Canada Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar J.F. Lewry; J.F. Lewry 3University of Regina, Regina, Saskatchewan S4P 4V4, Canada Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar H.V. Zwanzig H.V. Zwanzig 4Manitoba Industry, Trade and Mines, 1395 Ellice Avenue, Winnipeg, Manitoba R3G 3P2, Canada Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Geology (2002) 30 (8): 735–738. https://doi.org/10.1130/0091-7613(2002)030<0735:SZGAAI>2.0.CO;2 Article history received: 27 Dec 2001 rev-recd: 18 Apr 2002 accepted: 19 Apr 2002 first online: 02 Jun 2017 Cite View This Citation Add to Citation Manager Share Icon Share MailTo Twitter LinkedIn Tools Icon Tools Get Permissions Search Site Citation D.J. White, S.B. Lucas, W. Bleeker, Z. Hajnal, J.F. Lewry, H.V. Zwanzig; Suture-zone geometry along an irregular Paleoproterozoic margin: The Superior boundary zone, Manitoba, Canada. Geology 2002;; 30 (8): 735–738. doi: https://doi.org/10.1130/0091-7613(2002)030<0735:SZGAAI>2.0.CO;2 Download citation file: Ris (Zotero) Refmanager EasyBib Bookends Mendeley Papers EndNote RefWorks BibTex toolbar search Search Dropdown Menu toolbar search search input Search input auto suggest filter your search All ContentBy SocietyGeology Search Advanced Search Abstract Lithoprobe acquired a 190-km-long deep seismic reflection profile across the Superior boundary zone at the eastern margin of the Paleoproterozoic Trans-Hudson orogen. The profile is located ∼250 km south of a major promontory along the ancient margin of the Superior craton and complements earlier profiles closer to the promontory. The new data image the remnants of a craton-verging thrust belt, younger than 1864 Ma, within the Superior boundary zone extending to a maximum depth of 15 km above a shallowly west dipping basal décollement. Across the surface suture zone, a dip reversal to east-dipping reflections occurs within the adjacent Reindeer zone, where a crustal-scale imbricate stack is imaged. Reindeer zone lower crust and upper mantle extend eastward beneath the Superior craton margin for 40–100 km. Preservation of a foreland thrust belt within the Superior boundary zone is explained as a result of reduced collisional convergence and subsequent exhumation within a reentrant flanking the Thompson promontory. You do not have access to this content, please speak to your institutional administrator if you feel you should have access.

Paleomagnetism of the Quottoon plutonic complex in the Coast Mountains of British Columbia and southeastern Alaska: evidence for tilting during uplift

The Quottoon plutonic complex (part of the great tonalite sill) was emplaced into eastern parts of the Coast shear zone along the west flank of the Coast Mountains. U–Pb crystallization ages range from 72.3 to 55.5 Ma. A regional compilation of K–Ar hornblende dates from the tonalite sill indicates a west to east decrease from ~60 Ma to ~54 Ma across the intrusive suite. Paleomagnetic samples were collected at 160 sites ([Formula: see text] 8 samples per site) along six transects across the Quottoon complex between the Skeena River and Willard Inlet. Directions of characteristic remanent magnetization (ChRM) were successfully determined by principal component analysis of thermal demagnetization data for about half of the samples collected. Site-mean ChRM directions were determined for 56 sites from the Skeena River, Quottoon Inlet, Steamer Passage, and Wales Island transects, using criteria of [Formula: see text] 4 sample ChRM directions per site and 95% confidence limit (α95) [Formula: see text] 25°. For Filmore Island and Willard Inlet, few sites provided adequate determinations of site-mean ChRM directions, but many sample ChRM directions were well determined and consistent. The mean direction from the Skeena River – Quottoon Inlet collection is nearly concordant with the expected Eocene direction. Mean directions from other transects have clockwise-rotated declinations and inclinations that are shallower than the expected direction by up to 23°. Consistent with expectations for east-side-up tilting of crustal panels, sites from the western part of each transect have mean directions farther from the Eocene expected direction than do sites from the eastern part of the transect. The magnitude of east-side-up tilt varies along strike: the Skeena River to Quottoon Inlet segment experienced little or no tilt; Steamer Passage south of Portland Inlet records 15° tilt; north of Portland Inlet, tilts are 40° for Wales Island and 35° for Filmore Island; farther north, tilt decreases to 12° for Willard Inlet. Tilting was driven by Eocene extension of the Coast Mountains, with tilted crustal panels bounded by northwest-striking, east-side-down normal faults and northeast-striking transfer faults or shear zones. The ACCRETE seismic transect imaged east-dipping reflectors down to ~15 km depth, which likely correspond to the east-side-down normal faults. The most significant of the northeast-striking transfer structures must underlie Portland Inlet. Based on a tilting domino model, about 30% extension is required to produce the 40° tilt of crustal blocks at Wales and Filmore islands.

Integrated geological and geophysical studies in the SG4 borehole area, Tagil Volcanic Arc, Middle Urals: Location of seismic reflectors and source of the reflectivity

Near‐vertical incidence reflection seismic data acquired in the Tagil Volcanic Arc (Middle Urals) show the upper crust to be highly reflective. Two intersecting seismic lines located near the ongoing ∼5400 m deep SG4 borehole show that the main reflectivity strikes approximately N‐S and dips ∼35°–55° to the east. Prominent reflections intercept the borehole at ∼1000, ∼1500, 2800–2900, ∼3400, and between ∼4000 and 5400 m, which correspond to intervals of low velocity/low density/low resistivity. The surface projections of these reflections lie parallel to the strike of magnetic anomaly trends. Multioffset vertical seismic profile (VSP) data acquired in the SG4 borehole show a seismic response dominated by P to S reflected converted waves from the moderately east dipping reflectivity and from a set of very steep east dipping reflectors not imaged by the surface data. Modeling of the VSP data constrains the depth at which reflectors intercept the borehole and suggests that the P to S conversions are best explained by low‐velocity porous intervals rather than higher‐velocity mafic material. The most prominent east dipping reflection on the surface seismic data is only imaged on VSP shots that sample the crust closer to the E‐W seismic line. This discrepancy between the VSP and the surface seismic data is attributed to rapid lateral changes in the physical properties of the reflector. Surface and borehole data suggest that the low‐velocity/low‐density/low‐resistivity intervals are the most important source of reflectivity in the SG4 borehole area, although lithological contrasts may also play a role. Drill cores from the these zones contain hydrothermal alteration minerals indicating interaction with fluids. Tectonic criteria suggest that they might represent imbricated fracture zones often bounding different lithologies and/or intrusions. Some of them might also represent high‐porosity lava flows or pyroclastic units, common in island arc environments.

Development of San Leandro synform and neotectonics of the San Francisco Bay block, California

High-resolution, 24-channel seismic-reflection data show a stratified synform beneath south San Francisco Bay. These seismic-reflection data reveal an eastward-dipping bedrock surface that is about 40 m deep (subbottom) beneath the western south bay, and that reaches a maximum observed depth of 500–800 m (subbottom) below the eastern half of the south bay. An angular unconformity cuts both the synform and underlying bedrock. The age of the unconformity is unknown but may be Pleistocene, when these strata forming the synform were presumably exposed subaerially during lowered sea levels. The synformal strata, the unconformity, and some generally flat-lying and overlying strata are folded near the eastern shore of the bay. This folding may result from movement on the Hayward fault ( fault interactions and localized strain partitioning) or from compressional deformation in the East Bay Hills related to NE–SW (fault-normal) convergence between the Pacific and North American plates. In general, reflections from sediment overlying the unconformity are flat lying (except near the eastern shore of the bay), whereas reflections beneath the unconformity dip eastward. The overlying, flat sediment section fills a shallow basin that is coincident with an elliptical residual gravity low. This low appears to be related to the deeper sedimentary, synformal section based on the spatial correlation between the east-dipping reflections and the gravity anomaly. Projecting the east-dipping reflections to the center of the gravity low suggests that the total section of flat-lying and dipping reflections in the synform may exceed 1000 m. Modeling of the gravity low suggests a total low-density section, about 1.5 km thick, at the center of the synform relative to the surrounding bedrock of presumed Franciscan Complex.

Deep structure of the Metan-Guachipas region: tectonic inversion in Northwestern Argentina

New deep seismic-reflection data obtained by reprocessing an industrial line from the eastern sector of the Salta rift system, Northwestern Argentina, are examined. An oil well located along the line provides stratigraphic control for the seismic interpretation. The corresponding synthetic seismogram extends this interpretation through the Metán trough. The data show the deep structure of the rift, consisting of a series of half-grabens, filled with Cretaceous red beds of the Pirgua Subgroup. The sag phase deposits consist of limestones, marls, shales and evaporites of the Balbuena and Santa Bárbara Subgroups, deposited in a transitional marine to lacustrine environment. Several oblique east-dipping reflectors at 10 to 20–24 km depth, are interpreted as master shears that control the extensional mechanics of the rift system, partially reactivated during Andean compression. The structure of this eastern sector of the rift is integrated through a regional cross-section through the entire rift system. The section clearly shows that troughs and highs may be related to flats and ramps of a regional master shear dipping to the east.

MONA LISA — Deep seismic investigations of the lithosphere in the southeastern North Sea

The MONA LISA collaborative project has collected 1112 km of seismic normal-incidence reflection data (recorded to 26 s) and wide-angle data from 26 onshore and 2 offshore locations along 4 profiles in the southeastern North Sea. The seismic data clearly image structures in the crust and uppermost mantle that may be related to Caledonian collision and Late Palaeozoic to Mesozoic rifting and basin formation. For the first time, dipping and subhorizontal reflections from the mantle have been observed to 24 s twt in seismic normal-incidence reflection sections. Strong sub-horizontal reflections are observed on two perpendicular profiles at c. 21 s twt, which is near the base of the lithosphere. These deep reflections are sharper than expected from a thermal–rheological transition suggesting that they are generated at lithological or tectonic interfaces. The Moho is reflective along all four profiles. Particularly strong and sharp normal-incidence and wide-angle reflections were recorded from the Moho south of the Caledonian Deformation Front. The normal-incidence reflection sections show unusually low intra-crustal reflectivity. Lower crustal, subhorizontal reflectivity is only observed west of the Central Graben and in a short profile segment at the base of the interpreted Caledonian Deformation Front. The crustal suture between Avalonia and Baltica is interpreted to be south- to west-dipping. SSW- and N-dipping reflections to 20 s twt are observed from the uppermost mantle. Two models of Tornquist Sea subduction may explain these events: either southward subduction and later extensional reactivation or northward subduction with later extension along a SSW-dipping shear zone. The crust is c. 5 km thinner below the Central Graben than below the surrounding parts of the Mid North Sea–Ringkøbing-Fyn High. The lower crust is reflective on the western flank of the Central Graben. East-dipping reflections from the lower crust and the upper mantle to the east of the graben may indicate a component of simple shear in the evolution of the rift structure.

The OCEAN study area: Tectonic history from magnetic anomaly data and seismic reflectivity

The OCEAN experiment is a detailed geophysical study of a region of the Cape Verde basin. A dense network of new magnetic and gravity profiles has enabled us to constrain the spreading rate history of the region and the location of fracture zones. The main features on the gravity profiles are lineated perpendicular to the seafloor spreading magnetic anomaly lineations. Significant along‐axis variability in spreading history suggests that the Mid‐Atlantic Ridge behaved as a series of loosely coupled segments within which spreading was fundamentally asymmetric. Such variability is associated with a minor jump in the ridge axis which changes the offset and expression of one of the fracture zones. Deep seismic reflection and refraction lines were oriented parallel and perpendicular to the magnetic lineations; seismic reflections occur at all levels within the crust, decreasing in amplitude and coherence below the level of the Moho. Analysis of the subbasement reflectivity provides compelling evidence that at least two major sets of dipping structure are present and are imaged separately on the two perpendicular sets of seismic profiles. Dipping reflections on flow line (“dip”) profiles, which are interpreted as faults due to their association with offsets in the basement surface, appear to strike parallel to the paleoridge axis. The majority of reflections that may be identified as faults dip toward the west, and although basement topography suggests that east dipping faults are also present, no reflections may be interpreted unambiguously as such. East dipping reflections observed only in the middle to lower crust have a more obscure origin. Dipping reflections seen on isochron (“strike”) profiles show clear contrasts in strength, lateral coherence, depth, and dip population; a number of these strike parallel to flow lines. Comparing reflection and refraction data shows that both the layer 2/layer 3 boundary and the Moho are marked by a change in the character of reflections and suggests that they may represent important structural, as well as seismological, boundaries within the oceanic lithosphere.

Problems interpreting deep crustal reflectors beneath the Moine thrust between Shetland and the Scottish Highlands

AbstractOffshore seismic reflection profiles crossing the Caledonian orogenic front (locally, ?Moine thrust) between Shetland and the Scottish Highlands show a singular coherent east-dipping reflection underlain by a highly reflective dipping zone in the middle crust extending down to the Moho discontinuity. This reflector pattern varies spatially with respect to the eastern edge of the Precambrian Lewisian foreland as well as to previously mapped locations of the Moine thrust. Southwest of Shetland, the reflector pattern coincides with the offshore projection of the Moine thrust, but further south, toward the Highlands, the reflector diverges to the west of the thrust and actually underlies autochthonous Lewisian foreland basement. Where this reflector pattern diverges from the Moine thrust, two interpretations are possible: the prominent reflector is part of a basement imbricate thrust duplex within the footwall (or ‘lower plate’) of the Moine thrust that merges with the thrust zone further north and/or it was originally a Proterozoic normal fault which, further north around Shetland, was reactivated or over-printed by the Moine thrust. The latter interpretation supports the importance of pre-existing crustal structure in controlling Caledonian compressional deformation.

Detachment tectonics during Atlantic rifting: analysis and interpretation of the S reflection, the west Galicia margin

Abstract Beneath the tilted fault blocks of the western Galicia rifted margin an unusually bright reflection, the S reflection, is observed. The waveform, polarity and amplitude of S indicate that it is a reflection from a seismic interface across which the acoustic impedance increases sharply. This result is consistent with its interpretation as a detachment fault juxtaposing a low velocity and density upper plate and a high velocity and density lower plate. The lower plate may represent partially serpentinized mantle material, brought into contact with pre-rift sediments and upper crustal basement by tectonic denudation. Pre-stack depth migration is applied to determine the true geometry of S, and its relationships with the overlying faults. It is found that S passes continuously beneath the upper crustal faults, which detach onto S. However, S does appear to be truncated westwards by east-dipping reflections associated with the peridotites exposed at the seafloor. We interpret these reflections as the continuation of the top-to-the-east extensional shear zone sampled within the peridotite, and suggest that S is either antithetic to a master mantle detachment, or that S is cut by a later mantle shear zone.

Seismic reflection profiles across the central Kapuskasing uplift

The central Superior Province is transected by the intracratonic Kapuskasing uplift, which contains rocks exhumed from 30 to 35 km paleodepth. As part of the Lithoprobe Kapuskasing transect, approximately 52 km of 16 s seismic reflection data were collected in the central segment of the uplift along three profiles that traverse the northern Groundhog River block, the bounding Saganash Lake fault, and the eastern Val Rita block. The seismic sections have the following characteristics in common: (i) a complexly reflective uppermost portion (&lt; 1 s) limiting correlation of reflective zones and surface features; (ii) numerous subhorizontal, east- and west-dipping reflection zones; and (iii) a significant reduction in reflectivity beyond the refraction-defined Moho (~ 14 s). Beneath the Groundhog River block a series of straight, west-dipping (~ 20°) reflection zones between 2 and 10 s is underlain by subhorizontal reflections in the lower crust. Across the Saganash Lake fault, the Val Rita block is characterized by a maze of discontinuous, curvilinear reflections with general easterly dip down to 8 – 10 s, below which west-dipping events are prominent. A north–south cross profile reveals a highly reflective crust with dominantly horizontal reflection geometry below the Saganash Lake metavolcanic belt, and a steep truncation of reflection zones down to at least 7 s, which correlates with the surface trace of the Nansen Creek fault. This fault resembles well-known strike-slip faults in intraplate settings. The Saganash Lake fault, variably interpreted as a west-side-down normal fault with up to 15 km of throw or a major strike-slip zone, may be visible as a west-dipping, weakly reflective zone steeply truncating east-dipping reflections and becoming listric at depth. This interpretation accords with surface geological observations and gravity models for the structural geometry of the region in which the Groundhog River block is a thin thrust sheet of granulite perched on Abitibi belt rocks and truncated on the west by the crustal-scale Saganash Lake fault. Alternatively, the fault could be a seismically unresolved major transcurrent structure juxtaposing blocks with disparate reflection patterns in the upper 8 s. Limited amounts of late strike-slip motion have been inferred from various geophysical studies.

Paleo-Proterozoic thick-skinned tectonics: Lithoprobe seismic reflection results from the eastern Trans-Hudson Orogen

New seismic reflection data collected by Lithoprobe across the Trans-Hudson Orogen (Manitoba and Saskatchewan) provide striking images of juvenile paleo-Proterozoic arc rocks (Flin Flon and Kisseynew belts) juxtaposed against the deformed northwestern margin of the Archean Superior craton. Crustal imbrication on a scale imaged in few other orogens is observed within the Flin Flon Belt where a package of shallowly east-dipping reflections extends from the surface to 14 s. These reflections are attributed to middle to lower crustal arc rocks that appear to have been stacked below a major detachment that underlies the upper crustal rocks of the Flin Flon Belt. Surprisingly, the seismic images show the juvenile arc rocks dipping moderately eastward beneath the craton in apparent contradiction to existing tectonic models. Geological and geochronological evidence suggest that the observed crustal imbrication probably reflects late-collisional or postcollisional convergence rather than earlier oceanic subduction polarity. The east-dipping reflection fabric, marking a Hudsonian tectonic overprint, extends across the Superior Boundary Zone up to the Pikwitonei Granulite Belt where upper crustal reflections are west dipping. An east-dipping seismic boundary between these domains, which soles into the mid-crust, may represent a west-verging thrust fault along which the crust of the Archean Superior craton was uplifted.

Seismic structure of the Central Metasedimentary Belt, southern Grenville Province

Crust and upper-mantle structure interpreted from wide-angle seismic data along a 260 km profile across the Central Metasedimentary Belt of the southern Grenville Province in Ontario and New York State shows (i) relatively high average crustal and uppermost mantle velocities of 6.8 and 8.3 km/s, respectively; (ii) east-dipping reflectors extending to 24 km depth in the Central Metasedimentary Belt; (iii) weak lateral velocity variations beneath 5 km; (iv) a mid-crustal boundary at 27 km depth; and (v) a depth to Moho of 43–46 km. The wide-angle model is generally consistent with the vertical-incidence reflectivity of an intersecting Lithoprobe reflection line. The mid-crustal boundary correlates with a crustal detachment zone in the Lithoprobe data and the depth extent of east-dipping wide-angle reflectors. Regional structure and aeromagnetic anomaly trends support the southwest continuity of Grenville terranes and their boundaries from the wide-angle profile to two reflection lines in Lake Ontario. A zone of wide-angle reflectors with an average apparent eastward dip of 13° has a surface projection that correlates spatially with the boundary between the Elzevir and Frontenac terranes of the Central Metasedimentary Belt and resembles reflection images of a crustal-scale shear zone beneath Lake Ontario. A high-velocity upper-crustal anomaly beneath the Elzevir–Frontenac boundary zone is positioned in the hanging wall associated with the concentrated zone of wide-angle reflectors. The high-velocity anomaly is coincident with a gravity high and increased metamorphic grade, suggesting northwest transport of mid-crustal rocks by thrust faulting consistent with the mapped geology. The seismic data suggest (i) a reflective, crustal-scale structure has accommodated northwest-directed tectonic transport within the Central Metasedimentary Belt; (ii) this structure continues southwest from the exposed Central Metasedimentary Belt to at least southern Lake Ontario; and (iii) crustal reflectivity and complexity within the eastern Central Metasedimentary Belt is similar to that observed at the Grenville Front and the western Central Metasedimentary Belt boundary.

Deep structure beneath Lake Ontario: crustal-scale Grenville subdivisions

Lake Ontario marine seismic data reveal major Grenville crustal subdivisions beneath central and southern Lake Ontario separated by interpreted shear zones that extend to the lower crust. A shear zone bounded transition between the Elzevir and Frontenac terranes exposed north of Lake Ontario is linked to a seismically defined shear zone beneath central Lake Ontario by prominent aeromagnetic and gravity anomalies, easterly dipping wide-angle reflections, and fractures in Paleozoic strata. We suggest the central Lake Ontario zone represents crustal-scale deformation along an Elzevir–Frontenac boundary zone that extends from outcrop to the south shore of Lake Ontario.Seismic images from Lake Ontario and the exposed western Central Metasedimentary Belt are dominated by crustal-scale shear zones and reflection geometries featuring arcuate reflections truncated at their bases by apparent east-dipping linear reflections. The images show that zones analogous to the interpreted Grenville Front Tectonic Zone are also present within the Central Metasedimentary Belt and support models of northwest-directed crustal shortening for Grenvillian deep crustal deformation beneath most of southeastern Ontario.A Precambrian basement high, the Iroquoian high, is defined by a thinning of generally horizontal Paleozoic strata over a crestal area above the basement shear zone beneath central Lake Ontario. The Iroquoian high helps explain the peninsular extension into Lake Ontario forming Prince Edward County, the occurrence of Precambrian inlier outcrops in Prince Edward County, and Paleozoic fractures forming the Clarendon–Linden structure in New York.