Research Article| May 01, 2010 Structural evolution of the Neogene Gar Basin, western Tibet: Implications for releasing bend development and drainage patterns Veronica I. Sanchez; Veronica I. Sanchez † 1Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, University of Houston, Houston, Texas 77204, USA †E-mail: veronica.sanchez@mail.uh.edu. Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Michael A. Murphy; Michael A. Murphy 1Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, University of Houston, Houston, Texas 77204, USA Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar William R. Dupré; William R. Dupré 1Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, University of Houston, Houston, Texas 77204, USA Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Lin Ding; Lin Ding 2Institute of Tibetan Plateau Research and Institute of Geology and Geophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100029, People's Republic of China Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Ran Zhang Ran Zhang 1Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, University of Houston, Houston, Texas 77204, USA Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Author and Article Information Veronica I. Sanchez † 1Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, University of Houston, Houston, Texas 77204, USA Michael A. Murphy 1Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, University of Houston, Houston, Texas 77204, USA William R. Dupré 1Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, University of Houston, Houston, Texas 77204, USA Lin Ding 2Institute of Tibetan Plateau Research and Institute of Geology and Geophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100029, People's Republic of China Ran Zhang 1Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, University of Houston, Houston, Texas 77204, USA †E-mail: veronica.sanchez@mail.uh.edu. Publisher: Geological Society of America Received: 21 Oct 2008 Revision Received: 03 Mar 2009 Accepted: 25 Mar 2009 First Online: 08 Mar 2017 Online ISSN: 1943-2674 Print ISSN: 0016-7606 © 2010 Geological Society of America GSA Bulletin (2010) 122 (5-6): 926–945. https://doi.org/10.1130/B26566.1 Article history Received: 21 Oct 2008 Revision Received: 03 Mar 2009 Accepted: 25 Mar 2009 First Online: 08 Mar 2017 Cite View This Citation Add to Citation Manager Share Icon Share Facebook Twitter LinkedIn MailTo Tools Icon Tools Get Permissions Search Site Citation Veronica I. Sanchez, Michael A. Murphy, William R. Dupré, Lin Ding, Ran Zhang; Structural evolution of the Neogene Gar Basin, western Tibet: Implications for releasing bend development and drainage patterns. GSA Bulletin 2010;; 122 (5-6): 926–945. doi: https://doi.org/10.1130/B26566.1 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 SocietyGSA Bulletin Search Advanced Search Abstract We investigated the interaction among basin-bounding faults, basin fill, and geomorphic features of the southern Gar Basin, one of only two known releasing double-bend basins along the Karakoram fault, to better understand their structural evolution and role in basin development. The southern Gar Basin is bounded by an ∼44-km-long, N20°W-striking central fault segment flanked by two N40°W-striking segments that parallel the regional strike of the Karakoram fault system. The central fault segment is composed of a system of strike-slip and normal faults that young basinward and incorporate basin fill in their uplifted footwalls. The oldest faults along the extensional portion of the bend are dominantly strike-slip, and they strike ∼15°W from the main strike of the Karakoram fault. Basin fill is broadly folded about a NNW-trending axis and can be explained by E-SE–directed slip along a listric normal fault. Cross sections across the basin and associated faults suggest the geometry is best described as an extensional flower structure. Forward structural modeling of the intrabasinal faults shows that the system has accommodated ∼8 km of east-west extension. We interpret the bend to have formed from linking of R and P shears into a through-going principal displacement zone. At shallow levels in the crust (low confining pressures), R shears are exploited; at deeper levels, these faults merge with the principal displacement zone, forming the extensional flower structure geometry. We estimate that the shear zone is 50–35 km wide based on the aerial distribution of P and R shears. Restoration of R shears on the west and east sides of the Gar Valley indicates ∼55 km of right-lateral separation along the Karakoram fault, which is a minimum slip estimate for the Karakoram fault system. You do not have access to this content, please speak to your institutional administrator if you feel you should have access.