Kurai Basin Research Articles

Major earthquakes of the southern Gornyi Altai in the Holocene

The paper describes geological and geomorphological features of ancient major earthquakes that occurred in the Holocene in the zone of the Altai earthquake of September 27, 2003 (southern Gornyi Altai). Fossil earthquakes occurred in the regions of the Northern and Southern Chuya ridges and Chuya and Kurai basins; their sources reached the surface and formed systems of coseismic ruptures oriented SE-NW or E-W. Secondary (gravitational and vibrational) paleoseismic deformations were represented by rockfalls, landslides, and gryphons in near-field zones of these paleoevents. They were spread in an area of about 2000–2500 km2 coinciding, on the whole, with the position of source zones. Paleoseismogeological investigations showed that, apart from earthquakes of the 20th and 21st centuries, eight seismic events with magnitudes M = 7.0–8.0 occurred in the region over the last 8500 years. Ancient strong earthquakes that produced the observed paleoseismic ruptures occurred approximately 230–300, 1000, 1700, 2300, 3500, 4500, 5200, and 8500 years ago. Therefore, the recurrence interval averaged 1400 yr for earthquakes with a magnitude of about 7.0 and 2100 yr for events with a magnitude of about 7.5.

Tectonic setting and geological manifestations of the 2003 Altai earthquake

Geological and geomorphic manifestations of the source of the earthquake that occurred in the southern Gorny Altai on September 27, 2003, are described. This earthquake, the strongest over the entire history of seismological observations, caused damage to buildings and structures in the Chuya and Kurai basins and was accompanied by exposure of its source at the surface with formation of a system of seismic ruptures trending in the northwestern direction. The linear zone of seismic rupture was traced for more than 70 km on the northern slopes of the North Chuya and South Chuya ranges, and a developed network of related splays was found. The secondary (gravitational and vibrational) seismic dislocations were expressed as downfalls, landslides, and gryphons in the pleistoseist zone. These dislocations occur over an area of approximately 90 × 25 km2 that broadly coincides with the region of quakes having intensities of IX–VII. The paleoseismogeological investigations performed in the source region of the 2003 earthquake have shown that seven seismic events with M = 7.0–8.0 occurred in its source over the last 5000 years with a 500-to 900-year recurrence period. The study of the tectonic setting of the earthquake source in the Gorny Altai has allowed northward tracing of the main seismically active zones of the Mongolian and Gobi Altai, where earthquakes with a magnitude M > 7.0 occurred repeatedly, in particular, during the 20th century, and combination of all mountain systems of the Greater Altai into a common high-magnitude seismotectonic province.