New tectonic configuration in NE Iran: Active strike‐slip faulting between the Kopeh Dagh and Binalud mountains

Shabanian, Esmaeil; Bellier, Olivier; Siamé, Lionel; Arnaud, Nicolas; Abbassi, M. R.; Cochemé, Jean-Jacques

doi:10.1029/2008tc002444

Cited by 70 publications

(75 citation statements)

References 86 publications

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“…The major neighboring structures such as the Khazar, Shahrud and Jajarm fault zones can significantly influence the fault zone behavior and motion rate in the eastern Alborz. However, the left-lateral motion of the Shahrud fault system and the right-lateral one on the Main Kopeh Dagh Fault are simple explanations for the westward motion of western Kopeh Dagh toward the SCB (e.g., Shabanian et al, 2009b). This mechanism is due to the oblique convergence of this boundary zone.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 94%

Fault kinematics and active tectonics at the southeastern boundary of the eastern Alborz (Abr and Khij fault zones): Geodynamic implications for NNE Iran

Javidfakhr

Bellier

Shabanian

et al. 2011

Journal of Geodynamics

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a b s t r a c tThe Alborz is a region of active deformation within the Arabia-Eurasia collision zone. The Abr and the Khij Faults are two NE-trending left-lateral strike-slip faults in the eastern Alborz that correspond to the Shahrud fault system extended through an area of about 95 km × 55 km. Tectonic landforms typically associated with active strike-slip faults, such as deflected stream channels, offset ridges and fault scarps are documented along the mentioned faults. Detailed analyses of satellite images and digital topographic data accompanied by field surveys allowed us to measure horizontal offsets of about 420 ± 50 m and 400 ± 50 m for the Abr and Khij Faults, respectively. A total of 8 quartz-rich samples were sampled and dated from two different fan surfaces using in situ-produced 10 Be cosmogenic dating method. Minimum exposure ages for the abandonment of the alluvial fan surfaces of 115 ± 14 kyr along the Abr Fault and of 230 ± 16 kyr along the Khij Fault imply that both faults are active with slip rates of about 3-4 mm yr −1 and 1-3 mm yr −1 , respectively. The results of our study provide the first direct quantitative geological estimates of slip rate along these two active faults and place a new constraint on slip distribution between the faults in the eastern Alborz. Fault kinematic studies (from fault slip data) indicate a N35 • E-trending maximum stress axis comprising a dominant strike-slip regime in agreement with the geomorphological analyses. The left-lateral strike-slip faulting along the Abr and Khij Faults and their associated fault zones in the eastern Alborz can be due to the westward component of motion of the South Caspian Basin with respect to Eurasia and Central Iran.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 94%

Fault kinematics and active tectonics at the southeastern boundary of the eastern Alborz (Abr and Khij fault zones): Geodynamic implications for NNE Iran

Javidfakhr

Bellier

Shabanian

et al. 2011

Journal of Geodynamics

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“…Although many tectonic and paleoseismological studies have been conducted on the eastern Iranian faults [e.g., Allen et al, 2011 and references therein], it is still unclear how those faults have been and are still currently accommodating the convergence and the related shortening. Different models have been proposed [e.g., Jackson and McKenzie, 1984;Walker and Khatib, 2006;Shabanian et al, 2009b;Hollingsworth et al, 2010a;Allen et al, 2006Allen et al, , 2011 but data are still lacking to validate them. In particular, despite large efforts, little is known on the current slip rates of the eastern Iranian faults.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Present-day kinematics and fault slip rates in eastern Iran, derived from 11 years of GPS data

Walpersdorf

Manighetti

Mousavi

et al. 2014

J. Geophys. Res. Solid Earth

109

125

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We analyze new GPS data spanning 11 years at 92 stations in eastern Iran. We use these data to analyze the present-day kinematics and the slip rates on most seismogenic faults in eastern Iran. The east Lut, west Lut, Kuhbanan, Anar, Dehshir, and Doruneh faults are confirmed as the major faults and are found to currently slip laterally at 5.6 ± 0.6, 4.4 ± 0.4, 3.6 ± 1.3, 2.0 ± 0.7, 1.4 ± 0.9, and 1.3 ± 0.8 mm/yr, respectively. Slip is right-lateral on the~NS striking east Lut, west Lut, Kuhbanan, Anar, and Dehshir faults and left-lateral on the~EW Doruneh fault. The~NS faults slice the eastern Iranian crust into five blocks that are moving northward at 6-13 mm/yr with respect to the stable Afghan crust at the eastern edge of the collision zone. The collective behavior of the~NS faults might thus allow the Arabian promontory to impinge northward into the Eurasian crust. The~NS faults achieve additional NS shortening by rotating counterclockwise in the horizontal plane, at current rates up to 0.8°/Ma. Modeling the GPS and available geological data with a block rotation model suggests that the rotations have been going on at a similar rate (1 ± 0.4°/Ma) over the last 12 Ma. We identify large strains at the tips of the rotating east Lut, west Lut, and Kuhbanan faults, which we suspect to be responsible for the important historical and instrumental seismicity in those zones.

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“…[11] An alternative tectonic model for this region is proposed by Shabanian et al [2009], who suggest that the right-lateral strike-slip faults of the QBFZ do not rotate but instead accommodate the north-westward translation of Iran relative to Eurasia.…”

Section: Tectonic Settingmentioning

confidence: 99%

Rapid strain accumulation on the Ashkabad fault (Turkmenistan) from atmosphere‐corrected InSAR

Walters

Elliott

et al. 2013

JGR Solid Earth

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[1] We have measured interseismic deformation across the Ashkabad strike-slip fault using 13 Envisat interferograms covering a total effective timespan of 30 years. Atmospheric contributions to phase delay are significant and variable due to the close proximity of the Caspian Sea. In order to retrieve the pattern of strain accumulation, we show it is necessary to use data from Envisat's Medium-Resolution Imaging Spectrometer (MERIS) instrument, as well as numerical weather model outputs from the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF), to correct interferograms for differences in water vapor and atmospheric pressure, respectively. This has enabled us to robustly estimate the slip rate and locking depth for the Ashkabad fault using a simple elastic dislocation model. Our data are consistent with a slip rate of 5-12 mm/yr below a locking depth of 5.5-17 km for the Ashkabad fault, and synthetic tests support the magnitude of the uncertainties on these estimates. Our estimate of slip rate is 1.25-6 times higher than some previous geodetic estimates, with implications for both seismic hazard and regional tectonics, in particular supporting fast relative motion between the South Caspian Block and Eurasia. This result reinforces the importance of correcting for atmospheric contributions to interferometric phase for small strain measurements. We also attempt to validate a recent method for atmospheric correction based on ECMWF ERA-Interim model outputs alone and find that this technique does not work satisfactorily for this region when compared to the independent MERIS estimates.

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New tectonic configuration in NE Iran: Active strike‐slip faulting between the Kopeh Dagh and Binalud mountains

Cited by 70 publications

References 86 publications

Fault kinematics and active tectonics at the southeastern boundary of the eastern Alborz (Abr and Khij fault zones): Geodynamic implications for NNE Iran

Fault kinematics and active tectonics at the southeastern boundary of the eastern Alborz (Abr and Khij fault zones): Geodynamic implications for NNE Iran

Present-day kinematics and fault slip rates in eastern Iran, derived from 11 years of GPS data

Rapid strain accumulation on the Ashkabad fault (Turkmenistan) from atmosphere‐corrected InSAR

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