The present-day stress field of Australia

Rajabi, Mojtaba; Tingay, Mark; Heidbach, Oliver; Hillis, Richard R.; Reynolds, Scott

doi:10.1016/j.earscirev.2017.04.003

Cited by 101 publications

(89 citation statements)

References 195 publications

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“…Due to lack of GPS data and strain rate field results for most parts of the Maghreb, we may compare the mean S Hmax orientation (N148°E ± 10.4°) based on the smoothed stress map (Figures ) with relative and absolute plate motions inferred from NUVEL‐1A geodetic model (DeMets et al, ), which are N134°E ± 15°. As demonstrated in Figures and , the first‐order S Hmax orientation in the Maghreb region is fairly consistent with relative plate motion of Africa with respect to the Eurasia and highlights the role of large tectonic forces in first‐order stress pattern (Heidbach et al, 2016; Rajabi et al, ). In addition, there are numerous small S Hmax perturbations in the study area that reveal the role of other stress sources (i.e., mostly third order) that have been demonstrated as important sources in crustal deformation (Heidbach et al, 2016; Rajabi et al, , ; Zoback, ).…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 67%

“…This is in agreement with the model of a stress transfer by the northeast trending earthquake migration along the Tell thrust‐and‐tear faults (Kariche et al, ; Lin et al, ). Another example of second‐order sources of stress is the gravitational potential energy (Coblentz et al, ; Ghosh et al, ; Rajabi et al, ; Zoback, ), which characterizes the Alboran/Rif block (Palano et al, ). This gravitational field induced by lateral variations of crustal thickness and density could locally deviate the regional stress trajectories (Sonder, ) and change faulting style within the complex tectonic pattern of the Alboran Basin.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…A focal mechanism solution (FMS) describes the geometry and mechanism of the faulting during a given earthquake and is widely used in order to derive stress tensor distribution (Heidbach et al, ; Müller et al, ; Rajabi et al, ). The orientation of the maximum horizontal stress (S Hmax ) is derived from the principal strain axes (McKenzie, ).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Active Faulting Geometry and Stress Pattern Near Complex Strike‐Slip Systems Along the Maghreb Region: Constraints on Active Convergence in the Western Mediterranean

et al. 2018

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The Maghreb region (from Tunisia to Gibraltar) is a key area in the western Mediterranean to study the active tectonics and stress pattern across the Africa‐Eurasia convergent plate boundary. In the present study, we compile comprehensive data set of well‐constrained crustal stress indicators (from single focal mechanism solutions, formal inversion of focal mechanism solutions, and young geologic fault slip data) based on our and published data analyses. Stress inversion of focal mechanisms reveals a first‐order transpression‐compatible stress field and a second‐order spatial variation of tectonic regime across the Maghreb region, with a relatively stable SHmax orientation from east to west. Therefore, the present‐day active contraction of the western Africa‐Eurasia plate boundary is accommodated by (1) E‐W strike‐slip faulting with reverse component along the Eastern Tell and Saharan‐Tunisian Atlas, (2) a predominantly NE trending thrust faulting with strike‐slip component in the Western Tell part, and (3) a conjugate strike‐slip faulting regime with normal component in the Alboran/Rif domain. This spatial variation of the present‐day stress field and faulting regime is relatively in agreement with the inferred stress information from neotectonic features. According to existing and newly proposed structural models, we highlight the role of main geometrically complex shear zones in the present‐day stress pattern of the Maghreb region. Then, different geometries of these major inherited strike‐slip faults and its related fractures (V‐shaped conjugate fractures, horsetail splays faults, and Riedel fractures) impose their component on the second‐ and third‐order stress regimes. Neotectonic and smoothed present‐day stress map (mean SHmax orientation) reveal that plate boundary forces acting on the Africa‐Eurasia collisional plates control the long wavelength of the stress field pattern in the Maghreb. The current tectonic deformations and the upper crustal stress field in the study area are governed by the interplay of the oblique plate convergence (i.e., Africa‐Eurasia), lithosphere‐mantle interaction, and preexisting tectonic weakness zones.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 67%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Active Faulting Geometry and Stress Pattern Near Complex Strike‐Slip Systems Along the Maghreb Region: Constraints on Active Convergence in the Western Mediterranean

et al. 2018

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“…Red arrows indicate the regional maximum horizontal stress orientation (Rajabi et al, 2017). Black lines delineate regional major faults.…”

Section: Datamentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Red circles represent aftershocks from the ISC within 30 days after the main shock. Red arrows indicate the regional maximum horizontal stress orientation (Rajabi et al, 2017). Red stars in the inset map represent the historical surface faulting earthquakes recorded in Petermann Ranges (Table S1; Clark & McPherson, 2013;Clark et al, 2014). acquisitions (Table S2).…”

Section: Datamentioning

confidence: 99%

Changes in Groundwater Level Possibly Encourage Shallow Earthquakes in Central Australia: The 2016 Petermann Ranges Earthquake

Wang

et al. 2019

Geophysical Research Letters

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The mechanisms of unusual shallow intraplate earthquakes that occasionally occur in stable cratons remain poorly understood. Here we analyze coseismic and postseismic displacement fields associated with the 2016 Petermann Ranges earthquake in central Australia using interferometric synthetic aperture radar data. The earthquake ruptured a previously unmapped fault and was dominated by thrust slip motion of up to 95 cm within the top 3 km of the crust. Postseismic deformation analysis suggests that a combination of poroelastic rebound and afterslip are responsible for the observed signals. The inferred afterslip overlapping spatially with the coseismic rupture highlights that the postseismic slip is coupled with the pore fluid flow around the fault zones. Analysis of historic groundwater‐level changes suggests that shallow seismicity around the Petermann Ranges may have been triggered by environmental stress perturbations due to the fluctuations of groundwater level; however, it is not easy to document statistical significance of this correlation.

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Fault geometry and slip rates from the Nullarbor and Roe Plains of south‐central Australia: Insights into the spatial and temporal characteristics of intraplate seismicity

Sellmann

Quigley

Duffy

et al. 2022

Earth Surf Processes Landf

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Analysis of TanDEM-X and Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM) data reveals geomorphic evidence for 292 fault-propagation fold scarps across the Miocene Nullarbor and Pliocene Roe Plains in south-central Australia. Vertical displacements (VD) are determined using topographic profiling of a subset (n = 48) of the fold traces. Fault dips (mean = 44 +16/À14 at 1σ) are estimated from seismic reflection data; the mean dip is assigned to faults with unknown dip and combined with VD to estimate net displacements (ND) and average net displacements (AD) for each fault. AD exceeds single-event displacements estimated from fault-length scaling regressions, indicating the identified faults have hosted multiple earthquakes. Combining AD with (i) faulted surface ages (Nullarbor $10-5 Ma, Roe $2.5 Ma), (ii) ages of faulted erosional-depositional features (e.g. relic Late Miocene dune fields and Pliocene paleochannels), and (iii) onset of the neotectonic regime in Australia at $10 Ma yields average slip rates from <0.1 m Myr À1 to >17 m Myr À1 (mean = 1.1 m Myr À1 ). Summation of displacements across faults yields crustal horizontal shortening rates lower than geodetically detectable resolution (≤0.01 mm yr À1 ) since the Late Miocene. The ca. 10 Myr-long record of neotectonic faulting on the Nullarbor Plain provides important insights into earthquake spatial-temporal behaviours in a slowly deforming intraplate continental region.

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The present-day stress field of Australia

Cited by 101 publications

References 195 publications

Active Faulting Geometry and Stress Pattern Near Complex Strike‐Slip Systems Along the Maghreb Region: Constraints on Active Convergence in the Western Mediterranean

Active Faulting Geometry and Stress Pattern Near Complex Strike‐Slip Systems Along the Maghreb Region: Constraints on Active Convergence in the Western Mediterranean

Changes in Groundwater Level Possibly Encourage Shallow Earthquakes in Central Australia: The 2016 Petermann Ranges Earthquake

Fault geometry and slip rates from the Nullarbor and Roe Plains of south‐central Australia: Insights into the spatial and temporal characteristics of intraplate seismicity

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