Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Geological Society of America
Résumé : International audience
The activity of subhorizontal decollements mapped by geologists in extensional provinces is not explained by rock mechanics principles, which predict that only steep faults can slip. These exposed decollements are therefore suspected to be inactive; they may correspond to rotated, formerly active, high-angle faults. However, growing seismological evidence of earthquakes with low-angle fault-plane mechanisms has forced us to revisit this viewpoint. Using the example of the Gulf of Corinth in Greece, we propose a mechanical model that explains how a weak, high-angle fault may form a low-angle decollement at depth. This decollement is uplifted in a second stage of extension, which allows the exhumation of a metamorphic core complex such as the northern Snake Range, Nevada.
ISSN: 0091-7613

hal-01419920
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01419920
DOI : 10.1130/0091-7613(2001)029<0439:CCMFTG>2.0

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Elsevier
Résumé : International audience
We present results of a geomorphological and morphotectonic analysis of the northeastern part of the Rif. We show that the present day kinematics of the Rif is characterized by active deformation along the Trougout and Nekor faults in the North-East. Digital Elevation Models of offset drainage features (streams, fluvial terraces) allow determining a normal-left-lateral motion along the Trougout fault and a left-lateral strike-slip motion along the Nekor fault. Preliminary 3He cosmogenic dates of tectonic markers yield vertical and horizontal slip rates of ∼0.9 mm/yr and ∼0.5 mm/yr, respectively along the Trougout fault. The present-day localized transtension seen in the north-eastern Rif morphology (Ras Tarf) is coeval with uplifted marine terraces near the Al Hoceima Bay. U/Th dating of shells yield an average uplift rate of ∼0.2 mm/yr during the past 500 ka. These data show that active transtension in the northeastern Rif is also associated with uplift. These new morphotectonic constraints are consistent with the GPS measurements showing southwestward overall motion of most of the Rif belt with respect to stable Africa.
ISSN: 0264-3707

hal-01053492
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01053492
DOI : 10.1016/j.jog.2014.01.004

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Borntraeger Science Publishers
Résumé : This study characterizes the stratigraphical context as well as the palaeoenvironmental and sealevel trends during the Late Frasnian and Famennian in the Buschteich section (Thuringia, Germany). An integrated approach combines conodont biostratigraphy, chemostratigraphy based on carbon and oxygen isotopes, conodont biofacies analyses and investigations of the morphotypes of foraminifera that occur in the section was applied. Conodonts provided a fine-scale biostratigraphical framework. All the Famennian conodont biozones were identified, with the exception of the three lowest. The Frasnian – Famennian transition was further identified by a positive carbon isotope excursion. This continuous Famennian record is developed in a condensed limestone succession. The reddish Griotte facies, typical of strata of this period, were not documented. Black shales were not developed except for an interval of dark colored mud rocks corresponding to the Hangenberg event at the top of the section. The carbonate succession of Buschteich was deposited in an outer ramp environment, pelagic organisms are the dominant fauna. This is corroborated by the overall dominance of the deep-water conodont genus Palmatolepis. Microfacies, conodont biofacies and foramini fera indicated a deepening trend from the Lower crepida to the Lower rhomboidea Zone, followed by a shallowing trend from the Upper rhomboidea to the praesulcata Zone. This sequence overall matches the sea level reference curve for Euramerica. The timing of maximum water depth at Buschteich, as well as the general sea-level reference record, differs from the Col des Tribes (Montagne Noire, France). Differential uplift or overprinting of the long-term eustatic changes may be the cause of the discrepancy in the local sea-level records.
ISSN: 0078-0421

hal-01623111
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01623111
DOI : 10.1127/nos/2016/0318

Éditeur(s) : North-Holland Publishing Company
Résumé : The Rift Valley between 36° 42'N and 36° 55'N in the Atlantic Ocean is 31 km wide, with half-widths of 12 and 19 km for the western and eastern sides respectively. Both outer edges of the Rift Valley stand about 1500 m above an Inner Floor where very fresh pillow lavas occur. The Inner Floor probably includes the locus of new crust ; and its bordering slopes, which are particularly well-defined on the western side, limit to less than about 2.5 km the width of the zone over which new crust may have evolved with little or no vertical displacement. The width of the locus of new crust may be less than 0.5 km between 36° 45'N and 36° 47'N, where the deepest slopes of the Rift Valley walls nearly merge. Near 36° 50'N, the Inner Floor accommodates an approximately 1 km wide, 4 km long Central High, with a height of up to 250 m. In this area, the locus of new crust may also occupy a very narrow zone ; it may lie either along the Central High or along a trough flanking the Central High. The magnetic anomaly pattern indicates that, since the beginning of the Brunhes epoch (6.9 X 10(5) yr B.P.), the eastern limb has grown approximately twice as fast as the western limb. Using extrapolated spreading rates, the ages of the outer edges of the Rift Valley are 1.3 and 1.7 m.y. for the eastern and western sides respectively. Comparison with data for the Rift Valley in other parts of the ocean further suggests that the residence time of new crust in the Rift Valley is about 1.5 m.y. Uplift of crust from the Inner Floor, which may be dominated by lithospheric thickening, may thus be primarily a function of age. [NOT CONTROLLED OCR]
Earth and Planetary Science Letters (North-Holland Publishing Company), 1974 , Vol. 22 , P. 29-43

Droits : North-Holland Publishing Company, Amsterdam
http://archimer.ifremer.fr/doc/1974/publication-5159.pdf
http://archimer.ifremer.fr/doc/00000/5159/

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Société géologique de France
Résumé : International audience
– The 300 km long allochthonous sheet of oceanic mantle forming the New Caledonia ophiolite displays three specific characters: 1) the ophiolite pile lacks concordant sheeted dykes and pillow basalt layers; 2) the ophiolite, refered to as the Peridotite nappe, is thrusted over the basaltic formations of the Poya terrane which are classicaly thought to originate from a different oceanic environment; 3) The basal contact of the ultramafic sheet is remarkably flat all along New-Caledonia and the Peridotite nappe has not been thickened during obduction, rather it experienced significant extension. This suggests that the peridotites have not been emplaced by a tectonic force applied to the rear. New petrological and geochemical results obtained from mantle rocks finally show that the Poya terrane may originate from the same oceanic basin as the peridotites. In this article, we consider such possible cogenetic links and we propose a simple model for the obduction of the New Caledonia ophiolite in which the Poya basalts represent the original cover of the Peridotite nappe. We infer that continuous uplift of the subducted units buried beneath the oceanic lithosphere in the northern part of New Caledonia drove passive uplift of the ophiolite and led to erosion and to initiation of sliding of the basaltic layer. During the Priabonian (latest Eocene), products of the erosion of the basaltic layer were deposited together with sediments derived from the Norfolk passive oceanic margin. These sediments are involved as tectonic slices into an accretionary wedge formed in response to plate convergence. The volcaniclastic sedimentation ends up with the emplacement of large slided blocks of basalts and rafted mafic units that progressively filled up the basin. Obduction process ended with the gravity sliding of the oceanic mantle sheet, previously scalped from its mafic cover. This process is contemporaneous with the exhumation of the HP-LT units of Pouebo and Diahot. Gravity sliding was facilitated by the occurrence of a continuous serpentine sole resulting from metasomatic hydratation of mantle rocks, which developed during the uplift of the Norfolk basement and overlying Diahot and Pouébo units. Progressive emersion of the obducted lithosphere allowed subsequent weathering under subaerial, tropical conditions. Obduction passive et mise en place gravitaire des grandes nappes ophiolitiques : les ophiolites de Nouvelle-Calédonie (SW Pacifique) sont-elles un cas d'école ? Résumé. – La nappe de manteau de Nouvelle-Calédonie, s'étendant sur 300 km de long montre trois caractéristiques im-portantes: 1) La succession ophiolitique ne contient ni dykes, ni basaltes en coussin, 2) l'ophiolite est charriée sur des formations basaltiques (nappe de Poya) que l'on considère classiquement comme originaires d'un bassin océanique dif-férent de celui d'où est issu le manteau, et 3) le contact basal de la nappe ultrabasique est remarquablement plat tout le long de l'île et celle-ci n'a pas été épaissie durant l'obduction. Cela suggère que les péridotites n'ont pas été mises en place en réponse à une poussée tectonique arrière. De nouveaux résultats pétrologiques et géochimiques obtenus sur l'ophiolite montrent en réalité que les basaltes de Poya peuvent être extraits de la fusion du manteau de l'ophiolite. Nous proposons donc un nouveau modèle pour l'obduction, dans lequel les basaltes de Poya forment la couver-ture initiale primitive du manteau de la nappe des péridotites. La surrection progressive des unités profondes enfouies lors de la subduction de la lithosphère du bassin sud-Loyauté à l'Eocène, a permis le soulèvement passif de l'ophiolite et l'érosion puis le glissement des unités basaltiques. Durant le Priabonien, l'accumulation des produits de l'érosion de la couche des basaltes et de la marge passive de Norfolk ont formé les séquences de flysch comprenant localement des débris basaltiques grossiers. Ces sédiments font partie d'un prisme d'accrétion tectonique construit en réponse à la convergence au front de la subduction. La sédimentation détritique se termine par la mise en place de grandes unités ba-saltiques glissées qui comblent le bassin. Le processus de l'obduction se termine par le glissement gravitaire de l'écaille de manteau océanique sur les basaltes. Cet événement est contemporain de l'exhumation des unités HP-BT de Pouébo et du Diahot. Le glissement gravitaire a été facilité par la présence sous l'ophiolite, d'une semelle continue de serpentines résultant de l'interaction du manteau avec des fluides métasomatiques remontant durant l'exhumation des unités en-fouies pendant la subduction continentale. L'émersion progressive de la lithosphère obduite a placé le manteau dans des conditions d'altération supergène tropicale.
EISSN: 1777-5817

hal-01257702
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01257702
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01257702/document
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01257702/file/Lagabrielleetal-BSGF-2012-revised-light.pdf
DOI : 10.2113/gssgfbull.184.6.545

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Elsevier
Résumé : International audience
At the North-Ecuadorian convergent margin (1°S–1.5°N), the subduction of the rough Nazca oceanic plate leads to tectonic erosion of the upper plate and complex seismogenic behavior of the megathrust. We used three selected pre-stack depth migrated, multi-channel seismic reflection lines collected during the SISTEUR cruise to investigate the margin structure and decipher the impact of the subducted Atacames seamounts on tectonic erosion, interseismic coupling, and seismogenesis in the region of the 1942 Mw7.8 earthquake.This dataset highlights a subducted ∼30×40 km∼30×40 km, double-peak seamount that belongs to the Atacames seamount chain and that is associated with a deep morphologic re-entrant containing mass transport deposits.The seamount subduction uplifted the margin basement by ∼1.6 km and pervasively broke the margin by deep and intense reverse faulting ahead of the seamount, a process that is likely to weaken considerably the margin. In the seamount wake, the basement reverse fault system rotated counter-clockwise. This faulted basement is overlain with slope sediment sliding along listric normal faults that sole out onto the BSR. This superposition of deep tectonic contraction within the basement and shallow gravitational extension deformation within the sediment highlights the key role of gas hydrate on outer slope erosion.In addition to long-term regional basal erosion, the margin basement has thinned locally by an extra 0.8–1 km in response to the subduction of the Atacames seamount chain and hydrofracturing by overpressured fluids at the margin toe. This pervasively and deeply fractured margin segment is associated with a seismically quiet and GPS-modeled low interseismic coupling corridor that terminates downdip near the 1942 epicenter and locked zone. We suggest that the deeply buried double-peak Atacames seamount triggered the 1942 earthquake ahead of its leading flank. This result supports previous studies proposing that subducted seamounts provide unfavorable conditions for locking the updip segment of the plate boundary limiting the updip extent of seismogenic zones, but may favor large subduction earthquakes at greater depths.
ISSN: 0012-821X

hal-01256399
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01256399
DOI : 10.1016/j.epsl.2015.10.043

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Société géologique de France
Résumé : Late Jurassic platform carbonates of Languedoc (southern France) are deeply incised by Late Miocene canyons, allowing the observation of karst systems filled with sediments containing evidences of marine origin. Field and structural relationships as well as new biostratigraphic data (planktonic foraminifera and calcareous nannofossils) provide a Latest Cretaceous-Earliest Paleocene age for the major karstification and a Paleocene (Danian-Selandian) age for the sedimentary filling. The ≥ 350 m vertical extent of this karst system and its subsequent marine filling gives a minimum amplitude for the base-level variation responsible for the karstification and then the marine flooding events. The observations suggest that at least, two marine successive events occurred in the Late Danian then in Selandian time. The large amplitude of base level is not in agreement with eustatic sea-level change, and the rate of base-level change is too fast for tectonic uplift and subsidence within the tabular, poorly deformed studied area. We propose a model of a silled endoreic basin, which was dessiccated and karstified over hundreds of meters, when it was disconnected from the World Ocean, and later suddently transgressed by the Paleocene sea and the karst flooded, when the bounding sill was submerged. Such a model is similar, although with significant differences, with the later Messinian-Zanclean event that affected the Mediterranean realm.
EISSN: 1777-5817

hal-00767556
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-00767556
DOI : 10.2113/gssgfbull.183.5.425

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Elsevier
Résumé : International audience
This study analyzes the active tectonics within the northwestern and southeastern extensions of the Pambak-Sevan-Syunik fault (PSSF), a major right-lateral strike-slip fault cutting through Armenia. Quantifying the deformations in terms of geometry, kinematics, slip rates and earthquake activity, using cosmogenic 3He, OSL/IRSL and radiocarbon dating techniques, reveal different behaviors between the two regions. Within the northwestern extension, in the region of Amasia, the PSSF bends to the west and splits into two main WNW–ESE trending reverse faults defining a compressional pop-up structure. We estimate an uplift rate and a shortening rate of 0.5 ± 0.1 mm/y and 1.4 ± 0.6 mm/y, respectively. This suggests that most of the ∼2 mm/y right lateral movement of the PSSF seems to be absorbed within the Amasia pop-structure. Within the southeastern extension, the PSSF shows signs of dying out within the Tsghuk Volcano region at the southernmost tip of the Syunik graben. There, the tectonic activity is characterized by a very slow NS trending normal faulting associated with a slight right-lateral movement. Slip rates analyses (i.e. vertical slip rate, EW stretching rate at 90° to the fault, and right-lateral slip rate of ∼0.2 mm/y, ∼0.1 mm/y and ∼0.05 mm/y, respectively) lead to the conclusion that the right lateral movement observed further north along the PSSF is mainly transferred within other active faults further west within the Karabagh (Hagari fault or other structures further northwestwards). Comparing our slip rates with those estimated from GPS data suggests that most of the deformation is localized and seismic, at least within the Tsghuk region. The geometrical and kinematic pattern observed within the two terminations of the PSSF suggests that the fault and its surrounding crustal blocks are presently rotating anticlockwise, as also observed within the GPS velocity field. This is consistent with the recent kinematic models proposed for the Caucasus-Kura-South Caspian region and brings a new insight into the present geodynamics of Armenia.
ISSN: 1040-6182

hal-01307342
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01307342
DOI : 10.1016/j.quaint.2015.05.021

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Elsevier
Résumé : International audience
After Jurassic rifting, numerous carbonate platforms (i.e., the Orizaba, Cordoba and Golden Lane-Tuxpan platforms) developed during the Lower and Middle Cretaceous episode of thermal subsidence along the western passive margin of the Gulf of Mexico, with intervening basinal domains (i.e., the Tampico-Misantla, Zongolica, Veracruz and Deep Gulf of Mexico - DGM - basins).;During the Late Cretaceous-Paleocene, the east-verging Sierra Madre Oriental thrust belt developed, resulting in tectonic uplift and unroofing of the allochthonous units (i.e. tectonic units made up of former Orizaba and Cordoba platforms and Zongolica Basin series). This new topography provided also an important source of clastics to feed the adjacent foredeep, where coeval tectonic loading accounted for the bending of the foreland lithosphere. However, shallow water facies or even emersion persisted until the Eocene in the forebulge area (at the present location of the Golden Lane), preventing locally the clastics to reach the DGM. This topographic barrier was ultimately bypassed by the clastics only during the Oligocene and Neogene, once (1) the prograding clastic wedge had exceeded accommodation, and (2) the long lasting thermal subsidence of the passive margin could overpass the effect of the bending and force the former bulge to sink.;Numerous paleo-thermo-meters (Tmax, Ro), paleo-thermo-barometers (fluid inclusions), PVT and coupled forward kinematic and thermal modeling have been used to calibrate and date the progressive unroofing of the thrust belt. Coupled tectonic and sedimentologic modeling was applied in the foreland to predict the distribution of sand versus shale ratios in the Oligocene to Plio-Quaternary clastic sedimentary wedge of the passive margin, where gravitational gliding of post-Eocene series occurred during the Neogene along major listric faults.;Mantle dynamics are advocated as the main process accounting for post-orogenic uplift and regional tilting of the basement, which initiated a massive transfer of sediments from the Cordillera towards the Gulf of Mexico, from Oligocene onward, resulting in a destabilization and gravitational collapse of the western slope of the Gulf of Mexico in Neogene times.
ISSN: 0040-1951

hal-00445248
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-00445248
DOI : 10.1016/j.tecto.2009.04.012

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Elsevier
Résumé : International audience
The analysis of 2D deep-seismic-reflection profiles across the slope and abyssal plain of the Angola oceanic basin reveals the existence of a significant and formerly unknown depocentre beneath the giant Cenozoic Congo deep-sea fan, between 7000 m and 9000 m depth, deposited directly onto the Aptian oceanic crust. The unit, which is up to 2.5 km thick and extends for more than 200 km basinwards of the Continent-Ocean boundary, is probably aged Albian-Turonian. Its radial fan-shaped depocentre is centred on the present-day Congo River outlet and contains at least 0.2 Mio km(3) of sediments. These observations and the results from flexural modelling indicate that (1) the location of the Congo River's outlet has remained fairly stable since the Late Cretaceous, and (2) the basal unit was indeed sourced by a palaeo-Congo River probably located nearby the present-day one. Thus, the Atlantic sedimentary system related to the exoreism of the Congo River is much older than previously thought. Thermal modelling indicates that the maturation history of this upper-Cretaceous deposits is highly influenced by the interaction between the initial high heat flow of the young oceanic crust and further increase in sediment supply due to the progradation of the overlying Tertiary deep-sea fan during the Miocene. Hence, despite low present-day heat-flow values, should the unit have source rock potential, its basal section may be currently generating hydrocarbons.;All in all, the results from our models also suggest that the interplay between an initially high heat flow and the further high sediment supply in areas of major river input, may be a key factor for the thermal maturation of potential source rocks deposited onto a present-day "cold" oceanic crust.
ISSN: 0264-8172

hal-00475541
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-00475541
DOI : 10.1016/j.marpetgeo.2009.08.015

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Wiley-Blackwell
Résumé : International audience
Recent field work and review of radiometric data obtained from Neogene lavas and plutonic rocks exposed in the Eastern Central Patagonian Cordillera (46–48ºS), which overlie subducted segments of the South Chile Ridge, suggest important Late Miocene to Pleistocene morphological changes in relation to base level variations and/or tectonic events. We present new field observations from a region south of Lago General Carrera-Buenos Aires, between the main Cordillera and the Meseta del Lago Buenos Aires, demonstrating that normal faulting controlled valley incisions and occurred during lava emplacement at 5–4 Ma and after 3 Ma. We also show that the 12 Ma basaltic flows of the Meseta del Lago Buenos Aires (~2000 m a.s.l.) have been subjected to deep incision, with younger lavas dated at 1.2 Ma partially filling the valleys. These incisions are thought to reflect progressive eastward tilting of the entire meseta. Our new observations, together with additional features from Central Patagonia, strongly suggest that tectonic events led to a regional widespread morphological change after 5 Ma. The coincidence in time and space between the subduction of segments of the South Chile Ridge at 6 and 3 Ma causing opening of a slab window, and strong base level variations in the studied area, suggests a cause-and-effect relationship. In Central Patagonia, compressional tectonics ended well before extensional events reported here. Causes of uplift and further extension are probably completely disconnected. The uplift is purely tectonic in origin and occurred prior to the subduction of the South Chile Ridge. Extension should be a consequence of this subduction.
ISSN: 0954-4879

insu-00272075
https://hal-insu.archives-ouvertes.fr/insu-00272075
DOI : 10.1111/j.1365-3121.2007.00766.x

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Elsevier
Résumé : International audience
A dense, local network of 30 geodetic markers covering a 50 × 60 km2 area in the southwestern European Alps (Briançon region) has been temporarily surveyed in 1996, 2006 and 2011 by GPS. The aim is to measure the current deformation in this seismically active area. The study zone is characterized by a majority of extensional and dextral focal mechanisms, along north–south to N160 oriented faults. The combined analysis of the three measurement campaigns over 15 years and up to 16 years of permanent GPS data from the French RENAG network now enables to assess horizontal velocities below 1 mm/year within the local network. The long observation interval and the redundancy of the dense campaign network measurement help to constrain a significant local deformation pattern in the Briançon region, yielding an average E–W extension of 16 ± 11 nanostrain/year. We compare the geodetic deformation field to the seismic deformation rate cumulated over 37 years, and obtain good coherencies both in amplitude and direction. Moreover, the horizontal deformation localized in the Briançon region represents a major part of the Adriatic-European relative plate motion. However, the average uplift of the network in an extensional setting needs the presence of buoyancy forces in addition to plate tectonics.
ISSN: 0264-3707

hal-01119724
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01119724
DOI : 10.1016/j.jog.2015.02.001

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Oxford University Press (OUP)
Résumé : International audience
A network of 54 survey GPS sites, 28 continuous GPS stations and three absolute gravity (AG) observation sites have been set up in the Alborz mountain range to quantify the present-day kinematics of the range. Our results allow us to accurately estimate the motion of the South Caspian block (SCB) for the first time, and indicate rotation of the SCB relative to Eurasia, accounting for the left lateral motion in the Alborz range. In light of these new results, it clearly appears that deformation rates vary along the range, the eastern part accommodating mainly left lateral strike slip (2 mm yr(-1) south of the range and 5 mm yr(-1) north of the range) with a very low range normal shortening rate on the Khazar thrust fault (similar to 2 mm yr(-1)), and the western part accommodating range normal shortening (similar to 6 mm yr-1) on the Khazar thrust fault with a left lateral component of similar to 2 mm yr(-1) north of the range and 1 mm yr(-1) south of the range. These present-day kinematics agree with geomorphologic estimated slip rates, but not the long-term deformation, corroborating the idea that the kinematics of the range have changed recently due to the change of SCB motion.;Modelling of the interseismic deformation suggests a deep locking depth on the central-western segment of the Khazar fault (similar to 30 km) in agreement with the Baladeh earthquake rupture and aftershock ranging between 10 and 30 km. Given this unusual deep locking depth and the 34 degrees dip of the thrust, a large part of the Alborz range is located above the seismically coupled part of the fault. Based on our AG measurements this part of the range seems to uplift at a rate of 1-5 mm yr(-1), in agreement with terrace uplift.
ISSN: 0956-540X

hal-00617146
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-00617146
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-00617146v2/document
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-00617146/file/djamour2010.pdf
DOI : 10.1111/j.1365-246X.2010.04811.x

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Oxford University Press (OUP)
Résumé : International audience
Two-dimensional simulations using a thermomechanical model based on a finite-difference method on a staggered grid and a marker in cell method are performed to study the plume-lithosphere interaction beneath moving plates. The plate and the convective mantle are modelled as a homogeneous peridotite with a Newtonian temperature- and pressure-dependent viscosity. A constant velocity, ranging from 5 to 12.5 cm yr−1, is imposed at the top of the plate. Plumes are generated by imposing a thermal anomaly of 150 to 350 K on a 50 km wide domain at the base of the model (700 km depth); the plate atop this thermal anomaly is 40 Myr old. We analyse (1) the kinematics of the plume as it impacts the moving plate, (2) the dynamics of time-dependent small-scale convection (SSC) instabilities developing in the low-viscosity layer formed by spreading of hot plume material at the base of the lithosphere and (3) the resulting thermal rejuvenation of the lithosphere. The spreading of the plume material at the base of the lithosphere, characterized by the ratio between the maximum down- and upstream horizontal (dimensionless) velocities in the plume-fed sublithospheric layer, Peup/Pedown depends on the ratio between the maximum plume upwelling velocity and the plate velocity, Peplume/Peplate. For fast plate velocities and sluggish plumes (low Peplume/Peplate), plate motion drags most plume material and downstream flow is dominant. As Peplume/Peplate increases, an increasing part of the plume material flows upstream. SSC systematically develops in the plume-fed sublithospheric layer, downstream from the plume. Onset time of SSC decreases with the Rayleigh number. For vigorous plumes, it does not depend on plate velocity. For more sluggish plumes, however, variations in the plume spreading behaviour at the base of the lithosphere result in a decrease in the onset time of SSCs with increasing plate velocity. In any case, SSC results in uplift of the isotherm 1573 K by up to 20 km relative to its initial equilibrium depth at the impact point.
ISSN: 0956-540X

hal-00856763
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-00856763
DOI : 10.1093/gji/ggt128

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Elsevier
Résumé : International audience
The emergent domain known as “Kasserine Island” in central Tunisia, to the West of the North–South Axis, was emerging during the Turonian. This area has undergone several changes during the Cretaceous–Eocene period. In the present study, the compilation of surface and sub-surface data provided new information about the boundaries variations of the emerged domain. The analysis of paleogeographic maps allowed the identification of three distinct stages of evolution. The first stage extents from the Middle Turonian to the Lower Maastrichtian where the emergent domain covers the area extending from Jebels Selloum-Sidi Aich in the West to Jebel Bouhedma in the East. The boundaries of this area coincide with the E–W Kasserine fault to the North, the N–S Lessouda-Boudinar fault in the East and the N 120 el Mech-Souinia flexure at the South. This emersion contemporaneous with a high eustatic level is most likely related to tectonic activity. The extensional tectonic regime that is characterized by a NE–SW minimal horizontal stress, has reactivated border faults with a normal component. The interference of the tilting of these border faults was at the origin of the emergence of this domain. The ascent of the Triassic salt may also have contributed in this uplift.In the second stage, the emerged domain has reached its maximum expansion to the North, the West and the South during the Middle Maastrichtian–Paleocene period. Its northern limit is irregular, while the southern limit coincides with the N120 Gafsa fault and the E–W fault of Jebels Orbata-Bouhedma. The N–S Lessouda-Boudinar fault forms the eastern limit. This expansion is mostly related to the global eustatic fall that is well characterized during this period, and partly to the compressive tectonic activity.The Lower Eocene is characterized by a marine transgression that has interested the northern edge of the Island, where the Ypresian deposits are discordant on older series. This edge was irregular and marked by the Gulf of Sbiba. The eastern, the southern, and the western boundaries kept the same shape as that of the previous stage. The compressive tectonic regime, characterized by a NW–SE maximum horizontal stress, is accentuated. This constraint state has generated NE–SW folds and NW–SE grabens. Some of these structures allowed the accumulation of a thick phosphate deposits at their edges, and continental deposits in the emerged area.During the Middle to Upper Eocene, the emergent area narrowed further at the North. The deposits are transgressive and discordant on older series. The Other limits always coincide with the Gafsa fault, the Jebels Orbata-Bouhedma and Jebels Lessouda-Boudinar faults. This period is characterized by the filling of the Gafsa basin by evaporate deposits before its emergence in the Oligocene. As a result, the southern-central Tunisia emerged as one area.
ISSN: 0899-5362

hal-01243490
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01243490
DOI : 10.1016/j.jafrearsci.2015.07.027

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Geological Society of America
Résumé : International audience
The post-rift denudation history of high-elevation divergent continental margins is central to deciphering source-to-sink systems across such margins and to unraveling their topographic evolution. We performed 40Ar-39Ar dating of supergene K-Mn oxides from supergene manganese ore deposits in order to constrain the age of in situ formed laterites on both the lowland and highland sides of the Western Ghats Escarpment of Peninsular India. Documentation of laterites as old as 53 Ma on the highland and 47 Ma at the foot of the escarpment shows that the escarpment stabilized before 47 Ma (possibly 60 Ma). The topographic setting of the dated weathering mantles also constrains denudation of the lowland and the highland since ca. 50 Ma to maximums of 5 m/m.y. and 15 m/m.y., respectively. Our results challenge denudation rates derived from apatite fission track thermochronology by documenting the topography and relief longevity of the southwest Indian margin and its hinterland. The results preclude large-magnitude uplift of Peninsular India after the Eocene, and more generally argue against late Neogene uplift and topographic rejuvenation of continental shields.
ISSN: 0091-7613

hal-01306559
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01306559
DOI : 10.1130/G37303.1

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Elsevier
Résumé : International audience
The investigation of deformation rates on a mountain piedmont can provide key information for improving our understanding of the overall dynamics of a mountain range. Here, we estimate the shortening rate absorbed by a Quaternary emergent detachment fold on the southeastern piedmont of the Tianshan (China). Our work is primarily based on new 10Be cosmogenic exposure dating of deformed alluvial surfaces. The method we have developed combines depth profiling with sampling of surface cobbles, thereby allowing exposure time, erosion rate and inheritance to be simultaneously constrained. The exposure ages of the uppermost uplifted alluvial surfaces are around 140±17 ka140±17 ka, 130±9 ka130±9 ka and 47±9 ka47±9 ka, from west to east. A terrace lying below the 140 ka surface is dated at 65±5 ka65±5 ka. The ages of the uplifted and folded alluvial surfaces were then combined with estimates of shortening obtained using two distinct methods: (1) the excess area method, where sedimentation rates, extracted from magnetostratigraphic studies, are used to determine the amount of sedimentation after the abandonment of the river; and (2) a folding model derived from sandbox experiments. The late Pleistocene shortening rates are shown to be between 0.4±0.1 mm/yr0.4±0.1 mm/yr and 0.8±0.5 mm/yr0.8±0.5 mm/yr on the western part of the fold and 2.1±0.4 mm/yr2.1±0.4 mm/yr along its central part. The central part of the frontal Yakeng anticline therefore accommodates up to 25% of the total shortening currently absorbed across the whole Eastern Tianshan range (8 mm/yr). However, this situation seems to have prevailed for only the last 150 ka, as the shortening rate absorbed by this nascent fold was previously ten times slower. While the initiation of folding of the Yakeng anticline can be traced back to 5.5 Ma ago, the basinward migration of the active deformation front onto the Yakeng fold is a relatively recent phenomenon and appears to be diachronous from west to east, probably in relation to the tectonic activity of the folds in the hinterland.
ISSN: 0012-821X

hal-01306997
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01306997
DOI : 10.1016/j.epsl.2015.11.041

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Wiley
Résumé : Diversified deep-water corals and associated communities occur in early Pleistocene (early Calabrian; ∼1.7–1.6 Ma) calcareous crusts discovered on the south-western coast of Karpathos Island (eastern Greece). Apart from abundant and conspicuous solitary and colonial corals (12 species), the accompanying fauna comprises mostly bivalves (10 species), serpulid worms (4 species), and bryozoans (40 species). The growth and deposition of the studied organisms occurred in an upper bathyal environment at water depths around 400–600 m. The calculated mean uplift rate after deposition of the crusts indicates that Karpathos was drowned during the earliest Calabrian and experienced severe uplifts by the late Calabrian. A comparison between these communities and those of the Pleistocene to Recent Mediterranean and north-east Atlantic shows that a common stock of taxa exist(ed); among them two azooxanthellate colonial scleractinians (Lophelia pertusa and Madrepora oculata) are predominant.
ISSN: 0267-8179

hal-01622744
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01622744
DOI : 10.1002/jqs.2966

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD
Résumé : 38 pages
Rapport
The Chicxulub impact crater, México, is unique. It is the only known terrestrial impact structure that has been directly linked to a mass extinction event and the only terrestrial impact with a global ejecta layer. Of the three largest impact structures on Earth, Chicxulub is the best preserved. Chicxulub is also the only known terrestrial impact structure with an intact, unequivocal topographic peak ring. Chicxulub’s role in the Cretaceous/Paleogene (K-Pg) mass extinction and its exceptional state of preservation make it an important natural laboratory for the study of both large impact crater formation on Earth and other planets and the effects of large impacts on the Earth’s environment and ecology. Our understanding of the impact process is far from complete, and despite more than 30 years of intense debate, we are still striving to answer the question as to why this impact was so catastrophic.During International Ocean Discovery Program (IODP) Expedition 364, Paleogene sediments and lithologies that make up the Chicxulub peak ring were cored to investigate (1) the nature and formational mechanism of peak rings, (2) how rocks are weakened during large impacts, (3) the nature and extent of post-impact hydrothermal circulation, (4) the deep biosphere and habitability of the peak ring, and (5) the recovery of life in a sterile zone. Other key targets included sampling the transition through a rare midlatitude section that might include Eocene and Paleocene hyperthermals and/or the Paleocene/Eocene Thermal Maximum (PETM); the composition and character of the impact breccias, melt rocks, and peak-ring rocks; the sedimentology and stratigraphy of the Paleocene–Eocene Chicxulub impact basin infill; the chronology of the peak-ring rocks; and any observations from the core that may help us constrain the volume of dust and climatically active gases released into the stratosphere by this impact. Petrophysical property measurements on the core and wireline logs acquired during Expedition 364 will be used to calibrate geophysical models, including seismic reflection and potential field data, and the integration of all the data will calibrate impact crater models for crater formation and environmental effects. The proposed drilling directly contributes to IODP Science Plan goals:Climate and Ocean Change: How resilient is the ocean to chemical perturbations? The Chicxulub impact represents an external forcing event that caused a 75% level mass extinction. The impact basin may also record key hyperthermals within the Paleogene.Biosphere Frontiers: What are the origin, composition, and global significance of subseafloor communities? What are the limits of life in the subseafloor? How sensitive are ecosystems and biodiversity to environmental change? Impact craters can create habitats for subsurface life, and Chicxulub may provide information on potential habitats for life, including extremophiles, on the early Earth and other planetary bodies. Paleontological and geochemical studies at ground zero will document how large impacts affect ecosystems and effects on biodiversity.Earth Connections/Earth in Motion: What are the composition, structure and dynamics of Earth’s upper mantle? What mechanisms control the occurrence of destructive earthquakes, landslides, and tsunami? Mantle uplift in response to impacts provides insight into dynamics that differ between Earth and other rocky planets. Impacts generate earthquakes, landslides, and tsunami, and scales that generally exceed plate tectonic processes yield insight into effects, the geologic record, and potential hazards.IODP Expedition 364 was a Mission Specific Platform expedition to obtain subseabed samples and downhole logging measurements from the sedimentary cover sequence and peak ring of the Chicxulub impact crater. A single borehole was drilled into the Chicxulub impact crater on the Yucatán continental shelf, recovering core from 505.7 to 1334.73 m below seafloor with ~99% core recovery and acquiring downhole logs for the entire depth.
International Ocean Discovery Program

hal-01639520
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01639520
DOI : 10.14379/iodp.pr.364.2017

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD
Résumé : Poster
The Lesser Caucasus in Armenia is an active volcanic and tectonic zone which resulted from the collision of the Arabian and the Eurasian plates since Neogene times. The During Quaternary, Lesser Caucasus was uplifted (0.3 mm/yr; Mitchell and Westaway, 1999) and experienced extensional tectonics times. Large lakes developed in graben structures. The diatomitic sequences of the Shamb paleo-lake (South Armenia) offer a rare opportunity to give new insights of Western Asia paleo-climate. Based on macroflora analysis, Bruch and Gabrielyan (2002) proposed a cooling and drying general climate trend through Pleistocene times in relation with a general uplift of the chain. Several questions have to be answer for this poorly investigated region. Did the climate record humid glacials and arid interglacials as suggested northward in Kazakhstan? What are the vegetation and climate responses to orbital parameters and to the monsoon? Moreover the lesser Caucasus is known as the entrance way used by the first hominids in Eurasia during Pleistocene time. How was the environment at this time? We present an integrated palynological, 40Ar/39Ar isotopic and magnetostratigraphic study for the most complete section (Joannin et al., in press). 40Ar/39Ar dating of two volcaniclastic layers provided ages of 1.24 ± 0.03 and 1.16 ± 0.02 Ma (2. Magnetostratigraphic data show that the entire Shamb section is of reversed polarity which correlates with part of the Matuyama period (1.785-1.070 Ma). Pollen assemblages and macroremains diversity revealed an alternation of glacial and interglacial phases that are compared with climate changes inferred from the global isotopic curve. The Shamb section ranges from approximately 1.300 to 1.080 Ma in age (marine isotopic stages 40 to 31). The vegetation of the Lesser Caucasus developed in a mosaic pattern in a Pleistocene continental, mostly arid climate, similar to the present-day climate. The vegetation changes record a dominant climate response to the obliquity orbital parameter. The influence of precession could not be established from the Shamb data. Pollen and macroflora both indicate that glacial periods were cold and dry and that interglacials were warm with local humidity. The early Pleistocene climatic model for Western Asia is thus similar to the climatic model for the Mediterranean area. Bruch, A., Gabrielyan, I.G., 2002. Quantitative data of the Neogene climatic development in Armenia and Nakhichevan. Acta Universitatis Carolinae – Geologica 46, 41–48. Joannin, S., Cornée, J.J., Münch, P., Fornari, M., Vasiliev, J., Krijgsman, W., Nahapetyan, S., Gabrielyan, Y., Ollivier, V., Roiron, P., Chataîgnier, C. In press. Early Pleistocene climatic cycles in continental deposits of the Lesser Caucasus of Armenia inferred from palynology, magnetostratigraphy, and 40Ar/39Ar dating. Earth and Planetary Science Letters. Mitchell, J., Westaway, R., 1999. Chronology of Neogene and Quaternary uplift and magmatism in the Caucasus: constraints from K-Ar dating of volcanism in Armenia. Tectonophysics 304, 157–186.
EGU Eurasian Climate and Tectonics
Vienne, Austria

hal-00481799
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-00481799