Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Oxford University Press (OUP)
Résumé : International audience
Sensitive instruments like strainmeters and tiltmeters are necessary for measuring slowly varying low amplitude Earth deformations. Nonetheless, laser and fibre interferometers are particularly suitable for interrogating such instruments due to their extreme precision and accuracy. In this paper, a practical design of a simple pendulum borehole tiltmeter based on laser fibre interferometric displacement sensors is presented. A prototype instrument has been constructed using welded borosilicate with a pendulum length of 0.85 m resulting in a main resonance frequency of 0.6 Hz. By implementing three coplanar extrinsic fibre Fabry-Perot in-terferometric probes and appropriate signal filtering, our instrument provides tilt measurements that are insensitive to parasitic deformations caused by temperature and pressure variations. This prototype has been installed in an underground facility (Rustrel, France) where results show accurate measurements of Earth strains derived from Earth and ocean tides, local hydro-logic effects, as well as local and remote earthquakes. The large dynamic range and the high sensitivity of this tiltmeter render it an invaluable tool for numerous geophysical applications such as transient fault motion, volcanic strain and reservoir monitoring.
ISSN: 0956-540X

hal-01265967
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01265967
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01265967/document
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01265967/file/HCS1.pdf
DOI : 10.1093/gji/ggv358

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Oxford University Press (OUP)
Résumé : International audience
No major earthquake occurred in North Chile since the 1877 Mw 8.6 subduction earthquake that produced a huge tsunami. However, geodetic measurements conducted over the last decade in this area show that the upper plate is actually deforming, which reveals some degree of locking on the subduction interface. This accumulation of elastic deformation is likely to be released in a future earthquake. Because of the long elapsed time since 1877 and the rapid accumulation of deformation (thought to be 6-7 cm yr−1), many consider this area is a mature seismic gap where a major earthquake is due and seismic hazard is high. We present a new Global Positioning System (GPS) velocity field, acquired between 2008 and 2012, that describes in some detail the interseismic deformation between 18°S and 24°S. We invert for coupling distribution on the Nazca-South America subduction interface using elastic modelling. Our measurements require that, at these latitudes, 10 to 12 mm yr−1 (i.e. 15 per cent of the whole convergence rate) are accommodated by the clockwise rotation of an Andean block bounded to the East by the subandean fold-and-thrust belt. This reduces the accumulation rate on the subduction interface to 56 mm yr−1 in this area. Coupling variations on the subduction interface both along-strike and along-dip are described. We find that the North Chile seismic gap is segmented in at least two highly locked segments bounded by narrow areas of weak coupling. This coupling segmentation is consistent with our knowledge of the historical ruptures and of the instrumental seismicity of the region. Intersegment zones (Iquique, Mejillones) correlate with high background seismic rate and local tectonic complexities on the upper or downgoing plates. The rupture of either the Paranal or the Loa segment alone could easily produce a Mw 8.0-8.3 rupture, and we propose that the Loa segment (from 22.5°S to 20.8°S) may be the one that ruptured in 1877.
ISSN: 0956-540X

hal-00941279
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-00941279
DOI : 10.1093/gji/ggt183

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Elsevier
Résumé : International audience
Reef positions record the interaction between eustasy and tectonics, and have been used worldwide to characterize vertical deformations of upper-plates at different time-scales and constrain the seismic behavior of megathrusts. Along the Lesser Antilles volcanic arc, high-resolution marine geophysical data were collected on the 2–20 km wide eastern Martinique reef platform to reconstruct its stratigraphic and morphologic history, and understand the influence of local normal faulting, volcanism and plate-scale subduction processes on Holocene and Late Pleistocene reef development. The subsiding Martinique platform's stratigraphy is composed of multiple superimposed sea-level highstand deposits separated by subaerial exposure surfaces of sea-level low stands. The carbonate platform consists of two laterally-extensive carbonate units (unit U2 overlying unit U3) that extend to the platform edge to a depth of − 95 m MSL (mean sea level), and form two morphologic terraces, M2 and M3 respectively. The landward portion of unit U2 is partially overlain between 0 and − 60 m MSL by the living reef tract U1. The current reef is composed of a landward fringing reef, a lagoon and a seaward barrier reef, the latter forming a double-bank barrier around the Caravelle Peninsula. In near-shore multi-channel seismic profiles, a distinct reflector at ~− 35 m MSL, probably a subaerial exposure surface E1, separates the reef sequence formed during the last transgression from a Pleistocene fossil reef tract forming unit U2. Offshore of Mount Pelée volcano (Late Pleistocene), the Holocene reef did not develop above unit U2, whose upper surface is incised by channels and apparent sinkholes. During the Holocene transgression, the possibility of excessive turbidity due to volcanic activity may have inhibited reef development in this area. The un-dated unit U2 probably developed 120–130 ka ago during the last interglacial (MIS 5.5) + 6 m MSL highstand as thick, extensive reefs deposited all along the Lesser Antilles arc. Due to subsidence, MIS 5.5 reefs are not represented by onshore facies, except along the southern Sainte Anne Peninsula where normal faulting and uplift balances island-scale subsidence. Based on unit U2's present elevation and assuming an MIS 5.5 age and + 6 m MSL sea level, Martinique has subsided at maximum 0.3 m/ky, likely due to subduction processes that question the coupling state of the megathrust.
ISSN: 0025-3227

hal-01307036
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01307036
DOI : 10.1016/j.margeo.2015.08.001

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Elsevier
Résumé : International audience
We investigate the contribution of atmospheric and its induced non-tidal oceanic loading effects on surface time-varying gravity and tilt measurements for several stations in Western Europe. The ocean response to pressure forcing can be modelled accordingly to the inverted barometer, i.e. assuming that air pressure variations are fully compensated by static sea height changes, or using ocean general circulation models.Wevalidate two runs of theHUGO-mbarotropic ocean model by comparing predicted sea surface height variations with hundred tide-gauge measurements along the European coasts. We then show that global surface pressure field, as well as a barotropic high-resolution ocean model forced by air pressure and winds allow in most cases a significant reduction of the variance of gravity residuals and, to a smaller extends tilt residuals. Wefinally show that precise gravity measurements with superconducting gravimeters allow the observation of large storm surges, occurring in the North Sea, even for inland stations. However, we also confirm that the continental hydrology contribution cannot be neglected. Thanks to their specific sensitivity feature, only tiltmeters closest to the coast can clearly detect the loading due to these storm surges.
ISSN: 0264-3707

hal-00708046
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-00708046
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-00708046/document
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-00708046/file/ETS2008_BOY.pdf
BIBCODE : 2009JGeo...48..182B

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Oxford University Press (OUP): Policy B - Oxford Open Option A Oxford University Press (OUP)
Résumé : International audience
Peridotites exhumed in the footwall of axial detachment faults at slow-spreading ridges are highly serpentinized. Most mid-ocean ridge detachment settings are magmatically active and hydrous fluid circulation in and near the fault has been shown to be influenced by the presence of melt or magmatic lithologies. Our working area along the Southwest Indian Ridge (62–65°E) is nearly amagmatic and represents an end-member to study the hydrous alteration of exhumed peridotites without these magmatic influences. We use an integrated petrological approach combining microstructural, mineralogical and chemical observations to unravel the sequence of serpentinization in 272 dredged samples of variably serpentinized peridotites and to document the circulation of serpentinizing fluids in and near the exhumation faults. We find that serpentine recrystallization and veins overprint the initial serpentinite mesh texture in ∼25% of the samples. Oxygen isotope data suggest that this sequence developed at relatively high temperatures (271–336°C) and under increasing fluid–rock ratios, from near stoichiometry for mesh texture formation to >10 during recrystallization. Increasing fluid supersaturation relative to serpentine favors the replacement of mesh texture lizardite by chrysotile and polygonal or polyhedral serpentine. We attribute local recrystallization into antigorite to moderate Si-metasomatism, possibly following pyroxene serpentinization. We do not observe the more pronounced Si-metasomatism leading to talc replacing serpentine that is reported for the more magmatically active Mid-Atlantic Ridge detachment settings and is attributed to prior leaching of magmatic rocks. Scales of preferential fluid pathways in our samples evolved from pervasive and close-spaced (<500 µm) microfractures during the formation of the initial serpentine mesh texture, to centimeter-thick planar domains of enhanced fluid flux, spaced at ∼10 cm intervals and probably grouped in corridors that may be up to ∼100 m across. Serpentine minerals are enriched in some fluid-mobile elements (Cl, B, U) relative to the peridotite protolith, and several elements (Al, Fe, Si, Cu, As, Sb, REE) are redistributed at the millimeter to decimeter scale. Serpentinizing fluids were seawater-derived, probably mildly alkaline (small to no europium anomalies), reducing and H2-enriched (formation of magnetite). These fluids may have been similar to, though warmer than, those venting at the ultramafic-hosted Lost City hydrothermal fluid (30°N, Mid-Atlantic Ridge).
ISSN: 0022-3530

hal-01174047
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01174047
DOI : 10.1093/petrology/egv014

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Elsevier
Résumé : International audience
ISSN: 0040-1951

hal-00843380
https://hal-mines-paristech.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-00843380
DOI : 10.1016/j.tecto.2013.05.043

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Elsevier
Résumé : International audience
Properly assessing the extent and magnitude of fault ruptures associated with large earthquakes is critical for understanding fault behavior and associated hazard. Submarine faults can trigger tsunamis, whose characteristics are defined by the geometry of seafloor displacement, studied primarily through indirect observations (e.g., seismic event parameters, seismic profiles, shipboard bathymetry, coring) rather than direct ones. Using deep-sea vehicles, we identify for the first time a marker of coseismic slip on a submarine fault plane along the Roseau Fault (Lesser Antilles), and measure its vertical displacement of ∼0.9 m in situ. We also map recent fissuring and faulting of sediments on the hangingwall, along ∼3 km of rupture in close proximity to the fault's base, and document the reactivation of erosion and sedimentation within and downslope of the scarp. These deformation structures were caused by the 2004 M w 6.3 Les Saintes earthquake, which triggered a subsequent tsunami. Their characterization informs estimates of earthquake recurrence on this fault and provides new constraints on the geometry of fault rupture, which is both shorter and displays locally larger coseismic displacements than available model predictions that lack field constraints. This methodology of detailed field observations coupled with near-bottom geophysical surveying can be readily applied to numerous submarine fault systems, and should prove useful in evaluating seismic and tsunamigenic hazard in all geodynamic contexts.
ISSN: 0012-821X

insu-01557932
https://hal-insu.archives-ouvertes.fr/insu-01557932
https://hal-insu.archives-ouvertes.fr/insu-01557932/document
https://hal-insu.archives-ouvertes.fr/insu-01557932/file/EPSL-2006-escartin.pdf
DOI : 10.1016/j.epsl.2016.06.024

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD SpringerOpen
Résumé : The Karakorum Fault zone (KFZ) plays an important role in understanding the formation, evolvement and deformation of the Tibetan Plateau. The high-T dextral shearing metamorphic rocks, e.g., mylonites or mylonitized gneisses-granites, locally crop out along the southeastern part of the KFZ in the Ayila Ri'gyü Range area. The SHRIMP U-Pb dating of the syn-kinematic crystallized zircons indicates that the initial age of the KFZ is ∼27 Ma, ∼10 Ma older than previous results. The extensive high-T dextral shearing along the KFZ started at least at 27–20 Ma, accompanied by the syn-kinematic emplacement of leuco-granites. Deformation and concomitant fluid circulation during shearing most likely occurred as early as at 25–13 Ma. The KFZ probably grew from southeast to northwest along the fault as a result of continuous convergence between the India plate and Eurasia plate.
ISSN: 1001-6538

hal-00406402
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-00406402
DOI : 10.1007/s11434-007-0164-6

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD American Geophysical Union
Résumé : International audience
After the January 12, 2010, Haiti earthquake, we deployed a mainly offshore temporary network of seismologic stations around the damaged area. The distribution of the recorded aftershocks, together with morphotectonic observations and mainshock analysis, allow us to constrain a complex fault pattern in the area. Almost all of the aftershocks have a N‐S compressive mechanism, and not the expected left‐lateral strike‐slip mechanism. A first‐order slip model of the mainshock shows a N264°E north‐dipping plane, with a major left‐lateral component and a strong reverse component. As the aftershock distribution is sub‐parallel and close to the Enriquillo fault, we assume that although the cause of the catastrophe was not a rupture along the Enriquillo fault, this fault had an important role as a mechanical boundary. The azimuth of the focal planes of the aftershocks are parallel to the north‐dipping faults of the Transhaitian Belt, which suggests a triggering of failure on these discontinuities. In the western part, the aftershock distribution reflects the triggering of slip on similar faults, and/or, alternatively, of the south‐dipping faults, such the Trois‐Baies submarine fault. These observations are in agreement with a model of an oblique collision of an indenter of the oceanic crust of the Southern Peninsula and the sedimentary wedge of the Transhaitian Belt: the rupture occurred on a wrench fault at the rheologic boundary on top of the under‐thrusting rigid oceanic block, whereas the aftershocks were the result of the relaxation on the hanging wall along pre‐existing discontinuities in the frontal part of the Transhaitian Belt.
ISSN: 0094-8276

insu-00643489
https://hal-insu.archives-ouvertes.fr/insu-00643489
https://hal-insu.archives-ouvertes.fr/insu-00643489/document
https://hal-insu.archives-ouvertes.fr/insu-00643489/file/GRL-haiti.2011.pdf
DOI : 10.1029/2011GL049799

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD AGU and the Geochemical Society
Résumé : International audience
Rainbow is a dome-shaped massif at the 36°14′N nontransform offset along the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. It hosts three ultramafic-hosted hydrothermal sites: Rainbow is active and high temperature; Clamstone and Ghost City are fossil and low temperature. The MoMARDREAM cruises (2007, 2008) presented here provided extensive rock sampling throughout the massif that constrains the geological setting of hydrothermal activity. The lithology is heterogeneous with abundant serpentinites surrounding gabbros, troctolites, chromitites, plagiogranites, and basalts. We propose that a W dipping detachment fault, now inactive, uplifted the massif and exhumed these deep-seated rocks. Present-day deformation is accommodated by SSW-NNE faults and fissures, consistent with oblique teleseismic focal mechanisms and stress rotation across the discontinuity. Faults localize fluid flow and control the location of fossil and active hydrothermal fields that appear to be ephemeral and lacking in spatiotemporal progression. Markers of high-temperature hydrothermal activity (∼350°C) are restricted to some samples from the active field while a more diffuse, lower temperature hydrothermal activity (<220°C) is inferred at various locations through anomalously high As, Sb, and Pb contents, attributed to element incorporation in serpentines or microscale-sulfide precipitation. Petrographic and geochemical analyses show that the dominant basement alteration is pervasive peridotite serpentinization at ∼160–260°C, attributed to fluids chemically similar to those venting at Rainbow, and controlled by concomitant alteration of mafic-ultramafic units at depth. Rainbow provides a model for fluid circulation, possibly applicable to hydrothermalism at oceanic detachments elsewhere, where both low-temperature serpentinization and magmatic-driven high-temperature outflow develop contemporaneously, channeled by faults in the footwall and not along the detachment fault.
ISSN: 1525-2027

hal-01115281
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01115281
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01115281/document
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01115281/file/Andreani_et_al-2014-Geochemistry%2C_Geophysics%2C_Geosystems.pdf
DOI : 10.1002/2014GC005269

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD American Geophysical Union
Résumé : International audience
We recover the Holocene earthquake history of seven seismogenic normal faults in the Fucino system, central Italy. We collected 800 samples from the well-preserved limestone scarps of the faults and modeled their 36Cl concentrations to derive their seismic exhumation history. We found that > 30 large earthquakes broke the faults in synchrony over the last 12 ka. The seven faults released strain at the same periods of time, 12-9 ka, 5-3 ka, and 1.5-1 ka. On all faults, the strain accumulation and release occurred in 3-6 ka supercycles, each included a 3-5 ka phase of slow (≤ 0.5-2 mm/yr) strain accumulation in relative quiescence, followed by a cluster of three to four large earthquakes or earthquake sequences that released most of the strain in < 1-2 ka. The large earthquakes repeated every 0.5 ± 0.3 ka during the paroxysmal phases and every 4.3 ± 0.9 ka between those phases. Earthquakes on the northern faults produced twice larger surface slips (~ 2 m) and had larger magnitudes (Mw 6.2-6.7) than those on the southern faults. On most faults, the relative strain level was found to control the amount of slip and the time of occurrence of the next large earthquake. Faults entered a phase of clustered activity once they had reached a specific relative strain threshold. The Tre Monti fault is identified as the most prone to break over the next century. Our data document earthquake synchrony and clustering at a broader space and time scale than has been reported to date.
ISSN: 0148-0227

hal-00903460
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-00903460
DOI : 10.1002/jgrb.50299

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD
Résumé : International audience
The deformation of natural systems in response to subsurface water storage and redistribution provides insightsinto the main water flow path within heterogeneous systems, including the role of faults or fractures. A longbaseline tiltmeter was installed in the low-noise underground laboratory of Rustrel (LSBB) to study the responseof the Fontaine de Vaucluse (FDV) karst hydrosystem to water cycle. Tilt data and piezometric levels recorded in aborehole close to the LSBB show a strong correlation with the discharge of the system observed at the FDV spring30 km away. Over several months, tilt data were recorded on three base lines, thus allowing, for the first time,to study the tilt gradient variation that appears homogeneous. Such information provides a significant constrainton hydrological processes leading to the measured deformation. Several deformation models were tested usingthe ADELI code to estimate the type of hydro-mechanical structure that could reproduce the measured tilt andits gradient. On one hand, models show that uniform loading at the surface produces a much smaller signal thanobserved on measured data. On the other hand, the deformation related to the filling of a fracture following aprecipitation event requires unrealistic fracture size. Finally, we found that a suitable hydro-mechanical modelcorresponds to the loading of numerous fractures at the interface between the saturated and unsaturated zones. Sucha configuration predicts a tilt distribution in agreement with observations. This study suggests that tilt networksinto a karst system should provide key observation for deciphering hydrological processes
Geophysical Research Abstracts
Vienne, Austria

insu-01308594
https://hal-insu.archives-ouvertes.fr/insu-01308594

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD American Association for the Advancement of Science
Résumé : International audience
Large earthquakes produce crustal deformation that can be quantified by geodetic measurements, allowing for the determination of the slip distribution on the fault. We used data from Global Positioning System (GPS) networks in Central Chile to infer the static deformation and the kinematics of the 2010 moment magnitude (M-w) 8.8 Maule megathrust earthquake. From elastic modeling, we found a total rupture length of similar to 500 kilometers where slip (up to 15 meters) concentrated on two main asperities situated on both sides of the epicenter. We found that rupture reached shallow depths, probably extending up to the trench. Resolvable afterslip occurred in regions of low coseismic slip. The low-frequency hypocenter is relocated 40 kilometers southwest of initial estimates. Rupture propagated bilaterally at about 3.1 kilometers per second, with possible but not fully resolved velocity variations.
ISSN: 0036-8075

hal-00783213
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-00783213
DOI : 10.1126/science.1204132

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD American Geophysical Union
Résumé : International audience
We present the results of a paleomagnetic study of seven new volcanic sections (146 flows) from Kerguelen Archipelago. For two of these sections, preliminary (;40;Ar/;39;Ar) ages are reported to aid in the calibration of the paleomagnetic results. The primary contribution of this report, however, is a compilation of these new data with those already published in order to describe statistically the characteristics of the paleomagnetic field as recorded by the Kerguelen flood basalts. In total, 258 paleomagnetic directions sampled at 13 stratigraphic sections through the lava pile are available and span an approximately 5 Ma window: from 25 to 30 Ma. The composite section represents at least 11 polarity zones that are correlated to the reference geomagnetic polarity timescale. Our approach is to investigate the average normal and reversed polarity field directions over this 5 Ma window. We calculated a paleomagnetic pole found to be located at ;λ; = 85.5°N, = 189.3°E (A;95; = 2.3°, K = 16.5, N = 233). This pole is in close agreement with the coeval paleomagnetic poles obtained from different worldwide places when analyzed in the Indo-Atlantic hot spot reference frame. In the statistical analysis we tackle the specific question: Is the secular variation isotropic? This question is directly related to the occurrence of a longitudinal confinement of the virtual geomagnetic poles, which is still a matter of debate among paleomagnetists. By means of statistical tests we show that the paleomagnetic data from Kerguelen agree with an isotropic model for paleosecular variation. Finally, we present adjustments to Camps and Prévot's (1996) statistical model, developed for some Northern Hemisphere latitudes, to the Southern Hemisphere paleomagnetic data from Kerguelen.
ISSN: 0148-0227

hal-00407636
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-00407636
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-00407636/document
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-00407636/file/pcamps-JGR2007.pdf
DOI : 10.1029/2006JB004648

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Elsevier
Résumé : The depth of the oceanic lithosphere–asthenosphere boundary (LAB), as inferred from shear wave velocities, increases with lithospheric age, in agreement with models of cooling oceanic lithosphere. On the other hand, the distribution of radial anisotropy under oceanic plates is almost age-independent. In particular, radial anisotropy shows a maximum positive gradient at a depth of ∼70 km, which, if used as a proxy, indicates an age-independent LAB depth. These contrasting observations have fueled a controversy on the seismological signature of the LAB. To better understand the discrepancy between these observations, we model the development of lattice preferred orientation (LPO) in upper mantle crystal aggregates and predict the seismic anisotropy produced by plate-driven mid-ocean ridge flows. The model accounts for the progressive cooling of the lithosphere with age and can incorporate both diffusion and dislocation creep deformation mechanisms. We find that an age-independent distribution of radial anisotropy is the natural consequence of these simple flows. The depth and strength of anisotropy is further controlled by the deformation regime – dislocation or diffusion creep – experienced by crystals during their ascent towards, and subsequent motion away from, the ridge axis. Comparison to surface wave tomography models yield constraints on rheological parameters such as the activation volume. Although not excluded, additional mechanisms proposed to explain some geophysical signatures of the LAB, such as the presence of partial melt or changes in water content, are not required to explain the radial anisotropy proxy. Our prediction, that the age-independent radial anisotropy proxy marks the transition to flow-induced asthenospheric anisotropy, provides a way to reconcile thermal, mechanical and seismological views of the LAB.
ISSN: 0012-821X

hal-01553243
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01553243
DOI : 10.1016/j.epsl.2016.12.004

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD
Résumé : This work deals with the dating of Mount Etna lava flows and eruptive fissure deposits to the last four millennia following field investigations and stratigraphic data (BRANCA et alii, 2011a). We have studied 24 of these volcanic products, including 301 large samples, through high precision archeomagnetic dating checked by 226Ra-230Th radiochronology, thus providing additional material to the previous paper by TANGUY et alii (2007). In most cases our results allow attributing ages to the historical period, although two flows are shown to be prehistoric. For the historic lavas, archeoma - gnetic ages can be defined within decades, except for three of them that erupted during a time span (Greco-Roman epoch) when the geomagnetic field underwent little variation. Although 60% of these volcanics exhibit ages comprised between 700 AD and 1850, only one (1285) is mentioned by contemporary written accounts. We conclude that i) historical documents alone are insufficient to reconstruct a coherent sequence of eruptions, and ii) a multidisciplinary approach is necessary to obtain a comprehensive eruptive history of such a very active volcano, useful for both scientific and civil protection purposes, even for such a geologically recent period as that of the last 10 or 20 centuries. Thanks to these new archeomagnetic and 226Ra-230Th data coupled with stratigraphic data, a comprehensive volcanic history of the still-outcropping Mount Etna volcanics is now available for the last 2,400 years. KEY WORDS: Etna volcano, archeomagnetic dating, 226Ra- 230Th dating, stratigraphy, historical account.
Italian Journal of Geosciences

hal-00758077
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-00758077
DOI : 10.3301/IJG.2012.01

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD
Résumé : International audience
Two opposing visions of the Aegean backarc tectonics implicitly contain contrasting images of the rheological behaviour of the lihosphere, supported by different sets of observations. The propagation of the NAF and extension in the Corinth Rift suggest a strongly localising rheology whereas the formation of MCC in the Cyclades and the Rhodope suggests instead a more viscous behaviour. This paradox was the seminal question addressed by the ANR-EGEO programme (2007-2010) that leads to the following conclusions: (1) The exhumation of the Cycladic MCC's is accommodated by the N-dipping North Cycladic Detachment System (NCDS) that partly reworks the Vardar suture and at the base by a series of thrusts, including the basal contact of the Cycladic Blueschists (CBS) over the Cycladic Basement (CB). The activity of LANF is due to the reactivation of pre-existing discontinuities such as thrusts or earlier detachments and much less to the interaction with granitic plutons. (2) Exhumation in the Cyclades has proceeded in two stages: (a) Eocene syn-orogenic exhumation within the subduction lower/upperplate interface while the post-orogenic Rhodope MCC formed further north, (b) Oligo-Miocene post-orogenic extension in an MCC mode coeval with syn-orogenic exhumation in Crete and the Peloponnese. (3) Both stages were associated with slab retreat, as early as the Eocene with an acceleration at 30-35 Ma. (4) The localisation of the presently active steeply-dipping normal faults on the southern margin of the Corinth Rift may have been preceded by a partial reworking of thrusts and syn-orogenic detachments by shallow-dipping decollements. (5) The localisation of the NAF in the Marmara Sea region and the Northern Aegean Sea is now accurately dated between 5.3 and 5 Ma Ma using the erosion and deposition surfaces that mark the Messinian salinity Crisis and nannofossils ages. (6) The formation of MCCs in the Cyclades resulted in the draining of the low viscosity lower crust from the northern Aegean Sea and led to an easier coupling between upper mantle and upper crust, easing the localisation and propagation of the NAF. (7) A comparison between crustal and mantle finite strain suggests that mantle flow due to slab retreat controls the stretching of the crust. Our model involves progressive slab retreat and mantle flow below the overriding plate inducing the observed succession of tectonic episodes with a progressive localisation of extension due to several slab tearing events. There is no paradox in the tectonic history and rheological behaviour of the Aegean lithosphere but an evolution of the kinematic boundary conditions due to slab deformation at depth.
American Geophysical Union
San Francisco, United States

insu-00860518
https://hal-insu.archives-ouvertes.fr/insu-00860518
BIBCODE : 2010AGUFM.T13G..04J

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD
Résumé : National audience
Mass balances are often used to calculate sediment fluxes in sedimentary basins and denudationrates in adjacent topographies on intermediate to long timescales (from a few tens ofthousand to a million years). In this study, we focus on simple Quaternary catchment–alluvial fansystems in the northern Tian Shan Range and its foreland basin to discuss some ideas about sedimentproduction, storage, release, and bypass in relatively short (100 km long) sediment routing systems.Based on a geometrical reconstruction of the fans, we estimated the volumes of sediments exportedout of the range and deposited in its alluvial piedmont during the Middle- Late Pleistocene andthe Holocene. This work shows that the two areas clearly present evidence of a temporary butsignificant storage of sediments during the Pleistocene. These sediments were then excavated anddelivered farther into the foreland basin during the Holocene. The difference between the volumesof materials released from the range and piedmont areas and the volume stored in thecontemporaneous fans downstream indicates that the latter did not trap the whole sediment loadtransported by the rivers. The alluvial fans were bypassed by 27 to 78% of this load toward thedownstream alluvial plain. It implies a major volumetric partitioning of the deposits between thefans and the alluvial plain, with a sedimentation rate about twenty times higher in the fans thanin the plain. However, this volumetric partitioning might only occur during periods with a veryspecific hydrological regime such as the Holocene deglaciation. Eventually, the peculiar sedimentstorage and release pattern within the range and piedmont areas during the Pleistocene and Holocenecomplicates the calculation of mean paleodenudation rates using either sediment budgets or in situproduced cosmogenic nuclides.
Association des Sédimentologistes Français. 15ème congrès français de sédimentologie
Chambéry, France

hal-01252100
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01252100

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD National Academy of Sciences
Résumé : International audience
Among the deep-sea hydrothermal vent sites discovered in thepast 30 years, Lost City on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge (MAR) isremarkable both for its alkaline fluids derived from mantle rockserpentinization and the spectacular seafloor carbonate chimneysprecipitated from these fluids. Despite high concentrations ofreduced chemicals in the fluids, this unique example of a serpentinite-hosted hydrothermal system currently lacks chemosyntheticassemblages dominated by large animals typical of high-temperaturevent sites. Here we report abundant specimens of chemosymbioticmussels, associated with gastropods and chemosymbioticclams, in approximately 100 kyr old Lost City-like carbonates fromthe MAR close to the Rainbow site (36 °N). Our finding shows thatserpentinization-related fluids, unaffected by high-temperaturehydrothermal circulation, can occur on-axis and are able to sustainhigh-biomass communities. The widespread occurrence of seafloorultramafic rocks linked to likely long-range dispersion of ventspecies therefore offers considerably more ecospace for chemosyntheticfauna in the oceans than previously supposed
ISSN: 0027-8424

insu-01352929
https://hal-insu.archives-ouvertes.fr/insu-01352929
https://hal-insu.archives-ouvertes.fr/insu-01352929/document
https://hal-insu.archives-ouvertes.fr/insu-01352929/file/PNAS-2011-Lartaud-7698-703.pdf
DOI : 10.1073/pnas.1009383108

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD American Geophysical Union
Résumé : The acquisition of reliable data sets representative of hydrological regimes and their variations is a critical concern for water resource assessment. For the subsurface, traditional approaches based on probe measurements, core analysis, and well data can be laborious, expensive, and highly intrusive, while only yielding sparse data sets. For this study, an innovative field survey, merging relative microgravimetry, magnetic resonance soundings, and hydrological measurements, was conducted to evaluate both surface and subsurface water storage variations in a semiarid Sahelian area. The instrumental setup was implemented in the lower part of a typical hillslope feeding to a temporary pond. Weekly measurements were carried out using relative spring gravimeters during 3 months of the rainy season in 2009 over a 350 × 500 m2 network of 12 microgravity stations. Gravity variations of small to medium amplitude (≤220 nm s−2) were measured with accuracies better than 50 nm s−2, revealing significant variations of the water storage at small time (from 1 week up to 3 months) and space (from a couple of meters up to a few hundred meters) scales. Consistent spatial organization of the water storage variations were detected, suggesting high infiltration at the outlet of a small gully. The comparison with hydrological measurements and magnetic resonance soundings involved that most of the microgravity variations came from the heterogeneity in the vadose zone. The results highlight the potential of time lapse microgravity surveys for detecting intraseasonal water storage variations and providing rich space-time data sets for process investigation or hydrological model calibration/evaluation
ISSN: 0043-1397

hal-00857351
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-00857351
DOI : 10.1002/wrcr.20235