Plio-Quaternary thin-skinned tectonics along the crustal front flexure of the southern Central Andes: a record of the regional stress regime or of local tectonic-driven gravitational processes?

Messager, G.; Nivière, Bertrand; Lacan, Pierre; Hervouët, Yves; Xavier, Jean-Paul

doi:10.1007/s00531-013-0983-4

Cited by 11 publications

(20 citation statements)

References 108 publications

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“…Dominant gravity gliding requires the tilting of the basement, which can be triggered by the thermal subsidence of young passive margins or by tectonic activity due to rifting or margin uplift [e.g., Duval et al ., ; Penge et al ., ; Bishop et al ., ] or basement fault activity [ Sellier et al ., ]. The thickness ( T ) of the decoupled cover must be small with respect to its length ( L ) ( T / L < 0.1) [e.g., Messager et al ., ]. In both gravity gliding and spreading, a high rate of sedimentation fosters the displacement [e.g., Worral and Snelson , ; Cobbold and Szatmari , ; Mauduit et al ., ; Gemmer et al ., , ], and the presence of fluids increases the solid and fluid pressure in the sediments, which in turn reduces the failure criterion [e.g., Gemmer et al ., ; Mourgues et al ., , ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Recently, Messager et al . [] described coeval thin‐skinned stretching and shortening above the crustal front flexure of the southern Andean fold belts, interpreting these structures as the potential downslope slide of a ~30 km long and 1000 m thick raft of indurated and undeformed sediments. However, Messager et al .…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…However, Messager et al . [] show that stretching on top of the slope may also result from the stress developed by flexure as inferred from mechanical analysis [e.g., Friedman et al ., ] and natural examples [e.g., Emami et al ., ]. The occurrence of dominant gravity gliding on land is not intuitive.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…We argue that this process may occur in the Central Andes where Tertiary to Present inversion of Mesozoic rift basins has led to the segmentation of the foreland into broad crustal uplifted blocks and temporary intramountain basins [e.g., Giambiagi et al ., ; Hilley and Strecker , ; Messager et al ., ] and where tensional strain is encountered at the outer hinge of the uplifted blocks [ Ramos , ; Narciso et al ., ; Galland et al ., ; Folguera et al ., ; Messager et al ., ]. We test here the onland gravity gliding model described by Messager et al .…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…We test here the onland gravity gliding model described by Messager et al . []. We use the two‐dimensional (2‐D) finite element code ADELI associated with the dynamic relaxation method and realistic constitutive models [ Hassani et al ., ] to estimate the critical slope required for failure at the top and toe of a frictional‐plastic sedimentary cover ( model 1 ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Mechanical analysis of a natural example of onland gravity gliding: The role of river incision and deposition

2014

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Gravity gliding implies rigid translation of a body down a slope where displacements are parallel to a tilted detachment plane. Although large-scale gravity gliding is commonly observed offshore, under conditions of high fluid overpressure and abundant upslope sedimentary supply, its occurrence on land is debated. We investigate the mechanical feasibility of such a process as well as the role of fluvial incision and sedimentation down the slope in the initiation of the gliding. We use a two-dimensional (2-D) finite element model combined with a 2-D failure analysis approach. The numerical models simulate the deformation and provide quantitative estimates of the failure criteria at the head and toe of the overburden. Analytical solutions approximate the numerical results by taking into account the fluvial incision and sedimentation, the internal friction angle, and the thickness and length of the overburden. Our models are based on a field example in the Andean foothills of Argentina, where gravity gliding of a 1000 m thick section is suspected above a crustal-scale anticline. The incision and sedimentation reduce and strengthen, respectively, the downslope resistance to contractional failure. The critical slope at which the gliding is initiated is reduced by fluvial incision and increased by sedimentation. We show that tectonic uplift may lead to large-scale gravity gliding on land where the overburden thickness is less than 2000 m. Incision facilitates and localizes the frontal shortening. Incision greater than 1000 m may trigger gliding for overburden up to 4000 m thick, while sedimentation thicker than 1000 m inhibits gliding. These results show that thin-skinned onland gravity gliding could be common in tectonically active regions where incision is important.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Mechanical analysis of a natural example of onland gravity gliding: The role of river incision and deposition

2014

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Quaternary Deformation in the Neuquén Basin, Explained by the Interaction Between Mantle Dynamics and Tectonics

Sagripanti

Colavitto

Astort

et al. 2020

Springer Earth System Sciences

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Evidence of Quaternary tectonics along Río Grande valley, southern Malargüe fold and thrust belt, Mendoza, Argentina

et al. 2019

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The Malargüe fold and thrust belt is developed in the Argentinian Andes between 34º and 37º S, through the tectonic inversion of Upper Triassic and Lower Jurassic depocenters of the Neuquén Basin, with an uplift history since the Cretaceous. Evidence of Quaternary deformation has been described in the northern part of it (34-34.5°S), potentially coeval to neotectonic activity along the eastern edge of San Rafael block. To the south, compressional and extensional structures active during the Quaternary were found in the Dorso de los Chihuidos along the Agrio fold and thrust belt front (37.5-38°S).Contrastingly, the southern segment of the Malargüe fold and thrust belt between these two areas with described neotectonic activity is partially covered by Quaternary products of the Payún Matrú volcanic field, that may hide evidence of recent deformation. In this 300 km gap of neotectonic information, the landscape imprint of two individual structures aligned in the mountain front through the Río Grande valley was analyzed. New evidence of neotectonic deformation were recognized, in particular over the western slope of the Cara Cura range, expressed by faulting and folding of Quaternary deposits and ACCEPTED MANUSCRIPTA C C E P T E D M A N U S C R I P T lava flows. An 40 Ar/ 39 Ar age from a deformed lava flow at the flanks of an anticline in the foothills of the Cara Cura range may suggest at least an upper Pleistocene compressional tectonic activity.Longitudinal river profile analysis revealed anomalies that show some correlation with the neotectonic structures described, especially knickpoints and concavity index changes. Meanwhile normalized steepness index values showed a moderate response to recent deformation. A proposed schematic geomorphic evolution for this segment of Río Grande river is discussed to put the neotectonic activity into the context of landscape formation. All together this evidence supports the idea of an active front through the Río Grande valley during the Quaternary, coetaneous to an active broken foreland to the east in the southern Central Andes.

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Plio-Quaternary thin-skinned tectonics along the crustal front flexure of the southern Central Andes: a record of the regional stress regime or of local tectonic-driven gravitational processes?

Cited by 11 publications

References 108 publications

Mechanical analysis of a natural example of onland gravity gliding: The role of river incision and deposition

Mechanical analysis of a natural example of onland gravity gliding: The role of river incision and deposition

Quaternary Deformation in the Neuquén Basin, Explained by the Interaction Between Mantle Dynamics and Tectonics

Evidence of Quaternary tectonics along Río Grande valley, southern Malargüe fold and thrust belt, Mendoza, Argentina

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