Record Details
Late Quaternary faulting in the Kaikoura region, southeastern Marlborough, New Zealand
ScholarsArchive at Oregon State University
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Title | Late Quaternary faulting in the Kaikoura region, southeastern Marlborough, New Zealand |
| Names |
Van Dissen, Russell J.
(creator) Yeats, Robert S. (advisor) |
| Date Issued | 1989-02-15 (iso8601) |
| Note | Graduation date: 1989 |
| Abstract | Active faults in the Kaikoura region include the Hope, Kekerengu, and Fidget Faults, and the newly discovered Jordan Thrust, Fyffe, and Kowhai Faults. Ages of faulted alluvial terraces along the Hope Fault and the Jordan Thrust were estimated using radiocarbon-calibrated weathering-rind measurements on graywacke clasts. Within the study area, the Hope Fault is divided, from west to east, into the Kahutara, Mt. Fyffe, and Seaward segments. The Kahutara segment has a relatively constant Holocene right-lateral slip rate of 20-32 mm/yr, and an earthquake recurrence interval of 86 to 600 yrs: based on single-event displacements of 3 to 12 m. The western portion of the Mt. Fyffe segment has a minimum Holocene lateral slip rate of 16 ± 5 mm/yr .(southeast side up); the eastern portion has horizontal and vertical slip rates of 4.8 ± 2.7 mm/yr and 1.7 ± 0.2 mm/yr, respectively (northwest side up). There is no dated evidence for late Quaternary movement on the Seaward segment, and its topographic expression is much more subdued than that of the two western segments. The Jordan Thrust extends northeast from the Hope Fault, west of the Seaward segment. The thrust has horizontal and vertical slip rates of 2.2 ± 1.3 mm/yr and 2.1 ± 0.5 mm/yr, respectively (northwest side up), and a maximum recurrence interval of 1200 yrs: based on 3 events within the last 3.5 ka. Drainage-divide elevation and mountain-front morphology of the Seaward Kaikoura Range, abundant evidence for recent activity on the Jordan Thrust, and lack of activity on the Seaward segment indicate that the late Quaternary displacement on the Hope Fault is transferred northward, west of the Seaward segment. The low slip rates for the thrust, compared to the higher lateral slip rates along the Kahutara and Mt. Fyffe segments, suggest that displacement on the Jordan Thrust does not accommodate all the displacement transferred from the Hope Fault. The remaining displacement is accommodated by distributed shear within the Torlesse rocks behind the thrust, and folds in front of and behind the thrust, although the latter was not documented for the Holocene. |
| Genre | Thesis/Dissertation |
| Topic | Faults (Geology) -- New Zealand |
| Identifier | http://hdl.handle.net/1957/39231 |
