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Kinematics of Late Quaternary Slip Along the Qishan‐Mazhao Fault: Implications for Tectonic Deformation on the Southwestern Ordos, China
Author(s) -
Li Xinnan,
Zhang Peizhen,
Zheng Wenjun,
Feng Xijie,
Li Chuanyou,
Pierce Ian K. D.,
Xu Hongyan,
Li Xiaoni,
Ai Ming,
Chen Gan,
Dong Jinyuan,
Liu Jinrui,
Ren Guangxue
Publication year - 2018
Publication title -
tectonics
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.465
H-Index - 134
eISSN - 1944-9194
pISSN - 0278-7407
DOI - 10.1029/2018tc005043
Subject(s) - geology , slip (aerodynamics) , fluvial , quaternary , sinistral and dextral , tectonics , kinematics , fault (geology) , seismology , offset (computer science) , loess , geomorphology , paleontology , physics , classical mechanics , thermodynamics , structural basin , computer science , programming language
The northwest striking Qishan‐Mazhao fault (QMF) accommodates complex deformation in the Tibet‐Ordos transition zone. We studied the geologic and geomorphic expression of the QMF using interpretations of high‐resolution satellite images and structure‐from‐motion models combined with detailed field investigations. Displaced loess tablelands, stream channels, and fluvial terraces show that the QMF is predominately a left‐lateral strike‐slip fault with a minor normal component. The magnetic susceptibility and optically stimulated luminescence ages of offset fluvial terraces yield left‐lateral slip rates ranging from 0.5 to 1.0 mm/year. Regionally, the QMF and the Haiyuan fault (HYF) form a large right step, in which the Liupanshan Mountains are located. The QMF shares a similar orientation and sense of motion to the HYF, suggesting that the left‐lateral slip of the HYF is not completely absorbed as crustal shortening across the Liupanshan Mountains but is partially transferred to slip along the QMF.