Preprints
Filtering by Subject: Geology
How do pre-existing normal faults influence rift geometry? A comparison of adjacent basins with contrasting underlying structure on the Lofoten Margin, Norway
Published: 2019-11-20
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Geology, Physical Sciences and Mathematics
Recent studies of natural, multiphase rifts suggest that the presence of pre‐existing faults may strongly influence fault growth during later rift phases. These findings compare well with predictions from recent scaled analogue experiments that simulate multiphase, non‐coaxial extension. However, in natural rifts we only get to see the final result of multiphase rifting. We therefore do not get [...]
Ultramafic rock carbonation: Constraints from listvenite core BT1B, Oman Drilling Project
Published: 2019-11-14
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Geochemistry, Geology, Mineral Physics, Other Earth Sciences, Physical Sciences and Mathematics
The occurrence of the quartz–carbonate alteration assemblage (listvenite) in ophiolites indicates that ultramafic rock represents an effective sink for dissolved CO2. However, the majority of earlier studies of ultramafic rock carbonation had to rely on the surface exposure of reaction textures and field relationships. Here we present the first observations on ultramafic rock alteration obtained [...]
Logarithmic growth of dikes from a depressurizing magma chamber
Published: 2019-11-13
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Geology, Geophysics and Seismology, Physical Sciences and Mathematics, Volcanology
Dike propagation is an intrinsically multiphase problem, where deformation and fluid flow are intricately coupled in a fracture process. Here we perform the first fully-coupled simulations of dike propagation in two dimensions, accounting for depressurization of a circular magma chamber, dynamic fluid flow, fracture formation, and elastic deformation. Despite the complexity of the governing [...]
Growth, overprinting, and stabilization of Proterozoic Provinces in the southern Lake Superior region
Published: 2019-11-07
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Geochemistry, Geology, Physical Sciences and Mathematics, Tectonics and Structure
New geochronologic data in the southern Lake Superior region provide key information on the timing and nature of tectonic activity that pre-and post-date initial Paleoproterozoic growth of Laurentia during the geon 18 Penokean orogeny. The obducted Pembine ophiolite formed along the edge of a Paleoproterozoic ocean basin at least 30 m.y. prior to Penokean island arc/microcontinent accretion [...]
Nowcasting submarine slope instability at local, margin, and global scales using machine learning
Published: 2019-11-07
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Geology, Physical Sciences and Mathematics
Submarine slope instability (SSI) is a broad term for events ranging from 100 km3 instantaneous open slope failures on continental margins to 0.001 km3 creeping mudflows on heavily sedimented river deltas. SSI events such as the 2018 Sunda Strait and 1929 Grand Banks submarine landslides extract high societal tolls, yet SSI predictive capability is limited. SSI observational studies are resource [...]
Neogene-Recent Reactivation of Jurassic-age Faults in Southern Vietnam, with Implications for the Extrusion of Indochina
Published: 2019-11-02
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Geology, Physical Sciences and Mathematics
Onshore Vietnam contains a complex series of faults coupled with a diffuse igneous province that has been active since the mid-Miocene. However, there are several conflicting fault maps in the literature and no consensus concerning the relative age of mapped faults and Neogene basalt flows, which becomes problematic when trying to use structural data to distinguish between competing tectonic [...]
The variation and visualisation of elastic anisotropy in rock-forming minerals
Published: 2019-10-31
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Geochemistry, Geology, Geophysics and Seismology, Mineral Physics, Physical Sciences and Mathematics, Tectonics and Structure
All minerals behave elastically, a rheological property that controls their ability to support stress, strain and pressure, the nature of acoustic wave propagation and influences subsequent plastic (i.e. permanent, non-reversible) deformation. All minerals are intrinsically anisotropic in their elastic properties – that is, they have directional variations that are related to the configuration [...]
Does fluvial channel belt clustering predict net sand to gross rock volume? Architectural metrics and point pattern analysis of a digital outcrop model
Published: 2019-10-30
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Geology, Physical Sciences and Mathematics, Sedimentology, Stratigraphy
Spatial point-pattern analyses (PPAs) are used to quantify clustering, randomness, and uniformity of the distribution of channel belts in fluvial strata. Point patterns may reflect end-member fluvial architecture, e.g., uniform compensational stacking and avulsion-generated clustering, which may change laterally, especially at greater scales. To investigate spatial and temporal changes in fluvial [...]
PYRENAIC ROCK GLACIERS: AN AIRBORNE AND MULTITEMPORAL LiDAR MONITORING CASE STUDY IN THE BESIBERRI AREA
Published: 2019-10-24
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Environmental Sciences, Geology, Geomorphology, Glaciology, Physical Sciences and Mathematics
The monitoring of rock glaciers is a current subject of interest because of its application as permafrost indicator and its sensitivity to climatic changes (especially temperature and precipitation). Alpine rock glaciers in the Pyrenees have been described by various authors, but to study them regionally has been a challenge since most of these studies are based on ground-based techniques. Two [...]
Inheritance of penetrative basement anisotropies by extension-oblique faults: Insights from analogue experiments
Published: 2019-10-24
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Geology, Physical Sciences and Mathematics, Tectonics and Structure
During rifting, pre-existing penetrative basement fabrics can affect new faults in cover rocks by a mechanism that does not appear to involve reactivation. This subtle form of inheritance can significantly impact fault network architecture in rift basins above laterally variable basement domains with geomechanical anisotropies. Here we use multi-layer, brittle-ductile, crustal-scale analogue [...]
Pre-breakup extension in the northern North Sea defined by complex strain partitioning and heterogeneous extension rates
Published: 2019-10-24
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Geology, Physical Sciences and Mathematics, Tectonics and Structure
The early stages of continental rifting are accommodated by the growth of upper-crustal normal fault systems that are distributed relatively evenly across the rift width. Numerous fault systems define fault arrays, the kinematics of which are poorly understood due to a lack of regional studies drawing on high-quality subsurface data. Here we investigate the long-term (~150 Myr) growth of a [...]
“Conjugate margins” – An oversimplification of the complex southern North Atlantic rift and spreading system?
Published: 2019-10-13
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Geology, Physical Sciences and Mathematics, Tectonics and Structure
The prevalence of conjugate margin terminology and studies in the scientific literature is testimony to the contribution that this concept and approach has made to the study of passive margins, and more broadly extensional tectonics. However, when applied to the complex rift, transform and spreading system of the southern North Atlantic (i.e. the passive margins of Newfoundland, Labrador, [...]
Four-dimensional Variability of Composite Halokinetic Sequences
Published: 2019-10-10
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Geology, Physical Sciences and Mathematics, Tectonics and Structure
The architecture of salt diapir-flank strata (i.e. halokinetic sequences) is controlled by the interplay between volumetric diapiric flux and sediment accumulation rate. Halokinetic sequences consist of unconformity-bounded packages of thinned and folded strata formed by drape-folding around passive diapirs. These sequences are described by two end-members: (i) hooks, which are characterized by [...]
Asperity failure control of stick-slip along brittle faults
Published: 2019-10-08
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Geology, Physical Sciences and Mathematics
Stick-slips are spontaneous, unstable slip events during which a natural or man-made system transitions from a strong, sticking stage to a weaker, slipping stage. Stick-slips were proposed by Brace and Byerlee (1966) as the experimental analogue of natural earthquakes. We analyze here the mechanics of stick-slips along brittle faults by conducting laboratory experiments and by modeling the [...]
An empirical approach to estimating hydrocarbon column heights for improved pre-drill volume prediction in hydrocarbon exploration
Published: 2019-10-03
Subjects: Analysis, Earth Sciences, Geology, Mathematics, Physical Sciences and Mathematics
Estimating pre-drill volumes in hydrocarbon exploration involves dealing with geological and technical uncertainties. The prediction of the hydrocarbon column height is widely recognized as the primary driver of uncertainty in volumetric estimates. The oil and gas industry continues to renew efforts to limit such uncertainties because of the potential economic costs of inaccurate estimation, yet [...]