Articles | Volume 14, issue 8
https://doi.org/10.5194/se-14-823-2023
© Author(s) 2023. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
https://doi.org/10.5194/se-14-823-2023
© Author(s) 2023. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Research article
| 
07 Aug 2023
Research article |
| 07 Aug 2023
| 07 Aug 2023
The link between Somalian Plate rotation and the East African Rift System: an analogue modelling study
Institute of Geological Sciences, University of Bern,
Baltzerstrasse 1+3, 3012 Bern, Switzerland
Helmholtz Centre Potsdam – GFZ German Research Centre for
Geosciences, Telegrafenberg, 14473 Potsdam, Germany
Department of Geosciences, University of Fribourg, Chemin du
Musée 6, 1700 Fribourg, Switzerland
Guido Schreurs
Institute of Geological Sciences, University of Bern,
Baltzerstrasse 1+3, 3012 Bern, Switzerland
Related authors
Pâmela C. Richetti, Frank Zwaan, Guido Schreurs, Renata S. Schmitt, and Timothy C. Schmid
Solid Earth, 14, 1245–1266, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-14-1245-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-14-1245-2023, 2023
Short summary
Short summary
The Araripe Basin in NE Brazil was originally formed during Cretaceous times, as South America and Africa broke up. The basin is an important analogue to offshore South Atlantic break-up basins; its sediments were uplifted and are now found at 1000 m height, allowing for studies thereof, but the cause of the uplift remains debated. Here we ran a series of tectonic laboratory experiments that show how a specific plate tectonic configuration can explain the evolution of the Araripe Basin.
Frank Zwaan, Tiago Alves, Patricia Cadenas, Mohamed Gouiza, Jordan Phethean, Sascha Brune, and Anne Glerum
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2023-2548, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2023-2548, 2023
Short summary
Short summary
Rifting and the break-up of continents is a key aspect of Earth’s plate tectonic system. A thorough understanding of the geological processes involved in rifting, as well as of the associated natural hazards and resources, is of great importance in the context of the energy transition. Here, we provide a coherent overview of rift processes and the links with hazards and resources, and we assess future challenges and opportunities for (collaboration between) researchers, government, and industry.
Frank Zwaan, Guido Schreurs, Susanne J. H. Buiter, Oriol Ferrer, Riccardo Reitano, Michael Rudolf, and Ernst Willingshofer
Solid Earth, 13, 1859–1905, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-13-1859-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-13-1859-2022, 2022
Short summary
Short summary
When a sedimentary basin is subjected to compressional tectonic forces after its formation, it may be inverted. A thorough understanding of such
basin inversionis of great importance for scientific, societal, and economic reasons, and analogue tectonic models form a key part of our efforts to study these processes. We review the advances in the field of basin inversion modelling, showing how the modelling results can be applied, and we identify promising venues for future research.
Frank Zwaan, Pauline Chenin, Duncan Erratt, Gianreto Manatschal, and Guido Schreurs
Solid Earth, 12, 1473–1495, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-12-1473-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-12-1473-2021, 2021
Short summary
Short summary
We used laboratory experiments to simulate the early evolution of rift systems, and the influence of structural weaknesses left over from previous tectonic events that can localize new deformation. We find that the orientation and type of such weaknesses can induce complex structures with different orientations during a single phase of rifting, instead of requiring multiple rifting phases. These findings provide a strong incentive to reassess the tectonic history of various natural examples.
Frank Zwaan, Guido Schreurs, and Susanne J. H. Buiter
Solid Earth, 10, 1063–1097, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-10-1063-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-10-1063-2019, 2019
Short summary
Short summary
This work was inspired by an effort to numerically reproduce laboratory models of extension tectonics. We tested various set-ups to find a suitable analogue model and in the process systematically charted the impact of set-ups and boundary conditions on model results, a topic poorly described in existing scientific literature. We hope that our model results and the discussion on which specific tectonic settings they could represent may serve as a guide for future (analogue) modeling studies.
Pâmela C. Richetti, Frank Zwaan, Guido Schreurs, Renata S. Schmitt, and Timothy C. Schmid
Solid Earth, 14, 1245–1266, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-14-1245-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-14-1245-2023, 2023
Short summary
Short summary
The Araripe Basin in NE Brazil was originally formed during Cretaceous times, as South America and Africa broke up. The basin is an important analogue to offshore South Atlantic break-up basins; its sediments were uplifted and are now found at 1000 m height, allowing for studies thereof, but the cause of the uplift remains debated. Here we ran a series of tectonic laboratory experiments that show how a specific plate tectonic configuration can explain the evolution of the Araripe Basin.
Frank Zwaan, Tiago Alves, Patricia Cadenas, Mohamed Gouiza, Jordan Phethean, Sascha Brune, and Anne Glerum
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2023-2548, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2023-2548, 2023
Short summary
Short summary
Rifting and the break-up of continents is a key aspect of Earth’s plate tectonic system. A thorough understanding of the geological processes involved in rifting, as well as of the associated natural hazards and resources, is of great importance in the context of the energy transition. Here, we provide a coherent overview of rift processes and the links with hazards and resources, and we assess future challenges and opportunities for (collaboration between) researchers, government, and industry.
Timothy Chris Schmid, Sascha Brune, Anne Glerum, and Guido Schreurs
Solid Earth, 14, 389–407, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-14-389-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-14-389-2023, 2023
Short summary
Short summary
Continental rifts form by linkage of individual rift segments and disturb the regional stress field. We use analog and numerical models of such rift segment interactions to investigate the linkage of deformation and stresses and subsequent stress deflections from the regional stress pattern. This local stress re-orientation eventually causes rift deflection when multiple rift segments compete for linkage with opposingly propagating segments and may explain rift deflection as observed in nature.
Frank Zwaan, Guido Schreurs, Susanne J. H. Buiter, Oriol Ferrer, Riccardo Reitano, Michael Rudolf, and Ernst Willingshofer
Solid Earth, 13, 1859–1905, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-13-1859-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-13-1859-2022, 2022
Short summary
Short summary
When a sedimentary basin is subjected to compressional tectonic forces after its formation, it may be inverted. A thorough understanding of such
basin inversionis of great importance for scientific, societal, and economic reasons, and analogue tectonic models form a key part of our efforts to study these processes. We review the advances in the field of basin inversion modelling, showing how the modelling results can be applied, and we identify promising venues for future research.
Frank Zwaan, Pauline Chenin, Duncan Erratt, Gianreto Manatschal, and Guido Schreurs
Solid Earth, 12, 1473–1495, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-12-1473-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-12-1473-2021, 2021
Short summary
Short summary
We used laboratory experiments to simulate the early evolution of rift systems, and the influence of structural weaknesses left over from previous tectonic events that can localize new deformation. We find that the orientation and type of such weaknesses can induce complex structures with different orientations during a single phase of rifting, instead of requiring multiple rifting phases. These findings provide a strong incentive to reassess the tectonic history of various natural examples.
Frank Zwaan, Guido Schreurs, and Susanne J. H. Buiter
Solid Earth, 10, 1063–1097, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-10-1063-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-10-1063-2019, 2019
Short summary
Short summary
This work was inspired by an effort to numerically reproduce laboratory models of extension tectonics. We tested various set-ups to find a suitable analogue model and in the process systematically charted the impact of set-ups and boundary conditions on model results, a topic poorly described in existing scientific literature. We hope that our model results and the discussion on which specific tectonic settings they could represent may serve as a guide for future (analogue) modeling studies.
Related subject area
Subject area: Tectonic plate interactions, magma genesis, and lithosphere deformation at all scales | Editorial team: Structural geology and tectonics, paleoseismology, rock physics, experimental deformation | Discipline: Tectonics
Extensional exhumation of cratons: insights from the Early Cretaceous Rio Negro–Juruena belt (Amazonian Craton, Colombia)
Hydrogen solubility of stishovite provides insights into water transportation to the deep Earth
Networks of geometrically coherent faults accommodate Alpine tectonic inversion offshore southwestern Iberia
Melt-enhanced strain localization and phase mixing in a large-scale mantle shear zone (Ronda peridotite, Spain)
Selective inversion of rift basins in lithospheric-scale analogue experiments
Inversion of extensional basins parallel and oblique to their boundaries: inferences from analogue models and field observations from the Dolomites Indenter, European eastern Southern Alps
Magnetic fabric analyses of basin inversion: a sandbox modelling approach
The influence of crustal strength on rift geometry and development – insights from 3D numerical modelling
Construction of the Ukrainian Carpathian wedge from low-temperature thermochronology and tectono-stratigraphic analysis
Analogue modelling of basin inversion: a review and future perspectives
Insights into the interaction of a shale with CO2
Tectonostratigraphic evolution of the Slyne Basin
Control of crustal strength, tectonic inheritance, and stretching/ shortening rates on crustal deformation and basin reactivation: insights from laboratory models
Late Cretaceous–early Palaeogene inversion-related tectonic structures at the northeastern margin of the Bohemian Massif (southwestern Poland and northern Czechia)
The analysis of slip tendency of major tectonic faults in Germany
Earthquake ruptures and topography of the Chilean margin controlled by plate interface deformation
Late Quaternary faulting in the southern Matese (Italy): implications for earthquake potential and slip rate variability in the southern Apennines
Rare earth elements associated with carbonatite–alkaline complexes in western Rajasthan, India: exploration targeting at regional scale
Structural complexities and tectonic barriers controlling recent seismic activity in the Pollino area (Calabria–Lucania, southern Italy) – constraints from stress inversion and 3D fault model building
The Mid Atlantic Appalachian Orogen Traverse: a comparison of virtual and on-location field-based capstone experiences
Chronology of thrust propagation from an updated tectono-sedimentary framework of the Miocene molasse (western Alps)
Orogenic lithosphere and slabs in the greater Alpine area – interpretations based on teleseismic P-wave tomography
Ground-penetrating radar signature of Quaternary faulting: a study from the Mt. Pollino region, southern Apennines, Italy
U–Pb dating of middle Eocene–Pliocene multiple tectonic pulses in the Alpine foreland
Detrital zircon provenance record of the Zagros mountain building from the Neotethys obduction to the Arabia–Eurasia collision, NW Zagros fold–thrust belt, Kurdistan region of Iraq
The Subhercynian Basin: an example of an intraplate foreland basin due to a broken plate
Late to post-Variscan basement segmentation and differential exhumation along the SW Bohemian Massif, central Europe
Holocene surface-rupturing earthquakes on the Dinaric Fault System, western Slovenia
Contribution of gravity gliding in salt-bearing rift basins – a new experimental setup for simulating salt tectonics under the influence of sub-salt extension and tilting
Thick- and thin-skinned basin inversion in the Danish Central Graben, North Sea – the role of deep evaporites and basement kinematics
Complex rift patterns, a result of interacting crustal and mantle weaknesses, or multiphase rifting? Insights from analogue models
Interactions of plutons and detachments: a comparison of Aegean and Tyrrhenian granitoids
Insights from elastic thermobarometry into exhumation of high-pressure metamorphic rocks from Syros, Greece
Stress rotation – impact and interaction of rock stiffness and faults
Late Cretaceous to Paleogene exhumation in central Europe – localized inversion vs. large-scale domal uplift
Kinematics and extent of the Piemont–Liguria Basin – implications for subduction processes in the Alps
Effects of basal drag on subduction dynamics from 2D numerical models
Hydrocarbon accumulation in basins with multiple phases of extension and inversion: examples from the Western Desert (Egypt) and the western Black Sea
Long-wavelength late-Miocene thrusting in the north Alpine foreland: implications for late orogenic processes
A reconstruction of Iberia accounting for Western Tethys–North Atlantic kinematics since the late-Permian–Triassic
The enigmatic curvature of Central Iberia and its puzzling kinematics
Control of 3-D tectonic inheritance on fold-and-thrust belts: insights from 3-D numerical models and application to the Helvetic nappe system
Plio-Quaternary tectonic evolution of the southern margin of the Alboran Basin (Western Mediterranean)
Surface deformation relating to the 2018 Lake Muir earthquake sequence, southwest Western Australia: new insight into stable continental region earthquakes
Seismic reflection data reveal the 3D structure of the newly discovered Exmouth Dyke Swarm, offshore NW Australia
Cenozoic deformation in the Tauern Window (Eastern Alps) constrained by in situ Th-Pb dating of fissure monazite
Uncertainties in break-up markers along the Iberia–Newfoundland margins illustrated by new seismic data
Tectonic inheritance controls nappe detachment, transport and stacking in the Helvetic nappe system, Switzerland: insights from thermomechanical simulations
Can subduction initiation at a transform fault be spontaneous?
The Geodynamic World Builder: a solution for complex initial conditions in numerical modeling
Ana Fonseca, Simon Nachtergaele, Amed Bonilla, Stijn Dewaele, and Johan De Grave
Solid Earth, 15, 329–352, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-15-329-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-15-329-2024, 2024
Short summary
Short summary
This study explores the erosion and exhumation processes and history of early continental crust hidden within the Amazonian Rainforest. This crust forms part of the Amazonian Craton, an ancient continental fragment. Our surprising findings reveal the area underwent rapid early Cretaceous exhumation triggered by tectonic forces. This discovery challenges the traditional perception that cratons are stable and long-lived entities and shows they can deform readily under specific geological contexts.
Mengdan Chen, Changxin Yin, Danling Chen, Long Tian, Liang Liu, and Lei Kang
Solid Earth, 15, 215–227, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-15-215-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-15-215-2024, 2024
Short summary
Short summary
Stishovite remains stable under mantle conditions and can incorporate various amounts of water in its crystal structure. We provide a systematic review of previous studies on water in stishovite and propose a new model for water solubility of Al-bearing stishovite. Calculation results based on this model suggest that stishovite may effectively accommodate water from the breakdown of hydrous minerals and could make an important contribution to water enrichment in the mantle transition zone.
Tiago M. Alves
Solid Earth, 15, 39–62, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-15-39-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-15-39-2024, 2024
Short summary
Short summary
Alpine tectonic inversion is reviewed for southwestern Iberia, known for its historical earthquakes and tsunamis. High-quality 2D seismic data image 26 faults mapped to a depth exceeding 10 km. Normal faults accommodated important vertical uplift and shortening. They are 100–250 km long and may generate earthquakes with Mw > 8.0. Regions of Late Mesozoic magmatism comprise thickened, harder crust, forming lateral buttresses to compression and promoting the development of fold-and-thrust belts.
Sören Tholen, Jolien Linckens, and Gernold Zulauf
Solid Earth, 14, 1123–1154, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-14-1123-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-14-1123-2023, 2023
Short summary
Short summary
Intense phase mixing with homogeneously distributed secondary phases and irregular grain boundaries and shapes indicates that metasomatism formed the microstructures predominant in the shear zone of the NW Ronda peridotite. Amphibole presence, olivine crystal orientations, and the consistency to the Beni Bousera peridotite (Morocco) point to OH-bearing metasomatism by small fractions of evolved melts. Results confirm a strong link between reactions and localized deformation in the upper mantle.
Anindita Samsu, Weronika Gorczyk, Timothy Chris Schmid, Peter Graham Betts, Alexander Ramsay Cruden, Eleanor Morton, and Fatemeh Amirpoorsaeed
Solid Earth, 14, 909–936, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-14-909-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-14-909-2023, 2023
Short summary
Short summary
When a continent is pulled apart, it breaks and forms a series of depressions called rift basins. These basins lie above weakened crust that is then subject to intense deformation during subsequent tectonic compression. Our analogue experiments show that when a system of basins is squeezed in a direction perpendicular to the main trend of the basins, some basins rise up to form mountains while others do not.
Anna-Katharina Sieberer, Ernst Willingshofer, Thomas Klotz, Hugo Ortner, and Hannah Pomella
Solid Earth, 14, 647–681, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-14-647-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-14-647-2023, 2023
Short summary
Short summary
Through analogue models and field observations, we investigate how inherited platform–basin geometries control strain localisation, style, and orientation of reactivated and new structures during inversion. Our study shows that the style of evolving thrusts and their changes along-strike are controlled by pre-existing rheological discontinuities. The results of this study are relevant for understanding inversion structures in general and for the European eastern Southern Alps in particular.
Thorben Schöfisch, Hemin Koyi, and Bjarne Almqvist
Solid Earth, 14, 447–461, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-14-447-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-14-447-2023, 2023
Short summary
Short summary
A magnetic fabric analysis provides information about the reorientation of magnetic grains and is applied to three sandbox models that simulate different stages of basin inversion. The analysed magnetic fabrics reflect the different developed structures and provide insights into the different deformed stages of basin inversion. It is a first attempt of applying magnetic fabric analyses to basin inversion sandbox models but shows the possibility of applying it to such models.
Thomas B. Phillips, John B. Naliboff, Ken J. W. McCaffrey, Sophie Pan, Jeroen van Hunen, and Malte Froemchen
Solid Earth, 14, 369–388, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-14-369-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-14-369-2023, 2023
Short summary
Short summary
Continental crust comprises bodies of varying strength, formed through numerous tectonic events. When subject to extension, these areas produce distinct rift and fault systems. We use 3D models to examine how rifts form above
strongand
weakareas of crust. We find that faults become more developed in weak areas. Faults are initially stopped at the boundaries with stronger areas before eventually breaking through. We relate our model observations to rift systems globally.
Marion Roger, Arjan de Leeuw, Peter van der Beek, Laurent Husson, Edward R. Sobel, Johannes Glodny, and Matthias Bernet
Solid Earth, 14, 153–179, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-14-153-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-14-153-2023, 2023
Short summary
Short summary
We study the construction of the Ukrainian Carpathians with LT thermochronology (AFT, AHe, and ZHe) and stratigraphic analysis. QTQt thermal models are combined with burial diagrams to retrieve the timing and magnitude of sedimentary burial, tectonic burial, and subsequent exhumation of the wedge's nappes from 34 to ∼12 Ma. Out-of-sequence thrusting and sediment recycling during wedge building are also identified. This elucidates the evolution of a typical wedge in a roll-back subduction zone.
Frank Zwaan, Guido Schreurs, Susanne J. H. Buiter, Oriol Ferrer, Riccardo Reitano, Michael Rudolf, and Ernst Willingshofer
Solid Earth, 13, 1859–1905, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-13-1859-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-13-1859-2022, 2022
Short summary
Short summary
When a sedimentary basin is subjected to compressional tectonic forces after its formation, it may be inverted. A thorough understanding of such
basin inversionis of great importance for scientific, societal, and economic reasons, and analogue tectonic models form a key part of our efforts to study these processes. We review the advances in the field of basin inversion modelling, showing how the modelling results can be applied, and we identify promising venues for future research.
Eleni Stavropoulou and Lyesse Laloui
Solid Earth, 13, 1823–1841, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-13-1823-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-13-1823-2022, 2022
Short summary
Short summary
Shales are identified as suitable caprock formations for geolocigal CO2 storage thanks to their low permeability. Here, small-sized shale samples are studied under field-representative conditions with X-ray tomography. The geochemical impact of CO2 on calcite-rich zones is for the first time visualised, the role of pre-existing micro-fissures in the CO2 invasion trapping in the matererial is highlighted, and the initiation of micro-cracks when in contact with anhydrous CO2 is demonstrated.
Conor M. O'Sullivan, Conrad J. Childs, Muhammad M. Saqab, John J. Walsh, and Patrick M. Shannon
Solid Earth, 13, 1649–1671, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-13-1649-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-13-1649-2022, 2022
Short summary
Short summary
The Slyne Basin is a sedimentary basin located offshore north-western Ireland. It formed through a long and complex evolution involving distinct periods of extension. The basin is subdivided into smaller basins, separated by deep structures related to the ancient Caledonian mountain-building event. These deep structures influence the shape of the basin as it evolves in a relatively unique way, where early faults follow these deep structures, but later faults do not.
Benjamin Guillaume, Guido M. Gianni, Jean-Jacques Kermarrec, and Khaled Bock
Solid Earth, 13, 1393–1414, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-13-1393-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-13-1393-2022, 2022
Short summary
Short summary
Under tectonic forces, the upper part of the crust can break along different types of faults, depending on the orientation of the applied stresses. Using scaled analogue models, we show that the relative magnitude of compressional and extensional forces as well as the presence of inherited structures resulting from previous stages of deformation control the location and type of faults. Our results gives insights into the tectonic evolution of areas showing complex patterns of deformation.
Andrzej Głuszyński and Paweł Aleksandrowski
Solid Earth, 13, 1219–1242, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-13-1219-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-13-1219-2022, 2022
Short summary
Short summary
Old seismic data recently reprocessed with modern software allowed us to study at depth the Late Cretaceous tectonic structures in the Permo-Mesozoic rock sequences in the Sudetes. The structures formed in response to Iberia collision with continental Europe. The NE–SW compression undulated the crystalline basement top and produced folds, faults and joints in the sedimentary cover. Our results are of importance for regional geology and in prospecting for deep thermal waters.
Luisa Röckel, Steffen Ahlers, Birgit Müller, Karsten Reiter, Oliver Heidbach, Andreas Henk, Tobias Hergert, and Frank Schilling
Solid Earth, 13, 1087–1105, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-13-1087-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-13-1087-2022, 2022
Short summary
Short summary
Reactivation of tectonic faults can lead to earthquakes and jeopardize underground operations. The reactivation potential is linked to fault properties and the tectonic stress field. We create 3D geometries for major faults in Germany and use stress data from a 3D geomechanical–numerical model to calculate their reactivation potential and compare it to seismic events. The reactivation potential in general is highest for NNE–SSW- and NW–SE-striking faults and strongly depends on the fault dip.
Nadaya Cubas, Philippe Agard, and Roxane Tissandier
Solid Earth, 13, 779–792, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-13-779-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-13-779-2022, 2022
Short summary
Short summary
Earthquake extent prediction is limited by our poor understanding of slip deficit patterns. From a mechanical analysis applied along the Chilean margin, we show that earthquakes are bounded by extensive plate interface deformation. This deformation promotes stress build-up, leading to earthquake nucleation; earthquakes then propagate along smoothed fault planes and are stopped by heterogeneously distributed deformation. Slip deficit patterns reflect the spatial distribution of this deformation.
Paolo Boncio, Eugenio Auciello, Vincenzo Amato, Pietro Aucelli, Paola Petrosino, Anna C. Tangari, and Brian R. Jicha
Solid Earth, 13, 553–582, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-13-553-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-13-553-2022, 2022
Short summary
Short summary
We studied the Gioia Sannitica normal fault (GF) within the southern Matese fault system (SMF) in southern Apennines (Italy). It is a fault with a long slip history that has experienced recent reactivation or acceleration. Present activity has resulted in late Quaternary fault scarps and Holocene surface faulting. The maximum slip rate is ~ 0.5 mm/yr. Activation of the 11.5 km GF or the entire 30 km SMF can produce up to M 6.2 or M 6.8 earthquakes, respectively.
Malcolm Aranha, Alok Porwal, Manikandan Sundaralingam, Ignacio González-Álvarez, Amber Markan, and Karunakar Rao
Solid Earth, 13, 497–518, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-13-497-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-13-497-2022, 2022
Short summary
Short summary
Rare earth elements (REEs) are considered critical mineral resources for future industrial growth due to their short supply and rising demand. This study applied an artificial-intelligence-based technique to target potential REE-deposit hosting areas in western Rajasthan, India. Uncertainties associated with the prospective targets were also estimated to aid decision-making. The presented workflow can be applied to similar regions elsewhere to locate potential zones of REE mineralisation.
Daniele Cirillo, Cristina Totaro, Giusy Lavecchia, Barbara Orecchio, Rita de Nardis, Debora Presti, Federica Ferrarini, Simone Bello, and Francesco Brozzetti
Solid Earth, 13, 205–228, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-13-205-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-13-205-2022, 2022
Short summary
Short summary
The Pollino region is a highly seismic area of Italy. Increasing the geological knowledge on areas like this contributes to reducing risk and saving lives. We reconstruct the 3D model of the faults which generated the 2010–2014 seismicity integrating geological and seismological data. Appropriate relationships based on the dimensions of the activated faults suggest that they did not fully discharge their seismic potential and could release further significant earthquakes in the near future.
Steven Whitmeyer, Lynn Fichter, Anita Marshall, and Hannah Liddle
Solid Earth, 12, 2803–2820, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-12-2803-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-12-2803-2021, 2021
Short summary
Short summary
Field trips in the Stratigraphy, Structure, Tectonics (SST) course transitioned to a virtual format in Fall 2020, due to the COVID pandemic. Virtual field experiences (VFEs) were developed in web Google Earth and were evaluated in comparison with on-location field trips via an online survey. Students recognized the value of VFEs for revisiting outcrops and noted improved accessibility for students with disabilities. Potential benefits of hybrid field experiences were also indicated.
Amir Kalifi, Philippe Hervé Leloup, Philippe Sorrel, Albert Galy, François Demory, Vincenzo Spina, Bastien Huet, Frédéric Quillévéré, Frédéric Ricciardi, Daniel Michoux, Kilian Lecacheur, Romain Grime, Bernard Pittet, and Jean-Loup Rubino
Solid Earth, 12, 2735–2771, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-12-2735-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-12-2735-2021, 2021
Short summary
Short summary
Molasse deposits, deposited and deformed at the western Alpine front during the Miocene (23 to 5.6 Ma), record the chronology of that deformation. We combine the first precise chronostratigraphy (precision of ∼0.5 Ma) of the Miocene molasse, the reappraisal of the regional structure, and the analysis of growth deformation structures in order to document three tectonic phases and the precise chronology of thrust westward propagation during the second one involving the Belledonne basal thrust.
Mark R. Handy, Stefan M. Schmid, Marcel Paffrath, Wolfgang Friederich, and the AlpArray Working Group
Solid Earth, 12, 2633–2669, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-12-2633-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-12-2633-2021, 2021
Short summary
Short summary
New images from the multi-national AlpArray experiment illuminate the Alps from below. They indicate thick European mantle descending beneath the Alps and forming blobs that are mostly detached from the Alps above. In contrast, the Adriatic mantle in the Alps is much thinner. This difference helps explain the rugged mountains and the abundance of subducted and exhumed units at the core of the Alps. The blobs are stretched remnants of old ocean and its margins that reach down to at least 410 km.
Maurizio Ercoli, Daniele Cirillo, Cristina Pauselli, Harry M. Jol, and Francesco Brozzetti
Solid Earth, 12, 2573–2596, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-12-2573-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-12-2573-2021, 2021
Short summary
Short summary
Past strong earthquakes can produce topographic deformations, often
memorizedin Quaternary sediments, which are typically studied by paleoseismologists through trenching. Using a ground-penetrating radar (GPR), we unveiled possible buried Quaternary faulting in the Mt. Pollino seismic gap region (southern Italy). We aim to contribute to seismic hazard assessment of an area potentially prone to destructive events as well as promote our workflow in similar contexts around the world.
Luca Smeraglia, Nathan Looser, Olivier Fabbri, Flavien Choulet, Marcel Guillong, and Stefano M. Bernasconi
Solid Earth, 12, 2539–2551, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-12-2539-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-12-2539-2021, 2021
Short summary
Short summary
In this paper, we dated fault movements at geological timescales which uplifted the sedimentary successions of the Jura Mountains from below the sea level up to Earth's surface. To do so, we applied the novel technique of U–Pb geochronology on calcite mineralizations that precipitated on fault surfaces during times of tectonic activity. Our results document a time frame of the tectonic evolution of the Jura Mountains and provide new insight into the broad geological history of the Western Alps.
Renas I. Koshnaw, Fritz Schlunegger, and Daniel F. Stockli
Solid Earth, 12, 2479–2501, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-12-2479-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-12-2479-2021, 2021
Short summary
Short summary
As continental plates collide, mountain belts grow. This study investigated the provenance of rocks from the northwestern segment of the Zagros mountain belt to unravel the convergence history of the Arabian and Eurasian plates. Provenance data synthesis and field relationships suggest that the Zagros Mountains developed as a result of the oceanic crust emplacement on the Arabian continental plate, followed by the Arabia–Eurasia collision and later uplift of the broader region.
David Hindle and Jonas Kley
Solid Earth, 12, 2425–2438, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-12-2425-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-12-2425-2021, 2021
Short summary
Short summary
Central western Europe underwent a strange episode of lithospheric deformation, resulting in a chain of small mountains that run almost west–east across the continent and that formed in the middle of a tectonic plate, not at its edges as is usually expected. Associated with these mountains, in particular the Harz in central Germany, are marine basins contemporaneous with the mountain growth. We explain how those basins came to be as a result of the mountains bending the adjacent plate.
Andreas Eberts, Hamed Fazlikhani, Wolfgang Bauer, Harald Stollhofen, Helga de Wall, and Gerald Gabriel
Solid Earth, 12, 2277–2301, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-12-2277-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-12-2277-2021, 2021
Short summary
Short summary
We combine gravity anomaly and topographic data with observations from thermochronology, metamorphic grades, and the granite inventory to detect patterns of basement block segmentation and differential exhumation along the southwestern Bohemian Massif. Based on our analyses, we introduce a previously unknown tectonic structure termed Cham Fault, which, together with the Pfahl and Danube shear zones, is responsible for the exposure of different crustal levels during late to post-Variscan times.
Christoph Grützner, Simone Aschenbrenner, Petra Jamšek
Rupnik, Klaus Reicherter, Nour Saifelislam, Blaž Vičič, Marko Vrabec, Julian Welte, and Kamil Ustaszewski
Solid Earth, 12, 2211–2234, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-12-2211-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-12-2211-2021, 2021
Short summary
Short summary
Several large strike-slip faults in western Slovenia are known to be active, but most of them have not produced strong earthquakes in historical times. In this study we use geomorphology, near-surface geophysics, and fault excavations to show that two of these faults had surface-rupturing earthquakes during the Holocene. Instrumental and historical seismicity data do not capture the strongest events in this area.
Michael Warsitzka, Prokop Závada, Fabian Jähne-Klingberg, and Piotr Krzywiec
Solid Earth, 12, 1987–2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-12-1987-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-12-1987-2021, 2021
Short summary
Short summary
A new analogue modelling approach was used to simulate the influence of tectonic extension and tilting of the basin floor on salt tectonics in rift basins. Our results show that downward salt flow and gravity gliding takes place if the flanks of the rift basin are tilted. Thus, extension occurs at the basin margins, which is compensated for by reduced extension and later by shortening in the graben centre. These outcomes improve the reconstruction of salt-related structures in rift basins.
Torsten Hundebøl Hansen, Ole Rønø Clausen, and Katrine Juul Andresen
Solid Earth, 12, 1719–1747, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-12-1719-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-12-1719-2021, 2021
Short summary
Short summary
We have analysed the role of deep salt layers during tectonic shortening of a group of sedimentary basins buried below the North Sea. Due to the ability of salt to flow over geological timescales, the salt layers are much weaker than the surrounding rocks during tectonic deformation. Therefore, complex structures formed mainly where salt was present in our study area. Our results align with findings from other basins and experiments, underlining the importance of salt tectonics.
Frank Zwaan, Pauline Chenin, Duncan Erratt, Gianreto Manatschal, and Guido Schreurs
Solid Earth, 12, 1473–1495, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-12-1473-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-12-1473-2021, 2021
Short summary
Short summary
We used laboratory experiments to simulate the early evolution of rift systems, and the influence of structural weaknesses left over from previous tectonic events that can localize new deformation. We find that the orientation and type of such weaknesses can induce complex structures with different orientations during a single phase of rifting, instead of requiring multiple rifting phases. These findings provide a strong incentive to reassess the tectonic history of various natural examples.
Laurent Jolivet, Laurent Arbaret, Laetitia Le Pourhiet, Florent Cheval-Garabédian, Vincent Roche, Aurélien Rabillard, and Loïc Labrousse
Solid Earth, 12, 1357–1388, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-12-1357-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-12-1357-2021, 2021
Short summary
Short summary
Although viscosity of the crust largely exceeds that of magmas, we show, based on the Aegean and Tyrrhenian Miocene syn-kinematic plutons, how the intrusion of granites in extensional contexts is controlled by crustal deformation, from magmatic stage to cold mylonites. We show that a simple numerical setup with partial melting in the lower crust in an extensional context leads to the formation of metamorphic core complexes and low-angle detachments reproducing the observed evolution of plutons.
Miguel Cisneros, Jaime D. Barnes, Whitney M. Behr, Alissa J. Kotowski, Daniel F. Stockli, and Konstantinos Soukis
Solid Earth, 12, 1335–1355, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-12-1335-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-12-1335-2021, 2021
Short summary
Short summary
Constraining the conditions at which rocks form is crucial for understanding geologic processes. For years, the conditions under which rocks from Syros, Greece, formed have remained enigmatic; yet these rocks are fundamental for understanding processes occurring at the interface between colliding tectonic plates (subduction zones). Here, we constrain conditions under which these rocks formed and show they were transported to the surface adjacent to the down-going (subducting) tectonic plate.
Karsten Reiter
Solid Earth, 12, 1287–1307, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-12-1287-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-12-1287-2021, 2021
Short summary
Short summary
The influence and interaction of elastic material properties (Young's modulus, Poisson's ratio), density and low-friction faults on the resulting far-field stress pattern in the Earth's crust is tested with generic models. A Young's modulus contrast can lead to a significant stress rotation. Discontinuities with low friction in homogeneous models change the stress pattern only slightly, away from the fault. In addition, active discontinuities are able to compensate stress rotation.
Hilmar von Eynatten, Jonas Kley, István Dunkl, Veit-Enno Hoffmann, and Annemarie Simon
Solid Earth, 12, 935–958, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-12-935-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-12-935-2021, 2021
Eline Le Breton, Sascha Brune, Kamil Ustaszewski, Sabin Zahirovic, Maria Seton, and R. Dietmar Müller
Solid Earth, 12, 885–913, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-12-885-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-12-885-2021, 2021
Short summary
Short summary
The former Piemont–Liguria Ocean, which separated Europe from Africa–Adria in the Jurassic, opened as an arm of the central Atlantic. Using plate reconstructions and geodynamic modeling, we show that the ocean reached only 250 km width between Europe and Adria. Moreover, at least 65 % of the lithosphere subducted into the mantle and/or incorporated into the Alps during convergence in Cretaceous and Cenozoic times comprised highly thinned continental crust, while only 35 % was truly oceanic.
Lior Suchoy, Saskia Goes, Benjamin Maunder, Fanny Garel, and Rhodri Davies
Solid Earth, 12, 79–93, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-12-79-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-12-79-2021, 2021
Short summary
Short summary
We use 2D numerical models to highlight the role of basal drag in subduction force balance. We show that basal drag can significantly affect velocities and evolution in our simulations and suggest an explanation as to why there are no trends in plate velocities with age in the Cenozoic subduction record (which we extracted from recent reconstruction using GPlates). The insights into the role of basal drag will help set up global models of plate dynamics or specific regional subduction models.
William Bosworth and Gábor Tari
Solid Earth, 12, 59–77, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-12-59-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-12-59-2021, 2021
Short summary
Short summary
Many of the world's hydrocarbon resources are found in rifted sedimentary basins. Some rifts experience multiple phases of extension and inversion. This results in complicated oil and gas generation, migration, and entrapment histories. We present examples of basins in the Western Desert of Egypt and the western Black Sea that were inverted multiple times, sometimes separated by additional phases of extension. We then discuss how these complex deformation histories impact exploration campaigns.
Samuel Mock, Christoph von Hagke, Fritz Schlunegger, István Dunkl, and Marco Herwegh
Solid Earth, 11, 1823–1847, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-11-1823-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-11-1823-2020, 2020
Short summary
Short summary
Based on thermochronological data, we infer thrusting along-strike the northern rim of the Central Alps between 12–4 Ma. While the lithology influences the pattern of thrusting at the local scale, we observe that thrusting in the foreland is a long-wavelength feature occurring between Lake Geneva and Salzburg. This coincides with the geometry and dynamics of the attached lithospheric slab at depth. Thus, thrusting in the foreland is at least partly linked to changes in slab dynamics.
Paul Angrand, Frédéric Mouthereau, Emmanuel Masini, and Riccardo Asti
Solid Earth, 11, 1313–1332, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-11-1313-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-11-1313-2020, 2020
Short summary
Short summary
We study the Iberian plate motion, from the late Permian to middle Cretaceous. During this time interval, two oceanic systems opened. Geological evidence shows that the Iberian domain preserved the propagation of these two rift systems well. We use geological evidence and pre-existing kinematic models to propose a coherent kinematic model of Iberia that considers both the Neotethyan and Atlantic evolutions. Our model shows that the Europe–Iberia plate boundary was made of two rift systems.
Daniel Pastor-Galán, Gabriel Gutiérrez-Alonso, and Arlo B. Weil
Solid Earth, 11, 1247–1273, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-11-1247-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-11-1247-2020, 2020
Short summary
Short summary
Pangea was assembled during Devonian to early Permian times and resulted in a large-scale and winding orogeny that today transects Europe, northwestern Africa, and eastern North America. This orogen is characterized by an
Sshape corrugated geometry in Iberia. This paper presents the advances and milestones in our understanding of the geometry and kinematics of the Central Iberian curve from the last decade with particular attention paid to structural and paleomagnetic studies.
Richard Spitz, Arthur Bauville, Jean-Luc Epard, Boris J. P. Kaus, Anton A. Popov, and Stefan M. Schmalholz
Solid Earth, 11, 999–1026, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-11-999-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-11-999-2020, 2020
Short summary
Short summary
We apply three-dimensional (3D) thermo-mechanical numerical simulations of the shortening of the upper crustal region of a passive margin in order to investigate the control of 3D laterally variable inherited structures on fold-and-thrust belt evolution and associated nappe formation. The model is applied to the Helvetic nappe system of the Swiss Alps. Our results show a 3D reconstruction of the first-order tectonic evolution showing the fundamental importance of inherited geological structures.
Manfred Lafosse, Elia d'Acremont, Alain Rabaute, Ferran Estrada, Martin Jollivet-Castelot, Juan Tomas Vazquez, Jesus Galindo-Zaldivar, Gemma Ercilla, Belen Alonso, Jeroen Smit, Abdellah Ammar, and Christian Gorini
Solid Earth, 11, 741–765, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-11-741-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-11-741-2020, 2020
Short summary
Short summary
The Alboran Sea is one of the most active region of the Mediterranean Sea. There, the basin architecture records the effect of the Africa–Eurasia plates convergence. We evidence a Pliocene transpression and a more recent Pleistocene tectonic reorganization. We propose that main driving force of the deformation is the Africa–Eurasia convergence, rather than other geodynamical processes. It highlights the evolution and the geometry of the present-day Africa–Eurasia plate boundary.
Dan J. Clark, Sarah Brennand, Gregory Brenn, Matthew C. Garthwaite, Jesse Dimech, Trevor I. Allen, and Sean Standen
Solid Earth, 11, 691–717, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-11-691-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-11-691-2020, 2020
Short summary
Short summary
A magnitude 5.3 reverse-faulting earthquake in September 2018 near Lake Muir in southwest Western Australia was followed after 2 months by a collocated magnitude 5.2 strike-slip event. The first event produced a ~ 5 km long and up to 0.5 m high west-facing surface rupture, and the second triggered event deformed but did not rupture the surface. The earthquake sequence was the ninth to have produced surface rupture in Australia. None of these show evidence for prior Quaternary surface rupture.
Craig Magee and Christopher Aiden-Lee Jackson
Solid Earth, 11, 579–606, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-11-579-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-11-579-2020, 2020
Short summary
Short summary
Injection of vertical sheets of magma (dyke swarms) controls tectonic and volcanic processes on Earth and other planets. Yet we know little of the 3D structure of dyke swarms. We use seismic reflection data, which provides ultrasound-like images of Earth's subsurface, to study a dyke swarm in 3D for the first time. We show that (1) dyke injection occurred in the Late Jurassic, (2) our data support previous models of dyke shape, and (3) seismic data provides a new way to view and study dykes.
Emmanuelle Ricchi, Christian A. Bergemann, Edwin Gnos, Alfons Berger, Daniela Rubatto, Martin J. Whitehouse, and Franz Walter
Solid Earth, 11, 437–467, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-11-437-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-11-437-2020, 2020
Short summary
Short summary
This study investigates Cenozoic deformation during cooling and exhumation of the Tauern metamorphic and structural dome, Eastern Alps, through Th–Pb dating of fissure monazite-(Ce). Fissure (or hydrothermal) monazite-(Ce) typically crystallizes in a temperature range of 400–200 °C. Three major episodes of monazite growth occurred at approximately 21, 17, and 12 Ma, corroborating previous crystallization and cooling ages.
Annabel Causer, Lucía Pérez-Díaz, Jürgen Adam, and Graeme Eagles
Solid Earth, 11, 397–417, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-11-397-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-11-397-2020, 2020
Short summary
Short summary
Here we discuss the validity of so-called “break-up” markers along the Newfoundland margin, challenging their perceived suitability for plate kinematic reconstructions of the southern North Atlantic. We do this on the basis of newly available seismic transects across the Southern Newfoundland Basin. Our new data contradicts current interpretations of the extent of oceanic lithosphere and illustrates the need for a differently constraining the plate kinematics of the Iberian plate pre M0 times.
Dániel Kiss, Thibault Duretz, and Stefan Markus Schmalholz
Solid Earth, 11, 287–305, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-11-287-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-11-287-2020, 2020
Short summary
Short summary
In this paper, we investigate the physical mechanisms of tectonic nappe formation by high-resolution numerical modeling. Tectonic nappes are key structural features of many mountain chains which are packets of rocks displaced, sometimes even up to 100 km, from their original position. However, the physical mechanisms involved are not fully understood. We solve numerical equations of fluid and solid dynamics to improve our knowledge. The results are compared with data from the Helvetic Alps.
Diane Arcay, Serge Lallemand, Sarah Abecassis, and Fanny Garel
Solid Earth, 11, 37–62, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-11-37-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-11-37-2020, 2020
Short summary
Short summary
We propose a new exploration of the concept of
spontaneouslithospheric collapse at a transform fault (TF) by performing a large study of conditions allowing instability of the thicker plate using 2-D thermomechanical simulations. Spontaneous subduction is modelled only if extreme mechanical conditions are assumed. We conclude that spontaneous collapse of the thick older plate at a TF evolving into mature subduction is an unlikely process of subduction initiation at modern Earth conditions.
Menno Fraters, Cedric Thieulot, Arie van den Berg, and Wim Spakman
Solid Earth, 10, 1785–1807, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-10-1785-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-10-1785-2019, 2019
Short summary
Short summary
Three-dimensional numerical modelling of geodynamic processes may benefit strongly from using realistic 3-D starting models that approximate, e.g. natural subduction settings in the geological past or at present. To this end, we developed the Geodynamic World Builder (GWB), which enables relatively straightforward parameterization of complex 3-D geometric structures associated with geodynamic processes. The GWB is an open-source community code designed to easily interface with geodynamic codes.
Cited articles
Adam, J., Urai, J. L., Wieneke, B., Oncken, O., Pfeiffer, K., Kukowski, N., Lohrmann, J., Hoth, S., Van der Zee, W., and Schmatz, J.: Shear localisation and strain distribution during tectonic
faulting – new insights from granular-flow experiments and high-resolution
optical image correlation techniques, J. Struct. Geol., 27, 283–301,
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsg.2004.08.008, 2005.
Ayalew, D., Ebinger, C., Bourdon, E., Wolfenden, E., Yirgu, G., and
Grassineau, N.: Temporal compositional variation of syn-rift rhyolites along
the western margin of the southern Red Sea and northern Main Ethiopian Rift,
Geol. Soc. Spec. Publ., 259, 121–130,
https://doi.org/10.1144/GSL.SP.2006.259.01.10, 2006.
Bagley, B. and Nyblade, A. A.: Seismic anisotropy in eastern Africa, mantle
flow, and the African superplume, Geophys. Res. Lett., 40,
1500–1505, https://doi.org/10.1002/grl.50315, 2013.
Benes, V. and Scott, S. D.: Oblique rifting in the Havre Trough and its
propagation into the continental margin of New Zealand: Comparison with
analogue experiments, Mar. Geophys. Res., 18, 189–201,
https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00286077, 1996.
Bonini, M., Souriot, T., Boccaletti, M., and Brun, J.-P.: Successive
orthogonal and oblique extension episodes in a rift zone: Laboratory
experiments with application to the Ethiopian Rift, Tectonics, 16, 347–362,
https://doi.org/10.1029/96TC03935, 1997.
Bonini, L., Fracassi, U., Bertone, N., Maesano, F. E., Valensise, G., and
Basili, R.: How do inherited dip-slip faults affect the development of new
extensional faults? Insights from wet clay analog models, J.
Struct. Geol., 169, 104836, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsg.2023.104836,
2023.
Boutelier, D., Schrank, C., and Regenauer-Lieb, K.: 2-D finite displacements and strain from particle imaging velocimetry (PIV) analysis of tectonic analogue models with TecPIV, Solid Earth, 10, 1123–1139, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-10-1123-2019, 2019.
Brun, J.-P.: Narrow rifts versus wide rifts: inferences for the mechanics
of rifting from laboratory experiments, Philos. T. Roy. Soc. A, 357, 695–712,
https://doi.org/10.1098/rsta.1999.0349, 1999.
Brun, J.-P.: Deformation of the continental lithosphere: Insights from
brittle-ductile models, Geol. Soc. Lond. Spec. Publ.,
200, 355–370, https://doi.org/10.1144/GSL.SP.2001.200.01.20, 2002.
Brune, S., Corti, G., and Ranalli, G.: Controls of inherited lithospheric
heterogeneity on rift linkage: Numerical and analogue models of interaction
between the Kenyan and Ethiopian rifts across the Turkana depression,
Tectonics, 36, 1767–1786, https://doi.org/10.1002/2017TC004739, 2017.
Buck, R. W.: Consequences of Asthenospheric Variability on Continental
Rifting, in: Rheology and Deformation of the Lithosphere at Continental
Margins, edited by: Karner, G. D., Taylor, B., Driscoll, N. W., and
Kohlstedt, D. L., Columbia University Press, New York, USA, 1–30,
https://doi.org/10.7312/karn12738-002, 2004.
Buck, R. W.: The role of magma in the development of the Afro-Arabian Rift
System, Geol. Soc. Spec. Publ., 259, 43–54,
https://doi.org/10.1144/GSL.SP.2006.259.01.05, 2006.
Buiter, S. J. H., Pfiffner, O. A., and Beaumont, C.: Inversion of
extensional sedimentary basins: A numerical evaluation of the localisation
of shortening, Earth Planet. Sc. Lett., 288, 492–504,
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.epsl.2009.10.011, 2009.
Burov, E. and Cloetingh, S.: Erosion and rift dynamics: new
thermomechanical aspects of post-rift evolution of extensional basins, Earth
Planet. Sc. Lett., 150, 7–26, https://doi.org/10.1016/S0012-821X(97)00069-1,
1997.
Byerlee, J.: Friction of Rocks, Pure Appl. Geophys., 116, 615–626,
https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00876528, 1978.
Calais, E., Ebinger, C., Hartnady, C., and Nocquet, J. M.: Kinematics of the
East African Rift from GPS and earthquake slip vector data, Geol.
Soc. Lond. Spec. Publ., 259, 9–22,
https://doi.org/10.1144/GSL.SP.2006.259.01.03, 2006.
Carlo AG: Carlo Bernasconi AG, Switzerland, company website,
http://www.carloag.ch, last access: 29 November 2022.
Chorowicz, J.: The East African rift system, J. Afr. Earth. Sci., 43,
379–410, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jafrearsci.2005.07.019, 2005.
Corti, G.: Evolution and characteristics of continental rifting: Analog
modeling-inspired view and comparison with examples from the East African
Rift System, Tectonophysics, 522–523, 1–33,
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tecto.2011.06.010, 2012
Corti, G., Van Wijk, J., Cloetingh, S., and Morley, C. K.: Tectonic
inheritance and continental rift architecture: Numerical and analogue models
of the East African Rift system, Tectonics, 26, TC6006,
https://doi.org/10.1029/2006TC002086, 2007.
Cowie, P. A., Underhill, J. R., Behn, M. D., Lin, J., and Gill, C. E.:
Spatio-temporal evolution of strain accumulation derived from multi-scale
observations of Late Jurassic rifting in the northern North Sea: A critical
test of models for lithospheric extension, Earth Planet. Sc.
Lett., 234, 401–419, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.epsl.2005.01.039, 2005.
Daly, M. C., Green, P., Watts, A. B., Davies, O., Chibesakunda, F., and
Walker, R.: Tectonics and Landscape of the Central African Plateau and their
Implications for a Propagating Southwestern Rift in Africa, Geochem.
Geophys. Geosyst., 21, e2019GC008746,
https://doi.org/10.1029/2019GC008746, 2020.
Delvaux, D., Kervyn, F., Macheyeki, A., and Temu, E: Geodynamic significance
of the TRM segment in the East African Rift (W-Tanzania): Active tectonics
and paleostress in the Ufipa plateau and Rukwa basin, J. Struct. Geol., 37,
161–180, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsg.2012.01.008, 2012.
DeMets, C. and Merkouriev, S.: High-resolution estimates of Nubia–Somalia
plate motion since 20 Ma from reconstructions of the Southwest Indian Ridge,
Red Sea and Gulf of Aden, Geophys. J. Int., 207, 317–332,
https://doi.org/10.1093/gji/ggw276, 2016.
DeMets, C. and Merkouriev, S.: Detailed reconstrucBons of India–Somalia Plate moBon, 60 Ma to present: implicaBons for Somalia Plate
absolute moBon and India–Eurasia Plate moBon, Geophys. J. Int., 227,
1730–1767, https://doi.org/10.1093/gji/ggab295, 2021.
Ebinger, C. J.: Tectonic development of the western branch of the East
African rift system, GSA Bull., 101, 885–903,
https://doi.org/10.1130/0016-7606(1989)101<0885:TDOTWB>2.3.CO;2, 1989.
Ebinger, C. J.: Contental break-up: The East African perspective, Astron. Geophys., 46, 2.16–2.21,
https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1468-4004.2005.46216.x, 2005.
Ebinger, C. J., Keir, D., Ayele, A., Calais, E., Wrigth, T. J., Belachew,
M., Hammond, J. O. S., Campbell, E., and Buck, R. W.: Capturing magma
intrusion and faulting processes during continental rupture: seismicity of
the Dabbahu (Afar) rift, Geophys. J. Int., 174, 1138–1152,
https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-246X.2008.03877.x, 2008.
Farangitakis, G.-P., SokouBs, D., McCaffrey, K. J. W., Willingshofer, E.,
Kalnins, L. M., Phethean, J. J. J., van Hunen, J., and Van Steen, V.:
Analogue modeling of plate rotaBon effects in transform margins and
ril-transform intersecBons, Tectonics, 38, 823–841,
https://doi.org/10.1029/2018TC005261, 2019.
Farangitakis, G.-P., McCaffrey, K. J. W., Willingshofer, E., Allen, M. B.,
Kalnins, L. M., van Hunen, J., Persaud, P., and Sokoutis, D.: The structural
evolution of pull-apart basins in response to changes in plate motion, Basin
Res., 33, 1603–1625, https://doi.org/10.1111/bre.12528, 2021.
Glerum, A., Brune, S., Stamps, D. S., and Strecker, M. R.: Victoria
continental microplate dynamics controlled by the lithospheric strength
distribution of the East African Rift, Nat. Commun., 11, 2881,
https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-020-16176-x, 2020.
Globig, J., Fernàndez, M., Torne, M., Vergés, J., Robert, A., and
Faccenna, C.: New insights into the crust and lithospheric mantle structure
of Africa from elevation, geoid, and thermal analysis, J.
Geophys. Res.-Sol. Ea., 121, 5389–5424,
https://doi.org/10.1002/2016JB012972, 2016.
Henza, A. A., Withjack, M. O., and Schlische, R. W.: Normal-fault
development during two phases of non-coaxial extension: An experimental
study, J. Struct. Geol., 32, 1656–1667,
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsg.2009.07.007, 2010.
Henza, A. A., Withjack, M. O., and Schlische, R. W.: How do the properties
of a pre-existing normal-fault population influence fault development during
a subsequent phase of extension?, J. Struct. Geol., 33, 1312–1324,
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsg.2011.06.010, 2011.
Hieronymus, C. F.: Control on seafloor spreading geometries by stress- and
strain-induced lithospheric weakening, Earth Planet. Sc. Lett., 222,
177–189, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.epsl.2004.02.022, 2004.
Hubbert, M. K.: Theory of scaled models as applied to the study of
geological structures, Geol. Soc. Am. Bull., 48, 1459–1520,
https://doi.org/10.1130/GSAB-48-1459, 1937.
Katz, R. F., Ragnarsson, R., and Bodenschatz, E.: Tectonic microplates in a
wax model of sea-floor spreading, New J. Phys., 7, 37,
https://doi.org/10.1088/1367-2630/7/1/037, 2005.
Keep, M. and McClay, K. R.: Analogue modelling of multiphase rift systems,
Tectonophysics, 273, 239, https://doi.org/10.1016/S0040-1951(96)00272-7,
1997.
Kendall, J.-M. and Lithgow-Bertelloni, C.: Why is Africa rifting?,
Geol. Soc. Lond. Spec. Publ., 420, 11–30,
https://doi.org/10.1144/SP420.17, 2016.
Khalil, H. M., Capitanio, F. A., Betts, P. G., and Cruden, A. R.: 3-D Analog
Modeling Constraints on Rifting in the Afar Region, Tectonics, 39,
e2020TC006339, https://doi.org/10.1029/2020TC006339, 2020.
Kolawole, F., Firkins, M. C., Al Wahaibi, T. S., Atekwana, E. A., and
Soreghan, M. J.: Rift interaction zones and the stages of rift linkage in
active segmented continental rift systems, Basin Res., 33, 2984–3020,
https://doi.org/10.1111/bre.12592, 2021a.
Kolawole, F., Phillips, T. B., Atekwana, E. A., and Jackson, C. A.-L.:
Structural Inheritance Controls Strain Distribution During Early Continental
Rifting, Rukwa Rift, Front. Earth Sci., 9, 707869,
https://doi.org/10.3389/feart.2021.707869, 2021b.
Le Calvez, J. H. and Vendeville, B. C.: Experimental designs to model
along-strike fault interaction, J. Virtual Explor., 7, 1–17,
https://doi.org/10.3809/jvirtex.2002.00043, 2002.
Lezzar, K. E., Tiercelin, J. -J., Le Turdu, C., Cohen, A. S., Reynolds, D.,
J., Le Gall, B., and Scholz, C. A.: Control of Normal Fault Interaction on
the Distribution of Major Neogene Sedimentary Depocenters, Lake Tanganyika,
East African Rift, AAPG Bull., 86, 1027–1059,
https://doi.org/10.1306/61EEDC1A-173E-11D7-8645000102C1865D, 2002.
Macgregor, D.: History of the development of the East African Rift System: A
series of interpreted maps through time, J. Afr. Earth. Sc., 101, 232–252,
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jafrearsci.2014.09.016, 2015.
Maestrelli, D., Montanari, D., Corti, G., Del Ventisette, C., Moratti, G.,
and Bonini, M.: Exploring the Interactions Between Rift Propagation and
Inherited Crustal Fabrics Through Experimental Modeling, Tectonics, 39,
e2020TC006211, https://doi.org/10.1029/2020TC006211, 2020.
Martin, A. K.: Propagating rifts: Crustal extension during continental
rifting, Tectonics, 3, 611–617, https://doi.org/10.1029/TC003i006p00611,
1984.
Martin, A. K.: Opposite microplate rotations on the East African Rift:
Similarity to double saloon door tectonics, J. Afr. Earth
Sci., 198, 104803, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jafrearsci.2022.104803, 2023.
Michon, L., Famin, V., and Quicelleur, X.: Evolution of the East African Rift
System from trap-scale to plate-scale rifting, Earth. Sc. Rev., 231, 104089,
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.earscirev.2022.104089, 2022.
Molnar, N. E., Cruden, A. R., and Betts, P. G.: Interactions between
propagating rotational rifts and linear rheological heterogeneities:
Insights from three-dimensional laboratory experiments, Tectonics, 36,
420–443, https://doi.org/10.1002/2016TC004447, 2017.
Molnar, N. E., Cruden, A. R., and Betts, P. G.: Unzipping continents and the
birth of microcontinent, Geology, 46, 451–454,
https://doi.org/10.1130/G40021.1, 2018.
Molnar, N. E., Cruden, A. R., and Betts, P. G.: Interactions between
propagating rifts and linear weaknesses in the lower crust, Geosphere, 15,
1617–1640, https://doi.org/10.1130/GES02119.1, 2019.
Molnar, N. E., Cruden, A. R., and Betts, P. G.: The role of inherited
crustal and lithospheric architecture during the evolution of the Red Sea:
Insights from three dimensional analogue experiments, Earth. Planet. Sc.
Lett., 544, 116377, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.epsl.2020.116377, 2020.
Mondy, L. S., Rey, P. f., Ducleaux, G., and Moresi, L.: The role of
asthenospheric flow during rift propagation and breakup, Geology, 46,
103–106, https://doi.org/10.1130/G39674.1, 2018.
Morley, C. K.: Stress re-orientation along zones of weak fabrics in rifts:
An explanation for pure extension in `oblique' rift segments?, Earth Planet.
Sc. Lett., 297, 667–673, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.epsl.2010.07.022, 2010.
Morley, C. K., Ngenoh, D. K., and Ego., J. K.: Introduction to the East African
Rift System, in: Geoscience of Rift Systems – Evolution of East Africa,
edited by: Morley, C. K., AAPG Studies in Geology, 44, 1–18,
https://doi.org/10.1306/St44623C1, 1999.
Mulugeta, G.: Squeeze box in a centrifuge. Tectonophysics, 148, 323–335,
https://doi.org/10.1016/0040-1951(88)90139-4, 1988.
Nelson, R. A., Patton, T. L., and Morley, C. K.: Rift-Segment Interaction
and Its Relation to Hydrocarbon Exploration in Continental Rift Systems,
AAPG Bull., 76, 1153–1169,
https://doi.org/10.1306/BDFF898E-1718-11D7-8645000102C1865D, 1992.
Neuharth, D., Brune, S., Glerum, A., Heine, C., and Welford, J. K.:
Formation of continental microplates through rift linkage: Numerical
modeling and its application to the Flemish Cap and Sao Paulo Plateau,
Geochem. Geophys. Geosyst., 22, e2020GC009615,
https://doi.org/10.1029/2020GC009615, 2021.
Neuharth, D., Brune, S., Wrona, T., Glerum, A., Braun, J., and Yuan, X.:
Evolution of rift systems and their fault networks in response to surface
processes, Tectonics, 41, e2021TC007166,
https://doi.org/10.1029/2021TC007166, 2022.
Oldenburg, D. W. and Brune, J. N.: An explanation for the orthogonality of
ocean ridges and transform faults, J. Geophys. Res., 80, 2575–2585,
https://doi.org/10.1029/JB080i017p02575, 1975.
Osagiede, E. E., Rosenau, M., Rotevatn, A., Gawthorpe, R., Jackson, C. A.-L.,
and Rudolf, M.: Influence of zones of pre-existing crustal weakness on
strain localization and partitioning during rifting: Insights from analog
modeling using high-resolution 3D digital image correlation, Tectonics, 40,
e2021TC006970, https://doi.org/10.1029/2021TC006970, 2021.
Panien, M., Schreurs, G., and Pfiffner, A.: Mechanical behaviour of granular
materials used in analogue modelling: insights from grain characterisation,
ring-shear tests and analogue experiments, J. Struct. Geol., 28, 1710–1724,
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsg.2006.05.004, 2006.
Phethean, J. J. J., Kalnins, L. M., van Hunen, J., Biffi, P. G., Davies, R.
J., and McCaffrey, K. J. W.: Madagascar's escape from Africa: A
high-resolution plate reconstruction for the Western Somali Basin and
implications for supercontinent dispersal, Geochem. Geophys.
Geosyst., 17, 5036–5055, https://doi.org/10.1002/2016GC006624, 2016.
Pizzi, A., Coltorti, M., Abebe, B., Disperati, L., Sacchi, G., and Salvini,
R.: The Wonji fault belt (Main Ethiopian Rift): structural and
geomorphological constraints and GPS monitoring, Geol. Soc. Spec. Publ.,
259, 191–207, https://doi.org/10.1144/GSL.SP.2006.259.01.16, 2006.
Purcell, P. G.: Re-imagining and re-imaging the development of the East
African Rift, Petrol. Geosci., 24, 21–40,
https://doi.org/10.1144/petgeo2017-036, 2018.
Rajaonarison, T. A., Stamps, D. S., and Naliboff, J.: Role of Lithospheric
Buoyancy Forces in Driving Deformation in East Africa From 3D Geodynamic
Modeling, Geophys. Res. Lett., 48, e2020GL090483,
https://doi.org/10.1029/2020GL090483, 2021.
Rajaonarison, T. A., Stamps, D. S., Naliboff, J., Nyblade, A., and Njinju,
E. A.: A Geodynamic Investigation of Plume-Lithosphere Interactions Beneath
the East African Rift, J. Geophys. Res.-Sol. Ea., 128,
e2022JB025800, https://doi.org/10.1029/2022JB025800, 2023.
Ramberg, H.: Gravity, Deformation and the Earth's Crust, Academic Press,
London, ISBN-10 0125768605, ISBN-13 978-0125768603, 1981.
Ring, U.: The East African Rift System, Austrian J. Earth. Sc., 107,
132–146, 2014.
Rudolf, M., Boutelier, D., Rosenau, M., Schreurs, G., and Oncken, O.:
Rheological benchmark of silicone oils used for analog modeling of short-
and long-term lithospheric deformation, Tectonophysics 684, 12–22,
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tecto.2015.11.028, 2016.
Saria, E., Calais, E., Altamimi, Z., Willis, P., and Farah, H.: A new
velocity field for Africa from combined GPS and DORIS space geodetic
Solutions: Contribution to the definition of the African reference frame
(AFREF), J. Geophys. Res.-Sol. Ea., 118, 1677–1697,
https://doi.org/10.1002/jgrb.50137, 2013.
Saria, E., Calais, E., Stamps, D. S., Delvaux, D., and Hartnady, C. J. H.:
Present-day kinematics of the East African Rift, J. Geophys. Res.-Sol. Ea.,
119, 3584–3600, https://doi.org/10.1002/2013JB010901, 2014.
Schmid, T., Schreurs, G., Warsitzka, M., and Rosenau, M.: Effect of sieving height on density and friction of brittle analogue material: Ring-shear test data of quarz sand used for analogue experiments in the Tectonic Modelling Lab of the University of Bern, GFZ Data Services [data set], https://doi.org/10.5880/fidgeo.2020.006, 2020.
Schmid, T. C., Schreurs, G., and Adam, J.: Characteristics of continental
rifting in rotational systems: New findings from spatiotemporal high
resolution quantified crustal scale analogue models, Tectonophysics, 822,
229174, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tecto.2021.229174, 2022a.
Schmid, T. C., Schreurs, G., and Adam, J.: Rotational extension promotes
coeval upper crustal brittle faulting
and deep-seated rift-axis parallel flow: Dynamic coupling processes inferred
from analog model experiments, J. Geophys. Res.-Sol. Ea., 127,
e2022JB024434, https://doi.org/10.1029/2022JB024434, 2022b.
Scott, D. L., Rosendahl., B. R., Burgess, C. F., and Sander, S.: Comments on
“variable extension in Lake Tanganyika” by C. K. Morley, Tectonics, 8,
647–650, https://doi.org/10.1029/TC008i003p00647, 1989.
Smith, J. V.: Infinitesimal kinematics of rotational rifting with reference to en echelon marginal faults in the Red Sea region, Tectonophysics, 222, 227–335, https://doi.org/10.1016/0040-1951(93)90050-T, 1993.
Souriot, T. and Brun, J. -P.: Faulting and block rotation in the Afar
triangle, East Africa: The Danakil “crank-arm” model, Geology, 20,
911–914, https://doi.org/10.1130/0091-7613(1992)020<0911:FABRIT>2.3.CO;2, 1992.
Stamps, D. S., Calais, E., Saria, E., Hartnady, C., Nocquet, J.-M., Ebinger,
C. J., and Fernandes, R. M.: A kinematic model for the East African Rift,
Geophys. Res. Lett., 35, L05304, https://doi.org/10.1029/2007GL032781,
2008.
Stamps, D. S., Flesch, L. M., Calais, E., and Ghosh, A.: Current kinematics
and dynamics of Africa and the East African Rift System, J.
Geophys. Res.-Sol. Ea., 119, 5161–5186,
https://doi.org/10.1002/2013JB010717, 2014.
Stamps, D. S., Kreemer, C., Fernandes, R., Rajaonarison, T. A., and
Rombolamanana, G.: Redefining East African Rift System kinematics, Geology,
49, 150–155, https://doi.org/10.1130/G47985.1, 2021.
Steinberger, B. and Calderwood, A. R.: Models of large-scale viscous flow in
the Earth's mantle with constraints from mineral physics and surface
observations, Geophys. J. Int., 167, 1461–1481,
https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-246X.2006.03131.x, 2006.
Sun, Z., Zhong, Z., Keep, M., Zhou, D., Cai, D., Li, X., Wu, S., and Jiang,
J.: 3D analogue modelling of the South China Sea: A discussion on breakup
pattern, J. Asian Earth Sci., 34, 544–556,
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jseaes.2008.09.002, 2009.
Sutra, E., Manatschal, G., Mohn, G., and Unternehr, P.: QuanBficaBon
and restoraBon of extensional deformaBon along the Western Iberia
and Newfoundland riled margins, Geochem. Geophys. Geosys., 14,
2575–2597, https://doi.org/10.1002/ggge.20135, 2013.
Tentler, T. and Acocella, V.: How does the initial configuration of oceanic
ridge segments affect their interaction? Insights from analogue models, J.
Geophys. Res., 115, B01401, https://doi.org/10.1029/2008JB006269, 2010.
Tron, V. and Brun, J.-P.: Experiments on oblique rifting in brittle-ductile
systems, Tectonophysics, 188, 71–88,
https://doi.org/10.1016/0040-1951(91)90315-J, 1991.
Wang, L., Maestrelli, D., Corti, G., Zou, Y., and Shen, C.: Normal fault
reactivation during multiphase extension: Analogue models and application to
the Turkana Depression, East Africa, Tectonophysics, 811, 228870,
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tecto.2021.228870, 2021.
Wedmore, L. N. J., Turner, T., Biggs, J., Williams, J. N., Sichingabula, H. M., Kabumbu, C., and Banda, K.: The Luangwa Rift Active Fault Database and fault reactivation along the southwestern branch of the East African Rift, Solid Earth, 13, 1731–1753, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-13-1731-2022, 2022.
Weijermars, R. and Schmeling, H.: Scaling of Newtonian and non-Newtonian
fluid dynamics without inertia for quantitative modelling of rock flow due
to gravity (including the concept of rheological similarity), Phys. Earth
Planet. In., 43, 316–330, https://doi.org/10.1016/0031-9201(86)90021-X,
1986.
Wheeler, W. H. and Karson, J. A.: Extension and subsidence adjacent to a
“weak” continental transform: An example from the Rukwa rift, East Africa,
Geolog, 22, 625–628, https://doi.org/10.1130/0091-7613(1994)022<0625:EASATA>2.3.CO;2, 1994.
Withjack, M. O. and Jamison, W. R.: Deformation produced by oblique rifting,
Tectonophysics, 126, 99–124, https://doi.org/10.1016/0040-1951(86)90222-2,
1986.
Wolfenden, E., Ebinger, C., Yirgu, G., Renne, P. R., and Kelley, S. P.:
Evolution of a volcanic rifted margin: Southern Red Sea, Ethiopia, GSA
Bull., 117, 846–864, https://doi.org/10.1130/B25516.1, 2005
Zwaan, F. and Schreurs, G.: How oblique extension and structural
inheritance influence rift segment interaction: Insights from 4D analog
models, Interpretation, 5, SD119–SD138,
https://doi.org/10.1190/INT-2016-0063.1, 2017.
Zwaan, F. and Schreurs, G.: Rift segment interaction in orthogonal and
rotational extension experiments: Implications for the large-scale
development of rift systems, J. Struct. Geol., 140, 104119,
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsg.2020.104119, 2020.
Zwaan, F. and Schreurs, G.: Time-lapse imagery, digital image correlation
(DIC) and topographic analysis of laboratory experiments simulating the
evolution of the East African Rift System, GFZ Data Services [data set],
https://doi.org/10.5880/GFZ.2.5.2023.002, 2023.
Zwaan, F., Schreurs, G., Naliboff, J., and Buiter, S. J. H.: Insights into the
effects of oblique extension on continental rift interaction from 3D
analogue and numerical models, Tectonophysics, 693, 239–260,
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tecto.2016.02.036, 2016.
Zwaan, F., Schreurs, G., and Adam, J.: Effects of sedimentation on rift
segment evolution and rift interaction in orthogonal and oblique extensional
settings: Insights from analogue models analysed with 4D X-ray computed
tomography and digital volume correlation techniques, Global Planet.
Change, 171, 110–133, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gloplacha.2017.11.002,
2018a.
Zwaan, F., Schreurs, G., Gentzmann, R., Warsitzka, M., and Rosenau, M.:
Ring-shear test data of quartz sand from the Tectonic Modelling Lab of the
University of Bern (CH), V. 1, GFZ Data Services [data set],
https://doi.org/10.5880/fidgeo.2018.028, 2018b.
Zwaan, F., Schreurs, G., Ritter, M., Santimano, T., and Rosenau, M.: Rheology
of PDMS-corundum sand mixtures from the Tectonic Modelling Lab of the
University of Bern (CH), V. 1, GFZ Data Services [data set],
https://doi.org/10.5880/fidgeo.2018.023, 2018c.
Zwaan, F., Schreurs, G., and Buiter, S. J. H.: A systematic comparison of experimental set-ups for modelling extensional tectonics, Solid Earth, 10, 1063–1097, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-10-1063-2019, 2019.
Zwaan, F., Schreurs, G., and Rosenau, M.: Rift propagation in rotational
versus orthogonal extension: Insights from 4D analogue models, J. Struct.
Geol., 135, 103946, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsg.2019.103946, 2020.
Zwaan, F., Chenin, P., Erratt, D., Manatschal, G., and Schreurs, G.: Complex rift patterns, a result of interacting crustal and mantle weaknesses, or multiphase rifting? Insights from analogue models, Solid Earth, 12, 1473–1495, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-12-1473-2021, 2021.
Zwaan, F., Chenin, P., Erratt, D., Manatschal, G., and Scheurs, G.:
Competition between 3D structural inheritance and kinematics during rifting:
insights from analogue models, Basin Res., 34, 824–854,
https://doi.org/10.1111/bre.12642, 2022.
Short summary
The East African Rift System (EARS) is a major plate tectonic feature splitting the African continent apart. Understanding the tectonic processes involved is of great importance for societal and economic reasons (natural hazards, resources). Laboratory experiments allow us to simulate these large-scale processes, highlighting the links between rotational plate motion and the overall development of the EARS. These insights are relevant when studying other rift systems around the globe as well.
The East African Rift System (EARS) is a major plate tectonic feature splitting the African...
