In geology, a basin is a region where

subsidence Subsidence is a general term for downward vertical movement of the Earth's surface, which can be caused by both natural processes and human activities. Subsidence involves little or no horizontal movement, which distinguishes it from slope mov ...

generates accommodation space for the deposition of sediments. A pull-apart basin is a

structural basin A structural basin is a large-scale structural geology, structural formation of rock stratum, strata formed by tectonics, tectonic warping (Fold (geology), folding) of previously flat-lying strata into a syncline fold. They are geological dep ...

where two overlapping (en echelon)

strike-slip fault In geology, a fault is a planar fracture or discontinuity in a volume of rock across which there has been significant displacement as a result of rock-mass movements. Large faults within Earth's crust result from the action of plate tectonic ...

s or a fault bend create an area of crustal extension undergoing tension, which causes the basin to sink down. Frequently, the basins are rhombic or sigmoidal in shape. Dimensionally, basins are limited to the distance between the faults and the length of overlap.Frisch, Wolfgang, Martin Meschede, and Ronald C. Blakey. ''Plate tectonics: Continental drift and mountain building''. Springer, 2010.

Mechanics and fault configuration

The inhomogeneity and structural complexity of

continental crust Continental crust is the layer of igneous, metamorphic, and sedimentary rocks that forms the geological continents and the areas of shallow seabed close to their shores, known as '' continental shelves''. This layer is sometimes called '' si ...

causes faults to deviate from a straight course and frequently causes bends or step-overs in fault paths. Bends and step-overs of adjacent faults become favorable locations for extensional and compressional stress or

transtension Transtension is the state in which a rock mass or area of the Earth's crust (geology), crust experiences both ''extensive'' and ''transtensive'' Shear (geology), shear. As such, transtensional regions are characterised by both extensional structures ...

and transpression stress, if the shear motion is oblique. Pull-apart basins form in extensional to transtensional environments along fault bends or between two adjacent left-lateral faults or two right-lateral faults. The step-over or bend in the fault must be the same direction as sense of motion on the fault otherwise the area will be subject to transpression. For example, two overlapping left lateral fault must have a left-step-over to create a pull-apart basin. This is illustrated in the accompanying figures. A regional strike slip fault is referred to as a principle displacement zone (PDZ). Connecting the tips of step over faults to the opposite fault are bounding basin sidewall faults. The tectonic subsidence of strike-slip basins is mainly episodic, short lived (typically less than 10 Ma), and end abruptly with commonly very high tectonic subsidence rates (greater than 0.5 km/Ma) compared to all other basin types. Recent sandbox models have shown that the geometry and evolution of pull-apart basins varies greatly in pure-strike slip situations versus transtensional settings. Transtensional settings are believed to generate greater surface subsidence than pure-strike slip alone.

Examples

Famous localities for continental pull-apart basins are the

Dead Sea The Dead Sea (; or ; ), also known by #Names, other names, is a landlocked salt lake bordered by Jordan to the east, the Israeli-occupied West Bank to the west and Israel to the southwest. It lies in the endorheic basin of the Jordan Rift Valle ...

, the

Salton Sea The Salton Sea is a shallow, landlocked, highly salinity, saline endorheic lake in Riverside County, California, Riverside and Imperial County, California, Imperial counties in Southern California. It lies on the San Andreas Fault within the S ...

, and the

Sea of Marmara The Sea of Marmara, also known as the Sea of Marmora or the Marmara Sea, is a small inland sea entirely within the borders of Turkey. It links the Black Sea and the Aegean Sea via the Bosporus and Dardanelles straits, separating Turkey's E ...

. Pull-apart basins are amenable to research because sediments deposited in the basin provide a timeline of activity along the fault. The Salton Trough is an active pull-apart located in a step-over between the dextral

San Andreas Fault The San Andreas Fault is a continental Fault (geology)#Strike-slip faults, right-lateral strike-slip transform fault that extends roughly through the U.S. state of California. It forms part of the tectonics, tectonic boundary between the Paci ...

and the Imperial Fault.Brothers, D. S., N. W. Driscoll, G. M. Kent, A. J. Harding, J. M. Babcock, and R. L. Baskin. "Tectonic evolution of the Salton Sea inferred from seismic reflection data."

Nature Geoscience ''Nature Geoscience'' is a monthly peer-reviewed scientific journal published by the Nature Publishing Group. The Chief Editor is Tamara Goldin, who took over from Heike Langenberg in February 2020. It was established in January 2008. Scope The ...

2, no. 8 (2009): 581–584. Displacement on the fault is approximately 6 cm/yr. The current transtensional state generates normal growth faults and some strike slip motion. The growth faults in the region strike N15E, have steep dips (~70 deg), and vertical displacements of 1–4 mm/yr. Eight large slip events have occurred on these faults with throw ranging from 0.2 to 1.0 meters. These produce earthquakes greater than magnitude six and are responsible for the majority of extension in the basin and consequently thermal anomalies, subsidence, and localization of

rhyolite Rhyolite ( ) is the most silica-rich of volcanic rocks. It is generally glassy or fine-grained (aphanitic) in texture (geology), texture, but may be porphyritic, containing larger mineral crystals (phenocrysts) in an otherwise fine-grained matri ...

butte In geomorphology, a butte ( ) is an isolated hill with steep, often vertical sides and a small, relatively flat top; buttes are smaller landforms than mesas, plateaus, and table (landform), tablelands. The word ''butte'' comes from the French l ...

s such as the Salton Buttes.

Economic significance

Pull-apart basins represent an important exploration target for oil and gas,

porphyry copper Porphyry copper deposits are copper ore bodies that are formed from hydrothermal circulation, hydrothermal fluids that originate from a voluminous magma chamber several kilometers below the deposit itself. Predating or associated with those flui ...

mineralisation, and geothermal fields. The Matzen fault system in the Matzen oil field has been recast as extensional

graben In geology, a graben () is a depression (geology), depressed block of the Crust (geology), crust of a planet or moon, bordered by parallel normal faults. Etymology ''Graben'' is a loan word from German language, German, meaning 'ditch' or 't ...

s produced by pull-apart basins of the Vienna Basin. The

has been studied extensively and thinning of the crust in pull-aparts may generate differential loading and instigate salt diapirs to rise, a frequent trap for hydrocarbons. Likewise intense deformation and rapid subsidence and deposition in pull-aparts creates numerous structural and stratigraphic traps, enhancing their viability as hydrocarbon reservoirs. The shallow extensional regime of pull-apart basins also facilitates the emplacement of

felsic In geology, felsic is a grammatical modifier, modifier describing igneous rocks that are relatively rich in elements that form feldspar and quartz.Marshak, Stephen, 2009, ''Essentials of Geology,'' W. W. Norton & Company, 3rd ed. It is contrasted ...

intrusive rock Intrusive rock is formed when magma penetrates existing rock, crystallizes, and solidifies underground to form ''Igneous intrusion, intrusions'', such as batholiths, dike (geology), dikes, Sill (geology), sills, laccoliths, and volcanic necks.I ...

s with high

copper Copper is a chemical element; it has symbol Cu (from Latin ) and atomic number 29. It is a soft, malleable, and ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. A freshly exposed surface of pure copper has a pinkish-orang ...

mineralisation. It is believed to be the main structural control on the giant Escondida deposit in

Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in western South America. It is the southernmost country in the world and the closest to Antarctica, stretching along a narrow strip of land between the Andes, Andes Mountains and the Paci ...

. Geothermal fields are located in pull-aparts for the same reason due to the high heat flow associated with rising magmas.Monastero, F. C., A. M. Katzenstein, J. S. Miller, J. R. Unruh, M. C. Adams, and Keith Richards-Dinger. "The Coso geothermal field: A nascent metamorphic core complex." Geological Society of America Bulletin 117, no. 11–12 (2005): 1534–1553.

Mechanics and fault configuration

Examples

Economic significance

References

Further reading