Evidence for an active shear zone in southern Nevada linking the Wasatch fault to the Eastern California shear zone

Research Article| May 01, 2010 Evidence for an active shear zone in southern Nevada linking the Wasatch fault to the Eastern California shear zone Corné Kreemer; Corné Kreemer 1Nevada Bureau of Mines and Geology, and Nevada Seismological Laboratory, University of Nevada, Reno, Nevada 89557-0178, USA Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Geoffrey Blewitt; Geoffrey Blewitt 1Nevada Bureau of Mines and Geology, and Nevada Seismological Laboratory, University of Nevada, Reno, Nevada 89557-0178, USA Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar William C. Hammond William C. Hammond 1Nevada Bureau of Mines and Geology, and Nevada Seismological Laboratory, University of Nevada, Reno, Nevada 89557-0178, USA Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Author and Article Information Corné Kreemer 1Nevada Bureau of Mines and Geology, and Nevada Seismological Laboratory, University of Nevada, Reno, Nevada 89557-0178, USA Geoffrey Blewitt 1Nevada Bureau of Mines and Geology, and Nevada Seismological Laboratory, University of Nevada, Reno, Nevada 89557-0178, USA William C. Hammond 1Nevada Bureau of Mines and Geology, and Nevada Seismological Laboratory, University of Nevada, Reno, Nevada 89557-0178, USA Publisher: Geological Society of America Received: 18 Jun 2009 Revision Received: 10 Dec 2009 Accepted: 14 Dec 2009 First Online: 09 Mar 2017 Online ISSN: 1943-2682 Print ISSN: 0091-7613 © 2010 Geological Society of America Geology (2010) 38 (5): 475–478. https://doi.org/10.1130/G30477.1 Article history Received: 18 Jun 2009 Revision Received: 10 Dec 2009 Accepted: 14 Dec 2009 First Online: 09 Mar 2017 Cite View This Citation Add to Citation Manager Share Icon Share Facebook Twitter LinkedIn MailTo Tools Icon Tools Get Permissions Search Site Citation Corné Kreemer, Geoffrey Blewitt, William C. Hammond; Evidence for an active shear zone in southern Nevada linking the Wasatch fault to the Eastern California shear zone. Geology 2010;; 38 (5): 475–478. doi: https://doi.org/10.1130/G30477.1 Download citation file: Ris (Zotero) Refmanager EasyBib Bookends Mendeley Papers EndNote RefWorks BibTex toolbar search Search Dropdown Menu toolbar search search input Search input auto suggest filter your search All ContentBy SocietyGeology Search Advanced Search Abstract Previous studies have shown that ∼5% of the Pacific–North America relative plate motion is accommodated in the eastern part of the Great Basin (western United States). Near the Wasatch fault zone and other nearby faults, deformation is currently concentrated within a narrow zone of extension coincident with the eastern margin of the northern Basin and Range. Farther south, the pattern of active deformation implied by faulting and seismicity is more enigmatic. To assess how present-day strain is accommodated farther south and how this relates to the regional kinematics, we analyze data from continuous global positioning system (GPS) stations and model the strain rate tensor field using the horizontal GPS velocities and earthquake focal mechanisms. The results indicate an ∼100-km-wide zone of ∼3.3 mm/yr extension at 40.5°N that broadens southward from the Wasatch fault zone to a width of >400 km at 36°N. This broadening involves at least one zone of localized extension in northwestern Arizona that encroaches into the southwestern plateau, and an east-northeast–trending sinistral shear zone (the Pahranagat shear zone) through southern Nevada. This shear zone may accommodate as much as 1.8 mm/yr, and is a key feature that enables westward transfer of extension, thereby providing a kinematic connection between the Wasatch fault zone and the Eastern California shear zone. You do not have access to this content, please speak to your institutional administrator if you feel you should have access.