High rates of late Cenozoic crustal shortening in the Andean foreland, Mendoza Province, Argentina

Research Article| December 01, 1988 High rates of late Cenozoic crustal shortening in the Andean foreland, Mendoza Province, Argentina Daniel Sarewitz Daniel Sarewitz 1Department of Geological Sciences, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York 14853 Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Author and Article Information Daniel Sarewitz 1Department of Geological Sciences, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York 14853 Publisher: Geological Society of America First Online: 02 Jun 2017 Online ISSN: 1943-2682 Print ISSN: 0091-7613 Geological Society of America Geology (1988) 16 (12): 1138–1142. https://doi.org/10.1130/0091-7613(1988)016<1138:HROLCC>2.3.CO;2 Article history First Online: 02 Jun 2017 Cite View This Citation Add to Citation Manager Share Icon Share Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email Permissions Search Site Citation Daniel Sarewitz; High rates of late Cenozoic crustal shortening in the Andean foreland, Mendoza Province, Argentina. Geology 1988;; 16 (12): 1138–1142. doi: https://doi.org/10.1130/0091-7613(1988)016<1138:HROLCC>2.3.CO;2 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 At least 16 km of Pliocene shortening occurred beneath the La Pilona anticline, an oil-producing structure that lies along the east flank of the Argentine Andes near the city of Mendoza. Balanced cross sections show that the anticline, which is expressed at the surface by late Cenozoic strata, overlies imbricated Paleozoic and Triassic strata that are bounded above and below by detachment surfaces with opposing vergence. Local and regional geochronologic data dictate that shortening occurred during an interval that was less than 2.7 m.y., and probably less than 1.0 m.y. Shortening rates therefore must have exceeded 0.6 cm/yr, and probably exceeded 1.6 cm/yr. Shortening rates in ancient foreland fold-and-thrust belts are generally between 0.2 and 0.5 cm/yr, but these long-term averages probably incorporate periods of tectonic inactivity as well as pulses of deformation. This study suggests that rates of motion on major structures at the deformation front may be five to ten times greater than shortening rates averaged over the entire history of a thrust belt. Dynamic models of foreland shortening must be able to account for these deformation pulses. This content is PDF only. Please click on the PDF icon to access. First Page Preview Close Modal You do not have access to this content, please speak to your institutional administrator if you feel you should have access.