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Title: Structural analysis of late Neogene deformation in the central offshore Santa Maria Basin, California

Abstract

Structural analysis of the Queenie structure, a topographically prominent, southwest vergent asymmetric fold located 35 km west of Point Sal, constrains the timing and nature of late Neogene deformation in a transect across the central offshore Santa Maria Basin. Analysis of post-Miocene sediments mantling the fold indicates that the Queenie structure was formed in a relatively brief episode of NE-SW directed shortening between 5 and 3 Ma, apparently in response to the onset of compression normal to the North American/Pacific plate boundary. Retrodeformation of depth-corrected cross sections constructed from an extensive set of common depth point seismic data demonstrates that the Queenie structure overprints a Miocene extensional basin and is a fault propagation fold that formed as compression changed the normal slip on the basin margin shear zone to reverse slip. Geometric constraints and seismic data suggest that the controlling shear zone dips moderately (30{degrees} to 50{degrees}) to the northeast and is essentially nonlistric to the base of the brittle crust at a depth of about 12 km. Structural analysis of cross sections further shows that average total post-Miocene NE-SW shortening across the Queenie structure is about 3% (0.39 km across the 130km-wide zone of folding) and that related shorteningmore » across the 40-km-wide central reach of the offshore Santa Maria Basin between the Hosgri fault and the Santa Lucia Bank fault during the same period is roughly 1-2% (0.4-0.8 km). High-resolution seismic reflection data show small folds in post-early/late Pliocene sediments on the southwestern flank of the Queenie structure. These folds exhibit minor coaxial deformation along the flank of the structure, suggesting that very low rates of tectonic folding (of the order of 0.005 mm shortening per year) may continue to the present.« less

Authors:
; ;  [1];  [2]
  1. Earth Sciences Associates, Palo Alto, CA (USA)
  2. R.G. Heck and Associates, Carpinteria, CA (USA)
Publication Date:
OSTI Identifier:
5446989
Resource Type:
Journal Article
Journal Name:
Journal of Geophysical Research; (United States)
Additional Journal Information:
Journal Volume: 96:B4; Journal ID: ISSN 0148-0227
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English
Subject:
58 GEOSCIENCES; CALIFORNIA; SEDIMENTARY BASINS; GEOLOGIC STRUCTURES; AGE ESTIMATION; COMPRESSION; DEFORMATION; GEOLOGIC FAULTS; GEOLOGIC FORMATIONS; GEOLOGIC HISTORY; GEOMORPHOLOGY; INCLINED STRATA; OFFSHORE SITES; ORIGIN; REFLECTIVITY; SEDIMENTS; SEISMIC SURVEYS; SLIP; TECTONICS; TERTIARY PERIOD; CENOZOIC ERA; DEVELOPED COUNTRIES; FEDERAL REGION IX; GEOLOGIC AGES; GEOLOGIC FRACTURES; GEOLOGIC STRATA; GEOLOGY; GEOPHYSICAL SURVEYS; NORTH AMERICA; OPTICAL PROPERTIES; PHYSICAL PROPERTIES; SURFACE PROPERTIES; SURVEYS; USA; 580000* - Geosciences

Citation Formats

Clark, D H, Hall, N T, Hamilton, D H, and Heck, R G. Structural analysis of late Neogene deformation in the central offshore Santa Maria Basin, California. United States: N. p., 1991. Web. doi:10.1029/90JB00922.
Clark, D H, Hall, N T, Hamilton, D H, & Heck, R G. Structural analysis of late Neogene deformation in the central offshore Santa Maria Basin, California. United States. https://doi.org/10.1029/90JB00922
Clark, D H, Hall, N T, Hamilton, D H, and Heck, R G. 1991. "Structural analysis of late Neogene deformation in the central offshore Santa Maria Basin, California". United States. https://doi.org/10.1029/90JB00922.
@article{osti_5446989,
title = {Structural analysis of late Neogene deformation in the central offshore Santa Maria Basin, California},
author = {Clark, D H and Hall, N T and Hamilton, D H and Heck, R G},
abstractNote = {Structural analysis of the Queenie structure, a topographically prominent, southwest vergent asymmetric fold located 35 km west of Point Sal, constrains the timing and nature of late Neogene deformation in a transect across the central offshore Santa Maria Basin. Analysis of post-Miocene sediments mantling the fold indicates that the Queenie structure was formed in a relatively brief episode of NE-SW directed shortening between 5 and 3 Ma, apparently in response to the onset of compression normal to the North American/Pacific plate boundary. Retrodeformation of depth-corrected cross sections constructed from an extensive set of common depth point seismic data demonstrates that the Queenie structure overprints a Miocene extensional basin and is a fault propagation fold that formed as compression changed the normal slip on the basin margin shear zone to reverse slip. Geometric constraints and seismic data suggest that the controlling shear zone dips moderately (30{degrees} to 50{degrees}) to the northeast and is essentially nonlistric to the base of the brittle crust at a depth of about 12 km. Structural analysis of cross sections further shows that average total post-Miocene NE-SW shortening across the Queenie structure is about 3% (0.39 km across the 130km-wide zone of folding) and that related shortening across the 40-km-wide central reach of the offshore Santa Maria Basin between the Hosgri fault and the Santa Lucia Bank fault during the same period is roughly 1-2% (0.4-0.8 km). High-resolution seismic reflection data show small folds in post-early/late Pliocene sediments on the southwestern flank of the Queenie structure. These folds exhibit minor coaxial deformation along the flank of the structure, suggesting that very low rates of tectonic folding (of the order of 0.005 mm shortening per year) may continue to the present.},
doi = {10.1029/90JB00922},
url = {https://www.osti.gov/biblio/5446989}, journal = {Journal of Geophysical Research; (United States)},
issn = {0148-0227},
number = ,
volume = 96:B4,
place = {United States},
year = {Wed Apr 10 00:00:00 EDT 1991},
month = {Wed Apr 10 00:00:00 EDT 1991}
}