Near-surface faulting on the Tiptonville Domes as documented by shear-wave seismic investigations
- Univ. of Kentucky, Lexington, KY (United States). Dept. of Geological Sciences
- Univ. of Kentucky, Lexington, KY (United States). Kentucky Geological Survey
Over a kilometer of high resolution refraction and reflection profiles have been performed in the northwestern corner of Tennessee, approximately 8 km north of Tiptonville, TN, to establish the existence of neo-tectonic, near-surface faulting. This area was chosen because of the access it provided to the Tiptonville dome province of the Lake County Uplift (a Holocene flexure) and the trend of contemporary seismicity within the New Madrid Seismic Zone, where the likelihood of faulting would be maximized. Velocity boundaries derived from expanding spread refraction profiles correlated well with the accepted location of the structural high of the Tiptonville Dome. The refraction lines defined up to four velocity boundaries, with depths ranging from less than 4 m to over 100 m. Moreover, some of these boundaries showed faulting with vertical component displacements from approximately 3 m to 30 m. Six-fold, shear-wave, CDP profiles support the refraction data, indicating near vertical displacement across two horizons. The horizons are at .3 s (ca 25 m) and .6 s (ca 80 m), with each reflector displaying approximately 10 m of throw. These reflectors are thought to correlate to a lower Quaternary gravel unit and the base of the Jackson formation (late Eocene) respectively. The faulting, because of its extension to depth, is interpreted to be tectonic in origin and not due to near-surface aseismic structural phenomena such as slumping, compaction, or other soft-sediment deformation.
- OSTI ID:
- 5879920
- Report Number(s):
- CONF-921058-; CODEN: GAAPBC
- Journal Information:
- Geological Society of America, Abstracts with Programs; (United States), Vol. 24:7; Conference: 1992 annual meeting of the Geological Society of America (GSA), Cincinnati, OH (United States), 26-29 Oct 1992; ISSN 0016-7592
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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