Spatiotemporal patterns of distributed slip in southern Owens Valley indicated by deformation of late Pleistocene shorelines, eastern California

2020 ◽  
Vol 132 (7-8) ◽  
pp. 1681-1703
Author(s):  
Steven N. Bacon ◽  
Thomas F. Bullard ◽  
Amanda K. Keen-Zebert ◽  
Angela S. Jayko ◽  
David L. Decker
Keyword(s):  
Sierra Nevada ◽  
Late Pleistocene ◽  
Spatiotemporal Patterns ◽  
Luminescence Dating ◽  
Fault System ◽  
Lake Basin ◽  
Extension Rate ◽  
Owens Valley ◽  
Beach Ridges ◽  
South Central

Abstract High-resolution elevation surveys of deformed late Pleistocene shorelines and new luminescence dating provide improved constraints on spatiotemporal patterns of distributed slip between normal and strike-slip faulting in southern Owens Valley, eastern California. A complex array of five subparallel faults, including the normal Sierra Nevada frontal fault and the oblique-normal Owens Valley fault, collectively form an active pull-apart basin that has developed within a dextral transtensional shear zone. Spatiotemporal patterns of slip are constrained by post–IR-IRSL (post-infrared–infrared stimulated luminescence) dating of a 40.0 ± 5.8 ka highstand beach ridge that is vertically faulted and tilted up to 9.8 ± 1.8 m and an undeformed suite of 11–16 ka beach ridges. The tectono-geomorphic record of deformed beach ridges and alluvial fans indicates that both normal and dextral faulting occurred between the period of ca. 16 and 40 ka, whereas dextral faulting has been the predominant style of slip since ca. 16 ka. A total extension rate of 0.7 ± 0.2 mm/yr resolved in the N72°E direction across all faults in Owens Lake basin is within error of geodetic estimates, suggesting extension has been constant during intervals of 101–104 yr. A new vertical slip rate of 0.13 ± 0.04 m/k.y. on the southern Owens Valley fault from deformed 160 ± 32 ka shoreline features also suggests constant slip for intervals up to 105 yr when compared to paleoseismic vertical slip rates from the same fault segment. This record supports a deformation mechanism characterized by steady slip and long interseismic periods of 8–10 k.y. where the south-central Owens Valley fault and Sierra Nevada frontal fault form a parallel fault system.

Late Pleistocene and Late Holocene Lake Highstands in the Pyramid Lake Subbasin of Lake Lahontan, Nevada, USA

2005 ◽  
Vol 64 (2) ◽  
pp. 257-263 ◽  
Author(s):  
Richard W. Briggs ◽  
Steven G. Wesnousky ◽  
Kenneth D. Adams
Keyword(s):  
Sierra Nevada ◽  
Late Pleistocene ◽  
Late Holocene ◽  
Large Lakes ◽  
Western Basin ◽  
Radiocarbon Dates ◽  
Beach Ridges ◽  
Climate Proxy ◽  
Pyramid Lake ◽  
Proxy Records

AbstractShoreline geomorphology, shoreline stratigraphy, and radiocarbon dates of organic material incorporated in constructional beach ridges record large lakes during the late Pleistocene and late Holocene in the Pyramid Lake subbasin of Lake Lahontan, Nevada, USA. During the late Holocene, a transgression began at or after 3595 ± 35 14C yr B.P. and continued, perhaps in pulses, through 2635 ± 40 14C yr B.P., resulting in a lake as high as 1199 m. During the latest Pleistocene and overlapping with the earliest part of the Younger Dryas interval, a lake stood at approximately 1212 m at 10,820 ± 35 14C yr B.P. and a geomorphically and stratigraphically distinct suite of constructional shorelines associated with this lake can be traced to 1230 m. These two lake highstands correspond to periods of elevated regional wetness in the western Basin and Range that are not clearly represented in existing northern Sierra Nevada climate proxy records.

Monsoon variability and chemical weathering during the late Pleistocene in the Goriganga basin, higher central Himalaya, India

2011 ◽  
Vol 75 (3) ◽  
pp. 597-604 ◽  
Author(s):  
Steven P. Beukema ◽  
R.V. Krishnamurthy ◽  
N. Juyal ◽  
N. Basavaiah ◽  
A.K. Singhvi
Keyword(s):  
Late Pleistocene ◽  
Chemical Weathering ◽  
Isotope Analysis ◽  
Luminescence Dating ◽  
Lake Basin ◽  
Central Himalaya ◽  
Cool Period ◽  
Monsoon Variability ◽  
Potential Use ◽  
Moderate Climate

AbstractStable isotope analysis along with radiocarbon and luminescence dating of late Pleistocene lacustrine deposits at Burfu in the higher central Himalaya are used to interpret hydrologic changes in the lake basin. From 15.5 ka to ~ 14.5 ka the Burfu lake was largely fed by melting glaciers. A warming event at 14.5 ka suggests an enhanced monsoon and increased carbonate weathering. From ~ 13.5 ka to ~ 12.5 ka the isotopic data suggest large-amplitude climate variability. Following this, the isotope data suggest a short-lived, abrupt cooling event, comprising a ~ 300-yr intense cool period followed by a ~ 500-yr interval of moderate climate. A shift in isotope values at ~ 11.3 ka may signify a strengthening monsoon in this region. The inferred climatic excursions appear to be correlative, at least qualitatively, with global climatic events, and perhaps the Burfu lake sequence provides regional evidence of globally recorded excursions. This study also suggests a potential use of radiocarbon ages in specific environments as a paleoenvironmental proxy.

Tectonic, hydrogeologic, and climatic controls on Late Holocene dune formation, China Lake basin, Indian Wells Valley, California, USA

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-17
Author(s):  
Nicholas Lancaster ◽  
Steven N. Bacon ◽  
Thomas F. Bullard ◽  
Christina M. Neudorf ◽  
Amanda K. Keen-Zebert ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Sierra Nevada ◽  
Late Holocene ◽  
Luminescence Dating ◽  
Granitic Rocks ◽  
Lake Basin ◽  
Groundwater Levels ◽  
Aeolian Deposits ◽  
Sand Sheet ◽  
Alluvial Material ◽  
China Lake

Abstract Analysis of patterns of faulting and hydrogeology, stratigraphic and sedimentologic studies, and luminescence dating of aeolian deposits in China Lake basin provide new perspectives on the origins and development of Late Holocene dunes and sand ramps in the seismically active Indian Wells Valley of eastern California. Aeolian dune and sand sheet deposits were sourced from alluvial material derived from granitic rocks of the south-eastern Sierra Nevada and are concentrated in areas with sand-stabilizing phreatophyte vegetation influenced by high groundwater levels along the active oblique-normal Little Lake and Paxton Ranch faults, which locally form barriers to groundwater flow. Three episodes of sand accumulation are recognized (2.1 ± 0.1 to 2.0 ± 0.1 ka, 1.8 ± 0.2 to 1.6 ± 0.2 ka, and 1.2 ± 0.1 to 0.9 ± 0.1 ka) during conditions in which sediment supplied to the basin during periods of enhanced rainfall and runoff was subsequently reworked by wind into dunes and sand ramps at the transition to more arid periods. Understanding the role tectonics plays in influencing the hydrogeology of seismically active lake basins provides insights to accurately interpret landscape evolution and any inferences made on past hydroclimate variability in a region.

The Angus Mammoth: A Decades-Old Scientific Controversy Resolved

2011 ◽  
Vol 76 (3) ◽  
pp. 487-499 ◽  
Author(s):  
Steven R. Holen ◽  
David W. May ◽  
Shannon A. Mahan
Keyword(s):  
North America ◽  
Late Pleistocene ◽  
Archaeological Site ◽  
Luminescence Dating ◽  
Scientific Controversy ◽  
Human Occupation ◽  
South Central ◽  
The Matrix

The Angus Mammoth site in south-central Nebraska has been controversial since its discovery in 1931 when a fluted artifact was reported to be associated with the mammoth. For nearly 80 years it has not been known if Angus was a paleontological site predating the human occupation of North America as has been asserted by some geologists and paleontologists, or an archaeological site dating to the late Pleistocene as has been advocated by some archaeologists. Geomorphic study and luminescence dating have finally solved the problem after nearly eight decades. Although microwear and technological analyses have determined that the Angus biface is an authentic artifact, TL and IRSL dates have shown that the matrix above the mammoth is much too old for a mammoth/fluted point association to be valid.

scholarly journals Late Quaternary slip rates for faults of the central Walker Lane (Nevada, USA): Spatiotemporal strain release in a strike-slip fault system

Geosphere ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 15 (5) ◽  
pp. 1460-1478 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stephen J. Angster ◽  
Steven G. Wesnousky ◽  
Paula M. Figueiredo ◽  
Lewis A. Owen ◽  
Sarah J. Hammer
Keyword(s):  
Late Pleistocene ◽  
Strike Slip ◽  
Strike Slip Fault ◽  
Luminescence Dating ◽  
Slip Distribution ◽  
Fault System ◽  
Slip Rates ◽  
Walker Lane ◽  
Fault Systems ◽  
Late Pleistocene To Holocene

Abstract The Walker Lane is a broad shear zone that accommodates a significant portion of North American–Pacific plate relative transform motion through a complex of fault systems and block rotations. Analysis of digital elevation models, constructed from both lidar data and structure-from-motion modeling of unmanned aerial vehicle photography, in conjunction with 10Be and 36Cl cosmogenic and optically stimulated luminescence dating define new Late Pleistocene to Holocene minimum strike-slip rates for the Benton Springs (1.5 ± 0.2 mm/yr), Petrified Springs (0.7 ± 0.1 mm/yr), Gumdrop Hills (0.9 +0.3/−0.2 mm/yr), and Indian Head (0.8 ± 0.1 mm/yr) faults of the central Walker Lane (Nevada, USA). Regional mapping of the fault traces within Quaternary deposits further show that the Indian Head and southern Benton Springs faults have had multiple Holocene ruptures, with inferred coseismic displacements of ∼3 m, while absence of displaced Holocene deposits along the Agai Pah, Gumdrop Hills, northern Benton Springs, and Petrified Springs faults suggest they have not. Combining these observations and comparing them with geodetic estimates of deformation across the central Walker Lane, indicates that at least one-third of the ∼8 mm/yr geodetic deformation budget has been focused across strike-slip faults, accommodated by only two of the five faults discussed here, during the Holocene, and possibly half from all the strike-slip faults during the Late Pleistocene. These results indicate secular variations of slip distribution and irregular recurrence intervals amongst the system of strike-slip faults. This makes the geodetic assessment of fault slip rates and return times of earthquakes on closely spaced strike-slip fault systems challenging. Moreover, it highlights the importance of understanding temporal variations of slip distribution within fault systems when comparing geologic and geodetic rates. Finally, the study provides examples of the importance and value in using observations of soil development in assessing the veracity of surface exposure ages determined with terrestrial cosmogenic nuclide analysis.

scholarly journals Late Pleistocene stratigraphy, glaciation chronology and Middle Weichselian environmental history from Klintholm, Møn, Denmark

1994 ◽  
Vol 41 ◽  
pp. 181-202
Author(s):  
Michael Houmark Nielsen
Keyword(s):  
Environmental History ◽  
Late Pleistocene ◽  
Luminescence Dating ◽  
Lake Basin ◽  
Rock Types ◽  
Baltic Coast ◽  
Late Weichselian ◽  
The Baltic ◽  
Amino Acid Chronology

A new and fundamental outline of the Late Pleistocene geological history in SE Denmark is obtained from examination of exposed cliff sections along the Baltic coast of M0n. Multi­diciplinary studies including lithostratigraphic classification, analyses of glaciotectonic struc- tures, biostratigraphic studies, amino acid chronology and radiocarbon and luminescence dating indicate the following: A shallow boreo-lusitanian sea that characterized the Eemian interglaciation (130-115 ka BP) was followed by periglacial conditions during the Early Weichselian (l 15-75 ka BP). In the early part of the Middle Weichselian (75--c. 40 ka BP) Baltic glaciers invaded the region twice, intenupted by an ice free and periglacial interval around 50 ka BP. The first ice stream left a reddish coloured till dominated by exotic rock-types of eastern Baltic provenance. From about 40-35 ka BP to slightly before 20 ka BP ameliorated conditions with periglacial terrestrial and lacustrine environments are recorded. A lake basin in the western part of the Baltic was surrounded by a low releif mammoth-steppe with an almost treeless vegetation of grasses, sedges, heather and dwarf shrubs. Increasing amounts of diamicton dominated by Palaeozoic shale and limestone towards the top of the muddy and slightly organic lake sediments suggest ice-rafting in the basin by the end of the late Middle Weichselian. Deposits suffered strong glaciotectonic deformation during the Late Weichselian glacial maximum (25-15 ka BP).

SKARN-GARNET ARCHIVES OF METASOMATIC AND HYDROTHERMAL CONDITIONS IN THE MINERAL KING ROOF PENDANT, SOUTH-CENTRAL SIERRA NEVADA

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Juliet Ryan-Davis ◽  
◽  
Jade Star Lackey ◽  
Megan D'Errico ◽  
Kouki Kitajima ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Sierra Nevada ◽  
Hydrothermal Conditions ◽  
South Central

Late Pleistocene Vegetation of Kings Canyon, Sierra Nevada, California

1983 ◽  
Vol 19 (1) ◽  
pp. 117-129 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kenneth Cole
Keyword(s):  
Plant Community ◽  
Sierra Nevada ◽  
Late Pleistocene ◽  
Coniferous Forest ◽  
Pollen Grains ◽  
Mean Annual Precipitation ◽  
Juniperus Occidentalis ◽  
Sequoiadendron Giganteum ◽  
Western Side ◽  
Modern Sample

AbstractSeven packrat midden samples make possible a comparison between the modern and late Pleistocene vegetation in Kings Canyon on the western side of the southern Sierra Nevada. One modern sample contains macrofossils and pollen derived from the present-day oak-chaparral vegetation. Macrofossils from the six late Pleistocene samples record a mixed coniferous forest dominated by the xerophytic conifers Juniperus occidentalis, Pinus cf. ponderosa, and P. monophylla. The pollen spectra of these Pleistocene middens are dominated by Pinus sp., Taxodiaceae-Cupressaceae-Taxaceae (TCT), and Artemisia sp. Mesophytic conifers are represented by low macrofossil concentrations. Sequoiadendron giganteum is represented by a few pollen grains in the full glacial. Edaphic control and snow dispersal are the most likely causes of these mixed assemblages.The dominant macrofossils record a more xeric plant community than those that now occur on similar substrates at higher elevations or latitudes in the Sierra Nevada. These assemblages suggest that late Wisconsin climates were cold with mean annual precipitation not necessarily greater than modern values. This conclusion supports a model of low summer ablation allowing for the persistence of the glaciers at higher elevations during the late Wisconsin. The records in these middens also suggest that S. giganteum grew at lower elevations along the western side of the range and that P. monophylla was more widely distributed in cismontane California during the Pleistocene.

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