Grutzner, C, Walker, RT, Abdrakhhmatov, KE et al. (3 more authors) (2017) Active tectonics around Almaty and along the Zailisky Alatau rangefront. Tectonics, 36 (10). pp. 2192-2226. ISSN 0278-7407
Abstract
The Zailisky Alatau is a >250 km long mountain range in Southern Kazakhstan. Its northern rangefront around the major city of Almaty has more than 4 km topographic relief, yet in contrast to other large mountain fronts in the Tien Shan, little is known about its Late Quaternary tectonic activity despite several destructive earthquakes in the historical record. We analyze the tectonic geomorphology of the rangefront fault using field observations, differential GPS measurements of fault scarps, historical and recent satellite imagery, meter-scale topography derived from stereo satellite images, and decimeter-scale elevation models from unmanned aerial vehicle surveys. Fault scarps ranging in height from ~2 m to >20 m in alluvial fans indicate that surface rupturing earthquakes occurred along the rangefront fault since the Last Glacial Maximum. Minimum estimated magnitudes for those earthquakes are M6.8–7. Radiocarbon dating results from charcoal layers in uplifted river terraces indicate a Holocene slip rate of ~1.2–2.2 mm/a. We find additional evidence for active tectonic deformation all along the Almaty rangefront, basinward in the Kazakh platform, and in the interior of the Zailisky mountain range. Our data indicate that the seismic hazard faced by Almaty comes from a variety of sources, and we emphasize the problems related to urban growth into the loess-covered foothills and secondary earthquake effects. With our structural and geochronologic framework, we present a schematic evolution of the Almaty rangefront that may be applicable to similar settings of tectonic shortening in the mountain ranges of Central Asia.
Metadata
Item Type: | Article |
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Authors/Creators: |
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Copyright, Publisher and Additional Information: | (c) 2017, American Geophysical Union. All Rights Reserved. This is the published version of, 'Grutzner, C, Walker, RT, Abdrakhhmatov, KE et al (2017). Active tectonics around Almaty and along the Zailisky Alatau rangefront. Tectonics, 36 (10). pp. 2192-2226'. To view the published open abstract, go to: https://doi.org/10.1002/2017TC004657 |
Keywords: | Tien Shan; Zailisky Alatau; active tectonics; tectonic geomorphology; earthquakes and faulting |
Dates: |
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Institution: | The University of Leeds |
Academic Units: | The University of Leeds > Faculty of Environment (Leeds) > School of Earth and Environment (Leeds) > Inst of Geophysics and Tectonics (IGT) (Leeds) |
Funding Information: | Funder Grant number Royal Society UF150282 |
Depositing User: | Symplectic Publications |
Date Deposited: | 02 Oct 2017 13:04 |
Last Modified: | 01 Apr 2018 00:38 |
Status: | Published |
Publisher: | American Geophysical Union |
Identification Number: | 10.1002/2017TC004657 |
Open Archives Initiative ID (OAI ID): | oai:eprints.whiterose.ac.uk:121890 |