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Aseismic slip on the active Sabz-Pushan and Sepidar thrusts, Iran: microstructural and kinematics evidence of the slickenline fibre creep

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Abstract

For decades, seismogenic faults of the Zagros orogen that episodically experienced large earthquakes studies in detail; however, the active faults with the aseismic slips have only have been studied as a possible contributor to their seismic hazard assessments. This study identifies the contribution of pressure solution creeps to their seismic hazard assessments. Microscopic measurements of the calcite slickenline fibres on the Sabz-Pushan thrust planes documents a length of 1.28 ± 0.50 mm. Microscopic-scaled stretched calcite length measurements represent the present slip magnitude along with this thrust. This slip magnitude correlates with GPS velocity measurements of the Sabz-Pushan thrust of 1.5 ± 0.2 mm/year. The slip magnitude of the aseismic creep in the Sabz-Pushan thrust is closely associated with postseismic adjustments of the 1824 and 1994 earthquakes. The dynamic fluid flow and fluid circulations of the Mand (Qara Aghj) River along with the Sabz-Pushan and Sepidar thrusts and sub-simple shearing are the main controlling factors in an aseismic slip of the Sabz-Pushan and Sepidar thrusts. These thrusts forming a compressional push-up structure that may be a critical factor in the brittle deformation of the damage zone and ductile flow in-depth on the fault planes. The presence of rotated lens-shaped Type III e-twins within the slickenline fibres on the thrust planes confirms that the depth of aseismic creep occurred at > 400 °C which represents calcite ductile flow of the pressure solution mechanism as a potentially important deformation along with the Zagros thrust system of the Zagros orogen. Analysis of the slickenline fibre orientations indicates that the mean plunge and trend of maximum principal stress (σ1) of the Sabz-Pushan thrust are N31° E–N36° E, sub-horizontal and the mean trend of the minimum principal stress (σ3) is NNW and is sub-vertical. Horizontal maximum principal stress confirms that the Sabz-Pushan characterizes as a dip-slip fault.

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Acknowledgements

The authors wish to thank Professor Wolf-Christian Dullo, Editor-in-Chief of the International Journal of Earth Sciences for his careful review and valuable suggestion on the manuscript. Thanks to anonymous reviewers that carefully reviewed the manuscript and made valuable suggestions and comments. Special thanks to Professor Jan Tullis, Brown University, USA, for critical reading/editing manuscript, which extensively improved the presentation. This research was supported by the Shiraz University Research Council (SURC) grant is gratefully acknowledged.

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  1. Department of Earth Sciences, College of Sciences, Shiraz University, Shiraz, Iran

    Khalil Sarkarinejad, Maryam Mottahedi & Maryam Nori

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  1. Khalil Sarkarinejad
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Sarkarinejad, K., Mottahedi, M. & Nori, M. Aseismic slip on the active Sabz-Pushan and Sepidar thrusts, Iran: microstructural and kinematics evidence of the slickenline fibre creep. Int J Earth Sci (Geol Rundsch) 110, 2831–2848 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00531-021-02081-1

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