Uniform-Sense Normal Simple Shear of The Continental Lithosphere

Uniform-sense normal simple shear of the continental lithosphere
Department of Geological Sciences, Harvard University, Ctrrnbridge, M A 02/38, U . S . A .

Received February 7, 1984
Revision accepted July 12, 1984
Geophysical studies suggest that the thin crust characteristic of the Basin and Range Province extends eastward beneath the
west margin of the Colorado Plateau and Rocky Mountain regions. In Arizona and Utah, zones perhaps over 100 km wide may
be defined, bounded on the west by the east limit of upper crustal normal faults that account for more that 10% extension and
on the east by the east limit of thinning beneath the Colorado Plateau. A discrepancy exists within these zones between the
negligible extension measurable in the upper crust and the substantial extension apparent from crustal thinning, assuming the
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"discrepant zone" crust was as thick as or thicker than the Colorado Plateau - Rocky Mountain crust prior to extensional
tectonism.
If various theories appealing to crustal erosion are dismissed, mass balance problems evident in the discrepant zones are most
easily resolved by down-to-the-east normal simple shear of the crust, moving lower and middle crustal rocks that initially were
within the zones up-and-to-the-west to where they now are locally exposed in the Basin and Range Province. West of the
discrepant zones in both Arizona and Utah, east-directed extensional allochthons with large displacement are exposed. These
geophysical and geological observations complement one another if it is accepted that the entire crust in both Arizona and Utah
failed during extension on gently east-dipping, east-directed, low-angle normal faults and shear zones over a region several
hundred kilometres wide.
Large-scale, uniform-sense normal simple shear of the crust suggests the entire lithosphere may do the same. Such a
hypothesis predicts major lithospheric thinning without crustal thinning will occur in plateau areas in the direction of crustal
shear. In the case of the Arizona, Utah. and Red Sea extensional systems, and possibly the Death Valley extensional terrain,
a broad topographic arch, typically 1500-2000 m higher than the extended terrain, is present, suggesting lithospheric thinning
in areas predicted by the hypothesis.
Des Ctudes gCophysiques revelent que la croQte mince typique de la province de Bassin et Chaine se prolonge en direction
est sous la marge continentale des regions du plateau du Colorado et des montagnes Rocheuses. Dans I'Arizona et I'Utah, des
For personal use only.
zones possiblement plus larges que 100 km peuvent &tredelimitees du cdte ouest par la limite est des failles normales de la
c r o ~ t esu@rieure, lesquelles sont responsables de plus de 10% de I'extension, et du cdtC ouest par I'extremite est de
I'amincissement sous le plateau du Colorado. Un dtsaccord existe a I'intkrieur de ces zones opposant une extension apparente
substantielle rksultant de I'amincissement de la croQte, en presumant que la "zone de desaccord" fut avant la distention
tectonique de m&meepaisseur ou plus epaisse que celle du plateau du Colorado - montagnes Rocheuses.
Si on Ccarte les diverses theories invoquant une erosion de la croiite, les problemes dlCquilibre de masse dans les zones en
dksaccord sont plus facilement resolus par un cisaillement simple normal descendant vers I'est, deplaqant des roches de la
crocte inferieure et moyenne, lesquelles se trouvaient originalement dans ces zones, vers le haut et en direction ouest jusqu'au
I'endroit qu'elles occupent maintenant dans la province de Bassin et Chaine. A I'ouest de ces zones de desaccord, rant dans
I'Arizona que I'Utah, des roches allochtones d'extension de direction est sont exposees et elles exhibent un dkplacement sur
une grande distance. Ces observations geophysiques et gCologiques se complktent les unes et les autres, si on accepte que la
croQte entiere dans 1'Arizona et dans 1'Utah fut brisCe durant la distension sur un plan legerement incline vers I'est, le long
de failles normales de direction est ? angle
i faible et de zones de cisaillement sur une region large de plusieurs kilometres.
Un cisaillement de la croiite normal, simple et de sens uniforme sur une grande Cchelle, semble pouvoir pCnttrer toute la
lithosphere. Une telle hypothese devoile un amincissement important de la lithosphere sans &tre accompagne d'un amin-
cissement de la croiite dans les regions du plateau situe dans la direction du cisaillement crustal. Dans le cas des systemes de
distension de I'Arizona, de I'Utah, de la mer Rouge et possiblement de la Vallee de la Mort, un grand arc topographique
apparait avec un soulkvement typique surmontant de 1500-2000 m les terrains de la zone de distension, suggerant alors un
amincissement lithosphkrique dans les regions ou cette hypothkse peut s'appliquer.
[Traduit par le journal]
Can. I. Earth Sci. 22. 1 0 8 125 (1985)
Introduction profiling in areas such as the western Alps (Milnes and Pfiffner
With the ~roliferationof information on thin-skinned ex- 1980), Canadian Rockies (Price 198 I ) , Appalachians (Cook
tensional tectonics and related phenomena in the Basin and et al. 1979; Harris and Milici 1977), Wyoming Rockies
Range Province, it is now possible to focus attention on the (Smithson et al. 1978), and the Scandinavian Caledonides (Gee
overall strain pattern during extension of at least the upper and 1975; Hodges et al. 1982). Using thin-skinned compressional
middle crust and to some extent the lower crust and mantle belts as an analogue, I have proposed (Wernicke 1981a) a
lithosphere. In particular, much debate currently centers upon large-scale simple-shear kinematic model in order to explain
the relative importance of simple-shear and pure-shear strains, enigmatic relationships in the surface geology of the Basin and
at scales ranging from that of a thin section up to that of the Range Province. Because the Basin and Range only exposes
entire lithosphere (e.g., Armstrong 1982; Miller et al. 1983; upper- and middle-crustal rocks, surface geology alone pro-
Compton 1980; Bartley and Wernicke 1985; Davis et al. 1983). vides few clues to the nature of extension in the lower litho-
In compressional mountain belts, simple shear with regional- sphere. Since upper- and middle-crustal extension seemed to be
ly uniform sense developed in the upper, middle, and lower adequately explained in many areas by large-scale, regionally
crust is well known from field studies and seismic reflection uniform simple shear, I have speculated that these upper-
from normal faulting above the detachment (Compton et al.
1977; Davls and Coney 1979; Davis et al. 1980; Crittenden et
al. 1980; Coney 1980; Compton 1980; Ke~thet al. 1980;
Rehrig and Reynolds 1980; Reynolds and Rehrig 1980) led
many ecologists to the hypothesis that detachments represent
the brittle-ductile transition zone thought to exist at depth by
earlier workers. In this view. brittlely eatended upper-crustal
Fault blocks "collapse" directly on top of a ductile1y extended
substratum (e.g., Rehrig and Reynolds 1980; Eaton 1979). A
Convecl~lg
(a) As~l~mr.~ere variation of this concept, intended to account for the domal
form of the detachment terrains and the absence of severe
ductile deformation at structurally deep levels, is the ingenious
megaboudin concept (Davis and coney 1979), in which the

ductile extension at depth is modeled as being heterogeneous.
This hypothesis views the extending crust as being composed
of large bodies of relatively undeformed material set in a matrix
of ductile tectonite, as in a row of boudins. Based on Davis and
Coney's work and detailed observations of shear-zone pro-
cesses in Hercynian basement rocks in the Pennine Zone in the
western Alps, Ramsay (1980) suggested that systems of conju-
gate, shallowly inclined shear zones should be the norm in an
extending middle crust, giving way upward to more steeply
inclined brittle normal faults. Similar models have also been
advocated by Kligfield et al. (1982) and Hamilton (1982).
Inherent in Ramsay's model is a large amount of simple shear
between lenses, but no more than a few tens of kilometres of
FIG. 1. End-member models of strain geometry in rifts. ( a ) horizontal translation of upper-crustal levels with respect to the
"Pure-shear" model, in which crust and mantle lithosphere are at- lower crust is required to accommodate a net crustal extension
tenuated uniformly along any given vertical reference line. ( b ) many times the amount of these translations. In contrast, large-
"Simple-shear" model, in which relative extension of crust and mantle scale, uniform-sense simple shear of the crust ( ~ e r n i c k e
lithosphere along any given vertical line is nonuniform. After 1981a) would produce translations of upper crust with respect
Wernicke ( 1 98 1b). to lower crust approximately equal to the net extension, a
geometric attribute of fold-thrust belts such as the southern
crustal shear systems may penetrate the entire lithosphere as Canadian Rockies (Price 1981).
single entities (Fig. 1). This paper is intended to explore the Recent field studies of tectonites beneath detachments sug-
feasibility of that hypothesis by integrating surface geology gest that both pure shear and simple shear exist in these terrains
with geophysical and petrological observations in the Basin and (e.g., Davis kt al. 1983; Compton 1980), but that simple shear
Range Province and in the Red Sea region. The results suggest appears to be dominant and of consistent sense over very large
that large-scale uniform-sense simple shear of the lithosphere areas (e.g., Snoke 1983; Lister and Davis 1983).
during extension not only is feasible but in some areas more Of fundamental importance in evaluating these concepts is
adequately accounts for these observations than pure-shear the ritnirzg of lower-plate ductile deformation relative to upper-
theories of rifting do. More importantly, it provides a new plate events. In many detachment terrains. lower-plate tec-
hypothesis of rift tectonics that may be tested by many highly tonites cooled through the blocking temperature of argon in
diverse forms of geoscientific data. biotite 5- 10 Ma prior to large amounts of extensional strain
via imbricate normal faulting in the upper plate (Fig. 2). This
Middle- and upper-crustal extension observation, coupled with the fact that some lower plates are
Early workers in thin-skinned extension, in concert with the not ductilely strained (Spencer and Turner 1982; Wernicke
widely held notion that the strain field of an intracontinental rift 1982b), indicates that hypotheses of simple collapse of imbri-
resembles a stretched piece of taffy, viewed the overall strain cate normal fault mosaics atop a ductilely stretching lower plate
pattern as pure-shear flattening accompanied by igneous di- are inadequate because they require synchroneity between
lation, in which vertical reference lines through the lithosphere high-temperature deformation and all upper-plate extension.
would not significantly rotate as a result of crustal extension They do not account for the many examples of detachments and
(Proffett 1977; Wright and Troxel 1969, 1973; Anderson 1971 ; superjacent normal fault mosaics deformed and (or) emplaced
Armstrong 1968, 1972). These models generally assumed that upon rigid lower plates (e.g., Davis et al. 1979; Shackleford
thin-skinned normal faulting was accommodated in the middle 1980; Wernicke 198la, 19826). It is precisely this diachroneity
and lower crust by stretching and igneous dilation, similar to that makes a simple-shear explanation attractive. By this mech-
ideas of early thinkers on the depth accommodation problem anism, most or all lower-plate ductile tectonism may substan-
for widely spaced Basin and Range normal faults responsible tially predate large amounts of upper-plate extension, or not be
for the modern topography (Thompson 1960; Hamilton and present at all if upper-plate translation and (or) distension are
Myers 1966; Stewart 1971). The recent recognition of regional of insufficient magnitude to expose early formed tectonites.
low-angle detachments beneath normal fault systems and, in The kinematic evolution of a "typical" Basin and Range
many areas, a subjacent zone of ductile deformation whose detachment terrain is depicted in Fig. 3. Firstly, a shallowly
maximum elongation direction is colinear with that inferred inclined fault (or shear zone at depth) penetrating most of the
110 CAN. J. EARTH SCI. VOL. 22. 1985
Terrain age, Ma BP
0 10 20 30 40 50 80
I 1 I I I I I
Catalina-Rincon
Mountains
Whipple Mountains
Osborne
Wash Fm.
:.
Copper Basin Formation
.
Northern Snake Range
/wTeriary
. .I*
rocks. Sacramento Pass
. ..
Okanagan-Toroda Creek /&-Klondike Mtn. Fm.

area
K-Ar biotite apparent age

-- -
-
Youngest rocks involved in
upper-plate dilation
Bound on timing of upper-plate dilation
Time interval of strong upper-plate

dilation and translation
FIG.2. Age relations between cooling of lower-plate tectonites and timing of latest upper-plate imbricate normal faulting and brittle
detachment. Significant amounts of upper-plate dilation and translation probably occurrcd in all of these terrains prior to the deposition of the
youngest rocks involved in the deformation; thus the shaded areas represent only the latest phase of significant upper-plate strain. Sources:
Catalina-Rincon mountains, Keith et al. (1980) and M. Shafiqullah and H. W. Peirce (unpublished data): Whipple Mountains, Davis era!.
(1982);northern Snake Range, Miller et al. (1983 and unpublished data) and Lee er a/. (19801: Okanogan - Tomda Creek area, Fox er nl. (1977)
and Pearson and Obradovich (1977).
crust (and perhaps much of the mantle, as will be discussed persistent, gently ~nclinedshear zones that penetrate the crust
below) forms, developing at the surface as a "breakaway fault" deeply, early formed tectonite may be brought upward along
and an accompanying sedimentary basin. It is possible to en- the shear zone and cooled through geochronometric blocking
visage the fault-shear zone as having several kilometres of temperatures long before extensional deformation is complete.
movement prior to the accumulation of coarse elastics, de- The geometry of Fig. 3 suggests a cfassilication of ranges
pending on local drainage conditions. As the fault moves and with respect to their tectonic affiliation with detachment sys-
the basin grows, earliest formed ductile tectonite begins its tems. Although it ha? been widely held in the past that early
ascent (Fig. 3 a and b). The early basins associated with ex- thin-skinned extension is a separate phenomenon from wideiy
tended terrains generally contain a large percentage of non- spaced Basin and Range faulting (e.g., Zoback et al. 1981;
conglomeratic material deposited over wide areas. The Sevier Miller et al. 1983), 1 have argued based on seismic reflection
Desert basin may be an active example of this type of setting. data from the Sevier Desert area, Utah (McDonald 1976), that
After a substantial amount of displacement on the fault, pene- the development of detachment systems may control Basin and
trative brittle deformation begins to affect the sedimentary ba- Range faulting (Wernicke 1 9 8 1 ~ ~ ) .
sin and its basement as deformation continues (Fig. 3c). Closer F~gure3 depicts how classical Basin and Range topography
fault spacing and growing relief cause coarsening of sedimen- may form in concert with large-scale. low-angle, normal fault
tation. At this point, upper-plate thinning has been sufficient to systems. Breakaway ranges generally take on the appearance of
move tectonites into brittle conditions. As shear continues, a an asymmetric hont and frequently display upward flexure
portion of the upper plate may begin to preferentially extend toward the faulted side of the range (see discussion in next
relative to surrounding areas (Fig. 36). If extension is large section). lmbricately extended ranges may have one fault-
enough, folds in the detachment surface may develop as a result bounded margin, and their internal geology consists of a num-
of isostatic rebound of the unloaded terrain, forming the fa- ber of long, thin, highly rotated faults and fault blocks, but
miliar arched configuration of a mature detachment terrain, extension has not been great enough to expose a basal detach-
with old tectonite exposed in the core of the arch. No attempt ment. Core-complex ranges have highly extended upper plates
has been made in Fig. 3 to specify the precise amount of that have passed through a phase of imbricate norn~alfaulting
isostatic rebound of the denuded terrain, other than keeping the before they are thinned sufficiently to expose the lower plate.
top of the cross section approximately at the Earth's surface They are veneered by their upper plates, and map traces of
(the effect of extension on topography will be treated below). erosionally "stranded detachments within these ranges feed
Internal distension of the upper plate thus completely postdates into active. range-front, low-an~le(0-30') normal faults, ac-
the formation of lower-plate tectonites. Upper-plate extension complishing subaerial exposure of the lower plates in active
in the early stages is essentially accomplished by movement of extensional terrains such as the Death Valley region of eastern
a relatively coherent plate away from the breakaway zone with California (Wright et al. 1974). Adjacent to core-complex
infilling of the void by sedimentary debris, whereas in later ranges, in addition to imbricately extended ranges, occur large
stages it is accomplished by upper-plate extensional strain and fault-block ranges, characterized by comparatively little intkr-
wholesale denudation of the lower plate (e.g., Spencer 1984). nal distension, riding passively in the upper plate.
If extension is accommodated on a number of regionally Figure 3 contains only basic geometric elements of detach-
WERNICKE
( 0 ) UNDEFORMED
- Time
( a t 5mmlyear)
t Future uooer d a t e I
w Future tower
20 plot% errpoaed In
core complex
(el5 km-+
(~)''SEVIERDESERT" STAGE
lmbricately -M 2 5 km ---)(
(c) "ELDORADO" extended
STAGE range -'a
Future 'core-complex'
10
20
RAFT RIVER" STAGE

'Breakaway' 'Core-Com~lex' Large fault-block ranges
range
14 Ma l o
20
Depthz25km
Preorogenic datum rrrrrrrrrn

Orogenic elastics: Fine clastic-lacustrine rJ
Coarse clastic
(open.early;closed,Iate) TOTAL EXTENSION =72 km
Highly attenuated rocks
m ( 100%)
Ductile shear zone - -- --

----
A
-
Paleodepth ot'core-complex"
lower plate 16.5
FIG. 3. Developmental model of an extensional shear system in the upper and middle continental crust, showing in particular how mid-crustal
rocks may be reworked in an extensional shear zone under greenschist or amphibolite facies conditions (b), cool through geochronometric
blocking temperatures (c), and be reworked under brittle conditions 5- 10 Ma later, assuming probable strain rates and extension magnitudes.
For simplicity, no attempt is made to palinspastically account for the volume of clastic detritus deposited during rifting. Mechanisms of
upper-plate dilation include sedimentary infilling (b), imbricate distension (c), and wholesale subaerial denudation (d).
ment terrains, and it is emphasized that specific geometries of strike dimension is considered), Spencer (1984) has shown
these shear systems and basin geometries are highly diverse, how the simple geometry of a breakaway, synformal upper
Although .a typical detachment system may contain complex plate, arched core complex, and wedge-shaped upper plate
combinations of these elements (especially when the along- (shown in Fig. 3 4 accounts for observed geometries in a num-
CAN. J. EARTH SCI. VOL. 22. 1985
TABLE1. Examples of range types and sedimentary basins associated with upper- and rniddle-
crustal low-angle shear systems
BREAKAWAY RANGES EARLY BASINS

Galiuro Mountains, Arizona Sheep Pass, Nevada (Eocene (?)-Oligocene)
Beaver Dam - north Virgin mountains, Horse Spring, Nevada (Late Oligocene - Miocene)
Nevada, Utah, and Arizona Titus Canyon - Artist Drive, California
(see Fig. 14) (Late Oligocene - Miocene)
Wasatch Range, Utah Coal Valley, Nevada (Miocene)
Pavant Range, Utah Sevier Desert, Utah (Miocene-Recent)
Wasatch Plateau, Utah Gene Canyon - Artillery, California and
Spring Mountains, Nevada Arizona (Mid-Oligocene-Miocene)
(see Fig. 15) Pantano-Mineta, Arizona (Late Eocene - Miocene)
IMBRICATELYEXTENDED RANGES "CORE-COMPLEX" RANGES

Eldorado and Black mountains, Nevada Catalina-Rincon mountains, Arizona
and Arizona Whipple-Buckskin-Rawhide mountains,
Singatse and Buckskin ranges, Nevada California and Arizona
Southern Black Mountains, California Newberry Mountains, California and
Resting Spring and Greenwater ranges, Nevada
California Mormon Mountains, Nevada
Desert Range, Nevada Snake Range, Nevada
South Virgin Mountains, Nevada Raft River Mountains, Utah
LARGE FAULT-BLOCK RANGES
Gila Mountains, Arizona Meadow Valley Mountains, Nevada
Artillery and Aquarius mountains, Confusion Range, Utah
Arizona Adobe Range, Nevada
McCollough Range, Nevada Sublette Range, Idaho
Argus Range, California
ber of detachment systems. Table 1 gives specific examples of recently been dramatically confirmed by the COCORP data in
range types according to the classification scheme in Fig. 3, as the Sevier Desert area (Allmendinger et al. 1983). In the pro-
well as specific sedimentary basins that are related to early file, a single low-angle (ca. 12") reflector with unequivocal
extensional tectonism. normal offset can be traced from near the Earth's surface to
It thus seems that in many areas the range-forming process 12- 15 km depth. The fault may penetrate toss much as 20 km
is an integral part of the detachment process. Overprinting of depth, as supported hy a weaker band of reflectors that continue
several major shear systems may account for observations of down-dit, from the more obvious ones (down to about 7 s
detachment terrains overprinted by large fault-block ranges. It two-way' travel time). Reasonable estirnaies for the displace-
is noteworthy that the only direct information revealing the ment on the fault are about 30-60 km. I f so, restorations of the
process of formation of at least some of the classical basin deeper parts of the hanging wall indicate that it initiated as a
ranges comes from Consortium for Continental Reflection Pro- single shear zone from the surface to a depth of at least 21 km
filing (COCORP) data in the Sevier Desert area (Allmendinger (30 km offset restored over a 12 km deep footwall) and possibly
et al. 1983). These data demonstrate that the Pavant, Crickett, as much as 30 km (60 km offset, as shown in Fig. 4). The large
and House ranges, all excellent examples of classical basin depth range over which the detachment is present (at the very
ranges in west-central Utah, are an integral part of a large-scale minimum 12 km) suggests rocks along it are shearing under
system of down-to-the-west shear on low-angle normal faults. conditions in excess of 360°C and 3.5 kbar (350 MPa), as-
This particular system of detachments is probably still active suming Lachenbruch and Sass's (1979) standard Basin and
(Wernicke 1 9 8 1 ~ )Nowhere
. have any geophysical or geologi- Range geotherm of 30°C/km. If the deeper estimates of detach-
cal data conclusively documented that actively forming basin ment - shear zone initiation are considered (for example,
ranges are accommodated in situ at depth by ductile stretching 20 km with a 30°C/km geotherm), then shear along the deeper
and igneous dilation. parts would have taken place at 600°C (mid-amphibolite facies)
The model for upper and middle crustal extension presented and 6 kbar (600 MPa). Both estimates are well within the
in Fig. 3 suggests that detachments are major, crustally pene- ductile field of deformation for granitic rocks (Tullis and Yund
trating normal faults or shear zones that form with shallow, 1977). Kinematically, the large-scale, uniform-sense simple
regional initial dip ( 10- 30") and progressively flatten and flex shear of the upper and middle crust evidenced by the profile is
as a result of either the upper plate being unloaded from the difficult to interpret in terms of various models advocating
lower plate or later events (such as reverse-drag flexing) de- rheological layering as the primary control of extensional strain
forming the fault surface. Thus, arches with axes perpendicular geometry.
to transport direction are not products of the initial geometry of Consideration of experimental rock mechanics and thermal
boudins or lenses, nor are detachments regional subhorizontal modeling argues strongly against the discrete brittle-ductile
boundaries between crustal layers of contrasting rheological transition suggested by many of the pure-shear scenarios for
properties. detachment genesis (most recently Miller et al. 1983). Experi-
The validity of regional initial dip and the existence of a mental deformation of dry quartzo-feldspathic rocks by Tullis
single shear surface penetrating rheological boundaries have and Yund (1977) indicates that such a transition takes place
WEST EAST
Sea level
I
1 / L c
/
e of Sevier Desert detachment

( f r o m Allmendinger et 01 1983)
- -depth
- -3 2-5 -
------ km
--
Projected trace
of Sevier Desert Probable, Moho
f- 10
detachment (from Keller et 01 1975)

FIG. 4. Diagram showing possible initial overburden on the deepest clearly visible part of the Sevier Desert detachment.
closure temperatures in biotite derived by Wagner et al. (1977).

The likely temperature range of deformation of dynamically
recrystallizing quartzose rocks is generally above these closure
temperatures.
The geometry and kinematics of these regionally persistent
upper- and middle-crustal shear systems are highly analogous
to those of fold-thrust belt systems, and detachment-bounded,
transported plates are thus termed extensional allochthons
(Wernicke and Burchfiel 1982). These systems form elongate
belts within the Basin and Range Province, and it is the large-
scale, regionally uniform sense of shear within two of these
belts that will be discussed below in the context of geophysical
Temperature (deg. C) observations of nearby areas.
FIG. 5. Time versus temperature profile for conductive decay of a Lower-crust and mantle lithospheric extension
100°C temperature step in rocks with thermal diffusivity of 1.3 x lo-' A possible means of placing constraints on deep-lithosphere
m' s-I, adapted from Carslaw and Jaeger (1959). strain geometry is to compare deep geophysical data with strain
geometry observed from geological mapping at the surface. In
gradually over a temperature range of 300-500°C. This ap- particular, the relationship between an observed crustal thick-
proximate range of transition is consistent with phase equi- ness and that expected from the geologic history of an area
librium studies of mylonitic rocks in which quartz is ductilely should indicate whether or not the crust extends strictly by pure
strained (e.g., Anderson et al. 1979; Davis et al. 1979). For shear.
this type of deformation to occur within a few tens of metres of Segments of the Basin and Range - Colorado Plateau (or
unrecrystallized, brittlely shattering upper-plate rocks would Rocky Mountain) transition zone, including the Wasatch Front
require the maintenance of a thermal gradient of 100°C km or region in Utah and the Mogollon Rim vicinity in Arizona, are
more across the detachments for long periods of time, at least well suited for this type of comparison. The geology of both
several million years. Figure 5 shows the decay by thermal areas is known well enough to make reasonable assumptions
conduction of a 100°C temperature step in rocks of typical about their crustal thickness histories, and both areas have been
crustal conductivity. If significant hydrothermal circulation surveyed using the seismic refraction technique, permitting
were present in the system, the decay times would be substan- comparison of the two sets of data. The transition zones in Utah
tially reduced. The extremely short lifespan of sharp thermal and Arizona also approximately coincide with the westernmost
gradients in the crust indicated by these calculations (particu- front of large-scale crustal shortening during Mesozoic time. In
larly over distances of a few hundred metres or less) is a serious orogenic belts that have not experienced major postcompres-
problem with hypotheses that require the close juxtaposition of sional extension, such as the Helvetic Zone in the Swiss
brittlely shattered materials and dynamically recrystallizing Alps and the foreland fold and thrust belt in Canada, crustal
quartzo-feldspathic rocks over long periods of time (e.g., thickening is evident as one moves from the cratonal foreland
Miller et al. 1983). Even if heat were continuously infused into into the compressional belt. In both areas (and as was empha-
the lower plate by some mechanism, it is still virtually impos- sized by Monger and Price (1979) for the Canadian Rockies),
sible to keep the upper plate from heating up to a similar thin platform sediments and their cratonic basement are present
temperature. across most of the width of the thrust belt. Assuming the
In addition to the large spatial separation of brittle and duc- uniform, thin stratigraphy characteristic of the platform sedi-
tile deformation indicated, Fig. 2 underscores the temporal ments indicates that, prior to nappe emplacement, the crust was
separation between ductile deformation and the final em- of relatively uniform thickness, the thickening must be accom-
placement of the upper plates in most detachment terrains. To plished largely by top-loading the craton with basinal nappes.
a large degree, mylonitization takes place under conditions in Monger and Price (1979) argued that the amount of crustal
which (1) quartz is ductile in quartzo-feldspathic rocks and thickening observed in the Canadian Rockies as one moves
(2) middle and even upper greenschist facies metamorphism from the foreland into the orogenic belt (from 45 to over 50 km)
takes place. Figure 6 outlines the likely temperature range for agrees rather closely with the structural thickness of basinal
this type of deformation in comparison with the range of argon sediments emplaced onto the craton.
114 CAN. J. EARTH SCI. VOL. 22. 1985
Argon closure temperature in blotlte

(from Wagner et al. 1977 )
Onset of ductility in quartz

in dry guartzo-feldspathic rock
(from Tullis and Yund 1 9 7 7 )
Geothermometry of mylonites in
the Whipple Mountains (from Anderson
et al. 1979: Davis et al. 1979)
Lower limit of greenschist facies

metamorphism (from Winkler 1 9 7 9 )
I . I .
2.60 300 400 500 600
Temperature (deg. C )
FIG. 6. Comparison of temperature ranges between some "core-complex" lower-plate tectonite lithologies and closure temperature of argon
in biotite.
FIG. 7. Map showing positions of tectonic elements and refraction lines, which may indicate a discrepancy between crustal thickness deduced
from surface faulting and that actually measured. Refraction lines and interpretatons from Braile et al. (1974). Section line refers to Fig. 8.
Discrepant Moho depths in Utah and Arizona time. Royse (1983) has shown that extensional faulting in the
Unlike their unextended counterparts, the crust in Utah and region between the Wasatch Front and the thrust front, a dis-
Arizona thins from foreland into the craton-margin (Utah) or tance of over 100 km, accounts for less than 10 km of exten-
intracratonic (Arizona) orogenic belt. sion. Further, this extension consists only of back-slipped
In Utah (and part of Wyoming) (Fig. 7), the expected thrust faults and does not involve the autochthonous cratonic
MohoroviEiC discontinuity (Moho) configuration would be a block. Thus, the maximum thinning of the crust across the
Plateau - Rocky Mountain crustal thickness of about 40-45 interval in question deduced from surface geology is no more
km increasing up to 50-55 km in the area just east of the than several kilometres. This is so little that one might still
Wasatch Front, where thick late Precambrian and Paleozoic expect the thrust belt to be a locus of thickening had surface
basinal sediments have been emplaced atop the cratonal mar- normal faulting been the sole crustal thinning process. The
gin. Instead, the refraction data and interpretations of Braile et discrepancy between crustal thinning deduced from Moho
al. (1974), although not completely unambiguous, suggest that depths and that deduced from surface faulting is depicted in
westward thinning of the crust begins at or just west of the Fig. 8, across the section line shown in Fig. 7.
thrust front. So at precisely the location east of the Wasatch The area between the onset of thinning and the first signifi-
Front where the Mesozoic geology predicts a 250 km thick cant upper-crustal extension is here termed a discrepant zone;
crust, a thickness of only 28 km is observed, suggesting that the in Utah and Wyoming it appears to have a width of about 100
crust has been thinned by nearly a factor of two since Mesozoic km. The eastern margin of the discrepant zone, or Moho
-2500 EAST
topography
-2000 Smoothed
Bouguer
Gravity Topography
-1 5 0 0 (rn as11
(mGal)
-
-250 - -1 000
Depth 35
fdeduced from upper-crustal faulting
Extension
Factor
1.6 deduced from
"1"
FIG. 8. Data along section line in Fig. 7 showing discrepant zone defined by crustal thickness deduced assuming pure-shear crustal necking
and that deduced from refraction experiments. Line marked "expected depth" is the probable Moho configuration before extension. Gravity and
smoothed topography from Eaton et al. (1979).
"hinge." coincides with other hinges, most notably a westward thick) may begin on or even northwest of the Mogollon Rim (at
decrease in smoothed topography and an increase in Bouguer the Moho hinge, Fig. 9) and thins to less than 30 km thick about
gravity (Fig. 8). Other anomalous geophysical aspects of 50 km northeast of Phoenix, where surface normal faulting
the discrepant zone are summarized in Smith (1979) and becomes significant enough to expect crustal thinning. These
Thompson and Zoback ( 1979). data may define a discrepant zone some 125 km wide in which
A situation analogous to that in Utah also seems to be present crustal thinning is not accounted for by surface normal faulting.
in Arizona (Fig. 9). In early Mesozoic time, thin cratonal As shown in Fig. 10, the Moho hinge also corresponds to a
sediments blanketed the region shown in Fig. 9, suggesting that change in gradient of regional topography and Bouguer grav-
the Moho depth at that time over the entire area was approxi- ity, as was the case in the Utah transition zone.
mately 40-42 km, similar to the untectonized, modern interior
of the Colorado Plateau. Intracratonic compression and uplift Evolution of discrepant zones
of the Plateau - Basin and Range transition zone (southwest of Although some workers still advocate chemical processes by
the Mogollon Rim, Fig. 9) in late Mesozoic and early Tertiary which crustal-velocity materials may be transformed into
time caused erosion of the Phanerozoic section and the north- mantle-velocity materials, thereby thinning the crust (e.g.,
eastward flow of rivers toward the plateau, which during the Chenet and Montadert 1981), such models are improbable be-
Late Cretaceous (Turonian?) was still at sea level (Peirce et al. cause (1) a chemical process that could transform even a do-
1979). The crust in the Basin and Range and transition zone minantly gabhroic lower crust into mantle-velocity materials at
was therefore as thick as or thicker than the Colorado Plateau less than 20 kbar (2000 MPa) confining stress has not been
crust in Eocene time, prior to the onset of extensional de- demonstrable experimentally, and (2) deeply eroded portions
formation. The transition zone has experienced only minor of continental crust (shield areas, the Ivrea zone, etc.) contain
extensional strain during the Tertiary, occurring on high-angle no evidence that such a process occurs. The general correspon-
normal faults that only mildly rotate mid-Oligocene and dence between thin crust in rifts (0-30 km), intermediate
younger volcanics blanketing large areas of the transition zone. thickness crust in shield areas (30-45 km), and thick crust in
Although precise estimates of surface dilation cannot yet be compressional areas (45-70 km) also argues that changes in
made between the Mogollon Rim and Phoenix, the total exten- crustal thickness result predominantly from strain rather than
sion is ~robablvno more than a few kilometres across an area mobile chemical reaction fronts.
nearly 100 km wide. These observations predict a transition Using this assumption, the geometry of the discrepant zones
zone crustal thickness of about 40-42 km or greater, assuming in Arizona and Utah requires removal of crustal material from
surface extensional faulting is held strictly accountable for the beneath them. Assuming the missing lower crust was not me-
amount of crustal thinning. Instead, refraction data from chanically digested to great depth by the mantle lithosphere,
Warren (1969) and Sinno et al. (1981) indicate that southwest- this material must have been normally sheared up-to-the-west
ward thinning of normal Colorado Plateau crust (40-42 km toward the Basin and Range Province (normal simple shear,
CAN. J. EARTH SCI. VOL. 22. 1985
] 8hotpold
UPPER-CRUSTAL EXTENSION
FIG. 9. Map showing positions of tectonic elements and refraction lines defining a discrepant zone northeast of Phoenix, Arizona. Northeast-
and northwest-trending lines from Warren (1969); west-northwest-trending line from Sinno et al. (1981). Section line refers to Fig. 10.
-2500
-2000 Smoothed
Bouguer
-loo+ Topography
Gravity -
(mGa I )
- -'500 ( m as11
-
t
-150c -1000
-200 -
-0
deduced from upper-crustal faulting
Extension
Factor
/ deduced from
/
crustal thickness
FIG. 10. Data along section line in Fig. 9 showing position of discrepant zone. Line marked "expected depth" is the probable Moho
configuration before extension. Gravity and topography from Eaton et al. (1979).
Fig. 1 1). It cannot be discerned from these data whether or not down-to-the-east normal simple shear if rocks at the surface in
the shear is localized in a single narrow zone, a number of the discrepant zones are to remain relatively undeformed.
narrow zones bounding undeformed slices, or a very wide zone In and of itself this hypothesis is not especially compelling
of relatively uniform shear (end-member cases shown in in view of the uncertainties in the refraction method (in parti-
Fig. 1 I), but the overall geometry must be one of large-scale, cular the delay-time method) in determining Moho depths.
Discrepant rift, here termed zone A, may experience a small amount of
Zone 0 uplift adjacent to the breakaway if the breakaway cuts steeply
enough into the crust to cause an isostatic "edge effect" (e.g.,
I'FIIITI AL Hellinger and Sclater 1983). Abrupt unloading of several kilo-
I ..a*. metres of crust by the breakaway fault will cause substantial
CONDlTlQM
MOHO rebound of the crust there, which, if firmly enough coupled to
unstrained crust in zone A, will produce uplift. Lateral conduc-
tion of heat from the rift could also serve to uplift zone A. If
WIDE substantial erosion of uplifted zone A crust occurs, it may then
SHEAR experience an amount of thermal subsidence greater than its
ZONE uplift during extension.
Zone B, defined as the region over which crust but not
mantle lithosphere is extended, should experience subsidence

DISCRETE both during and after the rifting event, since both processes add
SHEAR mass to the isostatic column. The point at which the shear
v ZONE
system cuts into the mantle defines the distal boundary of
FIG. 1 1 . Diagram showing end-member processes responsible for zone B.
the development of discrepant zones. Within zone C, both crust and mantle lithosphere are ex-
tended. The locus of maximum crustal attenuation (and hence
However, to the west of both discrepant zones lie belts of maximum net subsidence) is shown in Fig. 12 to lie within
extensional allochthons involving upper- and middle-crustal zone C, but it is geometrically possible for it to lie within
rocks with a down-to-the-east sense of simple shear. In Utah, zone B. A change from tectonic subsidence to uplift will occur
the terrain of interest is the Raft River - Grouse Creek - in this zone, since the effect of thinning mantle increases in
Albion terrain (Compton 1972, 1975, 1980, 1983; Compton et significance relative to the effect of crustal thinning as one
al. 1977; Armstrong 1982), which involves at least 60 km of moves from the proximal to the distal side of the zone. The
eastward translation of extensional allochthons involving the distal limit of significant upper-crustal dilation (proximal mar-
upper and middle crust (Compton and Todd 1979; Wernicke gin of the discrepant zone) will occur in this zone, most likely
1982a; Covington 1983). In Arizona, the northwest-trending (but not necessarily) in a distal position relative to the locus of
belt of extensional terrains, including the South Mountains maximum crustal thinning. The distal margin of zone C is
terrain near Phoenix (Reynolds and Rehrig 1980; Reynolds defined as the point where the crust ceases to be involved in the
1983; Davis et al. 1983), appears to represent at least several thinning process and only mantle lithosphere is involved. This
tens of kilometres of down-to-the-northeast simple shear of is also the distal margin of the discrepant zone.
upper- and middle-crustal rocks. In zone D, since only mantle lithosphere is thinned, the
effect of uplift will be most pronounced because it contains the
Hypothesis of a normally sheared lithosphere
locus of maximum lithospheric thinning and will be manifest
The geophysical data and recent interpretations of surface
by broad topographic doming during rifting. Erosion of this
data discussed above together raise the possibility that the en-
dome may effectively thin the crust, thereby causing thermal
tire crust failed in down-to-the-east normal simple shear in
subsidence to slightly exceed uplift.
mid-Tertiary time. This in turn leads to the hypothesis that the
Zone E, like zone A, is unstrained, but may be involved in
entire lithosphere failed by down-to-the-east simple shear and
uplift and, because of erosion, net subsidence from an edge
that such a strain pattern typifies rift tectonics. It is therefore
effect if the shear zone in the lower lithosphere is sufficiently
necessary to qualitatively model normal shear of the entire
steep. Since zone E is especially close to the point of maximum
lithosphere in order to devise potential tests for the hypothesis.
asthenospheric upwelling in zone D, it may be susceptible to
A hypothetical normal shear zone through the lithosphere is
uplift from lateral conduction of heat from zone D.
shown in Fig. 12. Although possible geometries are quite varia-
ble, any normally sheared lithosphere may be divided into five Application of the hypothesis to the Basin and Range and Red
zones, corresponding to the amount of thinning experienced by Sea areas
the crust relative to the mantle lithosphere. Following the usage The sheared lithosphere model successfully accounts for a
of Dokka (1983), the relative positions of rift elements will be number of observations in Arizona, Utah, and the Red Sea
referred to as "proximal" and "distal" with respect to the upper region, most notably the broad topographic arches that occur in
crustal breakaway and its adjacent unextended terrain. the distal parts of all three rifts in areas that have experienced
According to the analysis of McKenzie (1978) and Royden little surface strain. Indeed, the overall "sine wave" for tectonic
and Keen (1980), net uplift or subsidence resulting from rifting subsidence is borne out extremely well by the topography in all
involves an interplay between relative thinning of the mantle three areas. The key tectonic features relevant to the model in
lithosphere and the crust. Since mantle lithosphere is more Arizona and Utah are shown in Fig. 13.
dense than asthenosphere, thinning it will cause uplift. The In Arizona, a wide belt of extensional allochthons covering
opposite is true of crustal thinning. Initial subsidence or uplift a width of over 150 km (not all of which are demonstrably
resulting from extensional strain (the initial condition of an northeast directed) is exposed from just northeast of Phoenix to
instantaneously extended lithosphere) is termed the tectonic the Gulf of California. The breakaway zone is thus difficult to
subsidence by Royden and Keen (1980), and subsidence re- define, and the model can only be applied beginning in zone B
lated to later conductive cooling of the mantle lithosphere is or C. Judging by the width of the extended zone, the mantle
termed the thermal subsidence. probably becomes involved in a relatively proximal position,
Unstrained lithosphere toward the "breakaway" side of the and thus the B -C boundary occurs at the Moho hinge. Zone D
Limit of
Upper Slgnlficont
Crustal EXTENSIONAL Thinnest Upper-Crustal Moho Topographic
Breakaway ALLOCHTHONS Crust Extenslon "Hinge" Culmination
DISTAL
/ SUBSIDENCE
/' - +,---*--* Tectonic:
+
__#-- Thermal:w
ZONE A i ZONE B ZONE C ZONE D i ZONE E

P>Pml= I
Pml= Extension factor. mantle lithosphere
' j C = Extension factor. crust
FIG. 12. Hypothetical normal simple shear of the entire lithosphere. See text for discussion.
WERl
1 l0.W
are interpreted here to lie in a zone B position, with the begin-
ning of mantle involvement in the shear system (B-C boun-
dary) and the area of thinnest crust (Smith 1979) occurring to
the east. Part of the crustal thinning and the reason for the large
gap between the proximal margin of the discrepant zone and the
most distal east-directed extensional allochthons may be attri-
buted to major west-directed extension ranging in age from
Late Miocene to Recent times. As in Arizona, the Moho hinge
lies within tens of kilometres of the topographic axis, sug-
gesting relatively steep shear at depth. The D-E boundary is
inferred to exist where the topography returns to a "back-
ground" level of about 1.5-2.0 km for much of the Plateau -
southern Rocky Mountain region. Eastward transport of ex-

tensional allochthons began as early as Oligocene time in
east-central Nevada (Gans 1981; Miller et al. 1983), but
continued into at least the Late Miocene in the Raft River
Mountains area (Compton 1983; Covington 1983). Although a
regional topographic gradient of as much as 1500 m exists and
as in Arizona has its sharpest gradient across the discrepant
zone, it is not clear when the differentiation between the mo-
dern topographic axis and the lower terrain of zones B and C
began. Just south of the area in Utah shown in Fig. 13, Bodell
and Chapman (1982) have defined a boundary between high
heat flow present along the western side of the Plateau and
lower heat flow in the interior. The "hot corridor" along the
western side is consistent with an area beneath the plateau in
which lower lithosphere and asthenosphere are sheared up-and-
to-west toward the Basin and Range.

The belts of extensional allochthons discussed below do not
have easily defined breakaways against unstrained lithosphere,
but both belts of east-directed extensional allochthons seem to
FIG.13. Positions of extensional allochthon belts, discrepant die out toward the latitude of Las Vegas, Nevada, where all
zones, and topographic arches in Arizona and Utah that are inter- allochthons are west directed and primarily younger than the
pretable as indicating a sheared lithosphere. Approximate positions of east-directed group (Wernicke 1982b). Here, the western side
zone boundaries derived from the hypothetical normally sheared litho- of the Colorado Plateau provides an excellent example-of a
sphere in Fig. 12 are also shown. Topographic axes taken from Eaton breakaway zone. The sharp structural and topographic uplift of
(1979). the northern Virgin and Beaver Dam mountains at about lati-
tude 37"N at the Nevada- Utah- Arizona corner (Fig. 14) re-
contains the topographic culmination evident in smoothed to- flects the edge effect from unloading discussed below.
pography (Eaton 1979), which locally is nearly coincident with Another example of an extensional allochthon - topographic
the Moho hinge, although the location of the hinge is im- belt pair may be the region including the Spring Mountains,
precise. Total topographic relief from the extended area to the southern Nevada, and the Sierra Nevada Range, California
culmination is over 2 km, with the sharpest gradient occurring (Fig. 15). A sharp breakaway zone of west-directed extensional
in the discrepant zone. The close proximity of the topographic allochthons has been defined by Burchfiel et al. (1983) along
culmination and Moho hinge may reflect a rather steep inclina- the western side of the Spring Mountains. To the west, a wide
tion (30-40") of shear in the mantle lithosphere. The timing of area of extensional allochthons is present in the Death Valley
uplift in zone D relative to the Basin and Range is virtually region; these lose intensity west of the Panamint Range into the
synchronous with extensional strain in the belt of extensional mildly extended White-Inyo and Sierra Nevada ranges.
allochthons to the southwest. According to Peirce et al.'s Smoothed topography (Eaton 1979) shows an increase of 2 km
(1979) and Mayer's (1979) analysis of the Mogollon Rim, from the highly extended Death Valley region to the Sierra-
drainage reversal and establishment of a "plateau edge" oc- White-Inyo area. It is also interesting to note that the lowest
curred during Oligocene time, as evidenced by sediments of and highest topographic points in the coterminous United
that age deposited downslope from the modem rim. States are present within the system, with a low of 86 m bsl in
In Utah (Fig. 13) it is also difficult to define a breakaway Death Valley to a high of 4419 m as1 on Mount Whitney in the
zone because a significant amount of extensional tectonism is Sierra Nevada Range.
present to the west in much of Nevada, and it is not yet clear The general trend seems to be that most examples of highly
what the geometric relationship is between this extension and extended terrains seem to have broad topographic domes de-
the east-directed extensional allochthons present in the Raft veloped in their distal portions.
River Mountains and Snake Range areas. A further compli- An excellent example of a distal topograhic dome is found in
cation arises because of the younger, west-directed extensional the Red Sea rift, which appears to have precisely the to-
allochthons present in the Sevier Desert, within the Idaho- pographic profile predicted by the uniform-sense, low-angle
Wyoming thrust belt, and along the Wasatch Front. normal shear hypothesis (Fig. 16). A narrow range of high
Apart from these complications, the Raft River Mountains topography adjacent to the rift interrupts the topographically
120 CAN. J. EARTH SCI. VOL. 22, 1985
-
d -00-
BREAKAWAY ZONE UPLIFT AXIS ELEVATION (FEET)

Frc. 14. Virgin-Beaverdam mountains breakaway zone, showing the easternmost trace of extensional allochthons and the closely parallel
topographic axis. The system began deforming as early as mid-Miocene time (Bohannon 1979) and is probably still active. Geologically,
undisturbed platformal cover of Paleozoic and Mesozoic age to the east turns abruptly upward just east of the uplift axis, which occurs largely
within Precambrian crystalline basement. Faulted over the basement along the breakaway zone are extended masses of Phanerozoic strata.
low Egyptian Shield and is here interpreted as an edge effect of east-northeast elongate domes (see Bonatti et al. 1981, Fig. I),
an exceptionally deep breakaway fault corresponding to the the long axes of which are parallel to the direction of opening
topographic escarpment on the west side of the range. That the of the Red Sea (McKenzie et al. 1970). This geometry is very
breakaway may cut deeply over a relatively short distance is similar to low-angle normal fault structures (detachments) in
evidenced by the geology of Zabargad (St. John's) Island off the western United States.
the east coast of Egypt in the Red Sea itself (Fig. 6). Here, In the context of the hypothesis of lithospheric shear, Zabar-
Bonatti et al. (198 1, 1983) have mapped a fragment of upper gad represents an exposure of a sheared Moho within zone C
crustal rocks that include metamorphic rocks of Egyptian (Fig. 12), suggesting the Egyptian breakaway faults penetrated
Shield affinity nonconformably overlain by Cretaceous (?) to at least 30 km depth as little as 100 km east of the boundary
through Miocene sedimentary rocks. In tectonic contact with between zones A and B. It should be noted that geochemical
this assemblage is a remarkably fresh complex of serpentinite- data on the Zabargad peridotites (Bonatti et al. 1983) suggest
free peridotitic rocks, which locally contain gem-quality oli- they have affinities with suboceanic rather than subcontinental
vine. The stability of spinel in the complex suggested to Bonatti lithosphere, inconsistent with the model suggested here. A
et al. (1981) that these rocks equilibrated at a depth of more possible test of the model may be in the gravity signature of the
than 30 km. They interpreted these field relations as indicating area. Such a pronounced removal of crustal material. elevating
". . . the peridotite bodies are protrusions of upper mantle ma- the Moho to the Earth's surface, should he reflected by a large
terial which cut through the crust and uplifted fragments of positive gravity anomaly as one moves from the breakaway
crustal units." toward the Red Sea. Unfortunately, a complete gravity traverse
1 suggest that Zabargad exposes Egyptian mantle lithosphere from the Egyptian Shield to Zabargad Island is not yet avail-
in low-angle normal fault contact with Egyptian upper-crustal able.
rocks, and that several tens of kilometres of crustal and mantle The broad t o p o p p h i c depression of the Red Sea is probably
material has been faulted away to east, a geometry analogous variously attenuated pieces of shield-type rocks and rift basin
to the formation of a Cordilleran core-complex range depicted deposits sheared over mantle lithosphere within zone C. Al-
in Fig. 3, except that the lower-plate rocks are mantle litho- though the C-D boundary is impossible to define at the lati-
sphere instead of middle crust. indeed. the overall structural tude of Zabargad Island. farther south at latitude I8"N seismic
form of the contact between the supracrustal rocks and the refraction profiling by Maoney el nl. ( 1984) suggests that nor-
peridotite is interpretable as a series of three doubly plunging, mal Arabian Shield crustal thickness is attained approximately
topographic culmination
Jr [EEEn] LielO
r Regional
BREMAWAY ZONE 1 LOO
1 DO0
4w
SECTION A A'
Oligocene-Pliocene Volcanics of
the Arabian Shield
FIG. 16. Map of the Red Sea region showing the location of Zabar-
FIG. 15. Map and cross section showing breakaway, area of sur- gad Island, the rift volcanics of the relatively unextended Arabian
face extension, position of topographic axis, and topographic profile Shield, and the asymmetric topographic profile of the rift. See text for
across part of southern Nevada and central California. Triangles show discussion.
locations of highest and lowest points in the coterminous United
States. The zone of extensional allochthons depicted here is currently beneath the shield are conceivable means of generating these
active.
magmas.
along the steep topographic escarpment on the west side of the Role o f magmatism
Arabian Shield, similar to the situation near the Mogollon Rim Footwall rocks across the entire width of a simply sheared
in Arizona. According to Coleman (1974), the topographic lithosphere are subject to many kilobars of rapid unloading.
escarpment on the eastern side of the Red Sea is not fault The overall environment of rising material in any type of exten-
controlled but is associated with monoclinal downwarping of sional setting will promote melting because dry melting curves
the Arabian Shield toward the southwest, another point in com- typically have shallower slopes than adiabatic paths on pressure
mon between this area and the Mogollon Rim. The extremely versus temperature plots (e.g., Carmichael et al. 1974). The
wide zone of high topography (1000 m) throughout the Arabian geometry of Fig. 12 predicts that extension in proximal areas
Shield may be attributed to up-to-the-west normal shear of the of the rift may induce melting of dry middle- and lower-crustal
lithosphere and its replacement with asthenosphere in the ab- rocks as well as the entire lithospheric column. In distal vol-
sence of any crustal thinning (zone D tectonics). The D-E canic belts, however, only deep lithosphere and asthenosphere
boundary is presumably east-of the zone of high topography, should be subject to melting by the unloading mechanism.
although it may occur within that zone because of the edge Hypersthene-normative rocks dredged from the Red Sea
effect discussed above or because of a small amount of lateral versus the alkaline character of the Arabian Shield volcanics
conductive heating of unstrained zone E lithosphere from the (Coleman et al. 1977) is a possible reflection of contrasting
uplifted "keel" of asthenosphere to the west. depths of anatexis across the rift, although alkalinity need not
In addition to topographic uplift, zone D high topography of be an indicator of depth.
the Arabian Shield is mantled by a suite of Oligocene to Recent It is interesting to note that in Arizona the volcanic belt
ultramafic xenolith-bearing volcanic rocks composed largely of composed of predominantly calc-alkaline basaltic andesites oc-
alkali olivine basalts, with lesser volumes of andesite and rhyo- curring in the transition zone and on the Colorado Plateau
lite (Coleman 1974) (Fig. 16). This distal, zone D volcanic (mentioned above) are in general coeval with, or slightly youn-
province may be interpreted as resulting from partial melting of ger than, the emplacement of extensional allochthons to the
mantle lithosphere and asthenosphere caused by rapid un- southwest. These rocks may have an origin akin to that pro-
loading. The shear-zone geometry of Fig. 2, for example. posed here for the Arabian Shield volcanics.
shows a rise of over 60 km of lower lithosphere because of The major observation that the simple-shear theory does not
extension. Pyrolitic continental lithosphere in the Red Sea re- specifically predict is the presence of anomalously warm man-
gion had probably been strain free since the Cambrian consoli- tle in proximal parts of the rift. The Basin and Range Province
dation of the Arabian Shield (Brown 1970). Upward shear and is characterized by low P , velocities and high regional topogra-
sudden unloading of many kilobars of the lower lithosphere phy. Apparently, the mantle lithosphere is absent under parts of
122 CAN. J . EARTH SCI. VOL. 22, 1985
the Basin and Range (P, velocities 7.4-7.8 km/s in many capable of placing restrictions on the overall strain geometry
areas), and the regional elevation of the western United States within extended areas.
suggests thinner than normal lithosphere is present over the Analysis of heat-flow patterns in rifts, in conjunction with
entire region (Thompson and Zoback 1979). Neither the pure- thermal modeling of various strain geometries at depth, may
shear stretching model of McKenzie (1978) nor the simple- require important restrictions or modifications of the hypothe-
shear concept discussed here is capable of producing tectonic sis. Subsidence profiles of passive continental margins yield
uplift within a region of crustal thinning unless crust and litho- information as to the nature of the extensional process, and as
sphere are abnormally thin prior to rifting. However, if the shown by Royden and Keen (1980) the geometry of the profile
Basin and Range is composed of a small number of extensional is sensitive to the proportion of crustal versus mantle-litho-
belts overlapping in space and time, the simple-shear theory spheric thinning. Royden and Keen showed that these profiles
provides a means by which large areas of mantle lithosphere in the Labrador Sea area in eastern Canada are more consistent
may be completely removed mechanically in different areas with a model of differential thinning of crust and mantle than
across the province (as well as outside of it). A pure-shear with the pure stretching model.
stretching model does not permit this to occur. The mechanism One of the most persistently debated points about low-angle,
of lithospheric attenuation advocated here is one of mechanical uniform-sense normal shear of the continental lithosphere is its
extension by shear, aided by permeating magmas, without any mechanical unlikelihood. It requires that (1) large areas of
major extensional strain of the lower lithosphere within zones ductile lower crust and mantle lithosphere within the divergent
A, B, and C, and a combination of both mechanisms in zones zone remain undeformed during rifting, and (2) that shear of
D and E. In this scenario, magmatism and its potential role in the lithosphere, presumably, occurs at low angles to the least
adding heat to the lithosphere are viewed as "passive" re- principal stress axis.
sponses to extensional strain of the lithosphere and may occur In considering the first point, clarification of the terms brit-
in the absence of major convective overturn in the astheno- tle, ductile, localized, and penetrative is warranted. In a rock
sphere. Although the role of magmatism is admittedly im- mechanics laboratory, samples that accommodate strain by the
portant and ever more so complex, the simple-shear theory volume-increasing process of fracturing mineral grains are said
provides a reasonable explanation of magmatic belts in rifts far to be brittle, and those that accommodate strain by the non-
removed from areas of crustal extension. It is not obvious how volume-increasing process of dislocation climb and glide (as
a pure-shear geometry would generate such a belt. well as other recrystallization mechanisms) within mineral
grains are referred to as ductile. At laboratory scales, strain via

Discussion and conclusions brittle fracture tends to be localized, and strain via dislocation
Most readers need not be reminded that the hypothesis of a mechanisms is relatively penetrative. On geologic scales, rocks
normally sheared lithosphere is precisely that and that many of under either brittle or ductile T-P conditions can deform either
the intetpretations made here are based on data that are, within penetratively or on localized shear planes. Some degree of
their uncertainty, ambiguous as to whether or not they support confusion exists between specialists in rock mechanics and
simple or pure shear. In particular, seismic refraction profiles other earth scientists because many have defined localized de-
in the Basin and Range are often unrevened (e.g., Braile er a[. formation as brittle and penetrative deformation as ductile.
1974) or use simple delay-time techniques that require an as- However, the complex problem of the overall strain field of a
sumed P, velocity and cnlstal thickness at one end of the profile deforming lithosphere is a problem quite separate from experi-
(e.g., Warren 1969). Combined with the usual uncertainties in mentally determined deformation modes of mineral grains.
picking arrivals and drawing lines through them on travel-time Thus one cannot conclude that the mantle lithosphere and lower
plots, the Moho profiles indicated by the refraction data. and crust penetratively flatten directly beneath discontinuous
hence the entire notion of discrepant zones, are clearly open to upper-crustal normal fault systems, given that rocks under
question. No rigorous attempt has been made here to analyze these conditions exhibit ductile behavior in the laboratory.
the uncertainties in these data, and the existence of the dis- There is currently no means of theoretically predicting what the
crepant zones cannot be proven until either this has been done strain field of a compositionally heterogeneous, extending
or a more complete data set amassed. The purpose here is not lithosphere will be, and it is therefore worthwhile to entertain
so much to prove a point as it is to outline a new hypothesis any hypothesis that is consistent with observations that bear
and, by its defense, suggest methods by which it may be tested. directly on strain geometry. In compression zones, on a crusral
As suggested by Armstrong (19821, pure-shear and sirnple- scale, thrust belts such as the Canadian Rockies or the Appa-
shear strains likely occur within the same extensional zone, so lachian Valley and Ridge Province are clear examples of a case
the two concepts are not mutually exclusive. where the upper crust deforms in a penetrative manner under
Of foremost concern is the integration of surface geologic brittle conditions, whereas the middle crust and lower crust
mapping with Moho geometry in order to confirm or rule out (and probably mantle lithosphere) remain intact or are only
the existence of discrepant zones. This type of analysis can be mildly deformed relative to supracrustal rocks.
carried out any place where extensional allochthons appear to To the second point. Ramsay's ( 1980) observation that con-
have a "root zone," including the western margin of the Death jugate ductile shear zones are typically observed to form an
Valley extensional terrain. the area norlheast of the Nevada- acute angle about the maximum elongation direction is particu-
Utah and Arizona "core-complex" terrains, the area east of the larly relevant. The overall dip of the shear zone depicted in
Priest River crystalline complex in northern Idaho and north- Fig. 12 is consistent with Ramsay's findings. The shallowing
western Montana, and the southwestern margin of the Arabian of the surface in the upper crust is largely a function of the
Shield. Inversion of other forms of geophysical data such as upper-plate rocks being thinned so drastically that the fault
gravity, magnetics, and electrical resistivity will provide im- surface eventually ends up near the geoid by isostatic rebound.
portant tests. Geochemical variations in rift volcanism and Typical initiation angles For these major shear zones seem to be
xenoliths may also be analyzed in light of the theory and are in the 10-30" range (e.g.. Bartley and Wemicke 1985), where-
WERNICKE 123
as mature detachment terrains commonly have a regionally dCcollement interpreted as a major extensional shear zone. Tec-
exposed, subhorizontal brittle detachment. Another reason for tonics, 4. (In press.)
keeping an open mind about shallowly inclined normal shear BODELL,J . M., and CHAPMAN, D. S. 1982. Heat flow in the north-
zones is the fact that it is not clear that the least principal stress central Colorado Plateau. Journal of Geophysical Research, 87,
axis is horizontal in the deeper parts of rifts. Direct obser- pp. 2869-2884.
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The downward-steepening shear-zone geometry of Fig. 12 Society of Economic Paleontologists and Mineralogists, Los
represents a tidy means by which tens or hundreds of kilome- Angeles, CA, pp. 129- 139.
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lithospheric shear zone without creating too much topography. beneath a young oceanic rift-peridotites from the island of Zabar-
Any steeply inclined normal or reverse shear zone on the scale gad (Red Sea). Geology, 9, pp. 474-479.
of the lithosphere develops large isostatic resistance after a BONATTI, E., CLOCCHIAT~I, P.. COLANTONI, R., et nl. 1983. Zabar-
relatively small amount of displacement. The shallower the gad (St. John's) Island: an uplifted fragment of sub-Red Sea litho-
inclination of the shear zone, the less is the energy invested in sphere. Journal of the Geological Society, London, 140,
pp. 677-690.
creating topography per unit of lithospheric divergence.
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narrow zones of uniform strain geometry is in essence the seismic refraction studies. Journal of Geophysical Research, 79,
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represent uniform-sense shear of the lithosphere on a large structures in Saudi Arabia. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal
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pressed in regionally uniform-sense thrust faulting, as is the BURCHFIEL, B. C., WALKER, J. D., DAVIS,G. A., and WERNICKE, B.
case in the western Alpine chain in Europe. If the tendency 1983. Kingston Range and related detachment faults-a major
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to intracontinental divergence as well, consideration of the
CARMICHAEL, I. S. E., TURNER, F. J., and VERHOOGEN, J. 1974.
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Research leading to this report has been funded by National COLEMAN, R. G. 1974. Geologic background of the Red Sea. lnitial
Reports of the Deep Sea Drilling Project, 23, pp. 813-819.
Science Foundation grants EAR 77 13637 to B. C . Burchfiel,
COLEMAN, R. G., FLECK,R. J., HEDGE,C. E., and GHENT,E. D.
EAR 7926346 to B. C. Burchfiel and P. Molnar, and EAR 1977. The volcanic rocks of southwest Saudi Arabia and the
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Uniform-Sense Normal Simple Shear of The Continental Lithosphere

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What are the main geological observations that complement each other according to the text?

What are the main geological observations that complement each other according to the text?

What hypothesis is presented regarding the behavior of the entire lithosphere?

What hypothesis is presented regarding the behavior of the entire lithosphere?

Uniform-sense normal simple shear of the continental lithosphere

Department of Geological Sciences, Harvard University, Ctrrnbridge, M A 02/38, U . S . A .

megaboudin concept (Davis and coney 1979), in which the

rocks. Sacramento Pass

Okanagan-Toroda Creek /&-Klondike Mtn. Fm.

K-Ar biotite apparent age

Time interval of strong upper-plate

RAFT RIVER" STAGE

Preorogenic datum rrrrrrrrrn

Ductile shear zone - -- --

BREAKAWAY RANGES EARLY BASINS

IMBRICATELYEXTENDED RANGES "CORE-COMPLEX" RANGES

e of Sevier Desert detachment

detachment (from Keller et 01 1975)

closure temperatures in biotite derived by Wagner et al. (1977).

Argon closure temperature in blotlte

Onset of ductility in quartz

Lower limit of greenschist facies

fdeduced from upper-crustal faulting

deduced from upper-crustal faulting

mantle lithosphere is extended, should experience subsidence

ZONE A i ZONE B ZONE C ZONE D i ZONE E

Pml= Extension factor. mantle lithosphere

' j C = Extension factor. crust

southern Rocky Mountain region. Eastward transport of ex-

to-west toward the Basin and Range.

BREAKAWAY ZONE UPLIFT AXIS ELEVATION (FEET)

grains are referred to as ductile. At laboratory scales, strain via

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