Collaborative Research: Dynamics of Intraplate Fault Systems, Northern Basin and Range Province

California Institute Of Technology, Pasadena CA

Investigators

Abstract

0001209 Wernicke 0002980 Lee The western US is an example of a diffuse plate boundary, where the total strain caused by the Pacific-North American relative plate movement is not entirely accommodated by the boundary transform. This project will continue investigations of late Quaternary strain release across the northern Basin and Range province as part of a large effort to understand how strain is partitioned and accommodated at this diffuse plate boundary. Results are expected to lead to better models of the dynamics of Basin and Range faulting and how they relate to the overall plate boundary organization.