We use scaled 3-D thermo-mechanical analogue models to investigate the formation of oroclines (originally linear orogens now curved in map view by buckling about vertical axes). The experimental setup consists of a tank of water (the asthenosphere) on top of which rest hydrocarbon plates (the lithosphere) with strain-softening behaviours and thermo-dependent elasto-plastic properties. An electric heating element below and 4 infrared lights above produce a constant vertical (geo)thermal gradient in the plates. A horizontal piston drives constant plate motion and gives rise to a compressional stress regime. Geometric, kinematic and dynamic variables are calibrated in accordance with a set of scaling laws and proper plate composition. Our results suggest that oroclinal buckling involves the entire lithosphere and cannot be confined to the crust only. A wide range of syn-oroclinal structures developed during buckling, including thin- to thick-skinned thrust belts, transform faults and extensional structures, as well as extensional basins and subduction zones in the lithosphere adjacent to the ribbons. During oroclinal buckling, a thrust belt forms upon complete closure of the interlimb region and is attributable to the trailing orocline limb overthrusting the leading orocline limb. An analogous syn-oroclinal thrust system characterizes the Central Iberian Orocline (CIO) of the Variscan orogen in Iberia where the north limb of the west-convex orocline exposes recumbent north-verging folds while the overriding south limb bears upright to gently north-verging folds. Our results imply that these structures developed during final closure of the CIO, and indicate that the north- and south- limbs of the CIO constitute the leading- and trailing-limbs, respectively, of an orocline that formed by overall northward translation. Modelling of magmatic arcs rotating about vertical axes yields late stage transform faults that bisect the buckling arcs. This outcome is analogous to the Panama Canal fault zone that severs the buckled Panamanian Isthmus. The hinge zones of modeled oroclines are the sites of subduction initiation, similar to subduction initiation of the Caribbean plate beneath the convex to the north, North Panamanian orocline, and of oceanic lithosphere from the Ionian Sea beneath the Calabrian orocline of Sicily. / Graduate / 0372 / gagnonl@uvic.ca

Studies on the formation of oroclines (bends of originally linear mountain belts) are restricted to Phanerozoic examples. Here I provide a structural, metamorphic and geochronological study of the meta-sedimentary Pohjanmaa Belt, which lies on the most northerly limb of one of the few examples of Paleoproterozoic oroclines, the coupled Bothnian oroclines in Finland. My primary goal is to determine if the structures in the Pohjanmaa belt are consistent with the Svecofennian orogenic belt originating as a linear feature that was subsequently deformed into a pair of coupled oroclines. My detailed structural mapping focused on the geometry of F1, F2, and F3 folds within the Pohjanmaa Belt in west-central Ostrobothnia, Finland. Over 170 measurements were collected including interlimb angles, the attitudes of S1 and S2 foliations, and F2 fold axes. Also, 28 oriented core samples were collected to conduct a U-Pb geochronological study of monazites and an analysis of metamorphic textures in thin section. I first provide a review and comparison of similar structures around the coupled Bothnian oroclines. In my structural analysis I address the relative timing of deformation and metamorphism and use new U-Pb monazite geochronological data to constrain the absolute timing of tectonothermal events. My findings suggest that: 1) D1, D2, D3 deformation stem from a protracted event that records progressive deformation and strain partitioning from pure shear (D1 shortening) to simple shear (D2, D3 sinistral shear) as a result of counter clockwise rotation; 2) D2 folding and coeval garnet + staurolite metamorphism are consistent with early Svecofennian deformation, which occurred 80-90 m. y. prior to late-stage isothermal decompression and staurolite breakdown dated at 1.80 Ga by U-Pb monazite analysis; 3) My analysis, in combination with subsidiary data, provides evidence that sinistral shear during D2-3 is the result of counter clockwise rotation of the Pohjanmaa belt possibly in response to buckling of the coupled Bothnian oroclines during the early Svecofennian Fennia event. / Graduate

A lo largo del Oroclino de los Andes Centrales, la sismicidad intracontinental debajo del antearco se conecta a la subducción en profundidad. Se puede explicar por la acumulación de esfuerzos generados por el deslizamiento asísmico de la zona de transición (Brittle Creep Fault Zone) en periodo inter-sísmico. A lo largo del Oroclino de los Andes Centrales, la sismicidad intracontinental debajo de la Precordillera y del arco volcánico se distribuye en núcleos sísmicos superficiales. Los sismos mayores de estos núcleos (Mw>5,0) ocurren en general algunos meses después de grandes sismos de subducción de magnitud Mw>7,5, gatillados por el cambio del campo de esfuerzos generado por el periodo co-sísmico y probablemente por el periodo post-sísmico de estos grandes sismos de subducción. La distribución de la sismicidad intracontinental debajo del ante-arco y del arco se encuentra controlada principalmente por la estructura térmica de la litósfera continental. El análisis de imágenes y las observaciones de terreno interpretadas en conjunto con los datos sismológicos muestran que la deformación está particionada en la Precordillera y en el arco volcánico. El arco volcánico se deforma según una gran zona de cizalle paralela al margen cuya cinemática varía a lo largo del Oroclino: sinestral en el Sur del Perú, y dextral en el Norte de Chile. El particionamiento observado se atribuye a la oblicuidad de la convergencia y a la arquitectura del ante-arco y del arco mientras que las variaciones de la deformación a lo largo de Oroclino son principalmente atribuidas a la forma del margen. El análisis sismológico, morfológico y estructural de la deformación indica que el tensor de esfuerzos a lo largo del arco volcánico se caracteriza por un σ2 vertical y que σ1 y σ3 muestran una rotación anti-horaria desde el Sur del Codo hacia el Norte. En efecto σ1 se orienta NE-SW en el Norte de Chile, NW-SE en el extremo Sur del Perú y E-W en el Sur del Perú.

A l’échelle continentale, la Cordillère des Andes présente d’importantes courbures. Une des plus importantes est la Courbure de la Patagonie, où le cours de l’orogène et de ses principales provinces tectoniques pivotent de près de 90°, passant d’une orientation N-S à 50°C à une orientation E-O en Terre de Feu. Malgré son importance, l’origine de la Courbure de la Patagonie et son implication dans les reconstructions paléogéographiques demeurent sujet à controverse: est-elle le résultat d’un plissement oroclinal, ou bien une caractéristique héritée? C’est dans ce contexte que j’ai réalisé une étude paléomagnétique et de susceptibilité d'anisotropie magnétique dans la région des Andes Australes. Les résultats obtenus suggèrent que la partie intérieure de cette courbure soit une caractéristique secondaire liée à l’évolution de la Péninsule Antarctique. / At the continental scale, the Andes presents significant curvatures. One of the largest is the curvature of Patagonia, where the orogen and its main tectonic provinces are rotated about 90 ° from an NS direction at 50 ° to an EO orientation in Tierra del Fuego. Despite its importance, the origin of the curvature of Patagonia and its involvement in paleogeographic reconstructions remain controversial: is the result of an oroclinal bending, or an inherited characteristic? It is in this context that I made a paleomagnetic and magnetic susceptibility anisotropy in the Austral Andes region. The results suggest that the inner part of the bend is a secondary feature linked to the evolution of the Antarctic Peninsula.In this thesis, I will present the results of a paleomagnetic and anisotropy of magnetic susceptibility (AMS) study of 146 sites sampled between 50 ° S and 55.5 ° S (85 sites in marine sedimentary rocks of the Cretaceous-Miocene of the Magallanes fold and thrust belt; 20 sites in sedimentary and volcanic rocks south of Cordillera Darwin, 41 sites in intrusive rocks of the Cretaceous-Eocene batholith. The AMS results in the sediments show that the magnetic fabric is controlled by tectonic processes, partially or completely obliterating the sedimentary fabric. In general, there is a good correlation between the orientation of the magnetic lineation and that of the fold axes except at Peninsula Brunswick. The wide variation in the orientation of magnetic fabrics within the batholith suggests an emplacement of intrusive without tectonic constraint. Paleomagnetic results obtained in Navarino Island and Hardy Peninsula, south of the Beagle Channel, show a post-tectonic remagnetization recording a counterclockwise rotation of more than 90 ° as that recorded by the intrusive rocks older than ~ 90Ma. The Upper Cretaceous to Eocene intrusive rocks record counterclockwise rotations of lower magnitude (45 ° -30 °). In contrast, the Magallanes fold and thrust belt mainly developed between the Eocene and Oligocene records little or no rotation. Spatial and temporal variations of tectonic rotations determined in this study support a model of deformation of the Austral Andes in two steps. The first step corresponds to the rotation of a volcanic arc by closing a marginal basin (the Rocas Verdes basin) and formation of Cordillera Darwin. During the propagation of deformation in the foreland, the curvature acquired by the Pacific border of the Austral Andes is accentuated by about 30 °. The tectonic reconstructions using the most recent Global Plate Tectonic model show the essential role of the convergence between the Antarctic Peninsula and South America in the formation of Patagonian orocline during the Late Cretaceous to the Eocene.

L'extrémité australe de l'Amérique du Sud se situe actuellement dans un con-texte cinématique complexe impliquant les plaques Nazca, Antarctique et Scotia. Dans ce secteur, l'histoire compressive andine débute au Crétacé supérieur avec pour conséquences le soulèvement de la cordillère et le développement du bassin d'avant-paysde Magellan.L'arcature actuelle des Andes australes résulte du développement progressif de l'orocline patagonien associé au fonctionnement d'un décrochement senestre le long de la bordure sud du continent depuis le Crétacé supérieur. A partir de 30 Ma, l'ouverture du passage de Drake entre le continent Sud-américain et la Péninsule Antarctique conduit à la croissance de la plaque Scotia. La subduction de la dorsale du Chili débute à 14 Ma au niveau de la Terre de Feu. Le point triple migre progressivement jusqu'à sa position actuelle à 46°30'S. , L'étude structurale et cinématique de la région (analyse de populations de failles) a été réalisée - principalement à la transition cordillère/bassin. Elle est complétée par l'analyse de l'imagerie. satellitaire et de la topographie numérique, l'interprétation de données de sismique réflexion pétrolière, une étude paléomagné tique, et de la modélisation analogique. Cette étude met en évidence (1) des directions principales de raccou perpendiculaires à la cordillère tout le long de l'orocline, (2) de décrochantes dextres et senestres le long des secteurs de la co respectivement N-S et E-O, et (3) des rifts néogènes disposés radiale principalement la zone axiale du bassin de Magellan. Ce champ compatible avec le contexte actuel, a été comparé à celui obtenu p analogique d'un orocline simple. Le passage progressif entre la zone l'ouest et le décrochement au sud du continent (appelé effet de coin) semble être une condition suffisante au développement de l'essentiel des structures observées.

Le long de l'orocline des Andes Centrales, sous l'avant-arc, la sismicité intracontinentale se connecte à la subduction en profondeur s'expliquant probablement par l'accumulation de contraintes générées dans la croûte par le glissement asismique de la zone de transition de l'interface de subduction en période inter-sismique. <br />Le long de l'orocline des Andes Centrales, sous la Précordillère et l'arc volcanique, la sismicité intracontinentale se distribue en essaims superficiels dont les plus grands séismes (Mw>5.0) ont lieu en général quelques mois après de grands séismes de subduction de magnitude Mw>7.5, déclenchés par le changement de contraintes dû à la période cosismique et probablement post-sismique.<br />L'analyse d'images et les observations de terrains interprétées conjointement avec les données sismologiques montrent que la déformation de l'orocline est partitionnée dans la Précordillère et l'arc volcanique le long d'une grande zone de cisaillement parallèle à la marge dont la cinématique varie de sénestre au Sud Pérou à dextre au Nord Chili. Le partitionnement observé est attribué à l'obliquité de la convergence et à l'architecture de l'avant-arc et de l'arc volcanique alors que les variations de la déformation le long de l'orocline sont principalement attribuées à la forme de la marge. <br />L'analyse sismologique, morphologique, et structurale de la déformation indique que le tenseur de contraintes le long de l'arc volcanique est caractérisé par un σ2 vertical et que σ1 et σ3 montrent une rotation anti-horaire depuis le Sud du Coude vers le Nord. En effet, σ1 s'oriente NE-SW au Nord du Chili, NW-SE à l'extrême Sud du Pérou et E-W au sud Pérou.

Une étude paléomagnétique et structurale au nord du Chili met en évidence que le remplissage sédimentaire du bassin d'Atacama s'est accumulé dans un contexte compressif depuis le Crétacé Supérieur. Les données paléomagnétiques montrent des rotations horaires et suggèrent qu'une zone de cisaillement transpressif dextre NE-NNE a contrôlé les rotations pendant le Paléogène. Une étude de restauration en carte de la déformation des Andes Centrales indique que la formation de l'orocline est principalement associée à la déformation de la Cordillère Orientale. La variabilité spatiale et la grande quantité des rotations dans la marge chilienne suggèrent deux épisodes de rotation, un épisode de rotation dans l'avant arc au cours du Paléogène et une rotation globale de toute la marge pendant la déformation de la Cordillère Orientale. En conclusion les résultats de cette étude démontrent que la déformation compressive et les rotations tectoniques sont des éléments clef de la déformation Andine.

The southern Patagonian Andes record the Late Cretaceous closure and inversion of the Late Jurassic – Early Cretaceous Rocas Verdes marginal basin, subsequent development of the Patagonian retroarc fold-thrust belt and the Neogene to present tectonic superposition of a left-lateral strike-slip plate margin defined by the Magallanes- Fagnano fault zone. In this dissertation, I present new geologic maps, cross sections and detailed macro- and microscopic structural analyses that describe the geometry and kinematic evolution of the fold-thrust belt and superposed strike-slip deformation over ~200 km along-strike between 53° and 55° S latitude. Results are discussed in the context of the regional tectonic development of the southernmost Andes and are relevant to the understanding of important tectonic processes including the development of a retroarc fold-thrust belt, the formation of a basal décollement below and toward the hinterland of a fold-thrust belt and the spatial distribution of deformation along a strike-slip plate margin. New maps and balanced cross-sections of the Patagonian fold-thrust belt show that it developed during two main phases of Late Cretaceous to Paleogene shortening that were partly controlled by the antecedent geology and mechanical stratigraphy of the Rocas Verdes basin. During the Late Cretaceous, a thin-skinned thrust belt developed above a décollement that formed first in relatively weak shale deposits of the Rocas Verdes basin and later deepened to <1 km below the basement-cover contact. Ramps that cut mechanically rigid volcanic rocks of the marginal basin link the two décollements. Basement-involved reverse faults that cut the early décollements and probably reactivate Jurassic normal faults reflect Paleogene shortening. Shortening estimates increase northwest to southeast from 26 to 37% over 100 km along-strike and are consistent with regional models of the fold-thrust belt. Structural data, kinematic analyses, and microstructural observations from the lower décollement show that it is defined by transposition of several generations of northeast-vergent noncylindrical folds, shear bands, and a quartz stretching lineation that are kinematically compatible with first-generation structures of the fold-thrust belt. Quartz microstructural data from the décollement are consistent with deformation temperatures that decrease from ~500-650° C to ~400-550° C over ~75 km in the transport direction, indicating that the décollement dipped shallowly (~6°) toward the hinterland. The décollement decoupled the underthrust continental margin from the fold- thrust belt and exemplifies the kinematic relationship between shortening that occurs coevally in a retroarc fold thrust-belt and its polydeformed metamorphic ‘basement’. Fault kinematic data and crosscutting relationships show kinematic and temporal relationships between populations of thrust, strike-slip and normal faults that occur in the study area. Thrust faults form an internally compatible population that shows subhorizontal northeast-trending shortening of the fold-thrust belt and is kinematically distinct from populations of normal and strike-slip faults. Both strike-slip and normal faults crosscut the fold-thrust belt, are localized near segments of the Magallanes- Fagnano fault zone, have mutually compatible kinematic axes and are interpreted to be coeval. Strike-slip faults form Riedel and P-shear geometries that are compatible with left-lateral slip on the Magallanes-Fagnano fault-zone. Strike-slip and normal faults occur in a releasing step-over between two overlapping left-lateral, left-stepping segments of the Magallanes fault zone and record a tectonic event defined by sinistral transtension that probably reflects changing plate dynamics associated with the opening of the Drake Passage during the Early Miocene. / text

Analogue and numerical modelling in geosciences is an excellent tool for studying complex spatio-temporal relationships in mass and energy transfer. Recent developments and advances in the plate tectonics and planetology require a combination of both approaches to simulate processes that cannot be studied directly in-situ. Advanced physical models are complemented by deformation analysis which is based on image velocimetry and photogrammetry, while numerical simulations utilize both modern and traditional methods to solve corresponding equations in complex domains. This work compiles several models that are focused on deformation analysis associated with material and heat transfer in large accretionary systems. The second subject of the thesis represent the investigation of the formation and propagation of large mudflows in martian atmospheric conditions. In the first part of the work we present a general overview of the problems of analogue and numerical modelling including scaling theory, governing equations, individual methods and history. In the second part of the thesis we deal with laboratory and numerical simulations of collision-indentation tectonics associated with the emergence of large accretionary systems on Earth. The last part of the thesis is devoted to experiments designed for the...

Analogue and numerical modelling in geosciences is an excellent tool for studying complex spatio-temporal relationships in mass and energy transfer. Recent developments and advances in the plate tectonics and planetology require a combination of both approaches to simulate processes that cannot be studied directly in-situ. Advanced physical models are complemented by deformation analysis which is based on image velocimetry and photogrammetry, while numerical simulations utilize both modern and traditional methods to solve corresponding equations in complex domains. This work compiles several models that are focused on deformation analysis associated with material and heat transfer in large accretionary systems. The second subject of the thesis represent the investigation of the formation and propagation of large mudflows in martian atmospheric conditions. In the first part of the work we present a general overview of the problems of analogue and numerical modelling including scaling theory, governing equations, individual methods and history. In the second part of the thesis we deal with laboratory and numerical simulations of collision-indentation tectonics associated with the emergence of large accretionary systems on Earth. The last part of the thesis is devoted to experiments designed for the...