xv, 95 p. : ill. (some col.), maps (some col.) Plate 1. Geologic Map of the Sierra Bacha, Coastal Sonora, Mexico (1:30,000 scale) attached as a separate file. / The Gulf of California is an active rift basin formed by late Cenozoic dextral-oblique extension along the Pacific-North America plate boundary. Well exposed volcanic and sedimentary rocks in the Sierra Bacha, coastal Sonora, Mexico, preserve a history of proto-Gulf (late Miocene) deformation and offer insight into the structures and kinematics responsible for localization of the plate boundary and inception of the Gulf at about 6 Ma. Geologic mapping, fault kinematic analysis, and paleomagnetic data suggest that proto-Gulf deformation in the Sierra Bacha occurred primarily by ENE-WSW extension and that vertical-axis rotation related to dextral strain was minor. Lack of significant dextral shear supports an emerging model for proto-Gulf deformation in which dextral strain was not ubiquitous across Sonora but instead became localized during latest Miocene time in a narrow coastal shear zone that mechanically weakened the lithosphere and helped facilitate continental rupture.
This thesis includes the "Geologic Map of the Sierra Bacha, Coastal Sonora, Mexico" as supplemental material. / Committee in charge: Dr. Rebecca J. Dorsey, Chairperson;
Dr. Marli B. Miller, Member;
Dr. Ray J. Weldon II, Member
Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:uoregon.edu/oai:scholarsbank.uoregon.edu:1794/12189 |
Date | 12 1900 |
Creators | Darin, Michael Harrison |
Publisher | University of Oregon |
Source Sets | University of Oregon |
Language | en_US |
Detected Language | English |
Type | Thesis |
Rights | rights_reserved |
Relation | University of Oregon theses, Dept. of Geological Sciences, M.S., 2011; |
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