Uniform Strike-Slip Rate along the Xianshuihe-Xiaojiang Fault System and Its Implications for Active Tectonics in Southeastern Tibet

Recent studies on the Xianshuihe-Xiaojiang fault system suggest that the Late Quaternary strike-slip rate is approximately uniform along the entire length of the fault zone, about 15±2 mm/a. This approximately uniform strike slip rate strongly supports the clockwise rotation model of the southeastern Tibetan crust. By approximating the geometry of the arc-shaped Xianshuihe-Xiaojiang fault system as a portion of a small circle on a spherical Earth, the 15±2 mm/a strike slip rate corresponds to clockwise rotation of the Southeastern Tibetan Block at the （5.2±0.7）×10^-7 deg/a angular velocity around the pole （21°N, 88°E） relative to the Northeast Tibetan Block. The approximately uniform strike slip rate along the Xianshuihe-Xiaojiang fault system also implies that the Longmeushan thrust zone is not active, or at least its activity has been very weak since the Late Quaternary. Moreover, the total offset along the Xiaushuihe-Xiaojiang fault system suggests that the lateral extrusion of the Southeastern Tibetan Block relative to Northeastern Tibetan Block is about 160 km and 200-240 km relative to the Tarim-North China block. This amount of lateral extrusion of the Tibetan crust should have accommodated about 13-24% convergence between India and Eurasia based on mass balance calculations. Assuming that the slip rate of 15±2 mm/a is constant throughout the entire history of the Xianshuihe-Xiaojiang fault system, 11±1.5 Ma is needed for the Xianshuihe-Xiaojiang fault system to attain the 160 km of total offset. This implies that left-slip faulting on the Xianshuihe-Xiaojiang fault system might start at 11±1.5 Ma.

From active fault segmentation to risks of earthquake hazards and property and life losses—A case study from the Xianshuihe-Xiaojiang fault zone

Strong earthquakes generally rupture along active faults,and associated ground motion can cause earthquake disasters,property losses,and casualties from kilometers to tens of kilometers away.Therefore,one of the most effective ways to find earthquake’s dangerous parts of faults is to study the seismic hazards on fault segments.After that,we can also evaluate the probabilities of landslides hazard,property losses,and casualties.In this study,using fault slip rates and magnitude-frequency relationship as constraints,we calculated the earthquake occurrence rates for the segments along the Xianshuihe-Xiaojiang fault zone.We obtained 11 sites of single-segment or multi-segment rupturing risk.We also provided these potential events conditional probabilities in the next 30 years.For the 11 potential earthquakes,we calculated the property loss of residential buildings in the ground motion field.The most significant property loss is CNY 7.65 billion caused by the single-segment rupturing of the F19 segment on the Anninghe fault.We applied the deep learning neural network method in predicting the number of casualties for the potential earthquakes,showing that the most significant event is the multi-segment rupturing of the F29 and F30 segments on the Anninghe fault with the predicted death number of 279-317.We also evaluated the probabilities of earthquake landslides after the potential earthquakes.The results show that areas with intense compressional tectonic stress are highly unstable and prone to earthquake induced landslides,including the southern section of the Yuke fault,the southern section of the Xianshuihe fault,and the conjugated area between the southern section of the Daliangshan fault and the Lianfeng fault.These areas have a considerable number of earthquake landslides with probabilities>10%.The methodology and results will give us a new effective way of applying active fault data in earthquake hazard and risk analysis and provide a scientific path for earthquake prevention,disaster reduction,and emergency rescue preparation.

An integrated north–south paleo-Dadu-Anning River: New insights from bulk major and trace element analyses of the Xigeda Formation

The Xianshuihe-Anninghe fault extends SE–S and constitutes the southeastern margin of the Tibetan Plateau.However,the Dadu River which is associated with the fault does not flow following the path,but makes a 90ºturn within a distance of 1 km at Shimian,heading east,and joins the Yangtze River,finally flowing into the East China Sea.Adjacent to the abrupt turn,a low and wide pass near the Daqiao reservoir at Mianning separates the N–S course of the Dadu River from the headwater of the Anning River which then flows south into the Yunnan Province along the Anninghe fault.Therefore,many previous studies assumed southward flow of the paleo-Dadu River from the Shimian to the Anning River.However,evidences for the capture of the integrated N–S paleo-Dadu-Anning River,its timing,and causes are still insufficient.This study explored the paleo-drainage pattern of the Dadu and Anning Rivers based on bulk mineral and geochemical analyses of the large quantities of fluvial/lacustrine sediments along the trunk of the Dadu and Anning Rivers.Similar with sands in the modern Dadu River,the Xigeda sediments also exhibit a granitoid affinity with the bulk major mineral compositions of quartz(>50%),anorthite(about 10%),orthoclase(about 5%),muscovite(about 5%),and clinochlore(about 4%).Correspondingly,bulk major elements show high SiO_(2),with all samples>60%,and some of them>70%,low TiO_(2)(≤0.75%),P_(2)O_(5)(≤0.55%),FeO*(≤5%),and relatively high CaO(1.02%–8.51%),Na_(2)O(1.60%–2.52%),and K_(2)O(2.17%–2.71%),with a uniform REE patterns.Therefore,synthesizing all these results indicate that these lacustrine sediments have similar material sources,which are mainly derived from its course in the Songpan-Ganzi flysch block,implying that the paleo-Dadu originally flowed southward into the Anning River and provided materials to the Xigeda ancient lake.The rearrangement of the paleo-Dadu River appears to be closely related to the locally focused uplift driven by strong activities of the XianshuiheXiaojiang fault system.

Newly-generated Daliangshan Fault Zone—Shortcutting on the central section of Xianshuihe-Xiaojiang fault system

The Daliangshan fault zone is the eastern branch in the central section of Xianshuihe-Xiaojiang fault system. It has been neglected for a long time, partly because of no destructive earthquake records along this fault zone. On the other hand, it is located on the remote and inaccessible plateau. So far it was excluded as part of the Xianshuihe-Xiaojiang fault system. Based on the interpretation of aerophotographs and field investigations, we document this fault zone in detail, and give an estimation of strike-slip rate about 3 mm/a in Late Quaternary together with age dating data. The results suggest that the Daliangshan fault zone is a newly-generated fault zone resulted from shortcutting in the central section of Xianshuihe-Xiaojiang fault system because of the clockwise rotation of the Southeastern Tibetan Crustal Block, which is bounded by the Xianshuihe-Xiaojiang fault system. Moreover, the shortcutting may make the Daliangshan fault zone replace the Anninghe and Zemuhe fault zones gradually, and finally, the later two fault zones will probably die out with the continuous clockwise rotation.

Coulomb Stress Evolution History as Implication on the Pattern of Strong Earthquakes along the Xianshuihe-Xiaojiang Fault System, China

Coulomb stress accumulation and releasing history and its relationship with the occur- rence of strong historical earthquakes could deepen our understanding of the occurrence pattern of strong earthquakes and hence its seismic potential in future. The sinistral strike-slip Xianshuihe- Xiaojiang fault zone （XXFS） is one of the most dangerous fault zones in China, extending 1 500-km- long from the central Tibetan Plateau to the Red River fault zone. There are 35 M≥6.5 historical earth- quakes occurred since 1327, hence it is an ideal site for studying the Coulomb stress evolution history and its relationship with the occurrences of strong earthquakes. In this study, we evaluated the Cou- lomb stress change history along the XXFS by synthesizing fault geometry, GPS data and historical earthquakes. Coulomb stress change history also revealed different patterns of historical earthquakes on different segments of the XXFS, such as characteristic recurrence intervals along the Salaha-Moxi fault and super-cycles along the Xianshuihe fault. Based on the occurrence pattern of past historical earthquakes and current Coulomb stress field obtained in this study, we suggest positive ACFS and hence high seismic potential along the Salaha-Moxi fault and the Anninghe fault.

Influence of fault geometry and fault interaction on strain partitioning within western Sichuan and its adjacent region

There are several major active fault zones in the western Sichuan and its vicinity. Slip rates and seismicity vary on different fault zones. For example, slip rates on the Xianshuihe fault zone are higher than 10 mm/a. Its seismicity is also intense. Slip rates on the Longmenshan fault zone are low. However, Wenchuan Ms8.0 earthquake occurred on this fault zone in 2008. Here we study the impact of fault geometry on strain partitioning in the western Sichuan region using a three-dimensional viscoe- lastoplastic model. We conclude that the slip partitioning on the Xianshuihe-Xiaojiang fault presents as segmented, and it is related to fault geometry and fault structure. Slip rate is high on fault segment with simple geometry and structure, and vice versa. Strain rate outside the fault is localized around the fault segment with complex geometry and fault structure. Strain partitioning on the central section of the Xianshuihe-Xiaojiang fault zone is influenced by the interaction between the Anninghe-Zemuhe fault and the Daliangshan fault zone. Striking of the Longmenshan fault zone is nearly orthogonal to the direction of eastward extrusion in the Tibetan Plateau. It leads to low slip rate on the fault zone.