This study examines the relationship between high positive isostatic gravity anomalies(IGA), steep topography and lower crustal extrusion at the eastern margin of the Tibetan Plateau. IGA data has revealed uplift and extrusion of lower crustal flow in the Longmen Shan Mountains(the LMS). Firstly, The high positive IGA zone corresponds to the LMS orogenic belt. It is shown that abrupt changes in IGA correspond to zones of abrupt change of topography, crustal thickness and rock density along the LMS. Secondly, on the basis of the Airy isostasy theory, simulations and inversions of the positive IGA were conducted using three-dimensional bodies. The results indicated that the LMS lacks a mountain root, and that the top surface of the lower crust has been elevated by 11 km, leading to positive IGA, tectonic load and density load. Thirdly, according to Watts' s flexural isostasy model, elastic deflection occurs, suggesting that the limited(i.e. narrow) tectonic and density load driven by lower crustal flow in the LMS have led to asymmetric flexural subsidence in the foreland basin and lifting of the forebulge. Finally, based on the correspondence between zones of extremely high positive IGA and the presence of the Precambrian Pengguan-Baoxing complexes in the LMS, the first appearance of erosion gravels from the complexes in the Dayi Conglomerate layer of the Chengdu Basin suggest that positive IGA and lower crustal flow in the LMS took place at 3.6 Ma or slightly earlier.
LI YongYAN ZhaokunZHOU RongjunYAN LiangDONG ShunliSHAO ChongjianSvirchev LAURENCE
On April 20 th, 2013, an earthquake of magnitude MW 6.6 occurred at Lushan of Sichuan on the southern segment of the Longmenshan fault zone, with no typical coseismic surface rupture. This work plotted an isoseismal map of the earthquake after repositioning over 400 post–earthquake macro–damage survey points from peak ground acceleration(PGA) data recorded by the Sichuan Digital Strong Earthquake Network. This map indicates that the Lushan earthquake has a damage intensity of IX on the Liedu scale, and that the meizoseismal area displays an oblate ellipsoid shape, with its longitudinal axis in the NE direction. No obvious directivity was detected. Furthermore, the repositioning results of 3323 early aftershocks, seismic reflection profiles and focal mechanism solutions suggests that the major seismogenic structure of the earthquake was the Dayi Fault, which partly defines the eastern Mengshan Mountain. This earthquake resulted from the thrusting of the Dayi Fault, and caused shortening of the southern segment of the Longmenshan in the NW–SE direction. Coseismal rupture was also produced in the deep of the Xinkaidian Fault. Based on the above seismogenic model and the presentation of coseismic surface deformation, it is speculated that there is a risk of more major earthquakes occurring in this region.
