The Tectonic and Climatic Evolution of the Arabian Sea Region
Over long periods of time the tectonic evolution of the solid Earth has been recognized as the major control on the development of the global climate system. Tectonic activity acts in one of two different ways to influence regional and global climate: (i) through the opening and closing of oceanic gateways and its effect on the circulation patterns in the global ocean; (ii) through the growth and erosion of orogenic belts, resulting in changes in oceanic chemistry and disruption of atmospheric circulation. The Arabian Sea region has several features that make it the best area for studies of climate and palaeoceanographic responses to tectonic activity, most notably in the context of the South Asian monsoon and its relationship to the growth of high topography in the adjacent Himalayas and Tibet.
The Tectonic and Climatic Evolution of the Arabian Sea Region brings together a collection of recent studies on the area from a wide group of international contributors. The paper range from high resolution, Holocene palaeoceanographic studies of the Pakistan margin to regional tectonic reconstructions of the ocean basin and surrounding margins throughout the Cenozoic. Marine geophysics, stratigraphy, isotope chemistry and neotectonics come together in a multidisciplinary approach to the study of interactions of land and sea. while much work remains to be done to understand fully the tectonic and climatic evolution of the Arabian Sea, a great deal has been achieved since the last major review, as detailed in the 26 contributions. This volume is essential reading for palaeoceanographers, sedimentologists and geophysicists. It will also be interest to structural geologists and those working in the petroleum industry.
Tectonic geomorphology of the Gulf of Oman Basin
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Published:January 01, 2002
Abstract
The margins of the Gulf of Oman Basin range from convergent at the north to translation at the west and east, and passive at the south. The basin's northern margin has been a site of continuous subduction since Cretaceous time, which has led to the creation of an 800 km long and 650 km wide accretionary wedge, most of which is above sea level. Strata in the centre of the Gulf of Oman Basin display minor deformation resulting from the northward tilting of oceanic crust. A basin-wide unconformity dividing these strata in two was the result of erosion during Early Oligocene time when bottom water circulation was enhanced during a climatic deterioration. The morphology of the basin's south margin is due to Early Triassic rifting, deposition during Jurassic-Early Cretaceous time, early Late Cretaceous ophiolite obduction and Late Cretaceous-Cenozoic deposition. The western side of the accretionary wedge, along the north side of the Gulf of Oman Basin, is in sharp contact with the western translation margin. Structures along this margin are the result of post-Eocene convergence of the Lut and Central Iran microplates. The eastern end of the accretionary wedge, however, is not in contact with the eastern transform margin, but is separated from it by a north-trending trough. The landward extension of this trough is defined by the north-trending Las Bela Valley. The eastern side of the accretionary wedge turns northward at 65°30'N along the west side of the trough and becomes aligned with the north-trending Ornach-Nal Fault along the west side of the Las Bela Valley. Similarly, the Murray Ridge complex turns northward at 25°N and becomes aligned with the north-trending Surjan Fault on the Las Bela Valley's east side. The Ornach-Nal and Surjan faults merge at the apex of the Las Bela Valley with the north-trending Las Bela-Chaman Structural Axis. Differences between the eastern and western sides of the accretionary wedge may be due to the presence of the Ormara microplate on the eastern end of the wedge, a plate that is being pushed ahead of the Arabian plate. The morphology of the Murray Ridge complex is the result of transtension and secondary compression along the Indian-Arabian plate boundary. We infer that most of the relief of the Murray Ridge complex resulted from a change in plate geometry in Early Miocene time. Subsequent tectonic Pliocene-Quaternary events have enhanced this relief.