Response of faults to climate‐induced changes of ice sheets,glaciers and lakes |
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| Authors: | Andrea Hampel |
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| Affiliation: | Institut für Geologie, Leibniz Universit?t Hannover, Germany |
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| Abstract: | Glacial–interglacial cycles are characterized by strong variations in climatic conditions, which affect the size of continental ice sheets, glaciers and lakes. Such climate‐triggered fluctuations in ice and water masses lead to transient stresses in the Earth's crust, which can be large enough to affect the slip behaviour of faults. In particular, postglacial unloading may increase the slip rate of active faults or re‐activate dormant faults. In the past, numerical modelling has helped to better understand the response of faults to mass fluctuations on Earth's surface. This article provides an overview of the mechanisms and controlling parameters of climate‐induced variations in fault slip as derived from the numerical models. Geological records of postglacial faulting from Scandinavia, the European Alps and the Basin‐and‐Range Province (western USA) are presented. Taken together, modelling and case studies provide a basis for evaluating the future seismic potential in regions that are currently experiencing ice loss or lake regression. |
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