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An Analytical Modelling Approach to Test if a Rising Salt Diapir Triggered The Cape Fear Landslide

Akinci, Levent
http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1448988088

Abstract Details

2015, Master of Science, Ohio State University, Earth Sciences.
Recently acquired 2-D seismic data from offshore North Carolina provides images of salt diapirs and landslides in the region of the Carolina Trough that give insight into the interaction between slope sediments and intruding salt from below. The best example of this is the Cape Fear Slide Complex in which the lower headwall of the slide surrounds at least two salt diapirs. Here, we present seismic images that were collected for the Eastern North American Margin Community Seismic Experiment, which we use to gain new insights into the sedimentary features present in this area, including new evidence for the location of the top of salt of the Cape Fear diapir (approximately 665 meters below seafloor). In addition, we analyze the morphology of the slide and Cape Fear diapir, and use an analytical model to infer a rate of vertical salt rise both before and after the occurrence of the Cape Fear landslide. Using this method we have estimated post-failure growth rates of 357 meters per million years (m/Ma), and pre-failure growth rates of 319 m/Ma. Furthermore, based on the post-failure salt growth rate we estimate that the salt has only risen between 4 and 10 meters since the landslide happened, assuming the published age range for the landslide. With this in mind, further analysis of the slope geometries on the flanks of the Cape Fear diapir mound prompt us to suggest that it is highly unlikely for the rise of salt itself to have triggered the Cape Fear landslide through oversteepening. Instead we believe there to be a more complex story, in which the salt may have primed this area of slope for failure while another mechanism, such as dissociating gas hydrates or an earthquake may have acted as the eventual trigger of the Cape Fear event.
Derek Sawyer (Advisor)
Ian Howat (Committee Member)
Joachim Moortgat (Committee Member)
53 p.
Earth; Geological; Geology; Geophysical; Geophysics
Salt diapirism; salt rise rate; landslide; mass movement

Recommended Citations

Citations

  • Akinci, L. (2015). An Analytical Modelling Approach to Test if a Rising Salt Diapir Triggered The Cape Fear Landslide [Master's thesis, Ohio State University]. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1448988088

    APA Style (7th edition)

  • Akinci, Levent. An Analytical Modelling Approach to Test if a Rising Salt Diapir Triggered The Cape Fear Landslide. 2015. Ohio State University, Master's thesis. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center, http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1448988088.

    MLA Style (8th edition)

  • Akinci, Levent. "An Analytical Modelling Approach to Test if a Rising Salt Diapir Triggered The Cape Fear Landslide." Master's thesis, Ohio State University, 2015. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1448988088

    Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition)

osu1448988088
813
© 2015, all rights reserved.
This open access ETD is published by The Ohio State University and OhioLINK.