The Alpine Fault - a photographic virtual field trip
The Alpine Fault - a photographic virtual field trip
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For more specific information about the Alpine Fault (maps, cross sections etc) see our main Alpine Fault feature.
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The Alpine Fault is the dominant structure defining the Australian-Pacific plate boundary in the South Island of New Zealand. It runs as a single structure for over 500 km. In the Spacelab photo, it forms the sharp line separating the snow-covered Southern Alps in the east from the low coastal plain bordering the Tasman Sea in the west. |
In the south of the Island, it joins the east-directed Fiordland subduction zone while in the north, it splits into several strands that link with the west-directed North Island subduction zone. Plate tectonic calculations give a slip rate across the boundary of 36 mm/yr dextral strike-slip and 11 mm/yr convergence. The latter results in the thrusting of the Pacific plate over the Australian to form the rapidly uplifting Southern Alps. Although the Alpine Fault accommodates a substantial amount of interplate slip, a significant proportion is distributed to the east within and east of the Southern Alps.
See also:
Sutherland, R. 1995
Norris, R. J., Koons, P. O., Cooper, A. F. 1990
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