Lithospheric gravitational potential energy and past orogenesis: Implications for conditions of initial Basin and Range and Laramide deformation

Abstract

Research Article| July 01, 1998 Lithospheric gravitational potential energy and past orogenesis: Implications for conditions of initial Basin and Range and Laramide deformation Craig H. Jones; Craig H. Jones 1Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences and Department of Geological Sciences, University of Colorado, Boulder, Colorado 80309-0216 Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Leslie J. Sonder; Leslie J. Sonder 2Department of Earth Sciences, 6105 Fairchild Hall, Dartmouth College, Hanover, New Hampshire 03755 Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Jeffrey R. Unruh Jeffrey R. Unruh 3William Lettis & Associates, Inc., 1777 Botelho Drive, Suite 262, Walnut Creek, California 94596 Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Author and Article Information Craig H. Jones 1Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences and Department of Geological Sciences, University of Colorado, Boulder, Colorado 80309-0216 Leslie J. Sonder 2Department of Earth Sciences, 6105 Fairchild Hall, Dartmouth College, Hanover, New Hampshire 03755 Jeffrey R. Unruh 3William Lettis & Associates, Inc., 1777 Botelho Drive, Suite 262, Walnut Creek, California 94596 Publisher: Geological Society of America First Online: 02 Jun 2017 Online ISSN: 1943-2682 Print ISSN: 0091-7613 Geological Society of America Geology (1998) 26 (7): 639–642. https://doi.org/10.1130/0091-7613(1998)026<0639:LGPEAP>2.3.CO;2 Article history First Online: 02 Jun 2017 Cite View This Citation Add to Citation Manager Share Icon Share Facebook Twitter LinkedIn MailTo Tools Icon Tools Get Permissions Search Site Citation Craig H. Jones, Leslie J. Sonder, Jeffrey R. Unruh; Lithospheric gravitational potential energy and past orogenesis: Implications for conditions of initial Basin and Range and Laramide deformation. Geology 1998;; 26 (7): 639–642. doi: https://doi.org/10.1130/0091-7613(1998)026<0639:LGPEAP>2.3.CO;2 Download citation file: Ris (Zotero) Refmanager EasyBib Bookends Mendeley Papers EndNote RefWorks BibTex toolbar search Search Dropdown Menu toolbar search search input Search input auto suggest filter your search All ContentBy SocietyGeology Search Advanced Search Abstract Gravitational body forces (i.e., buoyancy forces) have come to be seen as critical to the evolution of orogens. Nevertheless, constraining the role of body forces in specific geologic scenarios is made difficult by the substantial number of poorly constrained physical parameters needed to fully relate forces to deformation. By separating the calculation of buoyancy forces from the calculation of the resulting deformation, models based on relatively simple descriptions of the lithosphere can yield geologically useful constraints. Among these are the importance of paleoelevation in driving syn- and postcontractional extension and in localizing contractional strain. Although such phenomena have been considered in more complex models of continental deformation, the simpler analysis presented here clearly establishes first-order limits on lithospheric structures and paleoelevations consistent with buoyancy-driven deformation. In the early Cenozoic Great Basin of the western United States, we show that the low elevations inferred in much of the geologic literature are inconsistent with a body-force origin for observed extensional tectonism. East of the Colorado Plateau, localization of Laramide deformation coincides with pre-Laramide subsidence of the Western Interior seaway. This subsidence prestressed the lithosphere, making the Southern Rocky Mountains the weak link in responding to regional compressional stress. This content is PDF only. Please click on the PDF icon to access. First Page Preview Close Modal You do not have access to this content, please speak to your institutional administrator if you feel you should have access.