The story of a Yakima fold and how it informs Late Neogene and Quaternary backarc deformation in the Cascadia subduction zone, Manastash anticline, Washington, USA

Harvey M. Kelsey; Tyler C. Ladinsky; Lydia M. Staisch; Brian L. Sherrod; Richard J. Blakely; Thomas L. Pratt; William J. Stephenson; Jackson K. Odum; Elmira Wan

doi:10.1002/2017tc004558

USGS · 70194521

The story of a Yakima fold and how it informs Late Neogene and Quaternary backarc deformation in the Cascadia subduction zone, Manastash anticline, Washington, USA

Harvey M. Kelsey·Tyler C. Ladinsky·Lydia M. Staisch·Brian L. Sherrod·Richard J. Blakely·Thomas L. Pratt·William J. Stephenson·Jackson K. Odum·Elmira Wan

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Abstract

The Yakima folds of central Washington, USA, are prominent anticlines that are the primary tectonic features of the backarc of the northern Cascadia subduction zone. What accounts for their topographic expression and how much strain do they accommodate and over what time period? We investigate Manastash anticline, a north vergent fault propagation fold typical of structures in the fold province. From retrodeformation of line- and area-balanced cross sections, the crust has horizontally shortened by 11% (0.8–0.9 km). The fold, and by inference all other folds in the fold province, formed no earlier than 15.6 Ma as they developed on a landscape that was reset to negligible relief following voluminous outpouring of Grande Ronde Basalt. Deformation is accommodated on two fault sets including west-northwest striking frontal thrust faults and shorter north to northeast striking faults. The frontal thrust fault system is active with late Quaternary scarps at the base of the range front. The fault-cored Manastash anticline terminates to the east at the Naneum anticline and fault; activity on the north trending Naneum structures predates emplacement of the Grande Ronde Basalt. The west trending Yakima folds and west striking thrust faults, the shorter north to northeast striking faults, and the Naneum fault together constitute the tectonic structures that accommodate deformation in the low strain rate environment in the backarc of the Cascadia Subduction Zone.

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Source-reported bounding extent: 45.924408558629004° to 47.42437092240519° latitude; -121.45935058593749° to -118.927001953125° longitude. This indicates report coverage, not an exact sampling location. View area on OpenStreetMap.

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Harvey M. Kelsey, Tyler C. Ladinsky, Lydia M. Staisch, Brian L. Sherrod, Richard J. Blakely, Thomas L. Pratt, William J. Stephenson, Jackson K. Odum, Elmira Wan. 2017-10-19. The story of a Yakima fold and how it informs Late Neogene and Quaternary backarc deformation in the Cascadia subduction zone, Manastash anticline, Washington, USA. https://doi.org/10.1002/2017tc004558

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