HR: 1340h
AN: T23B-0579    [Abstracts]
TI: The Precambrian Structure of the Estancia Basin, Central New Mexico: New Seismic Images of the Mazatzal Province
AU: * Elebiju, O O
EM: elebiju@geo.utep.edu
AF: University of Texas at El Paso, Department of Geological Sciences, El Paso, TX 79968-0555 United States
AU: Miller, K C
EM: miller@geo.utep.edu
AF: University of Texas at El Paso, Department of Geological Sciences, El Paso, TX 79968-0555 United States
AU: Andronicos, C L
EM: chris@geo.utep.edu
AF: University of Texas at El Paso, Department of Geological Sciences, El Paso, TX 79968-0555 United States
AB: The Estancia Basin, located between the Manzano Mountains and Pedernal Hills, in central New Mexico, provides an excellent location for studying the effects of Proterozoic structural grain on subsequent Phanerozoic tectonic events. The Estancia Basin lies within the Proterozoic Mazatzal province. In recent years, the National Science Foundation Continental Dynamics Program within the Rocky Mountains Project, (CD-ROM) group has been examining the boundary between the two broad northeast-trending tectonically-mixed Paleoproterozoic terranes in New Mexico: the Yavapai province to the north and the Mazatzal province to the south. Reflection data collected as part of the CD-ROM effort image a portion of the Mazatzal province at a location 100 km east of the Estancia Basin. In an effort to contribute to a deeper understanding of the CD-ROM seismic image and regional Precambrian geology, we are analyzing ten seismic reflection profiles, well-logs, magnetic and gravity data from the Estancia basin area. The seismic data show numerous dipping reflections within the Precambrian basement that may represent prominent Precambrian ductile shear zones similar to those exposed in the adjacent Manzano Mountains and Pedernal Hills. An earlier study that focused on the Paleozoic evolution of the Estancia Basin, by Barrow and Keller (1994) also noted these same reflectors and that a prominent gravity low observed in the vicinity of the basin could not be fully explained by the Paleozoic geology. We present a new interpretation of these data.
DE: 8015 Local crustal structure
DE: 7205 Continental crust (1242)
DE: 0935 Seismic methods (3025)
SC: Tectonophysics [T]
MN: 2004 AGU Fall Meeting