Paleostress Analysis of the Volcanic Margins of Yemen

Abstract

The western part of Yemen is largely covered byTertiary volcanics and is bounded by volcanic margins tothe west (Red Sea) and the south (Gulf of Aden). TheOligo–Miocene evolution of Yemen results from theinteraction between the emplacement of the Afar plume,the opening of the Red Sea, and the westward propagationof the Gulf of Aden. Structural and microtectonic analysesof fault slip data collected in the field reveal that thevolcanic margins of Yemen are affected by three mainextensional tectonic events. The chronological order ofthese events is as follows: first E–W extension wasassociated with the emplacement of volcanic traps ofYemen, then NE–SW extension was related to the RedSea rifting, and finally, the volcanic margin was submitted toN160°E extension, perpendicular to the overall trend of theGulf of Aden, which we interpret as induced by the westwardpropagation of the oceanic ridge of the Gulf of Aden.