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Tracing an Intra-montane Fault: An Interdisciplinary Approach

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Abstract

This paper presents the results of combined geophysical and morphostructural research of a significant tectonic lineament forming the boundary between the core Bohemian Forest (Šumava) Mts. and its foothills of Pošumaví. The exact course, length and character of the fault have not yet been studied in detail despite its possible role in the uplift of the mountain range. To assess the fault course, length and continuity, we have employed a combination of geophysical, morphological and morphostructural methods. These indirect methods had to be applied as the fault only rarely outcrops along its course, and the morphological border is not straightforward. In the beginning, GIS morphometric methods have been applied to assess the influence of the fault on the present relief. Thereafter, structural measurements of joint systems were undertaken together with the analyses of linear structures within the relief. Finally, resistivity profiling at multiple sites across its estimated course has helped to localise the exact position of the fault. Altogether, fifteen profiles were measured using pole-dipole and dipole–dipole electrode configurations. To obtain more detailed results, the resistivity profiling was supplemented by electrical resistivity tomography on three profiles. The paper brings two main results. Firstly, the combination of morphostructural and geophysical methods brings information that each separately cannot, particularly when the faults have no outcrops. Secondly, it was found that the studied fault stretches along the whole study area. Moreover, indicators point to its possible continuation towards the south-east.

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Acknowledgments

The authors gratefully acknowledge financial support of the Institutional research plan (No. AVOZ30460519) and of the project CzechGeo/EPOS (proj. No. LM2010008). Also, the authors would like to thank Dr. Matthew D. Rowberry for the language correction and proof-reading of the paper and to Dr. Miloš René for advices concerning the geological development background and petrology of Bohemian Forest. Finally, the authors express their thanks to the colleagues and students, who helped with numerous and often difficult field measurements.

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  1. Institute of Rock Structure and Mechanics, Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, V Holešovičkách 41, 142 09, Prague, Czech Republic

    Filip Hartvich & Jan Valenta

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Hartvich, F., Valenta, J. Tracing an Intra-montane Fault: An Interdisciplinary Approach. Surv Geophys 34, 317–347 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10712-012-9216-9

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