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Science 5 December 1986:
Vol. 234. no. 4781, pp. 1225 - 1228
DOI: 10.1126/science.234.4781.1225
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Articles

Uplifted Marine Terraces Along the Alpine Fault, New Zealand

WILLIAM B. BULL 1 and ALAN F. COOPER 2

1 Geosciences Department, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ 85721.
2 Geology Department, University of Otago, Post Office Box 56, Dunedin, New Zealand.

Three types of evidence indicate that marine terraces are widespread in the Southern Alps of New Zealand. (i) Remnants of shore platforms occur as distinct levels of notched ridge crests and flat summits; degraded sea cliffs are common. (ii) Scattered quartz beach pebbles occur on 16 of 18 levels of exhumed shore platforms in the Fox- Franz Josef type area to altitudes as high as 1700 meters. (iii) Altitudinal spacings of New Zealand terrace flights allow correlation with 18 dated global marine terraces at New Guinea, which were formed during glacio-eustatic highstands of sea level within the last 336 x 103 years. Inferred uplift rates at Fox-Franz Josef increased from 3.2 to 7.8 meters per 103 years since about 135 x 103 to 140 x 103 years ago, presumably because of increased convergence between the Pacific and Australian plates.

Submitted on April 17, 1986
Accepted on August 19, 1986


THIS ARTICLE HAS BEEN CITED BY OTHER ARTICLES:
Variations in exhumation level and uplift rate along the obliqu-slip Alpine fault, central Southern Alps, New Zealand.
T. A. Little, S. Cox, J. K. Vry, and G. Batt (2005)
Geological Society of America Bulletin 117, 707-723
   Abstract »    Full Text »    PDF »
Rates of erosion and their implications for exhumation.
D. W. Burbank (2002)
Mineralogical Magazine 66, 25-52
   Abstract »    Full Text »    PDF »
Tectonic geomorphology: recent studies of faulting and tectonic landforms.
I. E. Whitehouse and I. E. Whitehouse (1992)
Progress in Physical Geography 16, 361-369
   PDF »
New Zealand Marine Terraces: Uplift Rates.
C. M. Ward and C. M. WARD (1988)
Science 240, 803-804
   PDF »
Response:New Zealand Marine Terraces: Uplift Rates.
W. B. BULL and A. F. COOPER (1988)
Science 240, 804-805
   PDF »
Neotectonics and landform genesis.
M. A. Summerfield and M.A. Summerfield (1987)
Progress in Physical Geography 11, 384-397
   PDF »


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