Intraplate active deformation: Lake Salt fault zone and source of the Obruk (Bor-Niğde) earthquakes, Cappadocia-central Anatolia, Türkiye

Abstract

Intraplate strike slip deformation structures play a crucial role in understanding how the earthquake are triggered, and respond to long-term deformation in plate interiors. One of the examples for intraplate structure is the Lake Salt Fault Zone (LSFZ) in Türkiye, located at the Central Anatolia region which has hosted a few moderate magnitude earthquakes. The LSFZ extends in NW-SE direction along the eastern border of the Lake Salt basin. In the western and central sections, it exhibits a rather linear trace, and it marks the west-northwestern boundary of the Cappadocian plateau. Along its strike, two big cities, namely, Aksaray and Niğde, and some significant eruption centers (the Hasan, Keçibuyduran and Melendiz Mountain stratovolcanoes) are located, and there is a 12 km right lateral offset. LSFZ has four main segments, namely, Karacaören, Keçikalesi, Obruk and Büyükkaraoğlan fault segments, and they have hosted two moderate-sized (Mw = 5.1 to 5.2) earthquakes (on September 20, 2020 and February 25, 2023) at the localities approximately 5 km ENE and SSW of Obruk Town (Niğde). Their focal mechanisms revealed that the LSFZ exhibits dominantly dextral strike-slip faulting with normal component. The vertical and horizontal displacement rates along the LSFZ are 0.14 mm/yr and 4.6 mm/yr, respectively. The recurrence interval of earthquakes of Mw ≥ 6.7 on the LSFZ is more than one thousand years, owing to the low slip rate. We propose that the LSFZ is in a seismic gap having potential to host a large earthquake.