Constraining the <500 Ka faulting history of the Central Taurides above the Cyprus Subduction Zone: Insights from U-Th carbonate geochronology

Abstract

The Central Taurides is located at the southern margin of the Central Anatolian Plateau with a high relief up to a 2 km topography. This plateau margin rises in the upper plate north of the Cyprus Arc where the African Plate subducts beneath the Anatolian Plate. Although the relationship between regional surface uplift and mantle-driven processes, such as slab tearing/break-off and asthenospheric upwelling are well constrained in this area, the Quaternary faulting history and the seismic hazard potential remain hardly known. The Central Taurides between Alanya and Seydişehir (from the coast to the plateau), presents a series of NW-SE striking faults that control the topography across the highly erosional and karstified orogenic plateau margin. In this study, we utilize U-Th carbonate geochronology, microstructural analysis and fault-slip data to decipher the timing and mechanism of upper crustal brittle deformation. We date fault-related calcites and examine fault kinematics to constrain the