Extreme values of fold-related shortening in the hinterland structure of the Shilbilisaj section in the Talas Ridge (Tien Shan)

Abstract

"alas Ridge forms the western part of the Tien Shan Caledonian structure. The sedimentary cover shows a thickness of about 10 km and consists of carbonate flysch and para-platform deposits metamorphosed under greenschist and lesser grade. This structure relates to the "hinterland" tectonic type, characterized by the abundance of many small and moderate-sized folds of the "similar" morphological type. Conventional cross-section balancing techniques developed for "foreland" structures, with large "parallel" folds cannot be applied correctly to such complicated structures. Thus, a special method based on the "geometry of folded domains" was developed for balancing of "hinterland" structures. To test the proposed method, we choose the westernmost Shilbilisaj profile of the Talas Ridge that consists of a large number of folds." (fragm.)