Geomorphic expression of the southern Central Andes forebulge (37°S, Argentina)

We present a geomorphologic analysis of an east‐west transect located east of the southern Andes of Argentina (~37°S). We observe a succession of zones that underwent erosion and deposition during the Pleistocene. If the proximal Andean foothills are incised, a proximal depozone receives sediments f...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Terra nova (Oxford, England) England), 2013-10, Vol.25 (5), p.361-367
Main Authors: Nivière, Bertrand, Messager, Grégoire, Carretier, Sébastien, Lacan, Pierre
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Earth Sciences
Geomorphology
Lithosphere
Sciences of the Universe
Sediments
Soil erosion
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Summary:We present a geomorphologic analysis of an east‐west transect located east of the southern Andes of Argentina (~37°S). We observe a succession of zones that underwent erosion and deposition during the Pleistocene. If the proximal Andean foothills are incised, a proximal depozone receives sediments feeding the megafan of the Rio Colorado on the Chadileuvú plain. More distally, the abandoned palaeo‐valleys and bending of the valley floors reflect a localized uplift. Further to the east, another depozone corresponds to the Pampa Deprimida lowland. This pattern is consistent with the presence of a classical flexural geometry of the lithosphere. The distal uplift of the foreland corresponds in terms of location, length (150 km) and amplitude (240 m) to the Andean forebulge modelled by a geophysical approach. In this study, we identify the morphological imprint of this bulge and show its effect on the fluvial activity.
ISSN:0954-4879
1365-3121
DOI:10.1111/ter.12044