Encyclopedia of Planetary Landforms

DOI 10.1007/978-1-4614-9213-9_148-1
# Springer Science+Business Media New York 2014

Fault
Anita Torabi*
Uni CIPR, Uni Research, Bergen, Norway

Definition
A fault is a discontinuity along which one side has moved relative to the other one, with the relative
motion parallel to the fault. This tangential relative displacement is also called “slip.”

Synonyms
Shear fracture

Description
Shear fracture along which there is visible offset parallel to the fracture surface (Davis and Reynolds
1996).

Surface/Structural Units
(1) Fault plane (slip surface): The surface along which fault slip occurs (Fig. 1). The orientation
of a fault plane is characterized by its strike and dip. As a result of frictional sliding between the
two fault blocks, a shiny surface (slickenside) containing fine materials commonly forms.
Striations along the fault surface on the slickenside are called slickenlines and typically are
interpreted as forming parallel to the direction of relative displacement.
Non-vertical Fault Units
(2) Hanging wall (headwall): The block of rock above a fault, toward which the fault dips
(Davis and Reynolds 1996; Fig. 1).
(3) Footwall: The block of rock below a fault (Fig. 1).

Subtypes
The following is based on the Andersonian classification of faults (Anderson 1951).

(1) Dip-slip faults: Relative displacement (slip) is parallel to the dip of the fault.
(1.1) ▶ Normal fault: It usually forms in an extensional tectonic setting, where the most
compressive stress (s1) is vertical while the least compressive stress (s3) and the

*Email: anita.torabi@uni.no

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Encyclopedia of Planetary Landforms
DOI 10.1007/978-1-4614-9213-9_148-1
# Springer Science+Business Media New York 2014

Fig. 1 A schematic illustration of fault architecture of a normal fault; fault attributes include fault length, fault
displacement (slip), fault core thickness, and fault damage zone width. Note the presence of fractures and small faults
in the damage zone (Modified from Kolyukhin and Torabi 2012)

Fig. 2 Andersonian classification of faults which categorizes faults into normal, reverse (thrust), and strike slip faults
(After Anderson 1951)

intermediate stress (s2) are horizontal. In this fault the hanging wall moves down relative
to the footwall (Fig. 2).
(1.2) ▶ Reverse fault: It usually forms in a compressional tectonic setting, where the least
compressive stress is vertical while the most and intermediate stresses are horizontal. In
this fault, the hanging wall moves upward with respect to the footwall (Fig. 2).
(1.2.1) ▶ Thrust fault: It forms similar to reverse fault, but owns a low angle dip, usually
less than 45 (Davis and Reynolds 1996).

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Encyclopedia of Planetary Landforms
DOI 10.1007/978-1-4614-9213-9_148-1
# Springer Science+Business Media New York 2014

(2) ▶ Strike-slip fault (lateral fault): It is generally steeply dipping (nearly vertical) and slip
horizontally along the fault strike, where the intermediate stress is vertical and the most and
the least compressive stresses are horizontal (Fig. 2). These faults are characterized as left-
handed (sinistral) or right-handed (dextral) depending on the direction of slip. A strike-slip fault
that is not connected to any other fault and forms within continent is called a transcurrent fault
(Fossen 2010). A strike-slip fault that connects to other faults is called a transfer fault (Fossen
2010). Strike-slip faults that form along plate boundaries are called transform faults (Davis and
Reynolds 1996).

Note on dilatational faults: When a fault changes its orientation for different reasons, for example,
due to bending, overlapping or linkage of fault segments a fault jog forms (Ferrill and Morris 2003).
A fault jog could be compressional or dilational (Sibson 1996). Any type of fault (dip slip or strike
slip) could include jogs. In a strike-slip system a compressional jog is called a restraining bend
produced by the transpression mode of deformation, while a dilational jog is called pull-apart or
releasing bend produced by the transtension mode of deformation (Fossen 2010). However,
sometimes the term dilational or dilatant fault has been used for dilational jogs in normal faults
(Ferrill and Morris 2003). A dilational fault might form as a hybrid mode of failure, in which the
relative displacement is oblique to the fault surface (Ferrill and Morris 2003). Dilational normal
faults may form on Mars and possibly icy satellites (Kattenhorn 2011). The pit crater chains on Mars
may form due to the presence of dilational fault slip in the Mars crust (Ferrill et al. 2004). Pit chains
and pit crater chains at Kilauea Volcano in Hawaii have been studied as analogues to similar
structures formed on Mars (Martel and Tulasi 2009). The presence of chains could be attributed to
the distribution of fractures or cavities beneath the chains and to the local stress state when the
underlying fractures or cavities opened (Martel and Tulasi 2009).

Morphometry
A fault zone, which is a zone of faulted rocks typically, contains several subparallel faults. A fault
commonly includes two main structures: a fault core and a fault damage zone (e.g., Caine et al. 1996;
Torabi and Berg 2011; Fig. 1). A fault core is a narrow structure that involves the main slip surface
and crushed rocks (breccia and fault gouge) and lenses of undeformed rock, while a damage zone is
commonly a wider structure, which forms both on the hanging wall and footwall blocks and includes
fractures and deformation bands (tabular structures that form as a result of strain localization in
porous rocks). For fault zones with central cores, the deformation density decreases from fault core
toward damage zone and the undeformed rocks (host rock).
A fault is characterized by its different attributes such as:

(a) Fault length: the maximum linear dimension measured along strike of the fault plane or slip
surface (Torabi and Berg 2011, Fig. 1).
(b) Fault displacement or slip: the separation distance between two initially connected points of
a marker layer on both sides of a fault. Apparent displacement consists of horizontal and dip
separations (Fossen 2010; Torabi and Berg 2011).
(c) Dip separation: includes horizontal (heave) and vertical (throw) components (Fossen 2010;
Torabi and Berg 2011, Fig. 1).
(d) Fault damage zone width and fault core thickness (Fig. 1).

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Encyclopedia of Planetary Landforms
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# Springer Science+Business Media New York 2014

Fig. 3 A conceptual model for the fault evolution, the isolated fault segments grow in length until they overlap (stages
1 and 2 in Fig. 3). Growth of faults in length dimension is restricted when fault segments interact and link, while
displacement of fault increases (stage 3), this is the stage, that core and damage zone of the main fault are established.
Following the development of the main slip surface, a large mature fault forms (stage 4). At this stage, the damage zone
width increases slightly, while fault core thickens to some extent (After Kolyukhin and Torabi 2012)

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Encyclopedia of Planetary Landforms
DOI 10.1007/978-1-4614-9213-9_148-1
# Springer Science+Business Media New York 2014

Fig. 4 Arcuate thrust fault on Mercury (Beagle Rupes) (Rothery and Massironi 2010). It crosscuts the elliptical
Sveinsdóttir impact crater (bottom left). MESSENGER WAC MDIS; MET: 216329524, ID: 368200. Image 250 km
across (NASA/Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory/Arizona State University/Carnegie Institution of
Washington)

Fig. 5 Cerberus Fossae. Geological faulting has opened cracks in the Cerberus region that slice through flat plains and
mesas alike. THEMIS mosaic 57 km across (NASA/JPL-Caltech/ASU)

Formation
Kolyukhin and Torabi (2012) have suggested a conceptual model for the evolution of faults
independent of fault type (Fig. 6 of Kolyukhin and Torabi 2012). In this model, fault initiates as
separate segments (stage 1, Fig. 3) and mainly fault grows in length. At later stages, when fault
segments overlap and eventually link, fault slip increases, while the growth in length is restricted
(stage 2 and 3, Fig. 3). From these stages on the fault core and damage zone of the main fault is
initiated and finally it forms a mature fault, where the main slip surface is located (stage 4, Fig. 3).

Studied Locations
Faults are found in many places (in the oceans and continents and along the oceanic and continental
plate boundaries) on the Earth. Faults have also been reported on other planets (Figs. 4 and 5) (e.g.,
Schultz et al. 2010). Normal faults have been identified on Mercury, Venus, the Moon, Mars, and icy

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Encyclopedia of Planetary Landforms
DOI 10.1007/978-1-4614-9213-9_148-1
# Springer Science+Business Media New York 2014

satellites (Watters and Schultz 2010). Strike-slip faults have been reported on Mars, Europa, and
Ganymede (Schultz et al. 2010). Thrust faults (Fig. 4) have been found on Mercury, Venus, the
Moon, Mars, and Io (e.g., Okubo and Schultz 2004; Schultz et al. 2010).

Prominent Examples
San Andreas Fault is an active transform fault that accommodates strike slip across the boundary
between the Pacific and the North American plates. It is located in California, USA.
Regional variations: Depending on the current tectonic setting, different types of faults could be
active and more dominant. For example, normal faults are dominant in extensional settings (e.g.,
rifting of continental plates, oceanic ridges), while reverse faults are dominant in compressional
settings (e.g., orogenies, subduction zones). Strike-slip movement is accommodated wherever there
is a horizontal (along fault strike) slip (e.g., plate boundaries).

Significance
Faults are important in many respects, for example, they are formed as results of many earthquake
events and can be used for studying earthquakes and their influences on the Earth. Faults change the
morphology of the crust by creating scarps. Faults introduce heterogeneities to the geological
systems such as petroleum reservoirs and aquifers. Depending on the internal structure of the faults,
they can be either conduit or barrier to fluid flow. Therefore, understanding the mechanism of
faulting and the physical properties of faults are essential for predicting fluid flow underground.

History of Investigation
Anderson (1951) classified faults into normal, strike-slip and reverse faults (thrusts) depending on
which of the three principal stresses is the vertical one.

IAU Descriptor Term

▶ Fossa

See Also
▶ Fracture
▶ Graben

References
Anderson EM (1951) The dynamics of faulting and dyke formation with applications to Britain,
2nd edn. Oliver & Boyd, Edinburgh

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Encyclopedia of Planetary Landforms
DOI 10.1007/978-1-4614-9213-9_148-1
# Springer Science+Business Media New York 2014

Caine JS, Evans JP, Forster CB (1996) Fault zone architecture and permeability structure. Geology
24:1025–1028
Davis HD, Reynolds SJ (1996) Structural geology of rocks and regions, 2nd edn. Printed in the
United States, Wiley & Sons, p 776
Ferrill DA, Morris AP (2003) Dilational normal faults. J Struct Geol 25:183–196
Ferrill DA, Wyrick DY, Morris AP, Sims DW, Franklin NM (2004) Dilational fault slip and pit chain
formation on Mars. GSA Today 14(10):9
Fossen H (2010) Structural geology. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, p 463
Kattenhorn SA (2011) Terrestrial dilational faults: analogs for normal faults on Mars and possibly
icy moons. Paper No. 284-12, GSA annual meeting in Minneapolis, 9–12 Oct 2011
Kolyukhin D, Torabi A (2012) Statistical analysis of the relationships between faults attributes.
J Geophys Res 117:14. doi:10.1029/2011JB008880, B05406
Martel SJ, Tulasi I (2009) Formation of pit chains and pit crater chains at Kilauea Volcano, Hawaii,
American Geophysical Union. Fall meeting 2009, abstract #V23E-2159
Okubo CH, Schultz RA (2004) Mechanical stratigraphy in the western equatorial region of Mars
based on thrust fault-related fold topography and implications for near-surface volatile reservoirs.
Geol Soc Am Bull 116:594–605
Rothery DA, Massironi M (2010) Beagle rupes – evidence of a basal decollement of regional extent
in Mercury’s lithosphere. Icarus 209:256–261
Schultz RA, Hauber E, Kattenhorn SA, Okubo CH, Watters TR (2010) Interpretation and analysis of
planetary structures. J Struct Geol 32:855–875
Sibson RH (1996) Structural permeability of fluid-driven fault-fracture meshes. J Struct Geol
18(8):1031–1042
Torabi A, Berg SS (2011) Scaling of fault attributes: a review. Mar Pet Geol 28:1444–1460
Watters, TR, Schultz, RA (eds) (2010) Planetary tectonics. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge,
UK, p 556

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