©2023 Society of Economic Geologists, Inc.

Economic Geology, v. XXX, no. XX, pp. X–X

A Model for the Lithospheric Architecture of the Central Andes and the
Localization of Giant Porphyry Copper Deposit Clusters
Alexander D. Farrar,1,2,† David R. Cooke,1 Jon M.A. Hronsky,3, 4 David G. Wood,2,* Sebastian B. Benavides,2,**
Matthew J. Cracknell,1 James F. Banyard,2 Santiago Gigola,2,5 Tim Ireland,2 Simon M. Jones,2 and José Piquer6
1 Centre for Ore Deposits and Earth Sciences (CODES), University of Tasmania, Private Bag 79, Hobart, Tasmania 7001, Australia
2 First Quantum Minerals, Apoquindo 4445 – piso 6, Las Condes, Santiago, Chile
3 Western Mining Services Pty. Ltd., West Perth, Western Australia 6005, Australia
4 Centre for Exploration Targeting, School of Earth Sciences, University of Western Australia, 35 Stirling Highway,
Crawley, Western Australia 6009, Australia
5 Independent Consultant, Los Pimientos 1107, Las Heras, Mendoza 5539, Argentina
6 Eduardo Morales Miranda Ave., Emilio Pugín Building, Isla Teja Campus, Universidad Austral de Chile, Valdivia, Chile

Abstract
In the central Andes, giant porphyry copper deposits of similar ages group into discrete geographic clusters
that are regularly spaced and aligned within orogen-parallel belts. This clustering highlights how exceptional
geologic processes affected localized regions of the lithosphere during mineralization and that the spatial
and temporal distribution of giant porphyry deposits is nonrandom. Development of favorable regions of
lithosphere for significant metal concentration are linked to the overlap of structural pathways that focus fluid
and magma flow from the mantle to upper crust during high-horizontal-compressive-strain events. These
structural pathways are notoriously difficult to identify in the field due to their often-subtle surficial mani-
festations and continental scale. Field mapping at multiple scales in northwest Argentina and southern Peru,
as well as regional structural traverses throughout the central Andes, indicates the presence of regional-scale
structural corridors 5 to 25 km wide and hundreds of km long that consist of myriad fault planes. The variable
width and diffuse surface expression of these corridors is interpreted to reflect the upward propagation of
underlying zones of basement weakness through younger supracrustal sequences in the overriding plate. Such
structural corridors are (1) apparent at multiple scales of investigation, (2) long-lived, (3) preferentially reac-
tivated though time, and (4) evident in geophysical data sets. This structural architecture formed in response
to the interplay of pre-Cenozoic tectonics and the orientation of inherited structural weaknesses. These fault
systems persist in the upper crust as steep zones of enhanced permeability that can preferentially reactivate as
pathways for ascending hydrous magmas and fluids during major deformation events. Linear orogen-parallel
structural belts cogenetic with the magmatic arc provide the first-order control to giant porphyry copper
deposit distribution. The second-order control is the intersection of orogen-oblique structural corridors with
the orogen-parallel belts, localizing deposit clusters at these intersections. Such regions are inferred to have
been zones of deep permeability, with vertical translithospheric pathways activated during high-strain tectonic
events that affected the intra-arc stress field.

Introduction geographic areas underwent favorable structural and geody-

The central Andes, between 14°S and 35°S latitude, is the
most important copper province on the planet, accounting for
approximately 40% of the world’s annual copper mine pro-
duction (U.S. Geological Survey [USGS], 2021). The decades
leading up to the year 2000 saw numerous greenfields porphy-
ry copper discoveries in the central Andes (Sillitoe and Perel-
ló, 2005); however, since 2000, few significant new greenfields
porphyry discoveries have been reported (e.g., Sillitoe, 2010a;
Rode et al., 2015; Schodde, 2019; Sillitoe et al., 2019). Declin-
ing discovery rates in the central Andes are likely a function
of increasing exploration maturity and extensive postminer-
alization cover, issues that affect many other mineral belts
worldwide (McCuaig and Hronsky, 2014). Predicting which
†Corresponding author: e-mail, alex.farrar@utas.edu.au
*Present address: Anglo American, 201 Charlotte St., Brisbane, Queensland
4000, Australia.
**Present address: Anglo American, Calle Esquilache 371 – piso 10, San
Isidro, Lima 15073, Peru.
namic preconditioning for porphyry copper deposit genesis
is of obvious benefit to mineral explorers. This knowledge
is particularly valuable in regions such as the central Andes,
where postmineralization cover may obscure undiscovered
mineral deposits.
Giant porphyry copper deposits (>3.1 Mt of contained
copper; Clark, 1993) in the central Andes align within linear,
orogen-parallel belts that spatially and temporally coincide
with the magmatic arc (Fig. 1; Cooke et al., 2005; Sillitoe and
Perelló, 2005; Sillitoe, 2010b) and have been noted to exhibit
marked along-arc spatial periodicity that is not explained by
upper crustal or stochastic processes alone (Yáñez and Mak-
saev, 1994; Richards, 2003; Tomlinson and Cornejo, 2012;
Hayward et al., 2018). At the district scale, giant deposits tend
to occur as discrete, multideposit clusters of similar age (Fig.
1B-D; Sillitoe, 2010b; Hayward et al., 2018). A “giant por-
phyry copper deposit cluster” is spatially defined as a grouping
of porphyry copper deposits and prospects, belonging to the
same metallogenic epoch, that contains at least one deposit

ISSN 0361-0128; doi:10.5382/econgeo.5010; 26 p. 1 Submitted: August 25, 2022/Accepted: January 29, 2023

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 2 FARRAR ET AL.

Fig. 1. A) Simplified geologic map of the central Andes, colored by the tectonic cycles defined by Mpodozis and Ramos (1989)
and Charrier et al. (2007). The locations of interpreted suture zones between basement terranes are shown as dashed lines
(see text for discussion). Giant porphyry copper deposits are colored by metallogenic age (after Sillitoe and Perelló, 2005).
B) Middle Miocene-Pliocene metallogenic belt of central Chile; five deposit clusters as defined by Hayward et al. (2018) are
separated by 90 ± 15 km. C) Middle Eocene-early Oligocene metallogenic belt of northern Chile; four deposit clusters are
separated by 115 ± 10 km. Two clusters of Paleocene-early Eocene deposits are separated by 70 km. D) Middle Eocene-
early Oligocene Andahuaylas-Yauri belt; four deposit clusters are separated by 75 ± 10 km. Two clusters of Paleocene-early
Eocene deposits are separated by 120 km. Background fault interpretations from Segemar (1997), Ingemmet (1999), and
Sernageomin (2002).

that is giant (e.g., Hayward et al., 2018; Fig. 1B-D). In the
central Andes, giant deposits within the same cluster are typi-
cally located <10 km from the cluster centroid (Fig. 1B-D);
sometimes this distance can extend to 30 km due to postmin-
eralization fault displacement (e.g., Chuquicamata cluster;
Dilles et al., 1997; Fig. 1C). Within a cluster, the location of
ore deposition is controlled by upper crustal structural, rheo-
logical, and physiochemical processes that also determine the
tonnage and grade of individual porphyry deposits (Sillitoe,
2010b). The middle Miocene-Pliocene deposits of central
Chile exhibit a cluster periodicity of 80 to 100 km (Fig. 1B;
Hayward et al., 2018), the middle Eocene-early Oligocene de-
posits of northern Chile exhibit a periodicity of 110 to 120 km
(Fig 1C; Yáñez and Maksaev, 1994; Tomlinson and Cornejo,
2012; Hayward et al., 2018), and, in southern Peru, clusters of
giant porphyry and skarn deposits in the middle Eocene-early
Oligocene Andahuaylas-Yauri belt display a periodicity of ap-
proximately 70 km (Fig. 1D; Perelló et al., 2003).
Emplacement of porphyry copper deposits into regularly
spaced clusters along arc-parallel structural belts has previ-
ously been proposed to reflect the role of regional-scale arc-
oblique structural corridors (Salfity, 1985; Richards et al.,
2001; Gow and Walshe, 2005; Piquer et al., 2016; Yáñez and
Rivera, 2019). This study draws upon the mineral system con-
cept (Wyborn et al., 1994; McCuaig et al., 2010; McCuaig and
Hronsky, 2014) to interrogate the role of these arc-oblique
structures as second-order controls on porphyry emplace-
ment. Hereafter, we use the terms “lineament” to describe

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 LITHOSPHERIC ARCHITECTURE OF THE CENTRAL ANDES
regional-scale (>50-km-long) linear features inferred from
geophysical or geologic data and “structural corridor” when
field evidence supports numerous parallel faults that spatially
coincide with the trace of a lineament along its strike (e.g.,
Hayward et al., 2018). The central Andes contains 49 known
giant porphyry copper deposits within 25 discrete clusters.
The region is characterized by a long magmatic and orogenic
history, active tectonics, and a lack of vegetation. Coupled
with high-quality remote sensing data sets and a rich body
of geologic research, the area is an ideal site for investigating
crustal-scale tectonic controls on porphyry copper emplace-
ment. We present new mapping data that reveal how first- and
second-order controls on porphyry emplacement—continen-
tal-scale lineaments—can manifest as subtle structural corri-
dors in the field (Salfity, 1985; Richards et al., 2001; Lanza et
al., 2013; Piquer et al., 2016). This study provides important
insight into how these structural corridors create the focused
permeability necessary for the localization of giant porphyry
copper deposit clusters in the central Andes and elsewhere in
the world.
Arc-Oblique Structural Corridors in the Central
Andes—An Ongoing Controversy
The development of fertile upper-crustal magmas requires
hydrated and oxidized mafic melts generated above the
subducted slab that accumulate in the lower crustal MASH
(melting, assimilation, storage, homogenization) zone. Melts
subsequently ascend though the crust via staged ponding
chambers, promoting magma fractionation and the delivery
of oxidized magmatic volatile phases enriched in Cu and S to
higher levels of the crust (Richards et al., 2003; Tosdal and
Dilles, 2020; Loucks, 2021). This process can eventually lead
to porphyry ore formation via fluid release from pipes, dikes,
and stocks that are expelled from lower to midcrustal storage
chambers. The conspicuous grouping of giant porphyry de-
posits into periodically spaced clusters in central Andean mag-
matic arcs implies that these stages of magma migration, stall-
ing, and fluid release are highly localized. This has led many
workers to emphasize the importance of regional-scale, arc-
oblique structural corridors that localize deposits where they
intersect the arc in different porphyry belts around the world
(e.g., Glen and Walshe, 1999; Hill et al., 2002; Richards, 2003;
Love et al., 2004; Piquer et al., 2016; Wiemer et al., 2022).
Early studies by Mayo (1958) and Anderson (1966) produced
“lineament maps” in the southwestern United States, where
deposits were correlated across tracts of postmineralization
cover and the importance of inherited Precambrian structures
and structural intersections for controlling porphyry copper
deposits were noted. In the central Andes, early studies that
correlated arc-oblique structural trends with the localization
of porphyry copper deposits were conducted by Segerstrom
(1970), Thomas (1970), Ricci and Figueroa (1971), and Salfity
(1985). Lowell (1974) and Sillitoe (1988) carried out pioneer-
ing studies emphasizing the localization of porphyry copper
deposits into orogen-parallel belts, some of which centered
around arc-parallel fault systems, such as the Domeyko fault
system in Chile. The model of Sillitoe (1988) grouped por-
phyry deposits into narrow, elongate structural belts of similar
age, which has proven robust and repeatable, with subsequent
dating of mineral deposits confirming the significance of the
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3
arc-parallel “metallogenic belt” paradigm as the first-order
control to deposit distribution (e.g., Camus and Dilles, 2001;
Sillitoe and Perelló, 2005; Acosta et al., 2009).
Recent studies continue to emphasize the importance of
arc-oblique fault zones as inherited orientations of weakness
in basement rocks (Allmendinger et al., 1983; Charrier et al.,
2007) that controlled the distribution of pre-Andean sedimen-
tary basins (Ramos, 1994; Jacques, 2003; Amilibia et al., 2008;
Espinoza et al., 2019) and volcanic units (Cembrano and Lara,
2009; Lavallée et al., 2009; Gioncada et al., 2010; Lanza et
al., 2013). Though these characteristics of arc-oblique fault
zones are widely accepted, their role in the localization of por-
phyry copper deposits is controversial (Gilluly, 1976; Paterson
and Schmidt, 1999; Richards, 2000; Tomlinson and Cornejo,
2012). In the central Andes, this stems from the sometimes
subtle and at other times total lack of surficial geologic evi-
dence for segments of arc-oblique fault systems, which leads
to uncertainty regarding their position and existence. Defining
a causal link between such enigmatic fault systems and min-
eralization, in a way comparable to well-defined arc-parallel
basement structures, such as the Domeyko and Incapuquio
fault zones (e.g., Reutter et al., 1996; Carlotto et al., 2010), is
therefore challenging. Discrepancies between studies regard-
ing the trace of some arc-oblique structural corridors, a lack of
discussion around levels of uncertainty and inconsistent ter-
minology may accentuate skepticism (e.g., Salfity, 1985; Behn
et al., 2001; Richards et al., 2001; Jacques, 2003; Hayward
et al., 2018; Yáñez and Rivera, 2019; Espinoza et al., 2021).
Discrepancies between structural models likely stem from
the use of differing data sets, spatial limitations to study areas
(e.g., data set extents, country borders), and the intrinsic dif-
ficulty in validating cryptic structural corridors at the surface
(McCuaig and Hronsky, 2014).
The Rayleigh-Taylor gravitational diapirism model is an al-
ternate mechanism that may explain regularly spaced giant
porphyry copper deposit clusters in the central Andes without
the requirement of arc-oblique structural corridors (Yáñez
and Maksaev, 1994; Tomlinson and Cornejo, 2012). This
model emphasizes the plume-like ascent of magmatic fluids
produced during dehydration of the downgoing slab that initi-
ates from Rayleigh-Taylor gravitational instabilities, with the
equidistant spacing of ascending diapirs controlled by the
thickness of the overlying layers and the viscosity difference
of the ascending and descending mixing fluids. Drawbacks of
the Rayleigh-Taylor model are that magma ascent through the
lithosphere is widely regarded to be along preexisting perme-
ability as dike-like fingers, and the model does not adequately
explain the reoccurrence of magmatism of multiple ages in
the same location, linear trends of coeval intrusions, or arc-
oblique trends of volcanism, phenomena that are adequately
accounted for in the arc-oblique structural corridor model
(Richards and Villeneuve, 2002; Tomlinson and Cornejo,
2012; Hayward et al., 2018).
Tectonic History of the Central Andean Margin
The western margin of South America has been an ocean-
facing continental margin since the late Neoproterozoic
breakup of Rodinia, when the proto-Pacific Ocean opened
(Merdith et al., 2021). A series of para-allochthonous and al-
lochthonous terranes, likely sourced from Laurentia, were ac-
 4 FARRAR ET AL.
creted to the western margin of proto-South America during
the Pampean and Famatinian tectonic cycles (Mpodozis and
Ramos, 1989; Charrier et al., 2007; Ramos, 2010; Table 1).
Final amalgamation of the central Andes was achieved with
the accretion of the Chilenia terrane in the Devonian (Álvarez
et al., 2011). There are unresolved questions concerning the
Paleozoic history of the central Andes, including the mode
of accretion of allochthonous terranes (strike-slip versus col-
lisional), whether some terranes accreted separately or as
larger coherent terranes (e.g., Arequipa-Antofalla, Famatina,
Mejillonia), the locations of suture zones between terranes,
and the structural controls on synorogenic basin evolution
(Ramos, 2010; Horton, 2018; Franceschinis et al., 2020).
Following the accretionary stage of central Andean evolu-
tion, a series of punctuated extensional and compressional
tectonic cycles occurred—the Gondwanan, Pre-Andean, and
First Andean cycles (Table 1; Fig. 1A). These tectonic cycles
were accompanied by the formation of significant NW- and
N-striking extensional sedimentary basins, whose extensional
axes utilized the inherited structural architecture associated
with earlier tectonic cycles and the suture zones of basement
terranes (Allmendinger et al., 1983; Ramos 1994; Charrier et
al., 2007; Espinoza et al., 2019). Crustal extension during the
early Silurian to late Carboniferous was sufficiently severe
to rift part of the Arequipa-Antofalla basement terrane away
from southwest Pangea (Bahlburg and Hervé, 1997; Ramos,
2010). Subsequent Triassic extension was associated with
transform plate convergence (Müller et al., 2019; Young et al.,
2019). During this time, the initiation of rifting and breakup
of Pangea produced a series of NW- and N-elongated failed
rifts and sedimentary basins along the margin of southwest
Pangea (Espinoza et al., 2021). The Second and Final Andean
phases were associated with periods of oblique plate conver-
gence and variations in the convergence rate (Somoza and
Table 1. Tectonic Cycles that Affected the Central Andes (after Coira et al. [1982], Mpodozis and Ramos [1989], and Charrier et al. [2007])
Tectonic cycle From To
Final Andean phase Upper Eocene Present
Second Andean phase Upper Cretaceous Lower Eocene
First Andean phase Lower Jurassic Mid-Cretaceous
Pre-Andean Upper Permian Lower Jurassic
Gondwanan Upper Devonian Lower Permian
Famatinian Upper Cambrian Lower Devonian
Pampean Neoproterozoic Lower Cambrian
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Ghidella, 2012). Separation of South America from Africa in
the middle Cretaceous resulted in westward acceleration of
the South American plate, which significantly increased com-
pressional stress along the trench, reducing the slab subduc-
tion angle and shifting the magmatic arc to the east (Somoza
and Zaffarana, 2008). Fluctuations in the far-field stress re-
gime, possibly due to changing plate convergence conditions
controlled by the absolute westward velocity of South Amer-
ica (Oncken et al., 2006), manifested as a series of contrac-
tional events known as the Peruvian (Late Cretaceous), K-T
(Paleocene), Incaic (middle Eocene-early Oligocene), and
Quechua (Late Cenozoic) episodes, which were separated
by periods of relative quiescence and extensional reactivation
of older structures (e.g., Sempere et al., 1990; Oncken et al.,
2006; Charrier et al., 2007). The Bolivian Orocline (Fig. 1A)
is interpreted to have developed during these events (Isacks,
1988; Allmendinger et al., 2005); however, estimates of short-
ening, timing, and the tectonic trigger that led to the com-
mencement of oroclinal bending are debated (e.g., Arriagada
et al., 2008; Eichelberger and McQuarrie, 2015; Schellart,
2017; Wiemer et al., 2022).
Methods
Geology preparation
Geology map sheets from Peru (Ingemmet, 1999), Chile
(Sernageomin, 2002), Argentina (Segemar, 1997), and Bo-
livia (Sergeomin, 2020) were digitized into a coherent, cross-
border digital geologic map of the central Andes as attributed
polygons. Several 1:100k and 1:250k map sheets were utilized
for site-specific studies, such as those referenced in the case
studies. We created a Geographic Information System (GIS)
workspace that incorporated the digitized geology, geophysi-
cal data discussed below, suture zone information, and our
Key features
Present configuration of the Andes adopted; fluctuating subduction convergence rate
and convergence obliquity; flat slab subduction events in Peru and Chile affects upper
plate stress regimes; three temporally distinct giant porphyry events
Full separation of South America from Africa causes tectonic inversion of the back arc,
and compression in forearc shifts volcanic eastward
La Negra volcanic arc extends from southern Peru to southern Chile along present-day
coastline; back-arc basins form in Peru, Chile, and Argentina deposited on top of the
Gondwanan magmatic arc; Atacama fault zone active
Subduction slows/stops due to consolidation of Pangea; rifting of Pangea and oblique
subduction produces an extensional regime; voluminous felsic magmatism (e.g.,
Choiyoi, Carabaya); NW segmented extensional basins in Chile, Argentina, and Peru
(Marañon, Mitu, Domeyko, Cuyo, Neuquén)
Extension, rifting off part of the Arequipa-Antofalla terrane, followed by passive margin;
from late Carboniferous N-S magmatic arc established along the cordillera of Chile
and western Argentina; NW and NE truncated back arc basins
Accretion of Arequipa-Antofalla, Famatinia (?), Cuyania, Chilenia terranes; volcanic
arc in northwest Argentina, thick back-arc sedimentary sequences deposited in Peru,
Bolivia, and Argentina controlled by NW- and NE-trending basin-bounding faults
Breakup of Rodinia, opening of proto-Pacific Ocean, onset of subduction, accretion of
Pampia; thick sedimentation in northwest Argentina
 LITHOSPHERIC ARCHITECTURE OF THE CENTRAL ANDES
field mapping (First Quantum Minerals, unpub. data, 2020).
We assigned each lithostratigraphic unit to one of a simplified
set of formational modes: intrusion, volcanogenic, shallow
marine, deep marine, and metamorphic, according to geolog-
ic provenance. This reduced edge effects between individual
map sheets and mitigated mismatches caused by the change
in scale of mapping between countries and map sheets. Ad-
ditionally, each lithostratigraphic unit was assigned to one of
seven tectonic cycles according to age (Table 1; Fig. 1A).
Geophysical interpretations
The gridded isostatic residual gravity model and the first verti-
cal derivative filter of the isostatic residual gravity model (Fig.
2A) are based on commercial and public ground station data
provided by First Quantum Minerals. These data were con-
verted from observed gravity to a Bouguer anomaly using the
elevation measured at each station with a Bouguer reduction
density of 2.67 g/cm³. The isostatic residual gravity anomaly
was calculated based on the Airy approximation using a re-
duction density of 2.67 g/cm³ onshore and 2.2 g/cm³ offshore,
a density contrast at the Moho of 0.5 g/cm³ and a reference
Moho depth of 31 km. A Canny filter with an upward continu-
ation of 10,000 m was applied to the first vertical derivative
of the isostatic residual gravity model (Fig. 2A; Xiaodi et al.,
2018). Lineament interpretation was carried out by hand at
a scale of approximately 1:3,000,000 (1:3M) and focused on
identifying continuous lineaments that follow abrupt contrasts
in bulk density (e.g., Yáñez and Rivera, 2019). The Canny fil-
ter edge model was used as an independent visual guide to
assist with the manual lineament interpretation, with non-
continuous, strike-parallel Canny edges often extrapolated to
produce coherent lineaments. A drawback of the Canny filter
on N-S– and E-W–oriented pixelated data is that it assigns
orientations that broadly align to W, NW, N, NE, and E trend-
ing. Lineaments tended to range in length from 50 to 200 km.
Regional-scale government and commercial airborne mag-
netic data sets provided by First Quantum Minerals were used
to conduct a magneto-structural interpretation of the cen-
tral Andes (Fig. 2B). Lineament interpretations of airborne
magnetic data were carried out using gridded data on four
processing products: reduction to the pole (RTP) transform,
analytic signal transform, the first vertical derivative filter of
RTP data to enhance high frequency features, and an upward
continuation filter to highlight low-frequency anomalies. In-
terpretations were conducted at scales between 1:1M and
1:3M, dependent on flight line spacing of each survey, using
the methods outlined in Isles and Rankin (2013). Interpreta-
tions were conducted by hand on A0 maps, utilizing trans-
parent overlays, which were then georeferenced and digitized
into a GIS workspace.
Suture zones
Suture zones of basement terranes in western South America
accreted since the Neoproterozoic were taken from the lit-
erature and refined using regional gravimetry data (Fig. 2A).
Some adjustment of the inferred positions of the suture zones
was necessary due to spatial inconsistencies in both the loca-
tion and orientation of sutures between different studies. The
sources examined include those based largely on geologic data
(Mpodozis and Ramos, 1989; Charrier et al., 2007; Ramos,
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5
2010), isotopic data (Carlier et al., 2005; Mamani et al., 2008),
and geophysical data (Peri et al., 2015; Franceschinis et al.,
2020). The interpretation of terrane sutures (Figs. 1A, 2A)
represents a best fit to published location with some fine tun-
ing from the regional gravimetry and geology data sets.
Tectono-lithologic interpretation
Published regional-scale faults were incorporated in our cen-
tral Andes tectono-lithologic interpretation (Ramos, 1977;
Allmendinger et al., 1983; Jordan et al., 1983; Salfity, 1985;
Scheuber and Andriessen, 1990; Martinez et al., 1995; Cem-
brano et al., 1996; Astini and Thomas, 1999; Richards et al.,
2001; Bouzari and Clark, 2002; Perelló et al., 2003; Carlier et
al., 2005; Amilibia et al., 2008; Audin et al., 2008; Lavallée et
al., 2009; Tibaldi et al., 2009; Roperch et al., 2011; Carlotto,
2013; Lanza et al., 2013; Piquer et al., 2016, 2017, 2021b; Es-
pinoza et al., 2019, 2021). We conducted a structural interpre-
tation of geology for the tectonic cycles outlined in Table 1 at
a scale of 1:1M by visualizing rocks with ages of each tectonic
cycle. As a proxy for potential basement fault systems that
might be reactivated in different ways through geologic time,
attention was paid to identifying the margins and truncations
of pre-Andean sedimentary basins (Ramos, 1994; Amilibia et
al., 2008; Espinoza et al., 2019), axes of rifts, axes of volcanic
arcs, aligned plutons, regions that underwent rapid crustal
thickening or thinning, as well as upper Cenozoic aligned vol-
canic centers inboard of the main volcanic arc (Salfity, 1985;
Chernicoff et al., 2002; Yáñez and Rivera, 2019). Due to the
possibility of assigning young structural features to older tec-
tonic cycles where young fault movement offset older rocks,
additional confidence weighting was applied to interpreted
fault systems that underwent demonstrable offset during
the tectonic cycle in question, as well as those that displayed
alignments of magmatic activity of the age being examined.
Lineaments from each tectonic cycle were compared to one
another to investigate reactivation during different tectonic
cycles. Recurrence of a lineament in multiple tectonic cycles
was recorded as a proxy for the confidence of interpretation.
Tectono-lithologic lineaments tended to be 50 to 300 km long.
Lineament map
The spatial correlations of GIS-interpreted tectono-lithologic,
magnetic, and gravimetric lineaments were assessed manu-
ally. Lineaments defined by two or more data sets advanced
to a “lineament map” to be validated against field-based
evidence. Fieldwork was conducted to collect structural in-
formation on selected lineaments and to characterize their
surficial expressions. Published mapping was incorporated
to provide a field-based, independent component to our in-
terpretations. Interpreted lineaments with no surficial expres-
sions were eliminated, and those with no field data available
were preserved but assigned a lower confidence. The iterative
process of desktop interpretation followed by field validation
produced a more refined product at each iteration (Fig. 3).
Fault segments, of which structural corridors are composed,
represent two or more spatially correlated input data sets.
Fieldwork
Field mapping conducted at multiple scales was undertaken
in selected areas of the central Andes to evaluate whether sur-
 6 FARRAR ET AL.

PERU PERU

Fig. 11
BOLIVIA BOLIVIA

AR
EQ
UI
PA
-A
NT
OF
Isostatic residual AL Reduced to Pole Fig. 6
gravity LA
(nT)
(mGal)

426 -295.5
130 -150
Magnetic
Terrane suture lineaments
zone
Aeromagnetic
Canny edge filter CHILE survey outlines CHILE
PAM
PIA
CHILENIA

CUYA
NIA

ARGENTINA ARGENTINA
0 250 0 250

kilometers kilometers

Fig. 2. A) Histogram-equalized isostatic residual gravity anomaly map with Canny edge filter and interpreted Paleozoic
suture zones of terranes (see “Methods” section in text; Mpodozis and Ramos, 1989; Carlier et al., 2005; Charrier et al., 2007;
Mamani et al., 2008; Ramos, 2010; Peri et al., 2015; Franceschinis et al., 2020). B) Histogram-equalized, reduced-to-pole
magnetic map from the World Digital Magnetic Anomaly Map (WDMAM; Lesur et al., 2016). Red lines define areas where
the regional aeromagnetic data sets (not shown) were utilized to carry out the magneto-structural interpretation (black lines).
Outlines showing locations of Figures 6 and 11 are displayed.

face features associated with interpreted lineaments can be
recognized. Field mapping in northwest Argentina was un-
dertaken by DW, SG, JB, SB, AF, and First Quantum Miner-
als company geologists during campaigns in 2014, 2015, and
2018 (Figs. 4B-D; 5). Field mapping in southern Peru was un-
dertaken by AF, SB, DW, SG, First Quantum Minerals com-
pany geologists, and consultants during mapping campaigns
in 2014 and 2016. Regional field traverses were conducted by
AF, supported by First Quantum Minerals exploration teams,
between November 2018 and March 2020. In total, 647 fault
measurements were recorded in southern Peru, Chile, and
northwest Argentina. Strike and dip were recorded for each
structure as well as sense of movement criteria where pre-
served. Regional traverses involved transects, up to 200 km
long, across preselected lineaments at observation stations
spaced approximately 5 km along their strike, with a particu-

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 LITHOSPHERIC ARCHITECTURE OF THE CENTRAL ANDES 7

Data compilation and processing

Northwest Argentina case study
Regional data sets
Geology and porphyry deposits: The area incorporating So-
compa volcano and the Salar de Arizaro in northwest Argen-
Gravity Tectono- tina is dominated by igneous rocks that span several tectonic
Magnetic
interpretation lithologic cycles (Fig. 4A). The oldest rocks, considered basement in the
interpretation
interpretation area, are Ordovician-Silurian felsic plutonic rocks and NNE-
Multidisciplinary correlation striking aplite dikes composing the Taca Taca Formation
(Zappettini et al., 2001). The Taca Taca Formation exhibits
NW- and NNE-striking shear zones that are interpreted to
be associated with its intrusion and cooling history (Orts et
No Evidence in 2 or
more data sets?
al., 2011). The Taca Taca Formation is intruded by a Permian
NE-trending, coarse-grained granite batholith assigned to the
Llullaillaco plutonic complex, and contemporaneous steeply
Yes
dipping N- and NE-trending felsic dikes (Zappettini et al.,
Lineament Map 2001; Fig. 4B). The Taca Taca Alto Cu-Mo porphyry pros-
pect (Fig. 4A, B) occurs within the Permian granite batholith
and consists of structurally controlled advanced argillic altera-
Field tion and residual quartz ledges interpreted as the roots of a
validation Fieldwork
Reject lithocap (Benavides, 2017). Taca Taca Alto has an unreliable
lineament age of 323 ± 5 Ma by K-Ar magmatic biotite that has likely
Government and been affected by Ar loss (Sillitoe, 1977). The genesis of Taca
published mapping Taca Alto has been linked separately to the Permian Llullail-
Yes
laco plutonic complex and the Eocene-Oligocene Santa Ines
Complex (Zappettini et al., 2001; Rubinstein et al., 2021). We
Field data favor a Permian age for Taca Taca Alto based on observed
No Field evidence
available? for lineament? crosscutting field relationships within the Permian batholith
and abundant Permian dike arrays in the immediate vicinity
low N (Fig. 4B).
con o Yes
fide
nce
Six kilometers southeast of Taca Taca Alto, steeply dipping,
NNE-striking Oligocene porphyritic rhyodacite dikes intrude
Regional-scale Not adequately the Taca Taca Formation, which, based on drilling data, co-
features
captured? - check and refine alesce at shallow depths at the giant Oligocene Taca Taca
Bajo porphyry Cu-Au-Mo deposit (1,759 Mt @ 0.44% Cu,
Yes 0.012% Mo, 0.13 g/t Au: Gray et al., 2020; Fig. 4C). These
dikes were emplaced between 30.5 ± 0.3 to 29.0 ± 0.3 Ma (U-
Structural corridor Pb SHRIMP; Ince et al., 2022), with mineralization occurring
synchronously (29.1 ± 0.1 Ma Re-Os molybdenite; Ince et al.,
Fig. 3. Flow diagram outlining the iterative process to produce the structural
corridor map.
2022). Taca Taca Bajo occupies an anomalous “rear-arc” po-
sition relative to the coeval N-trending middle Eocene-early
Oligocene metallogenic belt 140 km to the west (Sillitoe and
lar focus on basement outcrops. A global positioning system Perelló, 2005; Fig. 1).
(GPS)-equipped tablet with the geologic and geophysical lay- Oligocene-lower Miocene lava, tuff, conglomerate, and
ers in a GIS workspace accompanied all fieldwork, which fa- felsic domes of the Quebrada de Agua Complex crop out in
cilitated the correlation of outcrop-scale observations and re- the central and western parts of the study area (Fig. 4A; Zap-
gional-scale features. Stereonet plots of fault data were made pettini et al., 2001). East of Socompa volcano, middle Mio-
using mplstereonet in python. Density contours are of poles cene Cu-Au–bearing porphyry dikes intruded the Quebrada
to faults; contours use the Schmidt 1% method, and units are de Agua Complex (Fig. 4D) and are associated with banded
in points per 1% area. quartz-magnetite “Maricunga-style” porphyry vein stock-
works (Muntean and Einaudi, 2000). These zones of porphyry
Results mineralization are ringed by magmatic-hydrothermal brec-
To demonstrate the characteristics of arc-oblique structural cias, which are crosscut by later NW-trending porphyry dikes.
corridors and their relevance to exploration, we included the Middle Miocene to Quaternary basalt to rhyolite lavas, py-
results of field mapping from two exploration sites as well as roclastic deposits, volcanic debris avalanche deposits, alluvial
data from regional field traverses. We compared our district- and colluvial gravels, and salt pan deposits are the youngest
scale geologic field mapping with published regional-scale units in the region (Zappettini et al., 2001).
government maps. We also compared field observations District-scale structural mapping—1:5k, 1:10k, 1:25k scales:
with geophysical analysis of the same regions to demonstrate A series of NNE- to NE-striking faults control the distribu-
how geophysical features and structural corridors manifest in tion of most geologic units adjacent to the Salar de Arizaro,
the field at different scales. including the orientation of Ordovician-Silurian shear zones

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 8 FARRAR ET AL.

Fig. 4. A) Regional-scale geology map of northwest Argentina and eastern Chile simplified from 1:250,000-scale (Zappettini
et al., 2001) and 1:100,000-scale (Ramírez et al., 1991) maps, respectively. B) District-scale geology map of the Taca Taca
Alto and Taca Taca Bajo areas from 1:25,000 mapping. Surface extents of magmatic-hydrothermal alteration for each deposit
are shown. C) Geologic map of the Taca Taca Bajo porphyry deposit from 1:5,000-scale mapping. The 0.6% Cu cutoff grade
shell, projected vertically to surface, is shown (Gray et el., 2020). D) Geologic mapping near Socompa Volcano at 1:10,000.
Black inset boxes represent the area of each subfigure and are labeled accordingly. Inset map of the central Andes shows the
outline of (A).

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 LITHOSPHERIC ARCHITECTURE OF THE CENTRAL ANDES 9

Fig. 5. Lower-hemisphere equal-area stereonets of poles to fault planes (black points) from mapping in northwest Argentina
(Fig. 4B-D), overlain on density contours of the poles. Contours use the Schmidt 1% method; units are in points per 1%
area. A) Taca Taca Bajo mapping at 1:5k records a dominant population of steeply dipping WNW- to NW-striking faults with
secondary populations of steeply dipping N- and NE- striking faults. B) 1:25,000 mapping in the region around Taca Taca
Bajo demonstrates a dominant fault population of steeply dipping NE-striking faults and a secondary population of steeply
dipping NW-striking faults. C) Data for the Socompa volcano area demonstrates a dominant, steeply dipping NW-striking
fault population.

within the Taca Taca Formation (Orts et al., 2011), Permian
intrusions, mineralized Oligocene porphyry dikes, and min-
eralized veins (Figs. 4, 5). There are several locations where
NE-trending basins filled with volcanic-derived gravel termi-
nate abruptly against Ordovician plutonic rocks, suggestive of
a northeast fault control to these basins (Fig. 4B).
North-striking faults, prominent at 1:5,000 scale at Taca
Taca Bajo, are subparallel to postmineralization fault brec-
cias (Fig. 5A). A 2-km-long, NNW-striking structure, the TK2
fault, occurs on the western margin of Taca Taca Bajo (Fig.
4C). It separates a deeply leached profile on the east from a
shallowly leached profile on the west, indicating recent move-
ment. Abundant pyrite in the fault suggests it was a pathway
for hydrothermal fluids. The timing and sense of movement
along the TK2 fault have not been resolved, but it appears to
have been active multiple times.
Northwest-striking faults occur regionally but are most pro-
nounced and concentrated within a 7-km-wide corridor that
intersects the Taca Taca Bajo deposit (Fig. 4A-C). Ordovician-
Silurian NW-striking basement shear zones occur within the
host batholith at Taca Taca Bajo (Orts et al., 2011). In the
northeast part of Taca Taca Bajo, several NW- to WNW-strik-
ing faults truncate Oligocene mineralized veins and dikes and
separate domains of jarosite-rich, gypsum-poor granite from
gypsum-rich, jarosite-absent granite. Where visible, kinemat-
ic indicators on NW-striking faults record sinistral movement,
defined by slickensides and offset of some Permian dike ar-
rays (Fig. 4C). The magmatic-hydrothermal alteration cell
associated with Taca Taca Alto is bound between two NW-
trending faults, the northernmost of which projects beneath
2 km of Miocene-Holocene volcanic gravel cover and inter-
sects the southern extent of Taca Taca Bajo (Fig. 4B). Within
the Permian granite, at the projected intersection with the
NW-trending fault zone, there is a change in the strike and an
increase in the apparent width of the Permian granite body.
Permian felsic dikes within the granite located northeast and
southwest of the NW-trending fault zone are steeply dipping,
but within the fault zone, the dikes are moderately northwest
dipping, with curved outcrop patterns indicative of rotation
by a nearby fault zone. A steep, NW-striking cleavage is de-
veloped within the NW-striking fault zone, defined by prefer-
ential alignment of quartz and phyllosilicates within Paleozoic
volcanic and intrusive rocks. Outside of the NW-striking fault
zone, a pervasive cleavage was not detected.
The Quebrada de Agua Complex (Fig. 4D) is located 40 km
northwest of Taca Taca Alto, across a 25-km span of Miocene-
Holocene volcanic cover (Fig. 4A). The complex hosts early,
Cu-Au–mineralized, NE-trending and later NW-striking por-
phyry dikes, and faults strike predominantly northwest and
north-northwest (Fig. 5C).
Regional-scale structural mapping—1:100k and 1:250k:
Numerous 3- to 20-km-long NW-striking faults that controlled
the orientation of continental sedimentary basins in Argentina
and Chile are evident in government maps (Fig. 4A; Ramírez
et al., 1991; Zappettini et al., 2001). In many places, regional-
scale NW-striking faults are spatially coincident with NW-
striking faults that we mapped at smaller scales (described
above) and link outcropping faults, mapped at smaller scales,
beneath volcanic cover sequences (Fig. 4). Mapped regional
NW-striking faults intersect the Taca Taca Formation and the
Llullaillaco plutonic complex and continue northwest in the
Miocene volcanic cover (Fig. 4A; Zappettini et al., 2001). Far-
ther along strike to the northwest, within the Quebrada de
Agua Complex, a series of NW-striking faults continues into
Chile (Fig. 4A) and is spatially coincident with our mapping of
NW-striking faults in this area (Fig. 4D).
The multiscale, pervasive, and long-lived NW-striking faults
described above require a NW-striking basement fault system
(e.g., Orts et al., 2011) that we have named the Socompa struc-
tural corridor, which, within our study area, extends 80 km
from Taca Taca Bajo, via Taca Taca Alto, through the mineral-
ized porphyry dikes (Fig. 4D) and into Chile (Fig. 4A). The
Socompa structural corridor passes mostly through outcrop of
Miocene-Holocene volcanic and gravel cover, which obscures
its surface expression. However, along its strike where older
rocks crop out within the corridor, NW-striking faults, shears,
and dikes are prevalent, as well as multiple epochs of mineral-
ized porphyry formation.

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 10
A sinuous, N-striking structural trend is present along the
Argentina-Chile border, composed of high-angle faults 2 to
20 km long that bound the Oligocene-Miocene Quebrada de
Agua Complex (Fig. 4A). We interpret these faults to bound
graben and half-graben basins that were depocenters for the
Quebrada de Agua Complex. Subsequent inversion of the
graben uplifted these rocks to the surface. In the Socompa
area, the graben changes strike from north-northwest to
north-northeast, the Quebrada de Agua Complex unit thins
(Fig. 4A), and Paleozoic basement rocks are exposed on the
Chilean side (Ramírez et al., 1991), implying this kink may
be a transfer zone. This location coincides with the intersec-
tion of the N-trending graben with the NW-striking Socompa
structural corridor and the middle-Miocene Cu-Au bearing
porphyry dikes described above (Fig. 4A).
The NE-striking Taca Taca Lineament has been proposed
as the regional-scale manifestation of NE-striking faults and
the NE-striking distribution of Siluro-Ordovician, Permian,
Oligocene, and Miocene magmatic rocks that extend along
the western shoreline of the Salar de Arizaro (Zappettini
et al., 2001). Our field mapping supports the presence of a
pervasive northeast fault trend that spatially corresponds to
the Taca Taca lineament, manifest in outcrop as NE-striking
faults, shear zones, dikes, and mineralized veins as described
above, which occur throughout different geologic epochs
(Figs. 4B-C, 5A-B).
Continental-scale gravimetric data—1:3M: Lineament in­
terpretation of gravimetric data utilizing Canny edge detec-
tion demonstrates that this region of northwest Argentina
and contiguous Chile is dominated by NW-, N-, and NE-
striking lineaments, with a minor E-trending population
(Fig. 6A). NW- and NE-striking gravimetric lineaments
spatially coincide with the Socompa fault system and Salinas
Grandes lineament (Fig. 6A). The significance and utility of
gravimetric data to the interpretation of deep crustal struc-
tures in this region is well documented (Rivera and Cerda,
2012; Yáñez and Rivera, 2019). Parallel gravity-derived
lineaments exhibit a degree of regularity to their spacing,
which is roughly 70 to 90 km for NW-striking lineaments,
40 to 80 km for N-striking lineaments, and 70 to 100 km for
NE-striking lineaments.
Continental-scale magnetic data—1:3M: Magnetic linea-
ments display west-northwest, northwest, north, northeast,
and east trends, including trends broadly coincident with the
strike of the Socompa fault system and Salinas Grandes lin-
eament (Fig. 6B). Lineament interpretation of aeromagnetic
data in the region was reported by Behn et al. (2001) and
Chernicoff et al. (2002). As for the gravity lineaments, there
appears to be a periodicity to the spacing of parallel linea-
ments of between 50 and 100 km. Several prominent trends
include 300-km-long, 40-km-wide, regularly spaced NW-
trending magnetic highs that extend from the present-day vol-
canic arc into Argentina and are coincident with NW-trending
gravity features (Fig. 6B). These features have been described
by other studies in this region (Richards et al., 2001; Cher-
nicoff et al., 2002; Yáñez and Rivera, 2019). In Chile, regu-
larly spaced, E-oriented magnetic lineaments were noted by
Behn et al. (2001), who termed them “transverse magnetic
anomalies” and interpreted the magnetic highs as subsurface
“transbatholiths.”
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FARRAR ET AL.
Continental-scale geology—1:3M: The Domeyko basin
comprises Late Triassic-mid-Cretaceous volcanosedimen-
tary rocks (Fig. 6D), which are distributed along a sinuous,
800-km-long, N-trending mesh of Mesozoic extensional faults
in northern Chile (Amilibia et al., 2008; Espinoza et al., 2021;
Fig. 6C-E). Subbasin depocenters (Prinz et al., 1994) and
basement highs were controlled by a series of NW-striking
faults (Richards et al., 2001; Espinoza et al., 2019) and NE-
striking faults (e.g., Antofagasta-Calama lineament; Thomas,
1970; Palacios et al., 2007; Amilibia et al., 2008) that coincide
with many of the magnetic and gravimetric lineaments de-
scribed above. The NE-striking Salinas Grandes lineament is
the regional manifestation of the Taca Taca lineament, which
is interpreted to have controlled the emplacement of Meso-
zoic igneous rocks along its strike (Salfity, 1985; Zappettini et
al., 2001; Chernicoff et al., 2002; Fig. 7).
Volcanism in the Neogene-Quaternary arc extends up
to 300 km into the back-arc in Argentina along four NW-
trending belts that are separated from each other by ~150
km (Figs. 6C; 7). These back-arc volcanic belts have been
recognized as conspicuous features in this part of Argentina
(Salfity, 1985; Matteini et al., 2002; Richards and Villeneuve,
2002; Gioncada et al., 2010; Lanza et al., 2013) and are
spatially coincident with the NW-trending magnetic (Salf-
ity, 1985; Richards et al., 2001; Chernicoff et al., 2002; Fig.
6B) and gravity lineaments described above (Fig. 6A). Lavas
erupted along these belts include some of the most primi-
tive magma compositions of the central Andes magmatic arc
(Gioncada et al., 2010), and the spatial distribution of fore-
land volcanoes is controlled by the intersection of NW- and
NE-striking continent-scale fault systems (Richards and Vil-
leneuve, 2002; Gioncada et al., 2010). To the east of the NW-
trending volcanic belts, a NW-trending structural corridor
separates the southern portion of the Cretaceous-Paleogene
Salta basin from the Paleozoic metamorphic basement rocks
of the northern Pampeanas Ranges (Jordan et al., 1983;
Jacques, 2003; Fig. 6C).
Southern Peru case study
Geology and porphyry occurrences: The 50-km-long, NNW-
trending Rio Tambo valley in southern Peru is located within
the Central volcanic zone of the central Andes, 40 km north
of a prolific cluster of Paleocene-early Eocene giant porphyry
copper deposits (Figs. 8, 9; Sillitoe and Perelló, 2005; Sim-
mons et al., 2013). The Tambo River has incised a 3,000-m-
deep, steep-sided valley that exposes a cross section through
the local geology, which has been described at a district scale
by García (1978) and Lavallée et al. (2009). Field mapping
within the study area (Fig. 9A) was conducted at 1:12,500 and
1:5,000 scales.
The stratigraphically lowest unit comprises marls and
limestones belonging to the Jurassic Arcurquiña Forma-
tion (García, 1978), which are unconformably overlain by
plagioclase-phyric volcanic and pyroclastic rocks and volca-
nogenic sedimentary deposits that belong to the Late Cre-
taceous Toquepala Group (García, 1978). Within the study
area, these sequences were intruded by three discrete Mio-
cene felsic plutonic complexes (Fig. 9A). The two southern
plutonic complexes each crop out over an area of 20 km² and
are composed of hornblende-biotite monzonite intruded by
 LITHOSPHERIC ARCHITECTURE OF THE CENTRAL ANDES 11

Fig. 6. Maps of northern Chile, northwest Argentina,

and southern Bolivia, showing data sets (A-C). Red box
in (A-C), (E) is the area of Fig. 4A. Location of (A-C)
shown in inset map of the central Andes within (B). A)
Histogram-equalized isostatic residual gravity anomaly,
overlain with Canny edge detection contours and lin-
eaments interpreted from these gravity data. B) Histo-
gram-equalized reduced-to-pole (RTP) magnetic data
from northern Chile and Argentina overlying the first
vertical derivative of the RTP magnetic; magnetic of
World Digital Magnetic Anomaly Map (WDMAM) with
an RTP filter is in background; black lines are lineaments
interpreted from magnetic data, which are ranked as
major and minor. C) Geology, highlighting Paleozoic
metamorphic basement, the Mesozoic Domeyko basin,
the Cretaceous-Paleogene Salta basin, and the Neogene
volcanic arc. Brown inset denotes the area of subfigure
(D). Mapped faults from Jordan et al. (1983), Ser-
nageomin (2002), Amilibia et al. (2008), Espinoza et al.
(2019), and Segemar (1997). D) The Domeyko rift basin
is composed of Triassic to mid-Cretaceous sedimentary
rocks that unconformably overlie Carboniferous-Perm-
ian igneous basement rocks. Faults from (C) highlight
the importance of inherited N-, NW-, and NE-striking
structural architecture for controlling the distribution of
geologic units. E) Triassic-Jurassic rift faults modified
from Ramos (1994), Charrier et al. (2007), McGroder
et al. (2015), and Espinoza et al. (2021) and Cretaceous
rift faults from McGroder et al. (2015).

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 12 FARRAR ET AL.

Fig. 7. Structural corridors, giant porphyry copper deposits, and Neogene-Quaternary volcanic arc of central Chile. Segments
of structural corridors that are well constrained with multiple layers of evidence for their trace can be clearly distinguished
from fault systems that are less defined and therefore more speculative. Fault strands reflect observations from surface map-
ping and magnetic and gravimetry data. All named fault systems have previously been identified and follow the nomenclature
of Richards et al. (2001), except for the Socompa structural corridor, which we introduce here. Modified from Richards et al.
(2001) and Gioncada et al. (2010).

diorite porphyry dikes that are tens of meters long. Centered
around the diorite dike outcrops is km-scale porphyry-style
magmatic-hydrothermal alteration (Fig. 9B). These previous-
ly unreported porphyry systems are spatially associated with
some small-scale historic Cu workings. Capping these units
at the highest levels of the valley are flat-lying volcanic rocks
of the Pliocene-Quaternary Barroso Group, which in turn are
overlain by Holocene-age ash and pumice from the Ubinas,
Huaynaputina, and Ticsani volcanoes.
District-scale structural mapping—1:5k, 1:12.5k: Field
mapping at 1:12.5k (Fig. 9A) and 1:5k (Fig. 9B) scales docu-
mented moderately to steeply dipping faults that strike pre-
dominantly north-northwest and northeast to east-northeast
(Fig. 10), which in some instances controlled the orientation
of porphyry dikes and truncated hydrothermal alteration
within the Toquepala Group volcanic rocks (Fig. 9A, B). Re-
cent uplift has produced fault scarps with numerous associ-
ated E-striking faults. A 25-km-long, 3-km-wide NNW-strik-
ing fault system containing hydrothermal breccias with white
mica-pyrite ± pyrophyllite-alunite alteration extends parallel
to the strike of the valley from Ubinas volcano and intersects
the porphyry system described above (Fig. 9A).
Regional-scale structural mapping—1:100k: We mapped a
25-km-long, NNW-striking white mica-pyrite ± pyrophyllite-
alunite–altered fault zone that extends along the Tambo River
Valley floor (Fig. 9A). We interpret that this fault zone forms
part of a NNW-trending Neogene graben, which has previ-
ously been interpreted to control the spatial distribution of
volcanoes in the region (Fig. 9A; Lavallée et al., 2009). The
marked change in orientation of the Tambo River from north-
northeast to northwest in the center of the case study area
(Fig. 9C) corresponds to a NW-striking sinistral fault, inferred
to have dislocated the graben by 5 km during the Pleistocene
(Lavallée et al., 2009). The intersection of this NW-striking
sinistral fault with the NNW-striking white mica-pyrite ±
pyrophyllite-alunite–altered fault zone corresponds to the
location of the porphyry-magmatic-hydrothermal alteration
system (Fig. 9A, B). In the eastern part of the study area,
the Puno Group continental sedimentary rocks and Barosso
Group volcanic rocks are separated by a sharp, NNW-trend-
ing contact parallel to the strike of the graben (Fig. 9A).
Regional-scale magnetic data—1:100k: Here, structural in-
terpretation of magnetic data (Fig. 9D) highlights prominent,
NW- and NE-trending magnetic lineaments throughout the

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 LITHOSPHERIC ARCHITECTURE OF THE CENTRAL ANDES
Fig. 8. Geology map of southern Peru simplified from the map of Ingemmet
(1999). The giant porphyry cluster of Cuajone, Quellaveco, and Toquepala as
well as faults and Quaternary volcanoes are shown. Blue rectangle is the area
of the Rio Tambo valley in Fig. 9A. Inset shows location within the central
Andes.
valley, some of which are spatially coincident with those rec-
ognized in field mapping. Large magnetic bodies visible in the
data possibly represent the subsurface extents of the felsic-
intermediate magnetite-series intrusions mapped at surface
and their contact metamorphism aureoles. In outcrop, intru-
sive contacts have similar trends to NW- and ENE-striking
magnetic lineaments (Fig. 9D).
Continental-scale gravimetric data—1:3M: The major
gravimetric feature of southern Peru consists of NW-trending
gravity highs that strike parallel to the Peruvian coastline (Fig.
11A). These are intersected by NE-trending lineaments that
are apparent in the Canny edge contours (Fig. 11A). A N-
striking lineament is present in the southern section of our
field mapping area, and immediately to the northwest of our
mapping area, a north-northwest striking lineament is present.
These lineaments broadly spatially coincide with the NNW-
striking graben in our field mapping area (Figs. 9A, 11A).
Continental-scale magnetic data—1:3M: Airborne mag-
netics demonstrate a dominant trench-parallel, NW-striking
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13
magnetic grain to much of southern Peru (Fig. 11B), which
is consistent with NW-striking sinistral faults in field mapping
(Fig. 9A, B). Also apparent are ENE-trending magnetic linea-
ments >100 km long that extend from the coastline into the
interior that are consistent with magnetic lineaments we in-
terpreted at a smaller scale (Fig. 9C).
Continental-scale geology—1:3M: A 1,000-km-long, NW-
trending belt of Jurassic-Cretaceous intrusive rocks of the
Arequipa segment of the Coastal batholith are spatially corre-
lated with NW-striking magnetic and gravimetric lineaments,
the Incapuquio fault zone and Paleocene-Eocene giant por-
phyry copper deposits (Fig. 11; Cobbing, 1982; Simmons et
al., 2013). A series of NW-trending Mesozoic sedimentary
basins were inverted along NW-striking reverse faults dur-
ing Late Cretaceous compressional tectonism (Vicente, 1989;
Perez et al., 2016), and ENE- and NNW-trending faults con-
trolled the deposition of Cenozoic continental sedimentary
basins (Fig. 11C; Ingemmet, 1999; Carlotto, 2013).
Regional traverses
Regional traverses (Fig. 12A) were undertaken as part of the
iterative process of interpretation and validation of the base-
ment fault systems map and to characterize the surficial ex-
pression of regional- and continental-scale geophysical fea-
tures. Though there is a compelling trench-parallel structural
orientation to many faults, including prominent fault systems
such as the Atacama and Domeyko faults (Fig. 7), there is a
high proportion of faults that strike oblique to the trench (Fig.
12B).
Continental-scale gravimetric and magnetic lineaments
(Fig. 6A, B) were studied in the field by conducting traverses
along their strike for up to several hundred km (Fig. 12A). We
found that coherent and coincident magnetic and gravimetric
lineaments repeatedly manifest on the surface as a preferred
orientation to surface faults, whose strikes broadly align to
those of the coincident geophysical lineaments. These struc-
tural corridors are typically composed of small-scale synthetic
faults with little offset. Occasionally, fault systems will include
important regional-scale faults with tens of km of offset, such
as the West Fissure (Tomlinson and Blanco, 1997; Fig. 13A,
B), but as a proportion of the total fault population, these are
the exception, not the rule.
Of the faults that yielded reliable kinematic indicators, a
quarter recorded more than one sense of movement. Fault
reactivation is well documented throughout the central Andes
(e.g., Allmendinger et al., 1983; Scheuber and Andriessen,
1990; Palacios et al., 2007; Piquer et al., 2017). Figure 13A
shows a segment of the Domeyko fault zone south of Calama,
mapped as a series of thrust faults of Paleozoic volcanic rocks,
whereas north of Calama, a segment of the same fault system
is interpreted to have undergone multiple transcurrent reac-
tivation events (Tomlinson and Blanco, 1997; Fig. 13B). Pre-
cambrian metamorphic basement is exposed in locally faulted
contact with Paleozoic and Mesozoic sequences adjacent to
major faults such as the multiply reactivated Incapuquio fault
in southern Peru (Fig. 13E; Shackleton et al., 1979) and the
Atacama and Domeyko faults in Chile (Scheuber and An-
driessen, 1990; Charrier et al., 2007).
Within the volcanic arc, trends of volcanoes and volca-
nic vents align along both arc-parallel and NW-striking arc-
 14 FARRAR ET AL.

Fig. 9. A) Geology map of the Tambo River valley from 1:12.5k- and 1:5k-scale mapping, including faults from Lavallée et
al. (2007). The red box shows the study area, and the black box shows the location of (B). Geology outside of the study area
from García (1978). Lithology legend applies to both (A) and (B). Regional white mica-pyrite ± pyrophyllite-alunite alteration
is interpreted to be volcanic. B) Geology from 1:5k mapping, including the extent of quartz-sericite-pyrite (phyllic) hydro-
thermal alteration associated with porphyry systems, which merges with regional volcanic alteration. C) 5m digital eleva-
tion model (red box) overlain on histogram-equalized stretch of bands 4-3-2 LANDSAT 8 imagery from October 2020. D)
Heli-magnetic histogram-equalized reduced-to-pole (RTP) with a semitransparent first vertical derivative filter of the RTP.
Magneto-structural interpretations of this survey are the black lines.

oblique structural corridors (Fig. 7; Richards and Villeneuve,
2002). In Chile, we observed NW-striking faults along the
projected strike of NW-trending volcanic “breakouts” in Ar-
gentina (e.g., Figs. 4, 5; Richards et al., 2001; Lanza et al.,
2013; El Toro, Archibarca, Culampaja, Socompa structural
corridors). Where structural corridors coincide with Quater-
nary volcanic cover sequences, their surficial manifestation is
diffuse, consisting of widely spaced faults that strike parallel to
the structural corridor. These zones can be up to 30 km wide,
which we interpret to represent the upward propagation of
the basement fault zone through the overlying, younger cover
sequences (Coleman et al., 2019; Fig. 13C, D). Within older
rocks and basement sequences, regional-scale fault systems
are comparatively narrower, more defined, and with a signifi-
cantly higher fault density (Fig. 14A).
Discussion
Levels of confidence in the interpretation of
structural corridors
Although the best available geologic and geophysical data sets
have been used to produce our structural corridor interpreta-
tion of the central Andes (Fig. 14A), it is not a “fact map.”
Owing to the scale, multiple reactivation episodes and sur-

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 LITHOSPHERIC ARCHITECTURE OF THE CENTRAL ANDES 15

n = 62 n = 53

Fig. 10. Lower-hemisphere equal-area stereonets of poles to fault planes (black points) from mapping in the Rio Tambo val-
ley (Fig. 9A-B), overlain on density plots of the poles. A) At 1:5k scale, steeply dipping ENE-striking faults are dominant; a
secondary population of moderately dipping NNW-striking faults is also present. B) At 1:12.5k scale, steeply dipping ENE-
striking faults dominate.

face cover, the level of inherent uncertainty to the trace of
a continental-scale fault system will always be higher than
for faults mapped at outcrop scale. This makes continental-
scale fault maps speculative and open to reinterpretation as
new data sets become available. Nevertheless, little scientific
insight or exploration benefit is to be gained from the sole
reliance on demonstrably true factors, which are ultimately
limited to surface geologic evidence and drill data. Abundant
surficial geologic evidence is present from field mapping for
the arc-parallel Atacama and Domeyko fault systems (Fig. 7;
Scheuber and Andriessen, 1990; Reutter et al., 1996). In con-
trast, surface evidence for arc-oblique structures is less abun-
dant due to their diffuse and cryptic nature. Many arc-oblique
structures are obscured beneath Neogene and Quaternary
cover sequences, leading us to rely comparatively more on
geophysical evidence in such regions and reducing the level
of confidence in the interpretation of the structural corridor
(Fig. 14A).
Spatial distribution of structural corridors
The proposed structural corridors (Fig. 14A) define a mesh of
orthorhombic symmetry (Sagy et al., 2003). At the continental
scale, parallel structural corridors display a spatial periodicity
of approximately 60 to 90 km. North of approximately 20°S,
structural corridors appear to have been rotated in an anti-
clockwise manner relative to the structural corridors south
of this latitude, e.g., N- to NNE-trending faults in Chile are
north-northwest striking in Peru (Fig. 14C). This rotation is
interpreted to reflect oroclinal bending, thought to have com-
menced during the Eocene, with upper crustal responses con-
tinuing to the present day (e.g., Allmendinger et al., 2005; Ar-
riagada et al., 2008). During orocline bending, the preexisting
structural mesh would have absorbed tectonic rotational strain
via strike slip reactivation of fault systems, largely preserving
the original mesh form (e.g., Amilibia et al., 2008; Arriagada
et al., 2008; Eichelberger and McQuarrie, 2015). Much of the
oroclinal deformation was accommodated in the fault mesh
via sinistral reactivation of NW-striking fault systems and both
sinistral and dextral reactivation of N- to NNE-striking fault
systems in the southern limb of the orocline (Figs. 14B, 15C).
Sinistral offset along some NW-striking fault systems is con-
sistent with our field observations in northwest Argentina and
southern Peru (Figs. 4B, C; 9A, B) and has also been widely
reported by other workers (e.g., Lavallée et al., 2009; Lanza et
al., 2013; Perez et al., 2016; Espinoza et al., 2021).
Dextral reactivation of NE-trending fault systems, such as
the Antofagasta-Calama lineament, has been suggested dur-
ing orocline formation, consistent with the orientations of the
deforming mesh presented here (Palacios et al., 2007; Amilib-
ia et al., 2008). Reactivation of N- to NNE-trending faults is
complex, with both sinistral and dextral offset depending on
the distance from the orocline core (Fig. 14B). The strike-slip
reactivation of these systems is interpreted to be influenced
by the net clockwise rotation invoked by orocline formation
on N-striking structures south of 20°S, balanced against fluc-
tuating plate convergence orientations and velocities during
much of the Cenozoic that manifest as multiple reactivation
events along the N-trending fault systems (Tomlinson and
Blanco, 1997; Eichelberger and McQuarrie, 2015).
At the continental scale (Fig. 14B), not all fault systems
presented here display obvious offset. This might be because
intersecting fault zones that are reactivated synchronously but
with opposing kinematics display complex interference be-
havior where they intersect. The resultant observed offset is
the result of the sum of the mutual offsets produced by each
incremental slip and can be distributed across the width of
the fault zones.
Genesis and development of arc-oblique structural corridors
Basement fault systems in the central Andes reflect multiply
reactivated preexisting fabrics associated with the Paleozoic
accretional history of the margin and the Mesozoic extension-
al events (e.g., Fig. 13A, B, E, F; Ramos, 1994; Bahlburg and
Hervé, 1997; Perez et al., 2016; Espinoza et al., 2021; Wiemer
et al., 2022). Suture zones provide steeply dipping zones of
translithospheric weakness that are available to be reactivated
as strike-slip faults or major extensional faults, around which
subsequent fault zones propagate when tectonic strain is ap-
plied (Holdsworth et al., 1997; Begg et al., 2009; Wiemer et
al., 2022).

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 16 FARRAR ET AL.

Fig. 11. Regional-scale maps of southern Peru and northernmost Chile showing the same area with different data sets. The
pink box in each image is the area of Figure 9A. A) Histogram-equalized isostatic residual gravity anomaly with Canny filter
and lineaments interpreted from gravity data. B) Histogram-equalized reduced-to-pole (RTP) aeromagnetic data overlain on
the first vertical derivative of RTP magnetic data from the World Digital Magnetic Anomaly Map (WDMAM) survey. Black
lines are lineaments interpreted from these magnetic data. C) Geology map showing rift-related Permian to Jurassic rocks
(Mitu Group), Jurassic to Cretaceous intrusions (Coastal Batholith), Miocene to Quaternary volcanic rocks, and structural
corridors (this study). Annotations highlight structural orientations to sedimentary basin distribution; the Mitu Group is con-
trolled by NW-striking normal faults that were inverted during Andean deformation (Perez et al., 2016), whereas Cenozoic
sedimentary basins can exhibit north-northwest, northwest, and east-northeast controls to basin orientation (Carlotto, 2013).
FZ = fault zone.

Examples of tectonic events that may have reactivated
and enhanced inherited structural architecture include Late
Permian to early Triassic extension, which produced a series
of rift basins proximal to the southwest Pangea continental
margin (Figs. 6E, 15A; Jacques, 2003). This period is associat-
ed with sinistral transform plate convergence along southwest
Pangea (Young et al., 2019; Fig. 15A), which favors the reacti-
vation of deep segments of preexisting arc-oblique basement
fault systems (Umhoefer, 2011; Cao and Neubauer, 2016;
Lutz et al., 2022). During this extensional epoch, the Mara-
ñón, Mitu, Domeyko, Cuyo, and Neuquén rift basins initi-
ated, all of which were truncated by inherited, trench-oblique
basement fault systems that controlled the orientation of ba-
sin margins and subbasin depocenters (Figs. 6E, 15A; Ramos,
1994, Jacques, 2003; Charrier et al., 2007; Perez et al., 2016;
Zamora and Gil, 2018; Espinoza et al., 2021). This extension
phase was accompanied by rift basins inboard of the margin
that might have connected to extensional basins that devel-
oped along the margin (Espinoza et al., 2021). Our analysis
supports the role that regional-scale, penetrative fault systems
had in controlling the distribution of Paleozoic to Mesozoic
sedimentary basins (Figs. 6, 11).
Preexisting structural corridors were further enhanced
when, in the Early Cretaceous, the opening of the south At-
lantic Ocean produced a series of extensional basins in Argen-
tina, Bolivia, and Peru (Figs. 6E, 15B; McGroder et al., 2015)
and significantly increased compressional stress along the
western margin of the central Andes that reactivated preexist-
ing structural architecture (Sempere et al., 2002; Charrier et
al., 2007; Somoza and Zaffarana, 2008). We infer segments of

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 LITHOSPHERIC ARCHITECTURE OF THE CENTRAL ANDES 17

270°

n = 340

270°

n = 647

Fig. 12. A) Simplified lithology map of the central Andes with fault measurements taken as part of the regional traverses. Field
transects follow numerous interpreted lineaments for hundreds of km. Southern Peru and northwest Argentina case study
areas are within the purple rectangles. B) Lower-hemisphere equal-area stereonet of poles to fault planes (black points) mea-
sured as part of regional traverses are overlain on a density plot of the poles. Steeply dipping NE-, NW-, and NNE-striking
faults are the dominant populations. C) Field traverses combined with southern Peru and northwest Argentina case studies
stereonet plot as per (B) define dominant fault populations of steeply dipping NE-, NW-, and N-striking faults.

the structural corridors we present were further reactivated
and enhanced during Late Cretaceous-Cenozoic contraction-
al events and orocline formation (Fig. 15C; Sempere et al.,
1990; Oncken et al., 2006; Arriagada et al., 2008; Carlotto,
2013; Eichelberger and McQuarrie, 2015; Puigdomenech
et al., 2020), which includes sinistral offset along reactivated
NW-striking faults in our case studies (Figs. 4B, C; 9A, B).
Lithospheric coupling and activation of translithospheric
pathways
Key to understanding the relevance of long-lived arc-oblique
structural corridors for localizing giant porphyry copper de-
posit clusters is to appreciate their role in distributing strain
and vertical fluid migration through the lithosphere. Focused
vertical deformation can extend as a coherent and coupled
system from the upper mantle to the upper crust as steep
lithosphere shear zones (Ford et al., 2014; Li et al., 2021)
that can offset the lithosphere-asthenosphere boundary (In-
bal et al., 2016; Lutz et al., 2022) and have been imaged in
geophysical investigations proximal to ore deposits (Lezaeta,
2001; Koulakov et al., 2006; Haugaard et al., 2021). The me-
chanics of a vertical connection between upper crust and up-
per mantle, through the ductile lower crust, have been cap-
tured by the Jelly Sandwich lithospheric model (e.g., Burov
and Watts, 2006) and the lithospheric feedback model (Chat-
zaras et al., 2015). During high rates of strain, the upper crust
and lithospheric mantle brittly deform, are vertically linked,
and together act as a coupled system with the ductile lower
crust localizing stress and acting as a fluid conduit between
the two mechanically stronger layers (Sawyer, 1985; Stuwe,
2007; Inbal et al., 2016; Fig. 15C). During high-horizontal-
compressional-stress events, the intersection of two basement
fault systems provides a vertical channel of highly anomalous
permeability in the upper crust, which is further enhanced by
highly pressurized fluids and magmas ascending from the up-
per mantle along the magmatic arc (Fig. 15C; Richards, 2003;

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 18 FARRAR ET AL.

Fig. 13. Examples of the surface expression of structural corridors. A) Domeyko structural corridor, northern Chile, looking
north, showing thrusting of Carboniferous-Permian volcanic rocks; 508518 mE, 7426516 mN. B) Domeyko structural cor-
ridor, West Fissure fault; Cretaceous conglomerates in contact with Miocene conglomerate; inferred dextral and sinistral
movement sense (Tomlinson and Blanco, 1997); 512896mE, 7572072mN. C) Looking west at NE-trending Antofagasta-
Calama structural corridor (blue lines) and NW-trending Lipez fault system (red lines). Quaternary normal faults affect the
topography of pampa cover. A 2-km-long, northeast lateral jog of the Loa River in the distance coincides with the trace of
the Antofagasta-Calama lineament. D) Photo looking northwest along a 10-km-long Quaternary normal fault in the volca-
nic cover showing 5 m of vertical displacement; geologist outlined in green for scale on far right; 548689mE, 7583054mN.
E) Incapuquio structural corridor, southern Peru, showing Precambrian basement in contact with Cretaceous granite;
386458mE, 8052040mN. F) Secondary faults within the Incapuquio fault zone showing striations with both subvertical and
subhorizontal rake, indicating at least two movement events. Structural measurements are given as dip/dip direction; coordi-
nates are in WGS84 UTM zone 19S; colored lines highlight structural features.

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 -12 ° LITHOSPHERIC ARCHITECTURE OF THE CENTRAL ANDES 19

-72 ° -68 ° -64 ° -80 ° -70 ° -60 °

BR BR
A AZ
IL
IA
N
B AZ
IL
IA
N
CR CR
AT AT
O O
N N

Earliest recorded Mesozoic

to Cenozoic activation

-20°
Neogene
-16 °

Late Cretaceous to
Paleogene
Early to mid-Cretaceous
Triassic-Late Jurassic

Strike slip offset

Structural corridors
-20°

confidence level
Poorly defined

-30°
Semiconstrained
Well constrained

Proterozic 0 200
basement
kilometers
Basement
terrane suture
-80 ° -70 ° -60 °
Giant porphyry deposit
-24 °

contained Cu equiv (Mt) BR

>25
C AZ
IL
IA
N
CR
AT
15 to 25 O
N
10 to 15
5 to 10 Strike of structural
corridor
-20 °

3 to 5
N to NNE
-28°

NNW
NW
NW to NNW
NNE
NE
-32°

-30 °

0 200 0 200

kilometers
kilometers

Fig. 14. A) Structural corridors, colored by confidence level. They define a rhomb-shaped mesh that abuts the rigid cratonic
basement of Brazil and Argentina. Interpreted sutures of Paleozoic and Precambrian terranes are shown, as are giant por-
phyry copper deposits. Blue inset box is the location of Figure 9A. B) Structural corridors colored by the earliest Mesozoic
to Cenozoic extensional event that affects them. Strike-slip offsets, possibly associated with Cenozoic oroclinal formation,
are annotated based on the fault mesh pattern and age of fault systems. C) Structural corridors colored by strike allow for
enhanced discrimination of the effect of oroclinal bending.

Cao and Neubauer, 2016; Cox, 2020; Loucks, 2021). The fo-
cused ascent of fluids through the thinned and ductile lower
crust may be facilitated by pore fluid overpressures that frac-
ture the ductile rock (Cao and Neubauer, 2016; Inbal et al.,
2016; Tosdal and Dilles, 2020).
Preexisting permeability pathways, such as long-lived faults,
can be reactivated even where they are severely misoriented
relative to the stress field when high pore-fluid pressures are
present (Sibson, 1996; Holdsworth et al., 1997; Cox, 2020).
In the upper crust, high pore-fluid pressures are provoked

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 20 FARRAR ET AL.

during the fractionation and devolatilization of metal-fertile
hydrous magmas at the cupola of a pluton (Sillitoe, 2010b).
In the upper lithospheric mantle, strength is related to hydra-
tion, whereby increasing hydration weakens the upper mantle
(Hirth and Kohlsted, 1996). A feedback loop of enhanced
permeability, fault reactivation, and fluid focus is established
when strain-activated preexisting zones of weakness are the
preferred pathways for magma flux through the upper litho-
spheric mantle that continually enrich these zones as well
as keeping them weak, and therefore permeable (Cao and
Neubauer, 2016). We propose that during high-strain events,
steep upper mantle permeability pathways couple with steep
upper crustal basement fault zones (Burov and Watts, 2006;
Chatzaras et al., 2015) to produce temporally transient verti-
cal translithospheric conduits that facilitate the rapid ascent
of pressurized fluids, magma, and energy from the melting
downgoing slab to the crust (Fig. 15C; Loucks, 2021). We
envisage that as high-strain conditions wane, the translitho-
spheric coupling of the vertical conduit also wanes, diminish-
ing its effectiveness as a focused vertical conduit. It is unclear
if the vertical permeability that facilitated the ascent of pres-
surized fluids and magma is preserved in the ductile lower
crust and in the subcontinental lithospheric mantle follow-
ing the termination of the high-horizonal-rate-of-strain event
(Cao and Neubauer, 2016).
Association of arc-oblique structural corridors and giant
porphyry copper deposit clusters
The intersection of NW- and NE-striking structural corridors
has been postulated to be a crucial element in the localiza-
tion of “rear-arc” giant porphyry copper deposits in Argentina,
such as Bajo de la Alumbrera, Agua Rica (Fig. 7; Ricci and
Figueroa, 1971; Salfity, 1985; Alonso and Viramonte, 1987;
Richards et al., 2001), and Taca Taca Bajo (Orts et al., 2011;
this study). In northwest Argentina, contemporaneous rear-
arc magmatism that accompanies these ore deposits is often
low volume and subtle. Understanding the locations of these
transverse structural corridors may highlight new areas for
exploration where important deposits remain undiscovered.
In Chile, our findings support earlier studies that emphasize
the intersection of arc-oblique structural corridors with the
arc-parallel metallogenic belt as a necessary condition for the
localization of giant porphyry copper deposit clusters (Figs.
14A, 15C; Salfity, 1985; Richards, 2003; Gow and Walshe,
2005; Piquer et al., 2016; Espinoza et al., 2021).
The importance of arc-oblique fault systems may be ex-
plained partly by the strike-slip geometry invoked on fault
systems that are “misoriented” with respect to the prevailing
stress field (Piquer et al., 2021a). In addition to upper crustal
processes, strike-slip activation of shear zones in the lower
crust and upper lithospheric mantle can occur under high
rates of strain (Cao and Neubauer, 2016). During periods of
transpressional reactivation, the intersections of “misaligned”
and arc-parallel structural corridors become deep and focused
strain anomalies through which magmas can preferentially as-
cend (Fig. 15C). During their ascent through the lithosphere,
buoyant magmas and fluids can undergo a complex series
of chemical enrichment processes (Tosdal and Dilles, 2020;
Loucks, 2021). These processes are thought to be linked, in
part, to the regional stress field, with periods of waning mag-
matic activity, high rates of crustal thickening, and transition
in tectonic regime correlating with the timing of porphyry Cu
deposit formation (Tosdal and Richards, 2001; Mpodozis and
Cornejo, 2012; Loucks, 2021).
The spatial correspondence of structural corridor intersec-
tions with giant porphyry copper deposit clusters leads us to
infer that anomalous structural permeability not only permit-
ted but was further enhanced by the focused ascent of mag-
mas and Cu-rich fluids during high-strain events. Whereas
our structural corridor map (Fig. 14A) does not invalidate the
Rayleigh Taylor diapiric model for the periodic distribution
of porphyry deposit clusters (Yáñez and Maksaev, 1994; Tom-
linson and Cornejo, 2012), we find that the regular spacing of
structural corridor intersections within the metallogenic belt
adequately explains deposit clustering.
There are many structural corridor intersections within
metallogenic belts that are not associated with a known giant
porphyry copper deposit cluster (Fig. 14A). We have an incom-
plete knowledge of the true distribution of all giant porphyry
copper deposits in the central Andes, with postmineralization
cover, exploration maturity, and magnitude of postmineraliza-
tion orogenic uplift and erosion all playing a role in concealing
their true distribution. Many structural corridor intersections
without an associated giant porphyry copper deposit cluster
may represent areas that lacked the optimal combination of
magmatic, tectonic, and upper crustal architecture, including
but not limited to an absence of localized arc magmatism with
the spatio-temporal coincidence of a favorable localized stress
regime with fertile magma evolution (Richards, 2013; Tosdal
and Dilles, 2020; Loucks, 2021). Alternatively, they might
represent locations containing undiscovered porphyry depos-
its, especially in areas concealed by postmineralization cover.
Conclusions
Our analysis demonstrates that though there is a clear arc-
parallel structural fabric to the central Andes between 14°S

Fig. 15. Schematic sketches illustrating the evolution of the central Andean lithosphere at latitudes 20° to 30° S. Tectonic
models are fixed to a present-day South America reference frame. SCLM = Subcontinental lithospheric mantle. Cenozoic
margin from Arriagada et al. (2008); tectonic reconstruction models from Müller et al. (2019) and Young et al. (2019); paleo-
topography from the model of Scotese (2016). A) Triassic rifting associated with a combination of sinistral transform plate
boundary and internal Pangea breakup stresses produced NW- and N-oriented rift basins along southwest Pangea utilizing
preexisting Paleozoic lithospheric weaknesses. B) The separation of South America from Africa in the Early Cretaceous
produced a series of rift-related basins in Argentina that developed along preexisting structural architecture. C) Orocline
formation and relative clockwise rotation in the southern limb. Strain is largely absorbed by strike-slip reactivation within the
preexisting structural mesh, maintaining and augmenting its structural form. Strong plate coupling and crustal thickening
shut down volcanism, promoting the activation of segments of vertically coupled translithospheric permeability. The intersec-
tion of obliquely oriented, vertically coupled segments of translithosperic permeability provided an active channel for the
focused ascent of fluids, magma, and energy from the mantle to the upper crust. Adapted from Rhys et al. (2020).

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 LITHOSPHERIC ARCHITECTURE OF THE CENTRAL ANDES 21

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 22
and 35°S latitude, there is also an arc-oblique structural fab-
ric that exhibits periodic spacing (e.g., Salfity, 1985; Richards,
2003; Yáñez and Rivera, 2019). The lithospheric architecture
important for vertical fluid migration from the lithospheric
mantle to the crust is defined by a mesh consisting of broadly
NW-, NE-, and N-trending structural corridors. Recognizing
these continental-scale fault systems in the field involves the
integration of local- and regional-scale data sets with obser-
vations from large-scale geologic transects. Geologic recon-
structions of tectonic cycles that define the evolution of the
central Andes show evidence that many structural corridors
are long lived and multiply reactivated. Regional-scale struc-
tural trends measured in surface geology mirror the traces of
regularly spaced regional lineaments observed in geophysical
data sets.
The spatial distribution of arc-oblique structural corridors
in the central Andes reflects the interplay of the orientation
of inherited pre-Andean lithospheric weaknesses that were
further developed during Cenozoic compression and orocline
formation. Focused, vertical translithospheric permeability is
achieved at the intersection of two or more structural corri-
dors during high-horizontal-rate-of-strain events and increas-
es with increasing strain rate and pore-fluid pressure. Periods
of high compressional strain rate also favor the production,
fractionation, and devolatilization of large volumes of fertile
hydrous magmas. The conjunction of these architectural and
geodynamic elements represents regions that underwent fa-
vorable preconditioning for the formation and localization of
giant porphyry copper deposit clusters.
Acknowledgments
This study forms part of a Ph.D. by the primary author at the
University of Tasmania (CODES). First Quantum Minerals
funded this research and provided permission to publish–
their sustained support is gratefully acknowledged. This work
benefited significantly from discussions with many geologists
working in the central Andes. AF wishes to acknowledge the
support in carrying out both theoretical and field-based com-
ponents of this research with First Quantum Minerals col-
leagues past and present: M. Trott, J. Cabrera, H. Munster,
S. Boucher, S. Arnillas, C. Manners, R. Rivera, S. Sykora, J.
Burlando, D. Arribasplata, M. Duran, Y. Amezquita, J. Schorr,
R. Roberto, G. Cobeñas, G. Almandoz, J. Martínez, S. Galvez,
P. Salas, W. Alvarez, M. Hope, C. Wijns, S. Andersson, M.
Ponce, M. Lappalainen, and M. Christie. R. Berry and G.
Begg are thanked for discussions that improved the manu-
script. We would like to sincerely thank J. Dilles, P. Perelló, A.
Tomlinson, R. Sillitoe, R. Tosdal, two anonymous reviewers,
and associate editor D. John for detailed reviews that signifi-
cantly improved and focused the manuscript.
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Alex Farrar is undertaking a Ph.D. at CODES,
University of Tasmania, where his research involves
using data analytics to investigate the link between
structure, tectonics, and the formation of giant por-
phyry copper deposits. He obtained his B.Sc. (Hons)
from the University of Melbourne (2006) and gained
an M.Sc. from the University of Western Australia
(2015). Before commencing his Ph.D., Alex worked
with First Quantum Minerals for 11 years leading greenfield porphyry cop-
per exploration in the central Andes and worked in sediment-hosted copper
exploration and mining in the Central African Copperbelt. Prior to this, Alex
worked at George Fisher mine, Queensland, with Mount Isa mines.