Stratigraphy and Structure of the Palen Formation, Palen Mountains, Southeastern California
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Stratigraphy and structure of the Palen Formation, Palen Mountains, southeastern California Item Type text; Thesis-Reproduction (electronic); maps Authors LeVeque, Richard Alan Publisher The University of Arizona. Rights Copyright © is held by the author. Digital access to this material is made possible by the University Libraries, University of Arizona. Further transmission, reproduction or presentation (such as public display or performance) of protected items is prohibited except with permission of the author. Download date 05/10/2021 16:15:53 Link to Item http://hdl.handle.net/10150/557714 STRATIGRAPHY AND STRUCTURE OF THE PALEN FORMATION, PALEN MOUNTAINS, SOUTHEASTERN CALIFORNIA by Richard Alan LeVeque A Thesis Submitted to the Faculty of the DEPARTMENT OF GEOSCIENCES In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements For the Degree of MASTER OF SCIENCE In the Graduate College THE UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA 1 9 8 1 STATEMENT BY AUTHOR This thesis has been submitted in partial fulfillm ent of re quirements for an advanced degree at The University of Arizona and is deposited in the University Library to be made available to borrowers under rules of the Library. Brief quotations from this thesis are allowable without special permission, provided that accurate acknowledgment of source is made. Requests for permission for extended quotation from or reproduction of this manuscript in whole or in part may be granted by the head of the major department or the Dean of the Graduate College when in his judg ment the proposed use of the material is in the interests of scholar ship. In all other instances, however, permission must be obtained from the author. SIGNED: APPROVAL BY THESIS DIRECTOR This thesis has been approved on the date shown below: ^ OicjitwurTl______ 'Jusie /^S/ W. R. DICKINSON D ate Professor of Geology ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I would truly like to thank the members of my committee, Drs. B ill Dickinson, Peter Coney and Gordon Haxel. Each was instructive and of assistance, both in the office and in the field. Appreciation is also extended to Steve Richard and Lucy Harding, fellow members of the Blythe Research Station, for friendship and discussions concerning the geology of our common areas. I feel fortunate to have been associated with a fine group of people in the Department of Geosciences. Financial assistance and equipment was provided by the National Science Foundation Grant EAR-8018500 awarded to Peter Coney and Lucy Harding, the U. S. Geological Survey and the Bert S. Butler Scholarship fund of the Department of Geosciences. i l l TABLE OF CONTENTS Page LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS............................................................................................................. v ABSTRACT................................................................................................................................. v i i INTRODUCTION................................................................................................... 1 P r e v io u s W o r k ....................................................................................................................... 3 Regional Geologic Setting ......................................................................................... 4 Local Geologic Setting .............................................................................................. 7 STRATIGRAPHY OF THE PALEN FORMATION........................................................................... 9 I n tr o d u c tio n ....................................................................................................................... 9 Member D e s c r ip tio n s ....................................................................................................... 10 Lithofeldspathic Arenite .............................................................................. 10 Polym ictic Conglomerate ................................................................................... 11 Quartzose Arenite ................................................................................... 20 Age o f th e P a le n F o r m a t i o n ....................................................................... 22 Environm ent o f D e p o s i t i o n ........................................................................................ 25 Paleogeographic Interpretation ......................................................................... 27 STRUCTURAL GEOLOGY......................... ^ .......................................................................... 30 I n tr o d u c tio n ...................................................................................................................... 30 F o l d s .......................................................................................................................................... 30 F a u l t s ..................................................................................................................................... 38 T h ru st F a u ltin g ....................................................................................................... 38 S t r i k e - s l i p F a u lts ............................................................................................. 40 R everse F a u l t s ........................................................................................ 40 C l e a v a g e ...................................................................................................................... 42 S tr u c tu r a l I n t e r p r e t a t io n ........................................................................................ 46 CONCLUSIONS..................................................................................................................................... 53 REFERENCES C I T E D ............................................. .... ..................................................... 55 iv LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS Figure Page 1. Location and Generalized Geologic Map of Part of Southeastern California and Western Arizona ..................... 2 2. Geologic Map of the Northern Palen M ountains ....................in p o ck et 3 . Lownangle C ro ss-b ed d in g i n th e Lower Member o f th e P a le n F o r m a tio n ......................................................................................... 12 4. Microphotograph of Typical Sample of Lower Member .... 13 5. Size Variation of Clasts in Conglomerate of Middle M e m b e r ............................................................................................................. 15 6. Compositional Variation of Clasts in Conglomerate of Second Member ......'................................................................ 16 7. Cyclic Graded Bedding in Arkose Interbeds in Middle Member of Palen Formation ................................................................ 18 8 . M icrophotograph o f th e M atrix o f th e M iddle Member . 19 9. Large-scale Trough Cross-beds in the Upper Part of th e Upper Member o f th e P a len F o r m a tio n .............................. 21 10. Microphotograph of the Quartzose Arenite of the P a le n F o r m a tio n ............................................................................... .... 23 11. Microphotograph of the Upper Menter Showing Development of Micaceous M atrix .................................. 24 12. Equal-area, Lower-hemisphere Plot Showing Orientation of Fold Axes (FA) and Axial Planes (AP) for Major F o ld s in th e P a len F o r m a t i o n ....................................................... 31 1 3 . An O utcrop o f C onglom erate o f th e M iddle Member o f th e P a le n F o r m a tio n ............................................................................... 32 14. Well-developed Cleavage in Overturned Conglomerate of Middle Member of the Palen Form ation .............................. 33 1 5 . S ch em atic S t r u c tu r a l S e c tio n s . ....................................................... in p o c k e t v v i LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS— C ontinued Figure Page 16. Complex Folds in the Lower Member of the Palen Forma tion in Area of Strong Deform ation ........................................ 35 17. Sketch and Close-up Photo of Folds in Figure 16 Showing that Fold Form is Generated by Slip along Closely-spaced Axial Planar Cleavage ................................. 36 18. Imbrication of the Palen Pass T h ru st ........................................... 39 19. High-angle, Oblique-slip Fault on East Side of the Palen Mountains Separating Middle Member of the Palen Formation (Right) from Upper Member (Left) . 41 20. Low-angle Reverse/Thrust Fault on Southwest Side of the Northern Palen Mountains .................... .............................. 43 21. Contoured Lower-hemisphere Equal-area Data for Cleavage in Northern Palen Mountains ................................... 44 22. Deformed Clasts from Conglomerate of Middle Member . 45 23. Two Photos of Cleavage in the Volcanic Porphyry .................... 47 24. Schematic Drawing of "Compartmental" Deformation .... 49 ABSTRACT The Palen Formation is comprised of three members, which consist of lithofeldspathic arenite, polymictic conglomerate and quartzose are- nite that were deposited prior to at least a portion of a Jurassic mag matic arc that existed in southeastern California and western Arizona. The three members of the Palen Formation become more compositionally ma ture upward in the section. Gradational contacts between each member imply that sedimentation was not interrupted and that drastic changes