Article Evaluation[edit]

The content in the page vertical displacement up to this point is clear, without jargon and is made up mostly of definitions. There are links to other Wikipedia articles. Everything is relevant to the main topic, however; it is a little distracting due to missing information. Improvements can be made through elaboration of the different types of vertical displacement by including more information to make the article easier to conceptualize.

The tone of the article is neutral and there are no bias statements or opinions within the content. The article has one citation and the link to that source is active. The source is a thesis dissertation published in 1989 and is not accessible to read freely, although; it is from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology which makes it a reliable source. The other definitions within the article do not have direct references or citations to other sources.

The talk page of the vertical displacement article was empty. I have added to the talk page and want to focus specifically on evaluating the tectonic causes of vertical displacement to begin, and fortify the content with citations from reliable sources. At this point the article is classified as a stub which needs more verification from sources. This article is a part of WikiProject Geology.

Vertical displacement[edit]

In tectonics, vertical displacement^[1] refers to the shifting of land in a vertical direction, resulting in uplift and subsidence. The displacement of rock layers can provide information on how and why Earth's lithosphere changes throughout geologic time.^[2] There are different mechanisms which lead to vertical displacement such as tectonic activity, and isostatic adjustments. Tectonic activity leads to vertical displacement when crust is rearranged during a seismic event. Isostatic adjustments result in vertical displacement through sinking due to an increased load or isostatic rebound due to load removal.

Tectonic causes of vertical displacement[edit]

Vertical displacement resulting from tectonic activity occurs at divergent and convergent plate boundaries. The movement of magma in the asthenosphere can create divergent plate boundaries as the magma begins to rise and protrude weaker lithospheric crust. Subsidence at a divergent plate boundary is a form of vertical displacement which occurs when a plate begins to split apart.^[3] As intrusive magma widens the rift zone of a divergent plate boundary the layers of crust on the surface above the rift will subside into the rift, creating a vertical displacement of those layers of surface crust.^[3]

Convergent plate boundaries create orogenies such as the Laramide orogeny that raised the Rocky Mountains.^[4] Dense oceanic crust from the Pacific plate subducts beneath the less dense continental crust of the North American plate as they converge. This subduction induced the compression of the bounded western region of the North American plate which created the uplift of different layers of rock. This vertical displacement created the various mountain formations which are cumulatively known as the Rocky Mountain range.^[4]

Earthquakes are one mechanism that leads to vertical displacement of crust. The fracturing of land during an earthquake creates a fault when land is displaced during the event^[5]. The throw of the fault is a term used to describe and quantify the magnitude of this displacement.

Glacial isostatic adjustment[edit]

Changes in glaciation can lead to the vertical displacement of crust. Glaciers and ice sheets residing on top of landmass result in an isostatic depression, or sinking, in a section of lithospheric crust due to the weight of the ice. Likewise, isostatic rebound, or uplift, occurs when glaciers and ice sheets recede.^[6]

Using asthenosphere viscosity data researchers are able to determine the rate by which isostatic rebound occurs. Isostatic rebound occurrence rate can be determined by comparing local viscosities to the maximum viscosity of the asthenosphere. Areas with higher viscosity are subject to quick isostatic rebound while in regions of low viscosity crustal uplift is still occurring through isostatic rebound from the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM).^[7]

Glacial isostatic rebound leads to sea level regression which can be measured using ${\ce {^{14}C}}$ dating to determine the age of sublittoral sediment in different regions along the seafloor. ^[6]

Sources[edit]

Paolo, Pirazzoli Antonio (2005). “A review of possible eustatic, isostatic and tectonic contributions in eight late-Holocene relative sea-level histories from the Mediterranean area”. Quaternary Science Reviews. 24 (18-19): 1989-2001. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.quascirev.2004.06.026

Pei-Zhen, Zhang (2013). “A review on active tectonics and deep crustal processes of the Western Sichuan region, eastern margin of the Tibetan Plateau”. Tectonophysics. 584: 7-22. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tecto.2012.02.021

Allmendinger, Richard W. and Gonzales, Gabriel (2010). “Invited review paper: Neogene to Quaternary tectonics of the coastal Cordillera, northern Chile”. Tectonophysics. 495 (1-2): 93-110. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tecto.2009.04.019

Carina, Sara, Friedrich, A.M. (2018). "Vertical-displacement history of an active Basin and Range fault based on integration of geomorphologic, stratigraphic, and structural data. Geosphere. 14 (4): 1657-1676. https://doi.org/10.1130/GES01600.1

Anderson, R. W., Burbank, D. W., (2011). ''Tectonic Geomorphology''. Oxford, UK, Chichester, UK, Hoboken, NJ: Wiley-Blackwell. 9781444345032. https://www.wiley.com/go/burbank/geomorphology

References[edit]

^ For example: Greco, Antonio M. (1989). Tectonics and metamorphism in the western Himalayan syntaxis area (Azad Kashmir, NE-Pakistan). Mitteilungen aus dem Geologischen Institut der Eidgenössischen Technischen Hochschule und der Universität Zürich. Geologisches Institut der Eidg. Technischen Hochschule und der Universität Zürich. p. 152. Retrieved 2015-07-02. [...] the Main Central Thrust at the Kalasar area records the entire tectonic throw (vertical displacement).
^ Anderson, Burbank, R.W., D.W. (2011). Tectonic Geomorphology. Oxford, UK, Chichester, UK, Hoboken, NJ: Wiley-Blackwell. pp. viii–x. ISBN 9781444345032.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
^ ^a ^b Trippanera, D.; Acocella, V.; Ruch, J. (2014). "Dike-induced contraction along oceanic and continental divergent plate boundaries". Geophysical Research Letters. 41 (20): 7098–7104. doi:10.1002/2014GL061570. ISSN 1944-8007.
^ ^a ^b Lageson, D.R., and Spearing D.R. (1998). Roadside Geology of Wyoming. Missoula: Mountain Press Publishing Company. pp. 15, 23–31, 47–49, 209–217. ISBN 978-0-87842-216-6.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
^ Rafferty, John P., (2013). "Geological Sciences". New York, NY: Rosen Publishing Group. 9781615305445. https://www.vitalsource.com/sa/en-us/products/geological-sciences-britannica-educational-v9781615305445
^ ^a ^b Einarsson, Thorleifur, and Norddahl, Hreggvidur (2001). "Concurrent changes of relative sea-level and glacier extent at the Weichselian-Holocene boundary in Berufjordur, Eastern Iceland". Quaternary Science Reviews. 20: 1607–1622.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
^ Peltier, W. R. (1998). "Postglacial variations in the level of the sea: Implications for climate dynamics and solid-Earth geophysics". Reviews of Geophysics. 36 (4): 603–689. doi:10.1029/98RG02638. ISSN 1944-9208.

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[1] For example: Greco, Antonio M. (1989). Tectonics and metamorphism in the western Himalayan syntaxis area (Azad Kashmir, NE-Pakistan). Mitteilungen aus dem Geologischen Institut der Eidgenössischen Technischen Hochschule und der Universität Zürich. Geologisches Institut der Eidg. Technischen Hochschule und der Universität Zürich. p. 152. Retrieved 2015-07-02. [...] the Main Central Thrust at the Kalasar area records the entire tectonic throw (vertical displacement).

[2] Anderson, Burbank, R.W., D.W. (2011). Tectonic Geomorphology. Oxford, UK, Chichester, UK, Hoboken, NJ: Wiley-Blackwell. pp. viii–x. ISBN 9781444345032.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)

[:1-3] Trippanera, D.; Acocella, V.; Ruch, J. (2014). "Dike-induced contraction along oceanic and continental divergent plate boundaries". Geophysical Research Letters. 41 (20): 7098–7104. doi:10.1002/2014GL061570. ISSN 1944-8007.

[:2-4] Lageson, D.R., and Spearing D.R. (1998). Roadside Geology of Wyoming. Missoula: Mountain Press Publishing Company. pp. 15, 23–31, 47–49, 209–217. ISBN 978-0-87842-216-6.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)

[5] Rafferty, John P., (2013). "Geological Sciences". New York, NY: Rosen Publishing Group. 9781615305445. https://www.vitalsource.com/sa/en-us/products/geological-sciences-britannica-educational-v9781615305445

[:0-6] Einarsson, Thorleifur, and Norddahl, Hreggvidur (2001). "Concurrent changes of relative sea-level and glacier extent at the Weichselian-Holocene boundary in Berufjordur, Eastern Iceland". Quaternary Science Reviews. 20: 1607–1622.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)

[7] Peltier, W. R. (1998). "Postglacial variations in the level of the sea: Implications for climate dynamics and solid-Earth geophysics". Reviews of Geophysics. 36 (4): 603–689. doi:10.1029/98RG02638. ISSN 1944-9208.

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