Tectonic geomorphology of the eastern extent of the Kashmir Basin Fault (KBF) zone

Abstract

The Kashmir Basin Fault (KBF) is exposed as a train of discontinuous active fault traces for a strike length of ~120 km (Shah, 2013), in Kashmir, Himalayas. However, its eastern extent was not mapped previously and therefore, this study demonstrates that the active fault trace extends further east, where the geomorphic expression of active faulting is clear for a distance of ~43 km. The fault shows a very prominent dextral strike-slip motion with little to no dip-slip component associated with it, particularly, on the easternmost portion. Further west it mainly shows dip-slip motion with a slight indication of dextral strike-slip. This new active fault trace extends the total strike length of the KBF zone to ~163 km, which has implications for seismic hazard and the distribution of deformation along the NW portion of the Himalayas.