IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/nat/natcom/v12y2021i1d10.1038_s41467-021-27061-6.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Sand spikes pinpoint powerful palaeoseismicity

Author

Listed:
  • Elmar Buchner

    (HNU - Neu-Ulm University of Applied Sciences
    Meteorkrater-Museum Steinheim)

  • Volker J. Sach

    (Meteorkrater-Museum Steinheim
    Fokus Natur)

  • Martin Schmieder

    (HNU - Neu-Ulm University of Applied Sciences
    Meteorkrater-Museum Steinheim)

Abstract

Sand spikes, pin-shaped, carbonate-cemented sandstone bodies of variable size widely interpreted as sedimentary concretions, have been enigmatic for nearly two centuries. We here present a high-energy mechanism for their formation. Two classic sand spike occurrences are found in the North Alpine Foreland Basin of Central Europe and at Mount Signal in southern California, USA. A distinct seismite horizon in Mid-Miocene Molasse sediments of southern Germany, genetically linked with the Ries impact event, exhibits dewatering structures and contains numerous sand spikes with tails systematically orientated away from the Ries crater. Sand spikes at Mount Signal, strikingly similar in shape to those found in Germany, have tails that point away from the nearby San Andreas Fault. Based on their structural and stratigraphic context, we interpret sand spikes as a new type of seismite and a promising tool to identify strong impact-induced or tectonic palaeo-earthquakes and their source regions in the geologic record.

Suggested Citation

  • Elmar Buchner & Volker J. Sach & Martin Schmieder, 2021. "Sand spikes pinpoint powerful palaeoseismicity," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 12(1), pages 1-11, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:nat:natcom:v:12:y:2021:i:1:d:10.1038_s41467-021-27061-6
    DOI: 10.1038/s41467-021-27061-6
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-021-27061-6
    File Function: Abstract
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1038/s41467-021-27061-6?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    More about this item

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:nat:natcom:v:12:y:2021:i:1:d:10.1038_s41467-021-27061-6. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    We have no bibliographic references for this item. You can help adding them by using this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Sonal Shukla or Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.nature.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.