Geomorphological Evidence of Active Faulting on Alluvial Fan Along Northeastern Margin of Tibetan Plateau (NW China)

Complete records of fault activity are very valuable for assessing possible earthquakes. Fault scarps are one key to exploring past fault activity. Through the records of fault scarps, we can obtain evidence of fault activity and faulting events in paleoseismology. The Longshou Shan Mountains are located at the northeastern edge of the Tibetan Plateau. Here, through the measurement of fault scarps and the geomorphological analysis of alluvial fans and river beds, we have found that fault scarps here have experienced long earthquake cycles, and the propagation of the fault system has created the alluvial fan sequence. We provide evidence of active faults that ruptured the surface in Quaternary times and further deduce the regional landscape development process.