| GPS-assisted mapping in the southernmost White Pine Range (SWPR), east central Nevada, reveals a detachment fault in Cambrian rocks, called the Current Gap Detachment (CGD). This detachment is exposed near Current Gap, at the boundary between the White Pine and Horse Ranges. Mapping was done to determine if the previously proposed high-angle, Current Summit Fault (CSF) exists; its trace had been mapped to explain approximately 3 miles of apparent horizontal separation of Paleozoic strata between the White Pine and Horse ranges.; The exceedingly complex geology of the I square mile study area, which is characterized by sinuous, patchy outcrops, widespread brecciation, and abundant faults, supports a low-angle structure that approximately follows topography. It does not support a linear through-going feature with left-lateral offset. Instead, the apparent horizontal separation of strata appears to be the result of detachment attenuation along the Current Gap Detachment and the associated uplift of domes that are offset in an east-west sense. Other lineaments and structural discontinuities in the Basin and Range that may have been previously identified as steep normal or strike-slip faults should be reconsidered as possible low-angle detachments. |
