Analysis of Neo-Tectonic Stress State of Zagros Orogeny and Separation of Stress Regimes by Earthquake Data

In this research, the stress state in the Zagros fold and thrust belt is studied using inversion method analysis of focal mechanisms of earthquakes related to active faults of this region. Geological, structural and seismic differences throughout the Zagros fold and thrust belt led us to divide it into five structural zones to make the analysis of a homogenous stress state in each zone possible. Stress analysis in the Zagros belt was done using a large body of available earthquake dataset. For this purpose to be achieved, focal mechanism data of the Zagros earthquakes was first collected different sources, then were integrated in the analysis after doing a process of corrections and controls. The present research uses Dyngli Software to analyze stress separation in the defined structural zones. Results show that different parts of the Zagros fold and thrust belt are characterized by at least three, and in some cases four, separate stress regimes. It is evidently shown that the orientations of the first and third stress regimes in Zones 1 and 2, third and fourth regimes in Zone 3, third regime in Zone 4, and first, second and fourth regimes in Zone 5 are in a good agreement with previous studies particularly GPS geodesy results. Crustal displacement directions already determined by GPS geodesy show that, on the one hand, shortening is not uniform across the whole length of the Zagros ranges, and on the other hand strain field orientations and fault slips are also different. This could be related to multiple stress regimes in the Zagros belt. Furthermore, considering a thin-skinned tectonic model in the Zagros, those stress regimes that are compatible with GPS results seem to occur within the sedimentary cover, causing a relatively continuous seismic response in the form of earthquakes of small magnitude. Therefore, the first, second and fourth stress regimes in Zone 1, second regime in Zone 2, first and second regimes in Zones 3 and 4, and third regime in Zone 5 are suggested to be linked to basement, in which stress concentration causes large magnitude earthquakes in Zagros. Also, results showed that compressional stress orientations are normal to the structural trends in all zones; the second compressional regime in Zones 1, 2, 3 and 5, and first regime in zone 4 are normal to the folded and thrusted structures.