Directions Change of Transverse and Longitudinal Valleys in Part of South Hemrin Anticline, West and South Hemrin Lake, Iraq, and their relation with stress directions

Abstract

Measuring of the directions in dry transverse and longitudinal valleys in using Land sat image scale 1:150000 in West and South Hemrin lake NE Muqdadia East of Iraq has been done. The purpose of the study is to compare the directions of these valleys with field measurements of joints in the study area and to determine their relation with the tectonics of the region. Rose diagrams show that the transverse valleys in the site South Hemrin lake, have been dominated by two directions (000-010) as oblique joints and (060-070) as transverse (ac-joints), the mean direction is (030) and the longitudinal valleys have been dominated by the directions (170-180) as oblique joints and (140-150) as longitudinal joints, the mean direction is (148). In the site West Hemrin lake, the directions of the transverse valleys expressed by a dominant direction (060-070) as transverse (ac-joints), the mean direction is (65), and the longitudinal valleys express the directions (170-180) as oblique joints and (150-160) as a longitudinal (bc-joints), the mean direction is (155). The direction (060-070) appears in all office and field joints stations as a dominant direction represents ac-joints produced by the primitive collision between Arabian and Iranian Plates. The direction ( 140-150 ) is appear as second dominant direction represents bc-joint induced on the hard beds of sandstone these beds alternate with weak beds of claystone and siltstone. The bc-joint and the differential erosion act altogether to form the longitudinal valleys. These bc-joint produced as released joints happened after the reposing of the folding. The directions (000-010) and (170-180) appear in all office stations, supposed as oblique joints related to Arabian and Turkish plates collision that happened after the Arabian and Iranian collision.