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A depression in the crust of the Earth formed by plate tectonic activity in which
sediments accumulate. Continued deposition can cause further depression
or subsidence. Sedimentary basins, or simply basins, vary from bowl-
shaped to elongated troughs. If rich hydrocarbon source rocks occur in
combination with appropriate depth and duration of burial, hydrocarbon
generation can occur within the basin.
Methods of Formation
It is common to categorise sedimentary basins according to the mechanism of
formation: tectonic compression (e.g., foreland basins, caused by lithospheric
flexure), tectonic extension (e.g., back-arc basins, caused by lithospheric
stretching), and tectonic strike-slip (such as pull-apart basins).
1. Lithospheric stretching
If a load is placed on the lithosphere, it will tend to flex in the manner of an elastic
plate. The rate and degree of flexure is a function of the flexural rigidity of the
lithosphere, which is itself a function of the lithospheric mineral composition and
thermal regime. The nature of the load is varied. For instance, the Hawaiian
Islands chain of volcanic edifices has sufficient mass to cause deflection in the
lithosphere.
The obduction of one tectonic plate onto another also causes a load and often
results in the creation of a foreland basin, such as the Po basin next to the Alps
in Italy, the Molasse Basin next to the Alps in Germany, or the Ebro basin next to
the Pyrenees in Spain.
3. Strike-slip deformation
Deformation of the lithosphere in the plane of the earth (i.e. such that faults are
vertical) occurs as a result of horizontal differential stresses. The resulting zones
of subsidence are known as strike-slip or pull-apart basins. Basins formed
through strike-slip action occur where a vertical fault plane curves. When the
curve in the fault plane moves apart, a region of transtension results, creating a
basin. Another term for a transtensional basin is a rhombochasm. A classic
rhombochasm is illustrated by the Dead Sea rift, where northward movement of
the Arabian Plate relative to the Anatolian Plate has caused a rhombochasm.