Submarine mass wasting off southern central Chile: Distribution and possible mechanisms of slope failure at an active continental margin

Abstract

Around 5-6% of the convergent continental margin of Southern Central Chile (33-42°S) is shaped by a variety of submarine mass wasting processes. We use swath bathymetric data covering >90% of the continental slope to map and investigate mass wasting-related seafloor features. In total, 62 submarine landslides are found that we separate into four categories (slides related to canyons, slides on open slopes, lower slope collapses and giant slope failures) with different failure mechanisms, preconditioning factors and time scales. © Springer Science+Business Media B.V. 2012.