Tectonic significance of topographic lineament analysis using artificial illumination: Offshore Southwestern Taiwan

Abstract

A digital topographic relief map, shaded by means of artificial illumination, has been compiled for southwestern Taiwan for a lineament analysis of the area. We discover a pronounced fanning toward the southwest in the lineaments. Six major offsets of lineaments have been identified, with the following trends: N60°E, N60°E, N65°E, N85°E, and N40°W. The trends of the offsets can all be correlated with faults predicted by experimental models of right-lateral strikeslip deformation. This paper presents a detailed submarine topographic lineament analysis in southwestern Taiwan and provides additional evidence of Lu's model for the vast offshore area.