Farallon Fault
Encyclopedia
The Farallon Fault is a right lateral-moving transform fault
located on the seafloor of the southern Gulf of California
. It links the Carmen Basin
to the north with the Farallon Basin
to the south. All these features are part of the Gulf of California Rift Zone
, the northern extension of the East Pacific Rise
.
Transform fault
A transform fault or transform boundary, also known as conservative plate boundary since these faults neither create nor destroy lithosphere, is a type of fault whose relative motion is predominantly horizontal in either sinistral or dextral direction. Furthermore, transform faults end abruptly...
located on the seafloor of the southern Gulf of California
Gulf of California
The Gulf of California is a body of water that separates the Baja California Peninsula from the Mexican mainland...
. It links the Carmen Basin
Carmen Basin
The Carmen Basin is a submarine depression located on the seabed at the southern end of the Gulf of California. The basin results from the activity of one of the several spreading centers in the Gulf. The basin is linked to the Farallon Fault to the south, and the Carmen Fault in the...
to the north with the Farallon Basin
Farallon Basin
The Farallon Basin is a submarine depression located on the seabed at the southern end of the Gulf of California. The basin results from the activity of one of the several spreading centers in the Gulf...
to the south. All these features are part of the Gulf of California Rift Zone
Gulf of California Rift Zone
The Gulf of California Rift Zone is the northernmost extension of the East Pacific Rise which extends some 1300 km from the mouth of the Gulf of California to the southern terminus of the San Andreas Fault at the Salton Sink....
, the northern extension of the East Pacific Rise
East Pacific Rise
The East Pacific Rise is a mid-oceanic ridge, a divergent tectonic plate boundary located along the floor of the Pacific Ocean. It separates the Pacific Plate to the west from the North American Plate, the Rivera Plate, the Cocos Plate, the Nazca Plate, and the Antarctic Plate...
.