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Dryad

Three-dimensional offsets of geomorphic piercing lines displaced by the quaternary-active Beaufort range fault, northern Cascadia forearc, BC, Canada

Data files

Jun 16, 2025 version files 109.26 KB
Jun 16, 2025 version files 109.26 KB

Abstract

This dataset contains the raw topographic profile survey data and the R scripts necessary to calculate three-dimensional offsets of linear features, and input data for the right-lateral oblique Beaufort Range fault (BRF) in the northern Cascadia Subduction Zone forearc, Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada. 

  1. Topographic data: We include two topographic data sets collected along the BRF, fault scarp surveys, and piercing line surveys. The fault scarp survey text files (fault-midpoints.zip) contain Easting, Northing, and elevation of points surveyed along 28 fault strands of the BRF at positions marking the scarp midpoints. These data were collected using Spectra Precision Focus 6 and Nikon XS total stations. The piercing line text files (topo-profiles.zip) contain Easting, Northing, and elevation of 65 topographic profiles along linear geomorphic features (channel thalwegs, interfluves, and planar hillslope surfaces) that are displaced across BRF fault strands. Topographic profiles were collected using Spectra Precision Focus 6 and Nikon XS total stations at 0.5-1m spacing (60 profiles) or were extracted from 0.5m lidar DEMs (7 profiles). The topographic data in these files can be used to calculate 3D offsets on the BRF using the script described below.
  2. SCARP-3D script: We include two R scripts to calculate the 3D offset of piercing lines displaced across strands of the BRF. The scripts perform two critical calculations. The first script (fault_plane_regression.R) calculates the best-fit plane through scarp midpoints of varying elevations (fault-midpoints.zip), and then the strike and dip of that plane. The second script (SCARP-3D.R) calculates the 3D offset of an individual piercing line (topo-profiles.zip) displaced across a fault plane of known orientation. This script calculates heave, throw, dip slip, strike slip, magnitude, and direction (trend and plunge) of the slip vector, and the ratio of strike slip to dip slip given a known fault orientation and a topographic profile across that fault. This script can be used to calculate the above values for any fault with a similar strike orientation to the BRF. We also include an Rmd document (profile_viewer.Rmd) that can be used to share 3D plots of topographic profiles.