Definition A fault scarp is the topographic expression of faulting due to the displacement of the land surface by movement along the fault. It can be caused by differential
erosion along an old inactive
geologic fault (a sort of old rupture) with hard & weak rock, or by an active geologic fault. In many cases, bluffs form from the upthrown block and can be very steep. The height of the scarp formation is equal to the vertical displacement along the fault. Active scarps are usually formed by
tectonics, e.g. when an
earthquake changes the elevation of the ground, and can be caused by any type of fault, including
strike-slip faults, whose motion is primarily horizontal. This movement is usually episodic, with the height of the bluffs being the result of multiple movements over time. Displacement of around 5 to 10 meters per tectonic event is common.
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