Block rotation and deformation by strike-slip faults, 2. The properties of a type of macroscopic discontinuous deformation.

Study of the general features of deformation by systems of subparallel strike-slip faults shows that the governing constraints are kinematic: the fault blocks must remain in contact with each other and the deformed area must fit with its surroundings. As a result, fault blocks that move laterally without significant internal deformation also rotate about vertical axes relative to boundaries of the fault domain by an amount that is quantitatively related to fault slip, spacing, and orientation. Deformation of multidomain areas is nonhomogeneous, but the differences between domains can compensate for each other, so that the regional deformation is quite simple. Paleomagnetic data can provide an independent measure of block rotations and should be used to supplement structural data. -from Authors