Horizontal slickensides are observed on the surface of a vertical fault. What is the type of fault?

Understand the Problem

The question is asking about the type of geological fault that exhibits horizontal slickensides on the surface of a vertical fault. The possible answers include different classifications of faults in geology.

More Information

Strike-slip faults involve horizontal movement along a vertical fault plane. Horizontal slickensides, which are surfaces polished by frictional movement, confirm the lateral displacement characteristic of strike-slip faults.

Tips

A common mistake is confusing slickensides with dip-slip faults, which involve vertical movement rather than horizontal.

Sources

• Question ID - 163703 | SaraNextGen Top Answer - saranextgen.com
• Fault Systems - dnr.sc.gov
• Slickenside - Wikipedia - en.wikipedia.org