FOOTWALL UPLIFT ASSOCIATED WITH LATE JURASSIC NORMAL FAULTING IN THE NORTHERN NORTH-SEA

Tilted fault-blocks in the North Sea show varying degrees of erosion. Such footwall erosion is predicted by the domino model of extension, in which rigid fault-blocks rotate as extension proceeds. Profiles of three North Sea fields (Snorre, Brent and Heather) are analysed to estimate the amount of uplift that accompanied Late Jurassic normal faulting, and these estimates are compared with the footwall uplift predicted by the domino model. Agreement between observed and predicted uplift is excellent, varying from >1km at Snorre to ~100m at Heather. For a given amount of extension, large fault-blocks tend to be bounded by large faults and to show a greater degree of erosion. -Author