Geomorphology of the Kangal basin (Sivas)

Kangal Basin forms the eastern part of Uzunyayla Plateau which is settled in thewestern part of Eastern Taurus Mountains. This terrain consists of The Uzunyayla Basinin the west and Kangal Basin in the east morphologicaly. Kangal Basin which is in theorogenic line of Taurus is surrounded by the mountains of Tecer Gürlevik, Felhan,Yaycı, Çatal and Yılanlı from the North, Gürün and Delidağ from the south, Bozbelfrom the east and same part of Uzunyayla Basin from the east. In such surroundings,Kangal Basin morphologicaly deserves its autright title of basin. Because of the hightmountains from the North and South Kangal Basin can be caunted as an in-mountainbasin. Throughout the pressures from the North and South, Kangal Basin had a newform and became a Pigyy-back basin. During the Upper Miocene-Pliocene periods thebasin can be thaught as an old basin, for it was effected by the sedimantations.Keeping sedimantations The Upper Miocene-Pliocene period created acompound basin from Uzunyayla and Kangal and through this period this was the onlycompound basin. After the Pliocene (the beginning of Quaternary) Uzunyayla Plateauwas divided into two basins because of the transformation of lakes into lands andepirogenic surges. After this period Kangal Basin was again separated into secondarybasin by the tectonic movements.In the research field five different erodition and conglomeration phases werefaund and considered to have formed in the Pre-Miocene, Lower-Middle Miocene,Upper Miocene, Pliocene and the very Lower-Pleystocene periods.Among the northern and southern pressures Kangal Basin found its form andcould sequently produc curly, faulted formations in itself. Until the Upper Miocene-Pliocene period the formations effected by the pressure on N-S direction are calledPaleotectonic; and after this period the formations effected by tectonic movements areIIcalled Neotectonic movements. Under the pressure concerned the very aged units.Cumulatively huddled. That?s why the units involved till Lower-Pliocene were curled indiversity. By the final curling rise many units of Miocene time had a monoclinal form.After the Upper Miocene-Pliocene the pressures replaced with the faults with left sidedpressures. Chasing the palpable vertical movements of important, mountainous regionsrose. The remnants which came down the high mountains formed even 200 meters ofhorizontal units on the basin. The turbas formed in the muddy lands of the paleo-gulf inPliocene lake. With the tectonic movements these turbas went down and they werecovered, and then coal mines emerged.In the beginning of Quaternary; the basin?s stacj rapidly faulted and become aplateau wise terrain because of the autside floods. This time the Kangal Basin wassimilar to a terrain which is prosessing down. The compact basin turned into monoclinaland horizontal formations. After the rising of the region the fluids disappeared becomeepijenic (in the south) and antesedans (in the north) strait. Similarly the fluid formationson the valleys of Karabel and Çaltı rivers justify that the basin was rising in someperiods.While having the carstic shape the ofiyolitic form was underpinning the basin. Inthe mountainous regions, some kinds of carstic formations emerged on the limestoneforms and gibsum of the Karabel River Basin.In the North and in the South of the pressure lines, crocial mine reservesemerged. And also the pressure lines then turned into faults and had the names ofPınarbaşı-Kangal and Kulmaç fault zones. And along these zones offset valleys, faultfacet, fault rising, fault lakes (sag-pond), unit rising, springs and early basalt edgeswere seen.Under these pressure of the directive lines the NE-SW left sided faults (in thenorth and south) and came across the NW-SE right sided faults. Because of thegeological and geomorphological features of the Kangal Basin crucial problems likedrought, erosion, risings, earthquakes and malpractice of the endaves are seen.Key words: Geomophology, Uzunyayla, Kangal Basin, Pigyy-back basin, GürünMountains, Kangal, Çaltı River, Tohma River, Central Anatolian Fault Zone, Göksun-Yazyurdu Fault Zone, Pınarbaşı-Kangal Fault Zone, Kulmaç Fault Zone, Tecer Fault,Karabel Thrust Belt.