Determination of the structural properties of the Kuşçu-Akbulak Basin (Muradiye-Van)

The convergence between the Arabian and Eurasian plates and the subsequent continent-continent collision along the Bitlis Zagros Suture Zone formed the Eastern Anatolian Plateau. The Kuşçu-Akbulak Basin, located in the north of the collision zone and named for the first time in this study, was formed in the Quaternary due to this compression. This study was carried out to reveal the geological characteristics of the Kuşçu-Akbulak Basin, which has an area of approximately 200 km2, located within the borders of Muradiye district of Van. Kuşçu-Akbulak Basin is located on a basement consisting of schists, limestones, ophiolitic rocks and turbidites formed in the Paleozoic-Miocene period. Geological studies indicate that the basin was formed by NE-SW trending sinistral strike-slip faults (Kuşçu and Çakmak). Along with these, approximately E-W trending thrust/reverse faults are also observed in the region. Paleostress analysis of the fault planes, measured in the basin, show that all faults in the region are the product of a compressional regime in the NNW-SSE direction. Current earthquake records and focal mechanism solutions indicate that strike-slip faults and reverse faults in the basin work together. Keywords: Eastern Anatolia, Kuşçu-Akbulak Basin, Paleostress analysis, Structural geology, Van