The variety of subaerial active salt deformations in the Kuqa fold-thrust belt (China) constrained by InSAR

Surface salt bodies in the western Kuqa fold-thrust belt of northwestern China allow study of subaerial salt kinematics and its possible correlations with weather variations. Ephemeral subaerial salt exposure during the evolution of a salt structure can greatly impact the subsequent development and deformation of its tectonic setting. Here, we present a quantitative time-lapse survey of surface salt deformation measured from interferometric synthetic aperture radar (InSAR) using Envisat radar imagery acquired between 2003 and 2010. Time series analysis and inspection of individual interferograms confirm that the majority of the salt bodies in western Kuqa are active, with significant InSAR observable displacements at 3 of 4 structures studied in the region. Subaerial salt motion toward and away from the satellite at rates up to 5 mm/yr with respect to local references. Rainfall measurements from the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) and temperature from a local weather station are used to test the relationship between seasonality and surface salt motion. We observe decoupling between surface salt motion and seasonality and interpret these observations to indicate that regional and local structural regimes exert primary control on surface salt displacement rates.