Tectonics of Molucca Sea

Of seismicity, bathymetry and

magmatism

Figure 1 Location map of the study area modified from Hall (2002).
Major structures in the Molucca Sea and Banggai-Sula margin are
those interpreted by Hamilton (1979) and Silver et al. (1983). Red
triangles are active volcanoes.

Figure 2 Simplified geological map of part of the East Arm of

Sulawesiand the Banggai-Sula Islands based on Rusmana et al. (1993),
Supandjono & Haryono (1993) and Surono & Sukarna (1993). Offshore
faults from Hamilton (1979), Silver et al. (1983) and Garrard et al. (1988).

Model laut Maluku

igure 3 from Waluyo, 1991

Hamilton
Telah berkembang subduksi
ke arah timur (di sebelah
timur Minahasa dan subduksi
ke arah barat (di se-belah
barat Halmahera), yang mendorong subducting plate
dengan 2 Benioff zone yang
berlawanan arah (gambar
bawah).
Di masa mendatang daerah
ini akan mengalami
subsidense (penurunan),
sehingga Laut Maluku akan
semakin dalam.
Secara geodinamika,
gerakan ini mungkin agak
sukar terakomodasi karena

Subducting Plate based on seismicity and

vulcanism

From Waluyo, 1991

Segmentation based on
seismicity

Segmentation based on
seismicity

Kemiringan subducting plate segmen M01M05

Di bawah segmen M04 dan M05 (Teluk

Gorontalo), juga dijumpai 2 subduksi
yang saling bertemu dan tenggelam
bersama, seperti yang dijumpai di
Banda arc.
Subduksi ini berasal dari palung
Sulawesi Utara yang berarah selatantenggara dan dari sebelah timurtenggara Minahasa yang berarah baratbaratlaut.
Tetapi sistem tektonik ini agak berbeda
dengan yang di Banda arc, karena 2
subduksi di sana berjarak cukup jauh
(dipisahkan
oleh
semenanjung
Minahasa). Sedang di Banda arc
langsung bertemu dan tenggelam
bersama.
Dua subduksi yang bertemu di bawah
segmen M04 dan M05 ini mungkin
berhubungan
dengan
keberadaan
Cekungan Gorontalo yang sangat

Kemiringan subducting plate segmen M06M09

Di bawah segmen M06M09 (Seb utara Minahasa),
dijum-pai subduksi dari
sebelah timur , dg Benioff
zone yang berkembang dg
ideal, sampai kedalaman
600 km.
Di bawah segmen yang
paling
utara
(M06),
walaupun agak spekulatif,
dapat disimpulkan adanya
subduksi yang lebih kecil
disebelah barat sub-duksi
utama. Keberadaan subduksi ini diperkuat oleh
adanya
sebuah
gunungapi
di
Laut

Kemiringan subducting plate segmen M10M13

Di bawah sektor M10-M13

(Minahasa), subduksi dari
timur masih terlihat dengan
jelas, bahkan di bawah
segmen
M12
mencapai
kedalaman 500 km.
Mulai di bawah segmen M11
ke selatan-baratdaya sampai
segmen
M13,
tampak
subduksi yg tidak begitu
dalam dari arah barat.
Subduksi ini terjadi di palung
Sulawesi Utara yang berarah
tenggara.

Kemiringan subducting plate segmen M14-M18

Segmen
M14-M18
meliput
pulau Hal-mahera dari M14 di
utara sampai M18 di selatan.
Subduksi dari sebelah barat
Halma-hera terlihat jelas di
semua segmen.
Semua
gunungapi
di
Halmahera barat tampaknya
berhubungan dengan sub-duksi
dari barat ini.
Telah berkembang subduksi di
timur pulau Halmahera ke arah
barat yang sudah mencapai
kedalaman hampir 200 km (di
bawah segmen M16)
Dua subduksi yang bertemu

Kemiringan subducting plate segmen M19M22

Penjelasan Benioff zone

dibawah segmen M19M22
(Laut
Maluku)
dapat dilihat di slide
berikut.

Dua sistem konvergen dengan Benioff zone yang

berlawanan
Di bawah segmen M19-M22, yaitu di bawah
Laut Maluku, telah terjadi peristiwa tektonik
yang istimewa, yaitu adanya dua subduksi
(sistem konvergen) dengan Benioff zones
yang berlawanan arah.
Walaupun hal ini mungkin sangat langka, tetapi
keberadaannya tidak pernah diperdebatkan,
mengingat aktivitas seismiknya yang sangat
jelas seperti yang terlihat di bawah segmen
M19-M20.
Adanya 2 deretan gunung api, yaitu di
Minahasa yang melengkung ke barat dan di
Halmahera yang melengkung ke timur,
menunjukkan bahwa di antara Minahasa dan
Halmahera (Laut Maluku) harus ada 2 subduksi
yang berarah ke barat dan ke timur.

Model laut Maluku

gure 4, from Waluyo, 1991

Model Waluyo
Tidak ada subduksi baru
yang ber-kembang di sana.
Subduksi yang ada tetap
yang kearah barat dan timur
dari sistem konvergen dengan
2
Benioff
zone
yang
berlawanan arah.
Overiding
(subducted)
plates,
Minahasa
dan
Halmahera
akan
saling
mendekat cenderung akan
naik ke atas subducting plate
dengan 2 benioff zone yang
berlawanan.
Kedua
plate
tersebut
akhirnya akan bertumbukan,
sehingga
terbentuk
pegunungan lipatan di daerah

Tectonics of Banggai-Sula

Figure 1 Location map of the study area modified from Hall (2002).
Major structures in the Molucca Sea and Banggai-Sula margin are
those interpreted by Hamilton (1979) and Silver et al. (1983). Red
triangles are active volcanoes.

The north Banggai-Sula study area is located in

the eastern part of Indonesia which is known
for its geological complexity in the zone of
convergence between the Pacific, Philippine
Sea, Indo-Australian and Eurasian plates. It
includes the Banggai-Sula microcontinent in
the south, the East Arm of Sulawesi and
Gorontalo Bay in the west, and the Molucca
Sea Collision Zone to the north.
The Banggai-Sula microcontinent has been
interpreted to have separated from Australia in the
Mesozoic (Hamilton, 1979; Pigram et al., 1985;
Garrard et al., 1988) before it collided with the East
Arm of Sulawesi proposed by different authors to
be Middle Miocene (Simandjuntak, 1986), Middle
Miocene to Pliocene (Garrard et al., 1988), Late
Miocene (Hamilton, 1979), or end Miocene (Davies,

Figure 2 Simplified geological map of part of the East Arm of

Sulawesiand the Banggai-Sula Islands based on Rusmana et al. (1993),
Supandjono & Haryono (1993) and Surono & Sukarna (1993). Offshore
faults from Hamilton (1979), Silver et al. (1983) and Garrard et al. (1988).

Figure 5. A. Location of seismic lines and outline

of the area covered by the multibeam image.
B. Coloured image of multibeam bathymetric
map. (Ferdiand et al, 2010)

A. Lineament map based on the high resolution

multibeam image of seabed surface.
B. B. Interpreted structural map based on the
multibeam image and seismic lines. (Ferdiand et al,
2010)

Images of different parts of the area covered by the

multibeam survey

Ferdiand et al, 2010)

A. Oblique view of fault surface

remaining
after
north-dipping
Mesozoic sequence of BanggaiSula
margin detached on bedding
surface and slid north to leave
debris field at foot of slope.
B. South-vergent thrusts terminating
NW-SE-trending dextral strike-slip
fault system at foot of BanggaiSula margin.
C. Carbonate platform, now at 1 km
water depth, in NW part of study
area. Note that a different colour
scheme is used for this image to
enhance sea floor features; depths
are from 1 to 2.8 km.
D. Part of deformed Molucca Sea
collision complex.

New structural map of the study area(Ferdiand et al, 2010

In the NE, thrusts at the southern side ofthe Molucca Sea
collision complex are interpreted to link to the north to the East
Sangihe and Halmahera Thrusts.
The dextral Balantak Fault crosses Poh Head and then horsetails
into a number of splays terminated in E- to ENE-trending thrusts.
The Poh Fault is a north-vergent thrust zone at the northern edge
of deformed Mesozoic rocks of the Banggai-Sulamargin. There is
no major E-W strand of the sinistral Sorong strike-slip fault nor is
there a NWtrending Greyhound Strait Fault in the study area.

Tectonic of Sulawesi

Prominent
Tectonic Features
1. North Sulawesi
trench.
2. Palu fault
3. Sadang fault
4. Gunungapi Una-una
5. Banggai & Sula
islands
6. Selayar island
7. Gorontalo basin
8. Sulawesi divided as:
a. South arm
b. South East arm
c. East arm
d. North arm

Sesar Palu-Koro dan Selat Makasar

Palu-Koro Fault is an active left
lateral fault crossing Palu at
Central
Sulawesi
continues
towards SE. Hamilton 1988 this
fault observed clearly onland
Sulawesi
and
continues
to
Makasar
strait,
suggested
crossing the subduction zone at
northern Sulawesi. At Teluk Palu
fault might no longer traced.
Hamilton: spreading (MOR) at
Makasar strait, Sulawesi moving
away from Kalimantan. The
spreading is not visible in seismic
activity. Dt the size is relatively
small, or speading is no longer
active.

Subduction from West

0-70 km

75-125 km

100-200 km

Based on seismicity subduction zone developed from west of

sulawesi towards eastern part: Benioff zone at the western
part reaches only until ~70km.
Shallow EQs west of Palu fault might be due to Sadang fault.

Mekanisme
sumber sesar
Palu-Koro
Predominantly
(Waluyo, 1992)

strike

slip

Left lateral N-NW or S-SE

selatan-tenggara, P axis is ESE or W-NW

Tectonics map af
Sulawesi
(Hamilton, 1988)

Tectonics of Sulawesi (Hamilton 1988)

The four arms of Sulawesi complex tectonic process of the
area.
At North and South arms (West Sulawesi): Cretaceous
subduction complexes, overlaid by Paleogene continental
shelf and Neogene sedimentary rocks and volcanic intrusion
(granite).
At East and South East arms: late Miocene, ophiolite dan
subduction complexes.
The lateral distribution of subduction complexes in Sulawesi
(east and west) ini, interpreated as the occurrence of
migration to the east of subduction complexes migrasi at
Cenozoic. This is superimposed with rifting of Sulawesi from
Kalimantan dan prolongation of the young subduction from
the north Sulawesi.

Western arc
Cretaceous subduction complex
Two small outcrops of basement complex south arm, SE
part, ultramafic dan metamorphic rocks exposed.
Metamorphic trending NW,Cretaceous.
Melanges exposed at south arm, consists of chaotically
intercalated and broken rocks/formation. Similar
Melanges outcropped at Sadang fault, early Cretaceous.
Paleogene shelf Strata
Top: facies turbudite lower Paleogene
Bottom: shelf layered Upper Paleogene and lower
Miocene.

 Complex region (junction of Eurasia, IndoAustralian, Pacific plates)

Eastern Borneo and Western Sulawesi
accreted onto SWern Borneo by Cenozoic
(Hall 1996, Metcalfe 1998)
Subduction
of
Indian
ocean
plate,
Philippine sea and Molucca sea responsible
for the progressive collison and accretion of
fragments of continental and and oceanin
crust along the eastern margin of
Sundaland throught out Cenozoic.
Number of sedimentary basins and
deep marginal basins formed as a result
of Tertiary extension and subsidence.

Metcalfe, 2011

Simplified geology
map of Borneo,
Moss and Wilson
(1998)

Borneo and Sulawesi (the

relation)

Moss and Wilson (1998)

Bibliography
Ferdian et al, 2010, A STRUCTURAL REEVALUATION OF THE NORTH BANGGAI-SULA
AREA, EASTERN INDONESIA IPA Proceeding
Metcalfe 2010, Tectonic framework and
Phanerozoic
evolution
of
Sundaland,
Gondwana Research 19 (2011) 321
Moss and Wilson 1998, Biogeographic
implications of the Tertiary paleogeographic
evolution of Sulawesi and Borneo
Diktat Kuliah Tektonik Indonesia, Waluyo