The Qena- Safaga Shear Zone (QSSZ) is a megashear belt separating the Northern- and the Central- Tectonic Provinces
of the Egyptian Nubian Shield (ENS). Processing of remotely sensed data of the Landsat-8, ASTER and Sentinel 2A,
accompanied by field/structural investigation made it possible to construct a plausible structural map for this high strain
zone. A wide variety of Neoproterozoic litho-units outcrop in the area, including ophiolitic mélange, syn- tectonic
granitoids, late- tectonic granitoids, Dokhan Volcanics and post- tectonic granitoids. Dike swarms traverse some of these
units. The automatic lineament extraction using SRTM and PALSAR images verified that the dominant structural trend is
the NE-SW. Other trends, comprising E-W (to ENE-WSW), NW-SE (to NNW-SSE) and N-S (to NNE-SSW) are also
recognized. The main structural elements documented in the area embrace foliations and lineations, faults and shear zones,
as well as shear zone-related structures (e.g. folds, duplexes and flower structures). The sense of movement along the
aforementioned shear trends can be detected by a wide variety of kinematic indicators include mylonite, boudinage structure
and deformed pebbles. The geological structures documented along the QSSZ indicate a brittle-ductile tectonic regime
accompanied with voluminous granitic intrusions of various composition. Such structural and tectonic setting advocates a
complex tectonic history characterized by extensional and transtensional tectonic regimes. The obtained results are
significantly contributed to our knowledge on the high strain shear belts in the ENS. |
