Kinematics of Neogene to Recent upper-crustal deformation in the southern Central Andes (23°–28°S) inferred from fault–slip analysis: Evidence for gravitational spreading of the Puna Plateau

Elucidating the tectono-morphologic evolution of the Central Andes is important for understanding the mechanical behaviour of non-collisional orogens at convergent plate boundaries. Fault-kinematic data from the southern Central Andes are generally interpreted in terms of changes in plate (boundary) kinematics or vertical-axis rotation associated with the formation of the Andean orocline. However, none of these hypotheses accounts adequately …