Origin of the Sumba forearc basement

Wytze van der Werff*

Netherlands Institute for Sea Research, PO Box 59, Texel, The Netherlands

Dida Kusnida and Hardi Prasetyo

Marine Geology Institute, Jalan Dr Junjunan, Bandung, Indonesia

Tjeerd C. E. van Weering

Netherlands Institute for Sea Research, PO Box 59, Texel, The Netherlands

Received24 December 1992; revised 8 May 1993; accepted 15 May 1993

An interpretation of acoustic basement structures in the eastern Sunda/western Banda forearc

region suggests structural continuity between Sumba and Northern Timor. The area between
Sumba and Timor is delineated as a zone of continuous structures, without major strike-slip
offsets. These structures trend east-west in the west but gradually change towards the east into
NE-SW trending structures. A major NE-SW trending discontinuity west of Sumba between
117° 30' and 118° 30'E marks the transition between an intraoceanic volcanic arc system in the
west and a volcanic arc-continent collision zone in the east. The extent of the Sumba basement
suggests either a common (Late Jurassic) rift/drift history for both Sumba and Northern Timor or
an (Early Miocene) magmatic welding of two continental fragments of different origin, resulting
in structural continuity between two microplates. The first explanation implies that Sumba
originated from the north-west Australian continental margin south of Tethys, from which it
drifted away in the Late Jurassic. The second hypothesis, which is favoured, proposes a northern
provenance of Sumba. The island would then originate from the south-east Asian continent,
north of Tethys, from which it was detached in the Eocene.

Keywords: Sumba; forearc basement; proto-volcanic arc

Forearc basins are commonly underlain by basement
rocks of various origins, depending on the regional
plate tectonic setting at the time of arc initiation
(Dickinson, 1977). The eastern Sunda/western Banda
forearc basement is probably composed of a
combination of oceanic crust, continental fragments,
accreted rocks and magmatic intrusives, forming a
composite forearc system (Curray et al., 1977;
Beiersdorf and Hinz, 1980; McBride and Karig, 1987).
This paper presents a study of the offshore geometry
and extent of 'Sumba-related' acoustic basement
structures. A tectonic map of the eastern
Sunda/western Banda Arc between 117 ° and 124°E
showing our interpretation of forearc basement
structures in the area on a regional scale is presented.
The density of the grid of seismic profiles is sufficient to
map gross trends of ridges and basins but is insufficient
to correlate basement structures in detail. The purpose
of this study is to constrain the origin of Sumba.
Regional tectonic setting
The eastern Sunda/western Banda Arc (Figure 1)
marks the transition zone from an intraoceanic volcanic
arc system in the west to a volcanic a r c - c o n t i n e n t
*Correspondence to Dr W. van der Werff
0264-8172/94/030/363-12
@1994 Butterworth-Heinemann Ltd
collision in the east (Hamilton, 1979; Von der Borch,
1979; Bowin et al., 1980). The western part of this
subduction/collision system has existed at least since
the Late Oligocene (Hamilton, 1979). The Sunda Arc is
characterized by a classical morphology of trench,
forearc ridge, forearc basin and volcanic arc. This trend
continues in the western Banda Arc, where the
Australian continent collided with the Asian plate
about 3 Ma ago (Hamilton, 1979; Bowin et al., 1980). It
has been suggested that a Late Miocene collision of a
marginal plateau north of Australia with the western
Banda Arc resulted in the formation of the Savu Thrust
(Reed, 1985).
At present, the collision zone is comparable with a
normally subducting arc system and subduction is
continuing, though it may occur intermittently (Karig et
al., 1987; Masson et al., 1990). North of the volcanic
islands of Sumbawa, Flores, Alor and Wetar,
backthrusting started about 3 Ma ago (Silver et al.,
1983). A zone of N N E - S S W trending strike-slip, thrust
and possibly normal faults is observed north of Timor,
between the islands of Alor and Wetar (Karig et al.,
1987; Masson et al., 1990).
Shallow earthquake patterns indicate a discontinuity
between the Java sector and the Sumbawa-Flores
sector, which could be explained by subduction of the
Roo Rise bathymetric high (Silver et al., 1983;
McCaffrey and Nabelek, 1984; Eva et al., 1988). In the

M a r i n e and P e t r o l e u m G e o l o g y 1994 V o l u m e 11 N u m b e r 3 363

Origin of the Sumba forearc basement: W. van der Werff et al.
115" 116" 117= 118o 119e 120" I~" 1220 , 123" 124" 125~ 12Ii°

~_ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ '~ save ~ #__ I"/ ~ ..,

--- RIDGE \ ( . ~ ~ J

JAVA - ~

Roo Rise Scott Pl~ehmJ" ', ", i

12o ~ t2 °

/
| ¢

~3 o

A R G O ABYSSAL PLAIN
I
i
,U A.E o -/
126°
J 14'

Figure I Eastern Sunda/western Banda forearc region. Inset shows location of study area. Dented line indicates position of subduction/
collision front. Direction of dents indicates direction of subduction. Bathymetry in metres. Adapted from Van Weering e t a l . (1989)

Savu Sea area earthquake studies suggest that the Sumba had a northern provenance, from Sundaland,
forearc is not deformed by internal thrusting and from which the island broke away in Early Cenozoic
crustal thickening, but instead is pushed northward times (Hamilton, 1979). A third possibility is that
over the backarc basin (McCaffrey et al., 1985). The Sumba originated from an area within Tethys
subducted lithosphere is presently being detached from (Chamalaun et al., 1982).
the Australian continental crust at 50-100 km depth Timor is underlain by continental crust (Chamalaun
beneath the Eastern Savu Sea (McCaffrey et al., 1985). et al., 1976; Bowin et al., 1980). The island is
Sumba is regarded as a piece of drifted continental structurally complex, involving thrust units, ophiolites,
crust of either Asian or Australian origin, which an accretionary wedge and fragments of continental
became trapped in a forearc basin setting by the kate origin (Barber et al., 1977; Barber, 1981; Charlton,
Oligocene (Bowin et al., 1980; Chamalaun et al., 1982). 1989; Sopaheluwakan, 1990). Timor has been
A continental origin is assumed based on free air subdivided into an allochthonous unit, a
gravity anomalies, sedimentological studies and seismic para-autochthonous unit of Australian affinity
refraction profiling (Green et al., 1979; Chamalaun et composed of continental fragments, and an
al., 1982; Von der Borch et al., 1983). autochthonous unit (Audley-Charles, 1968; Barber,
Sumba forms an uplifted part of the forearc 1981).
basement and is characterized by tilting and
block-faulting of the Mesozoic basement (Van Weering
Methods
et al., 1989). The pre-Neogene rocks of Sumba consist
of Late Cretaceous submarine fan deposits intruded by A tectonic map of the acoustic basement structures
calc-alkaline volcanic rocks of kate Cretaceous to has been constructed for the eastern Sunda/western
Palaeogene age. The submarine fan deposits are Banda Arc between 117° and 124°E on the basis of
discordantly covered by shallow marine sediments and an interpretation of a set of seismic profiles (Figure 2 A
platform carbonates of Eocene, Oligocene and Early and 2B). The data used for this study consist of
Miocene age. These, in turn, are overlain by Miocene single-channel seismic profiles recorded during the
reefs and Miocene-Pliocene NNE-directed Snellius-II expedition (Van Weering et al., 1989)
volcaniclastic submarine fan deposits and pelagic and the Rama 12 expedition (supplied by Scripps
limestones (Van Bemmelen, 1949; Effendi and Institute of Oceanography). Multichannel profiles were
Apandi, 1981; Von der Borch et al., 1983; Fortuin et kindly supplied by Shell International, the Japanese
al., 1994). Geological Survey and the Bundesanstalt fiir
Various hypotheses have been proposed about the Geowissenschaften und Rohstoffe, Hannover (courtesy
origin of Sumba. The first stresses a provenance of of K. Hinz).
Sumba from the margin of north-western Australia, Well data from the forearc region, other than DSDP
from which it was detached in Late Jurassic times Site 262 (Erickson, 1974), are not available to us. For a
(Otofuji et al., 1981; Audley-Charles, 1975; Hartono more precise correlation of the lithologies and ages,
and Tjokrosapoetro, 1984). A second hypothesis is that published data on the geology of Sumba, Savu, Roti

364 Marine and Petroleum Geology 1994 Volume 11 Number 3

 Origin of the Sumba forearc basement: W. van der Werff et al.

/. -+..:..... / . "+"+ A
I ++

. . . . ;,° ,;,°

B I I9 , , i %/- I ]4 Ik~;ENI)

[ / ,~ S]UMBAWA~ ~ ~ . ~ ~ = ' ~ / . ' / M],*'ENESHALlJ)"

/ FI/ [ '~ " ~ ~ MI( X'I':N F '~ OI.('ANI

"s~o - " ~ ( F9 ' '~ , "" /, B~ . MI(X'ENE ~ OL( ~kNl(

:A~'~" " """ " ¢ "" " ; :~) I ~ " /~ F1¢1 ;L1 (TRIAN(;LE

.... -- -- "r°°+L o#o . -+ , )*1 (Z~/ i "~- ~IRIKE+I+IPF++L I I =+==++- l~i I+TZONES
II ~ . . . . I RE%('I] +I+OPF: _ I)IR~.:(TI()N I ) t
+ ~ ~ BRE '+K t ('on'* ER(;I':'~CE
0 IlO KM ~ ~ %~"3%MIC
-- Pl~O f II.F~,
119 124

Figure 2 (A) Track chart of seismic profiles studied for their acoustic basement structures. Figure numbers 3A- 14A indicate location
of profiles reproduced. Inset shows location of study area. (B) Morphotectonic map of acoustic basement structures superposed on the
seismic lines used for the interpretation

and Timor have been used (Audley-Charles, 1968; basement and_ Palaeogene granodioritic intrusives
Barber et al., 1977; Rosidi et al., 1979; Barber, 1981; (Effendi and Apandi, 1981). Locally, they appear to be
Effendi and Apandi, 1981; Von der Borch et al., 1983; fringed by reefal mounds (Figure 4A).
Reed, 1985). The grabens are filled by 1.8 km of sediments
In general, the multichannel data yield a penetration constituting three major seismic sequences which onlap
depth of up to 8 km. The resolution allows the and cover the basement highs. These have been
recognition of larger scale seismic sequences and facies interpreted as of Early-Mid-Miocene (sequence 2),
only. The single-channel data generally have less Late Miocene (sequence 3) and Pliocene-Recent
penetration, but allow a more detailed study and (sequence 4) age (Van Weering et al., 1989). Local
definition of the seismic sequences and facies. The unconformities within sequences 3 and 4 formed in
seismic coverage of the study area is sufficiently dense response to differential uplift of the underlying
to study acoustic basement structures and their gross basement and high sedimentation rates as a
trends. Acoustic basement is defined here as a seismic consequence of the Late Miocene to Recent evolution
facies without clear reflectors and with an opaque of the volcanic islands of Sumbawa and Flores
(Snellius-II; Figure 3B), chaotic (PAC lines; Figure (Hamilton, 1979).
4B), or transparent (Shell; Figure 5B) character. On the basis of these ages the horst and graben
structures most probably evolved before or during the
Palaeogene. Recent tectonic movements resulted in
Results local northward tilting and uplift of the basement
blocks (Figure 3A) and in downfaulting of the southern
West of Sumba side of the offshore extension of Sumba basement.
The area west of Sumba is characterized by a series of Figure 3A shows extensive sediment disturbance,
W N W - E S E trending linear basement ridges which resulting in a loss of seismic coherence, the formation
extend in a westward direction until 117°30'-118°30'E of slides and slumping; the latter also has been
(Figures 3A and 4A). The ridges extend onshore to observed in onshore exposures by Fortuin et al. (1992).
Sumba where they can be correlated with Mesozoic Two major periods of basement uplift can be

M a r i n e a n d P e t r o l e u m G e o l o g y 1994 V o l u m e 11 N u m b e r 3 365
Origin of the Sumba forearc basement: W. van der Werff et al.
A
SNELLIUS G-6 (LOMBOK BASIN)
TWT S
Se¢
SLUMPING
SLUMPING ~ ~ -

~ K BASIN
F ~ LOMBO SLIDES

q[~ F lt I B ACOUSTIC BASEMENT

0 10KM
v.e. 7x ACCRETIONARY WEDGE i

B
NE SW
TWT
Sec

SNELLIUSG-6
0 10KM

Figure 3 (A)Line drawing and interpretation after seismic profile G6 recorded during the Snellius-II expedition west of Sumba.
Location of profile is shown in Figure 2,4. Vertical scale is in seconds two-way travel time, horizontal scale in kilometres. Arrows along
fault planes indicate direction of relative basement movement. Arrows in sedimentary sequences indicate cycle terminations (Vail et
aL, 1977). 1, 2, 3 and 4 indicate seismic sequences mentioned in text. (B) Section of seismic profile G6. For location, see Figure 2A

distinguished. One correlates with the Early Miocene
and the other with the Late Miocene to Recent seismic
sequence (Figure 3A ).
To the north the basement ridges are downfaulted by
east-west trending basement faults and become
invisible underneath a turbidite-filled basin (Figure 2B,
F2A, F2B). In the western Lombok Basin, a
N N E - S S W trending fault zone has been interpreted
(Figure 2B, F1). Profiles N515 (Figure 5A) and N516
(Figure 2A) show a deeply buried basement, without
any horst and graben structures. Profile N516 (Figure
2B) demonstrates the transition from the W N W - E S E
trending inverted horst and grabens to the buried
basement. The Sumba basement is downfaulted into
the Lombok Basin by normal NNW dipping faults with
a trend perpendicular to the basement ridges.
To the south, but east of fault zone F1, the acoustic
basement descends into the Lombok Basin along two
steep southward dipping W N W - E S E trending faults,
with a total vertical offset of 1500 m (Figure 2B and 3A,
F l l A , F l l B ) . A change in structural style and
morphology of the acoustic basement south of F l l A
suggests that it forms the southern margin of
Sumba-related acoustic basement. The Sumba base-
ment and the accretionary wedge converge towards
the east where they are in direct contact (Figures 2B
and 6, PAC109).
At 118°30'E a north-south trending strike-slip fault
(F12) is interpreted. East of this fault the outer arc
ridge has been thrust to the north for about 18 km.
South of Sumba
The collision zone here is characterized by a strongly
deformed outer arc ridge composed of a series of
discontinuous linear ridges and troughs (Figure 2B).
The exact transition between basement related to
Sumba and the outer arc ridge is hard to define. The
Sumba basement, however, is present at least until
10°30'S.
South of west Sumba the structural outline of the
accretionary wedge is interpreted to be situated
between 10030' and 11°05'S (Figure 6). The

366 M a r i n e a n d P e t r o l e u m G e o l o g y 1994 V o l u m e 11 N u m b e r 3
 Origin of the S u m b a forearc basement: W. van der Werff et al.
PAC 113 N
A TWT
Sec
1 REEFAL MOUNDS [ REEFAL MOUNDS I
2

5-

6-
0 10 KM
v,e. 2.3x I •

B
N
TWT
Sec

7
PAC I 13 0 10KM
l

Figure 4 (A) Line drawing and interpretation after seismic profile PAC 113. For legend, see Figure 3A; for location, see Figure 2A.
(B) Section of seismic profile PAC 113. For location, s e e Figure 2A

N 515
A TWT
St'c
I-
I I,OM BOK BASIN .
2
3-
4-
5
6
7

B
TWT
Se¢

N 5[5 0 10KM
I J

Figure 5 (A) Line drawing after seismic profile N515. For legend, see Figure 3A; for location, see Figure 2A. Inset shows section of
seismic profile reproduced as Figure 5B. (B) Section of seismic profile N515. For location, see Figure 2A

Marine and Petroleum Geology 1994 Volume 11 N u m b e r 3 367

Origin of the Sumba forearc basement: W. van der Werff et al.
TW! s RAMA
2 F
4. A C C R E T I O N ARY W E D G E
• .e. 7x
Figure 8 Line drawing and interpretation after seismic profile RAMA 75 between 1700 and 2400 hours. For legend, see Figure 3A;
for location, see Figure 2A
Sumba-related acoustic basement blocks located to the
north are separated by shallow grabens filled with
presumably Neogene and possibly Palaeogene sedi-
ments (Figure 8, PAC106). The basement ridges are
covered by 0-(I.3 km of sediments.
South of East Sumba the accretionary prism can be
subdivided into an inner trench slope and an outer arc
high cut by thrusts (Figure 7, profile G6). The lower
trench slope is seismically opaque, deformed and
faulted. The upper slope section consists of a mildly
deformed elevated accretionary wedge segment that is
almost devoid of structural features. The elevated
segment is bound to the north by a fault-controlled
basin (Figures 2B and 7,4, thrust 4).
North of the outer arc ridge and directly south of
East Sumba the acoustic basement is faulted along
a W N W - E S E trend and covered by 0.9 km of
sediments. A graben structure with a basin fill of
0.9-1.4 km of sediments is shown in Figure 9
(PAC108). The acoustic basement south of the graben
is uplifted, tilting the sediments northward (Figure 9).
A south dipping backthrust is located at the south-east
end of the profile. This thrust continues eastward,
where it forms part of a series of four backthrusts just
west of Savu (Figure 2B, thrust 3). The thrusts cannot
be recognized on any of the profiles to the west,
indicating that backthrusting as a mechanism of arc-
continent collision is limited to the area south-east of
Sumba.
East of Sumba
East Sumba continues into an E S E - W N W trending
submarine ridge (Sumba Ridge) until at least 122°30'E
(Figure 2B). The southern side of the ridge is bound by
the Sumba Basin. This basin is deformed by three
seismically opaque backthrusts (Figure 7A and 7B). On
Savu island rock outcrops which belong to the Savu
Thrust have been identified as deformed Permian and
Mesozoic sediments of Australian affinity (Hamilton,
1979; Reed, 1985). The Sumba Basin is bound to the
south by a fourth major backthrust, defined here as the
Roti Thrust. The Sumba Ridge disappears underneath
these thrusts and is downfaulted by a set of steeply
south dipping east-west trending normal faults (F10)
with a total vertical offset of 4 kin. The Sumba Basin
has been filled by sediments with a thickness of 0.9 km,
comprising four seismic sequences with possible ages
of, respectively, Palaeogene (sequence 1), Early
Miocene (sequence 2), Late Miocene (sequence 3) and
Pliocene-Recent (sequence 4) (Reed et al., 1986; 1987;
Van Weering et al., 1989). These onlap Sumba Ridge
368 M a r i n e and P e t r o l e u m G e o l o g y 1994 V o l u m e 11 N u m b e r 3
75
F
0 10KI~
and their presence on top of the ridge indicates that it is
probably at least of Palaeogene age. The Sumba Ridge
and the Roti Thrust converge in an eastward direction.
Based on the bathymetric contours, the Sumba Basin
may extend to the Central Basin on the island of Timor.
Similarly, the Roti Thrust appears to extend to Roti
and onto the southern part of Timor (Figure 2B).
To the north, the Sumba Ridge is faulted into a series
of basement blocks by steep northward dipping
east-west trending normal faults (F6, F7, FS, F9),
which underlie the South Savu Basin and extend
towards the north of West Timor until 122°45'E
(Figures 10, 13 and 14). These faults have a total
vertical offset of about 4 km.
In the northern Savu Basin to the north of F9 the
acoustic basement is beyond the penetration of our
seismic profiles. Here, geophysical data indicate that
the basement is of oceanic origin (Beiersdorf and
Hinz, 1982; McBride and Karig, 1987). Four seismic
sequences with a total sediment thickness of 1.8 km
could be identified. Sequence 1 is characterized
by basin fill deposits. Sequence 2 represents
progradational deposits which filled the basin from the
south. Sequences 3 and 4 are formed by onlapping
basin fill deposits.
The Sumba Ridge itself has been slightly tilted to the
north. Just east of Sumba a NNW-SSE trending
Miocene growth fault is present where Miocene
deposits onlap a Mesozoic basement high and appear
tilted to the north-west (Figures 2B and 11, F5). The
Sumba Ridge is covered by a wedge-shaped sequence
(sequence 2) of steeply north-east prograding slope
deposits with continuous high amplitude, parallel
bedded reflectors that downlap on the acoustic
basement (Figures 10 and 13). These deposits correlate
with the Sumba Formation on East Sumba (Von der
Botch et al., 1983; Fortuin et al., 1994; Van der
Werff, unpublished data). A transparent seismic
sequence (sequence 3) on top of sequence 2 is
correlated with Pliocene chalks on Sumba. The
combined thickness of the two sequences is about
0.9 km. Uplift of the Sumba Ridge resulted in faulting
of its basement and subsequent northward tilting.
Towards the east the Sumba Ridge is tilted progres-
sively more, as shown by the increasing inclination
of the Neogene sequences with depth (Figure 13). This
increase in tilt may reflect the more intensive effects
of arc-continent collision towards the east. From
120030 ' to 122°30'E the Sumba Ridge narrows from 30
to 18 kin.
Further east, Karig et al. (1987) identified the Sumba
Ridge as aligned in trend with Northern Timor. A
 Origin of the Sumba forearc basement: W. van der Werff et al.
A -I'~rTSW SNEI.I,IUS G-6 (EAST OF SUMBA) NE
S¢c
TRENCH SLOPE BREAK
I
. . 3 4 ~ 4 3

3 ~/~//1~' F' -- / - THRUST I

- / / / ' - ~ ~ / J l ~" ' " ACOUSTIC BASEMENT

4 F"

0 10KM
v.e. 7x m

(S E C) SNELLIUS G6
-INE SW

1-

2-

~- ~: "2

ACCRETIONARYWEDGE

• • \ 'r ~

t A
• 0
....
IOKM
B

(SEC) SNELLIUS G6 (SE OF SUMBA)

NE
SW
1-

• IMULTIPLE' ' . " "~ '~ " ~'O~,~

~3

SUMBA RIDGE

0 IOKM

Figure7 (A) Line drawing and interpretation of seismic profile Snellius G6 recorded during Snellius-II expedition east of Sumba,
between 1000 and 2100 hours. For legend, see Figure 3,4; for location, see Figure 2A. (B) Section of seismic profile G6 recorded east of
Sumba between 1100 and 1500 hours• For location, see Figure 2A

Marine and Petroleum Geology 1994 Volume 11 Number 3 369

Origin of the Sumba forearc basement: W. van der Werff et al.
"rwr PA(" I(16
Sec
I
2
3
4 ,',) ' 'k~,~ ~ ACOUSTIC BASEMENT F F ACOUSTIC BASEMENT
F F F F
5 0 10KM
~.¢. 2.3x I I

F i g u r e 8 Line drawing and interpretation of seismic profile PAC 106. For legend, see Figure 3A; for location, see Figure 2A

PAC 108
TWT S
Se("
I

2.

3. _ ~ ~ ' ~ ~'~.'F ACOUSTIC

BASEMEST ~'~"
THRUST 3 % f / ~ ~ ' ~ : ~ t / F "F / l ' -
4 / F ~:".'~F l,
THRUST 2 ,t~l
5 10KM
i
v.e. 2.3x

Figure 9 Line drawing and interpretation of seismic profile PAC 108. For legend, see Figure 3A; for location, see Figure 2A

TWT S PAC 109 N

See
I

2
' ~-I . . . . . . -- 4
3

5 ACOUSTIC BASEMENT ~ F7 \

6
F8 1~ F 9
7

0 10KM
,~.e. 2.3x I I

Figure 10 Line drawing and interpretation of semmic profile PAC 109 between shotpoints 5400 and 7000. For legend, see Figure 3,4; for
location, see Figure 2A

TWT SE RAMA 82 NW
Sec

, - ---'--t ......

.3. • ..UST. "%0* ACOUSTIC BASEMENT

5
0 10KM
6 v.e. 7x I I

Figure 11 Line drawing and interpretation of seismic profile RAMA 82 between 0200 and 1030 hours. For legend, see Figure 3A; for
location, see Figure 2A

TWT S PAC I 10 N

Sec ~ REEFAL MOUNDS

4 v e 2 3x " ACOUSTIC BASEMENT 0 10KM

Figure 12 Line drawing and interpretation of seismic profile PAC 110. For legend, see Figure 3A; for location, see Figure 2A

370 Marine and Petroleum Geology 1994 Volume 11 Number 3

 Origin of the Sumba forearc basement: W. van der Werff et al.
R A M A 83 N
TWT S
Sec

1
SAVO . A S , N
2

6
v.e. 7x 0 10KM

Figure 13 Line drawing and interpretation of seismic profile RAMA 83 between 1130 and 1800 hours. For legend, see Figure 3A; for
location, see Figure 2A

sharp change in trend from WNW to ENE observed in
the regional bathymetry at about 122°30'E may reflect
a structural discontinuity.
North of Sumba
North of Sumba there is a shallow basin structure which
forms a major conduit for sediment dispersal. Acoustic
basement blocks north of Sumba are downfaulted along
east-west trending normal faults with vertical offsets
to the north (Figure 2B, F2A, F2B and F3).
Sumba-related acoustic basement underlies the basin
and is covered by 1.8 km of sediments which mainly
represent a channel fill facies (Figure 12).
Interpretation
Tectonics
Strike-slip faults trending NNE-SSW to north-south
in the eastern Sunda/western Banda Arc region were
postulated by Audley-Charles (1975) and Barber
(1981) based on earthquake data and morphological
features (Figure 2B) (Chamalaun et al., 1982;
McCaffrey et al., 1985). Karig et al. (1987) suggested
NNE-SSW trending dextral strike-slip faults just west
of Timor, with estimated offsets of 30 km.
Although most of our profiles are oriented parallel to
the postulated strike-slip faults, most basement
structures appear to be continuous and aligned in trend
with the forearc system (Figure 2B). This is supported
by the fact that a series of downfaulted linear basement
ridges seems to extend from north-east of Sumba to the
north of Timor, and that the Sumba Ridge extends
offshore towards Timor to at least 122°30'E. Further-
more, the tectonized slope basin south of Sumba
Ridge, cut by three backthrusts and bound by a fourth
at its southern margin, appears to be continuous. This
basin possibly extends to and crops out as the Central
Basin on the island of Timor. The Roti Thrust, which is
continuous between 120°15' and 122°30'E, extends to
Roti and possibly continues to southern Timor.
No major NNE-SSW trending strike-slip faults

(s c)
2
SE
NW

4 ~'" ENE " ~,,A

~,'" . ,-- SAVU BASIN
"~"....~.~
:'~ < au /

PRE TERTIARY fault •

,,u,, F 9

0 IOKM

Figure 14 Interpreted section of seismic profile Snellius G6 recorded north-west of Timor between 1500 and 2400 hours. Seismic
stratigraphy after Van Weering et al., 1989. For correlation, see legend of Figure 2

M a r i n e a n d P e t r o l e u m G e o l o g y 1994 V o l u m e 11 N u m b e r 3 371
Origin of the Sumba forearc basement: W. van der Werff et al.
offset these structures significantly. The discontinuity
of the Benioff zone around 121°E (Chamalaun et al.,
1982) is not expressed in the forearc basement by a
NNE-SSW trending 'Eastern Sumba" fracture as
suggested by Audley-Charles (1975).
Earthquake distributions do not emphasize recent
tectonic activity along NNE-SSW trending fault zones
between Sumba and Timor (Eva et al., 1988). In
contrast, a N E - S W trending fault zone west of Sumba,
reflected by high earthquake densities, confirms our
observations and interpretations of recent fault activity. rotation of Sumba between the Palaeocene and Early
These arguments suggest a possible structural
continuity between Sumba and Northern Timor. This
continuity can be explained by assuming that Sumba
and Northern Timor have a common, pre-Tertiary
history. It is more likely, however, that Sumba
and Northern Timor were originally two different
microcontinents which became trapped and welded
together after the initiation of the arc system by the
Late Oligocene. The evolution of an early magmatic
arc then would have resulted in the formation of one
Neogene structural unit. Aligned basement structures,
related to the Sumba Ridge, have a light crustal
character and could be indicative of Mesozoic
continental crust, an extinct Early Miocene volcanic
arc, or a combination of the two as found on Sumba
(Effendi and Apandi, 1981; McBride and Karig, 1987).
O n the origin o f S u m b a
If we assume that Sumba and part of Northern Timor
constitute one Neogene structural unit, the Sumba
Ridge and the basement ridges underlying the Southern
Savu Basin should be composed of Mesozoic and Early
Palaeogene continental crust, intruded by Early
Miocene magmatic rocks. The possible existence of a
'proto'-arc is supported by outcrops of Early Miocene
volcanic rocks on West Sumba (Effendi and Apandi,
1981) and by the occurrence of Miocene volcaniclastic
eroded volcanic arc by progressive loading. Finally,
the arc may have become buried underneath the
backthrusts.
The extent of the Sumba-related basement structures
between 118°- 112°30'E and 9°15 ' - 10°30'S suggests the
existence of a microcontinent of major dimensions. A
Cretaceous-Palaeocene counterclockwise rotation of
50° and a Palaeocene-Early Miocene counterclockwise
rotation of 85° (Wensink, 1994) must have occurred
along major fault zones. FI may have enabled the
Miocene.
A backwards (clockwise) rotation of Sumba by 135°
would bring the orientation of the basement ridges in
line with the basement structures of the south-east
Sunda shelf and the Makassar Strait. Rifting in the
Makassar Strait occurred in the Eocene (Rangin et al,,
1991). Rift structures west of Sumba, based on our
seismic interpretation, date at least from the
Palaeogene. The evolution of the Sumba basement
could thus be related to the opening of the Makassar
Strait. The tectonic developments described earlier are
schematically illustrated in Figure 15.
Alternatively, a pre-Tertiary structural continuity
between Sumba and Northern Timor could be
explained by the correlation of Mesozoic outcrops on
the two islands. This implies a correlation between the
Late Cretaceous Lasipu Formation of Sumba with
Mesozoic outcrops of either the allochthonous or the
para-autochthonous unit on Timor (Rosidi et al., 1979;
Effendi and Apandi, 1981).
PALEOGEOGRAPHIC
EPO('H
SKETCH
SCHEMATIC CROSS-SECTION
j__qp,7 , SA, M T N
PALEOGENE ~ ,+ S ~ SU

submarine fan deposits on East Sumba (Fortuin et al.,

1994). Similar deposits noted on seismic profiles east of
Sumba have a maximum thickness of 2 km and filled , - - T s AU M T N'

the Savu Basin from the south (Figures 10, 13 and 14). LATE O L I G O C E N E ~
The presence of large-scale 'foresets" that onlap the
acoustic basement blocks suggests fast progradation
over a steep slope, implying the rapid erosion of a
major land source. A volcanic land area must have EARL, MIOC NE AU M S T
existed south of Sumba Ridge in the Early, and possibly '

Mid- to Late Miocene.

South of Sumba the profiles indicate the presence of
~~ S U . ~o~i, %~ =~ S AU M S FL
rifted basement blocks covered by a relatively thin
LATE M I O C E N E ......... S ¢ ~ T
Neogene sedimentary cover. Therefore a small volcanic
'proto'-arc was probably located south of Sumba M .....
Ridge, between 120°30' and 122°30'E. The seismic
profiles south of Sumba Ridge, however, show four '~2/suXt,~ _..~ = ~ s " N
major backthrusts which were emplaced between the LATE PLIOCENE . .

Late Miocene and Recent, and probably cover the

basement of the proto-arc. ~g-A u
This small arc may have been active from the end of
the Early Miocene until the Late Miocene. This is
~ __ C O N T I N E N T A l . M
CRUST St:
MARGINAL PLATEAU
SUNDALAND
supported by the large amounts of pumice debris F I G U R E 15 ~ _ MAGMATIC AU AUSTRALIA
ARC S SUMBA
found in Mid-Late Miocene deposits of the Sumba ~ -- S P R E A D I N G T T I MO R
Formation (Fortuin et al., 1994). Its subsequent RIDGE FL FLORES
erosion may have provided debris to fill the Savu Basin -- TRENCH

from the south, forming sequence 2. Backthrusting,

which started in the Late Miocene (Reed, 1985) may Figure 15 Model explaining the Tertiary forearc basin evolution
have resulted in downflexing of the basement of the in the eastern Sunda/western Banda Arc

372 Marine and Petroleum Geology 1994 V o l u m e 11 N u m b e r 3

 O r i g i n o f the S u m b a f o r e a r c b a s e m e n t : W. van d e r W e r f f e t al.
A comparison of the stratigraphy of Sumba with the
allochthonous Palelo Group outcropping on Northern
Timor by Audley-Charles et al. (1985) revealed some
similarities. The Lasipu Formation, however, is
deposited near a continental source area and on top of
crust with a continental thickness, whereas the Palelo
series constitutes oceanic sediments deposited on
oceanic crust presently exposed as ophiolites on
Northern Timor. Therefore we are not in favour of a
correlation between Sumba and the allochthonous part
of Northern Timor.
Alternatively, a correlation between the Late
Cretaceous Lasipu Formation and the para-
autochthonous units on Northern Timor may be
suggested. These units, which form substantial
outcrops on Northern Timor (Rosidi et al., 1979), are in
a trend with the South Sumba Ridge and could possibly
form its onshore extension (Figure 2B). The large
differences in stratigraphy and structural geology
between these units make any detailed correlation
difficult. Moreover, palaeomagnetic data on the para-
autochthonous unit of Timor suggest a relationship
between Timor and Australia (Chamalaun, 1977;
Chamalaun and Sunata, 1983; Wensink et al., 1987;
Wensink and Hartosukohardjo, 1990). In contrast,
Wensink (1994) suggests that Sumba performed a
large counterclockwise rotation between the Late
Cretaceous and Early Miocene of 135° and a southward
displacement of 28°. This excludes any pre-Tertiary
relationship between Sumba and Northern Timor.
Conclusions
Forearc basement structures between 117° and 124°E in
the eastern Sunda/western Banda Arc are continuous.
No major strike-slip zones have been observed in the
region between Sumba, Savu, Roti and Timor. A
major N E - S W trending structural discontinuity
exists west of Sumba, at lI7°30'E-118°30'E. This
discontinuity reflects the boundary between an
intraoceanic volcanic arc system in the west and an
arc-continent collision zone in the east. The southern
Savu Sea basement, the Sumba Ridge, the Sumba
Basin south of Sumba Ridge and the Roti backthrust
tectonic units appear to be continuous from 120°30'E to
122°30'E.
Structural continuity between Sumba and Timor is
supported by earthquake data (Nishimura et al., 1986;
Eva et al., 1988) and by free air gravity measurements
(Bowin et al., 1980; McBride and Karig, 1987).
However, structural continuity between the Sumba
basement and the northern part of Timor is difficult to
envisage because of differences in the stratigraphy,
structural geology and palaeomagnetic data of the two
islands. Therefore, we suggest that a continuity may
have evolved after the initiation of the volcanic arc
system in the Late Oligocene. Two microplates were
possibly welded into one Neogene structural unit by an
Early Miocene 'proto'-magmatic arc. This arc has been
a major source for the Neogene basin fill of the Savu
Sea and Eastern Sumba. During the Late Miocene the
arc shifted to its present position. The actual site of this
magmatic arc cannot be located by the present means,
but is probably buried underneath a series of Late
Miocene to Recent backthrusts south of the Sumba
Ridge.
Marine and Petroleum
Acknowledgements
We thank E. Silver (University of Santa Cruz,
California), C. Rangin (University P. & M. Curie,
Paris) and J. E. van Hinte (Free University,
Amsterdam) for critically reviewing the manuscript and
providing important suggestions for improvement. We
are greatly indebted to A. R. Fortuin, T. B. Roep
(Free University of Amsterdam) and H. Wensink
(State University, Utrecht) for discussions. We also
benefited from editorial comments and those of
two anonymous reviewers. We thank the Japanese
Geological Survey, SIPM, the Hague and Mobil
Petroleum Cooperation for providing multichannel
seismic data. Scripps Institute of Oceanography and K.
Hinz of the Bundesanstalt ftir Geowissen-schaften und
Rohstoffe, Hanover are acknowledged for supplying
additional seismic profiles. This study was supported by
the Netherlands Marine Science Foundation (SOZ) in
the Hague.
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