Impact of faults on the origin of lake depressions: a case study of Bayan Nuur Depression, North-West Mongolia, Central Asia

Abstract

This study focuses on the impact of faults on the origin and depression morphology of Bayan Nuur in North-West Mongolia. The relationships of Nuur and faults have been studied using morphometric analysis, spatially-improved remote sensing and magnetic survey. According to the results, the main fault formed in the western part of the Bayan Nuur depression influenced the origin of the lake depression SW -NE oriented. The length of the Bayan Nuur main fault is 147.1 km; 4 lakes have been formed along this fault, of which, the Bayan Nuur is the largest one. This study suggests that the Bayan Nuur origin is different from that suggested by previous studies and we conclude that the depressions hosting lakes in Mongolia need to be further investigated. This study represents a new contribution to better understand both the origin of the depressions hosting the Mongolian lakes and the impact of neotectonic activity, through morphometric analysis integrated with remote sensing analysis and geophysical surveys.