# Current progress on a plate deformation model of the Western US

**URL:** https://discourse.gplates.org/t/current-progress-on-a-plate-deformation-model-of-the-western-us/3183
**Category:** Achievements & Compliments
**Created:** [1 January 2026 17:16 UTC](https://discourse.gplates.org/t/current-progress-on-a-plate-deformation-model-of-the-western-us/3183 "2026-01-01T17:16:59Z")
**Posts on this page:** 1
**Page:** 1

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### Author: ![granite-rhyolite](https://discourse.gplates.org/user_avatar/discourse.gplates.org/granite-rhyolite/32/380_2.png) [@granite-rhyolite](https://discourse.gplates.org/u/granite-rhyolite)
#### Post date: [1 January 2026 17:16 UTC](https://discourse.gplates.org/t/current-progress-on-a-plate-deformation-model-of-the-western-us/3183/1 "2026-01-01T17:16:59Z")

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Howdy, everyone!

Ever since the beginning of last summer, I have been working on a detailed kinematic-palinspastic restoration of the North American Cordillera. My resolution for 2026 is to complete it before the end of this new year. In the meantime, I thought I’d share my progress on it so far.

The motions of the blocks follow (so far) [Richard (1993)](https://agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1029/92TC02951), [Richard (1994)](https://repository.arizona.edu/handle/10150/630793), [McQuarrie and Wernicke (2005)](https://pubs.geoscienceworld.org/gsa/geosphere/article/1/3/147/31112/An-animated-tectonic-reconstruction-of), [Wilson et al. (2005)](https://agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1029/2003TC001621), [Bennett et al. (2016)](https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Scott-Bennett-8/publication/301554333_Animated_Tectonic_Reconstruction_of_the_Lower_Colorado_River_Region_Implications_for_Late_Miocene_to_Present_Deformation/links/57198c4808aed8a339e70357/Animated-Tectonic-Reconstruction-of-the-Lower-Colorado-River-Region-Implications-for-Late-Miocene-to-Present-Deformation.pdf), [Lutz et al. (2022)](https://pubs.geoscienceworld.org/gsa/geology/article/50/4/412/610212/Whole-lithosphere-shear-during-oblique-rifting), [Wilson and McCrory (2022)](https://agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1029/2022GC010442), and [Bird and Ingersoll (2022)](https://pubs.geoscienceworld.org/gsa/geosphere/article/18/5/1563/616490/Kinematics-and-paleogeology-of-the-western-United). Currently the model only covers southwestern North America and is limited to the timeframe 12.5-0 Ma, but I plan to expand it to cover the entire North American Cordillera since the Late Paleozoic.

 ![eastern_california_shear_zone](https://discourse.gplates.org/uploads/default/original/1X/8fa3e3f8d924ab2e8629d3a4330a59cd9f2ec55e.png)

Links to [rotation file](https://drive.google.com/file/d/1RZGQNfZx9LLa1djaUMMvx1GtjIkzsx3i/view?usp=drive_link) & [polygon shapefile](https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1TX45edvpT-yI6NP_skp0wJUkI_1-HJeT?usp=drive_link)

I will be posting updates to this model over the course of this year, so stay tuned! In the meantime, I wish you all a safe and happy New Year!

~Samuel