Article
Geology
Luca Gasperini, Marco Ligi, Daniela Accettella, Alessandro Bosman, Marco Cuffaro, Emanuele Lodolo, Eleonora Martorelli, Filippo Muccini, Camilla Palmiotto, Alina Polonia
Summary: The study reveals that the Pacific, Antarctic, and Macquarie lithospheric plates separate from the Macquarie Triple Junction in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. Through the use of morphobathymetry, magnetic, and gravity data, the evolution of the three accretionary/transform boundaries at the MTJ has been understood. Plate velocities near the MTJ indicate an unstable ridge-fault-fault triple junction. The recent evolution of the MTJ is attributed to changes in plate motion, such as shortening of the Southeast Indian Ridge segment and the formation and lengthening of the Pacific-Antarctic Ridge.
Article
Geochemistry & Geophysics
Vera Schulte-Pelkum, Thorsten W. Becker, Whitney M. Behr, Meghan S. Miller
Summary: By analyzing deformation indicators at different depths in southern California, it was found that there is roughly N-S compression and E-W extension near the surface and in the asthenospheric mantle. However, all lithospheric anisotropy indicators show deviations, indicating that lithospheric structure may influence current deformation behavior.
GEOCHEMISTRY GEOPHYSICS GEOSYSTEMS
(2021)
Article
Geology
Hannu Seebeck, Dominic P. P. Strogen, Andrew Nicol, Benjamin R. R. Hines, Kyle J. J. Bland
Summary: We have developed a tectonic reconstruction model for Aotearoa-New Zealand from the mid-Late Cretaceous to the present day. The model consists of 50 rigid crustal blocks grouped into regions with common deformation histories, connected to a global paleomagnetic absolute reference frame. The model recognizes four distinct periods of deformation and proposes the continuity of basement terranes before Middle Eocene rifting and Late Oligocene initiation of transform motion. This reconstruction model provides a foundation for studying the paleogeography and tectonic evolution of Zealandia.
NEW ZEALAND JOURNAL OF GEOLOGY AND GEOPHYSICS
(2023)
Article
Geochemistry & Geophysics
Andri Hendriyana, Takeshi Tsuji
Summary: A new approach based on seismic phase polarization is used to locate tremors in the Nankai accretionary prism, revealing that tremor distribution is related to characteristics of the shear zone. Tremor migration can trigger earthquakes and help estimate fault permeability.
EARTH AND PLANETARY SCIENCE LETTERS
(2021)
Article
Geosciences, Multidisciplinary
Robert J. Stern
Summary: Eight lines of evidence suggest that the Orosirian Period experienced plate tectonics, including the presence of ophiolites, low temperature and pressure metamorphism, passive margins, tall mountains, paleomagnetic constraints, ore deposits, abundant S-type granites, and seismic images of paleo-subduction zones. This plate tectonic episode occurred much earlier than the current plate tectonics in the Neoproterozoic era, indicating Earth's tectonic style can be reconstructed back to the Early Paleoproterozoic. The evidence for multiple tectonic episodes suggests that Earth switched between single lid and plate tectonics multiple times during the past 2.4 billion years.
GEOSCIENCE FRONTIERS
(2023)
Article
Geochemistry & Geophysics
K. E. Sundell, F. A. Macdonald
Summary: The assembly and dispersion of continental crust play a crucial role in paleogeography and geochemical cycles. Zircon initial hafnium (epsilon Hf-T) can be used to track the reworking of Earth's crust. The study reveals significant geographic and temporal bias in the global epsilon Hf-T record, which is associated with sampling and regional tectonic events.
EARTH AND PLANETARY SCIENCE LETTERS
(2022)
Article
Geochemistry & Geophysics
U. Ryb, Y. Erel, A. Matthews, Y. Avni, D. Stern
Summary: The study reveals that mineral deposits are formed at divergent plate boundaries through water-rock reactions. Isotopic geochemical analysis indicates mixing of marine and deep-seated groundwater solutions with country rocks along tectonic lines.
GEOCHEMISTRY GEOPHYSICS GEOSYSTEMS
(2022)
Article
Geochemistry & Geophysics
Samuele Papeschi, Paola Vannucchi, Takehiro Hirose, Keishi Okazaki
Summary: This study documents the existence of an exhumed plate boundary shear zone, known as the Norsi-Cavo Complex (NCC), which developed during the early stages of the Apennines in Northern Italy. The NCC is composed of oceanic sediments and serpentinites and is continuously exposed on the island of Elba. The authors interpret the formation of the NCC as a result of material transfer from the upper plate to the subduction channel through tectonic erosion at the base of the prism. The findings suggest that the NCC formed during eastward subduction of the Ligurian Ocean and ceased when the continental margin entered the subduction.
Article
Geosciences, Multidisciplinary
Jean-Christophe Wrobel-Daveau, Graeme Nicoll, Michael G. Tetley, Benjamin Greselle, Lucia Perez-Diaz, Andrew Davies, Bruce M. Eglington
Summary: The formulation of plate tectonic theory and its application in simulating the motion of lithospheric units has significantly advanced geosciences, supporting industry funded research, geological understanding, and resource exploration, with a growing importance in the current energy transition.
EARTH-SCIENCE REVIEWS
(2022)
Article
Geosciences, Multidisciplinary
Hakkyum Choi, Seung-Sep Kim, Sung-Hyun Park
Summary: Oceanic plates grow through narrow boundaries like mid-ocean ridges and transform faults, but the discovery of diffuse plate boundaries indicates another way of accommodating plate motion differences. Microplate formation requires specific tectonic conditions to evolve into an independent and rigid plate, otherwise resulting in a microplate with diffuse plate boundaries.
GEOSCIENCES JOURNAL
(2021)
Article
Geochemistry & Geophysics
Fahrudin, Chanmaly Chhun, Takeshi Tsuji
Summary: In this study, a shear zone associated with the plate boundary fault was mapped using seismic reflection data, and it was found that the thick part of the shear zone had high pore fluid pressure and was prone to tectonic tremors. The oblique strike-slip faults controlled the thickness of the shear zone and the distribution of tremors.
Article
Geochemistry & Geophysics
Barra A. Peak, Rebecca M. Flowers, Francis A. Macdonald
Summary: The Great Unconformity erosion surface between Paleozoic sedimentary rocks and Archean-Proterozoic basement has been explained by multiple factors including glacial erosion during Snowball Earth glaciations, sea level fluctuations, and tectonic and geodynamic mechanisms. New data from zircon and apatite (U-Th)/He thermochronology show that there was extensive exhumation in the study area between approximately 590-577 Ma and 470 Ma, suggesting that tectonic and geodynamic processes were the main causes of the Great Unconformity. These findings expand our understanding of the spatial extent of exhumation in the Canadian Shield and suggest that glacial and sea-level processes were not the primary drivers.
EARTH AND PLANETARY SCIENCE LETTERS
(2023)
Article
Geochemistry & Geophysics
Anna Clinger, Matthew Fox, Greg Balco, Kurt Cuffey, David Shuster
Summary: This study reports 534 detrital apatite (U-Th)/He thermochronometric ages collected along a > 400 km latitudinal transect along the Antarctic Peninsula (AP), and evaluates the relative roles of climate change and tectonics on the timing of km-scale fjord incision. The results show that tectonically-initiated rock uplift accelerated rates of erosion during long glacial conditions at the AP.
EARTH AND PLANETARY SCIENCE LETTERS
(2022)
Article
Geochemistry & Geophysics
Hugh Harper, Brook Tozer, David T. Sandwell, Richard N. Hey
Summary: The analysis of new satellite-derived vertical gravity gradient data reveals the existence of a phenomenon called seesaw propagators (SSPs) on the seafloor with half spreading rates between 10 and 40 mm year(-1), characterized by off-axis seafloor features oblique to ridges and transform faults. These SSPs commonly reverse direction and are found to form on young and thin lithosphere, showing directional changes in time and space that do not correlate with previous regional-scale models for ridge propagation.
JOURNAL OF GEOPHYSICAL RESEARCH-SOLID EARTH
(2021)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Chuanqi He, Ci-Jian Yang, Jens M. Turowski, Gang Rao, Duna C. Roda-Boluda, Xiao-Ping Yuan
Summary: One of the most conspicuous features of a mountain belt is the main drainage divide, which can be used to extract tectonic information and increases in mountain asymmetry with increasing uplift gradient and advection velocity. The authors constrain the tectonic uplift and advection of a mountain belt from the location and migration direction of its main drainage divide.
NATURE COMMUNICATIONS
(2021)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
S. Homrighausen, K. Hoernle, H. Zhou, J. Geldmacher, J-A Wartho, F. Hauff, R. Werner, S. Jung, J. P. Morgan
Article
Geosciences, Multidisciplinary
Max Webb, Amy Gough, Paola Vannucchi, Nils K. Luensdorf, Joseph McNeil
Summary: This study uses big data Raman spectroscopy heavy mineral analysis and U-Pb zircon data to define the sediment source regions for the Nicobar Fan during the Plio-Pleistocene, revealing a more complex array of sources than previously thought. While detrital zircon spectra are consistent with Himalayan sources, heavy mineral data indicate a variety of proximal sources for the sediment, suggesting a different sediment delivery mechanism into the Nicobar Fan in the Pleistocene onwards.
MARINE AND PETROLEUM GEOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Ingo Grevemeyer, Lars H. Ruepke, Jason P. Morgan, Karthik Iyer, Colin W. Devey
Summary: Oceanic transform faults, which were previously believed to be conservative two-dimensional strike-slip boundaries, are revealed to be more complex due to deeper seafloor along the faults than their associated fracture zones. Accretion at intersections between oceanic ridges and transform faults is asymmetric, with outside corners showing shallower relief and more extensive magmatism. This leads to a two-stage process of accretion at transform-fault systems, different from other regions along mid-ocean ridges.
Article
Geochemistry & Geophysics
Ya-Nan Shi, Zhong-Hai Li, Ling Chen, Jason P. Morgan
Summary: Removal and thinning of cratonic lithosphere can occur under different tectonic settings, with subduction-induced modification being widely discussed while plume-induced lithospheric removal remaining elusive. Through thermo-mechanical models, it was found that the interaction between a mantle plume and a weak mid-lithosphere discontinuity layer can lead to significant lithospheric removal, with factors like plume radius, temperature anomaly, and viscosity playing critical roles. A systematic comparison between subduction-induced and plume-induced lithospheric thinning patterns showed significant differences in melt generation, water content, and topographic evolution.
Article
Geosciences, Multidisciplinary
Ya-Nan Shi, Jason P. Morgan
Summary: This study examines the delamination of the lower lithosphere induced by the Yellowstone plume and its interaction with the western North American lithosphere. The excess melting caused by the filling of a hole by the Yellowstone plume material triggered the excess melting event of the Columbia River Basalt about 17 million years ago. The delaminated lower lithosphere is currently located to the northeast of the Columbia River Basalt.
GEOPHYSICAL RESEARCH LETTERS
(2022)
Editorial Material
Geosciences, Multidisciplinary
Hector Perea, Sara Martinez-Loriente, Jillian Maloney, Francesco Emanuele Maesano, Paola Vannucchi
FRONTIERS IN EARTH SCIENCE
(2021)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Jason P. Morgan, Paola Vannucchi
Summary: When continents collide, fragments of seafloor can be trapped within the growing orogenic belt, forming a unique form of continental crust and lithosphere known as transmogrified basin. These basins, originally stronger blocks, will eventually become sites for continental rifting. In modern Asia, transmogrifying basins have played a significant role in the formation of mountain belts and the strengthening of the East Asian Monsoon.
PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
(2022)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Paola Vannucchi, Alexander Clarke, Albert de Montserrat, Audrey Ougier-Simonin, Luca Aldega, Jason P. Morgan
Summary: Researchers use multiple approaches to explain the occurrence and characteristics of seismic tremors on subduction plate boundaries. They find that blocks of weak rocks in a stronger matrix can explain these tremor events, and provide evidence through geological observations, geomechanical lab measurements, and numerical simulations.
NATURE COMMUNICATIONS
(2022)
Article
Geochemistry & Geophysics
J-Y Collot, J-N Proust, J-M Nocquet, C. Martillo, F. Michaud, J-F Lebrun, L. Schenini, S. Popescu, M-J Hernandez, G. Ratzov
Summary: In this study, we investigated the relationship between long-term and short-term interplate coupling in the Central Ecuador subduction zone. Using marine geophysical and chronostratigraphic data, we found that the evolution of the tectonic features and interplate coupling led to the formation of geodetically locked patches. The deeper patch experienced coseismic rupture during the 2016 Pedernales earthquake, while the shallower patch primarily underwent after-slip. Additionally, we observed that outer-wedge strike-slip faults and subducted reliefs played a role in plate coupling.
JOURNAL OF GEOPHYSICAL RESEARCH-SOLID EARTH
(2022)
Article
Geochemistry & Geophysics
Mathilde Bablon, Gueorgui Ratzov, Francois Nauret, Pablo Samaniego, Francois Michaud, Marianne Saillard, Jean-Noel Proust, Jean-Luc Le Pennec, Jean-Yves Collot, Jean-Luc Devidal, Francois Orange, Celine Liorzou, Sebastien Migeon, Silvia Vallejo, Silvana Hidalgo, Patricia Mothes, Miguel Gonzalez
Summary: This study uses marine sediments to study the frequency, magnitude, and source of past major explosive volcanic eruptions. The research provides important data for volcanic hazard assessment and reveals that at least seven volcanic eruptions in the Ecuadorian and Colombian arc left volcanic ash deposits recorded in marine cores over 250 km away from their sources.
GEOCHEMISTRY GEOPHYSICS GEOSYSTEMS
(2022)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Shanshan Wu, Zhen Guo, Yongshun John Chen, Jason P. Morgan
Summary: In the last 50 million years, the East Asian continent has experienced massive continental collision and deformation. The relationship between lithospheric deformation and asthenospheric flow has been difficult to determine. This study presents a high resolution 3-D model for the northeastern Tibetan Plateau, revealing the blocking effect of cratonic keels on asthenosphere flow and the different flow directions between asthenosphere and overlying lithosphere.
PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
(2022)
Article
Geochemistry & Geophysics
Ba Manh Le, Ting Yang, Jason P. P. Morgan
Summary: We infer the lithospheric structure beneath the Hawaiian Swell based on a joint inversion of ambient noise and teleseismic Rayleigh waves collected during the PLUME experiment. We find low-velocity anomalies beneath the lithosphere along the island chain and beneath the North Arch, consistent with the presence of melting regions and recent volcanic fields.
JOURNAL OF GEOPHYSICAL RESEARCH-SOLID EARTH
(2022)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Liang Liu, Lijun Liu, Jason. P. Morgan, Yi-Gang Xu, Ling Chen
Summary: The type of lithosphere subducted between India and Tibet has been a subject of debate, with suggestions ranging from completely continental to entirely oceanic or a mixture of the two. This study uses numerical models to explore the nature and density structure of the lost lithosphere and shows that Tibetan tectonism away from the Himalayan syntaxis is consistent with the initial indentation of a craton-like terrane followed by the subduction of a buoyant tectonic plate with a thin crust.
NATURE COMMUNICATIONS
(2023)