Mantle avalanche as a driving force for tectonic reorganization in the southwest Pacific

The mechanism responsible for the recent, dramatic reorganization of the tectonic plate boundary in the New Hebrides region of the southwest Pacific has remained elusive. We propose that an ongoing avalanche of cold, dense slab material into the lower mantle, imaged by high-resolution seismic tomogr...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Earth and planetary science letters 2003-04, Vol.209 (1), p.29-38
Main Authors: Pysklywec, R.N., Mitrovica, J.X., Ishii, M.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
mantle convection
Marine
New Hebrides
numerical modeling
plate tectonics
subduction
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Summary:The mechanism responsible for the recent, dramatic reorganization of the tectonic plate boundary in the New Hebrides region of the southwest Pacific has remained elusive. We propose that an ongoing avalanche of cold, dense slab material into the lower mantle, imaged by high-resolution seismic tomographic methods, provides the necessary driving force for this enigmatic evolution. Numerical experiments demonstrate that the avalanche model reconciles a broad suite of observational constraints, including the change in polarity of plate subduction, the rapid migration of the New Hebrides arc and opening of the North Fiji Basin, and the present-day geometry of slabs associated with both active and extinct subduction zones.
ISSN:0012-821X
1385-013X
DOI:10.1016/S0012-821X(03)00073-6