Abstract
ABSTRACT We propose a thermo‐mechanical model and a new interpretation of heat flux data for the Ligurian basin that may be a key to understanding the evolution of the NW Mediterranean. The model incorporates the removal of a portion of mantle lithosphere to explain the heat‐flux and subsidence anomaly of the eastern (Corsican) margin of the basin. This process is envisaged as a result of eastward asthenosphere flow induced by the Apennines subduction system. After a heating phase, time‐dependent conductive cooling and re‐thickening of the lithosphere result in re‐equilibrium of the thermal gradient to its initial value. Such a rifting mode can account for the asymmetric heat‐flux and subsidence pattern observed across the basin and the present‐day lithospheric thickness.
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