An admittance study of the Reykjanes Ridge and elevated plateaux between the Charlie-Gibbs and Senja fracture zones

Abstract

SUMMARY The North Atlantic between the Charlie–Gibbs and Senja Fracture Zones shows a number of oceanic plateaux, continental fragments and unusual mid-oceanic ridges, the Reykjanes Ridges and the Iceland Plateau being the most prominent ones. While rifted continental fragments and marginal volcanic plateaux have been formed during the initial formation process of the North Atlantic, others, such as the Reykjanes Ridge and plume-related plateaux such as Iceland and possibly also Jan Mayen, are still under development. By studying the ratio of geoid to topography in the long-wavelength range for these regions of elevated topography and comparing the results with theoretical models of crustal loading and subsurface thermal uplift we can show that the Rockall Bank and the Voring Plateau are compensated by a thick crust alone, while the Iceland Plateau, the outer Faeroe Plateau and the Jan Mayen Block have a strong component of deeply situated mass anomalies. The admittance, the spectral ratio of geoid to topography, for a number of profiles across the Reykjanes Ridge clearly indicates a decreas ei n compensation depth with distance from Iceland. This strengthens the argument for a mass flux from the Iceland Plume into the Reykjanes Ridge.