Spatial and temporal patterns of Cenozoic dynamic topography around Australia

Abstract

Despite its importance, the spatial and temporal pattern of dynamic topography generated by mantle convective circulation is poorly known. We present accurate estimates of dynamic topography from oceanic basins and continental margins surrounding Australia. Our starting point is measurement of residual depth anomalies on the oldest oceanic floor adjacent to the continental shelf. These anomalies were determined from a combined dataset of ~200 seismic reflection and wide‐angle images of well‐sedimented oceanic crust. They have amplitudes of between −1 km and +0.5 km, and their spatial variation is broadly consistent with long‐wavelength free‐air gravity and shallow seismic tomographic anomalies. Along the Northwest Shelf, a regional depth anomaly of −300 to −700 m intersects the adjacent continental shelf. The temporal evolution of this anomaly was determined by analyzing the stratigraphic architecture of an extensive carbonate platform, which fringes the shelf and records a dramatic switch from progradation to aggradation during Neogene times. Three‐dimensional seismic mapping calibrated by boreholes was used to calculate water‐loaded subsidence histories at rollover points of clinoforms along the shelf. At 9 ± 3 Ma, the rate of subsidence increases from 5 to up 75 m Myr−1, generating a subsidence anomaly of −300 to −700 m. The amplitude of this anomaly varies along the shelf and cannot be generated by glacio‐eustatic sea‐level variation. Instead, we propose that a regional subsidence episode, which affects both the proximal shelf and the distal oceanic basin, was generated by convective drawdown. By combining our results with other published estimates of uplift and subsidence, a map of Australia, which shows the spatial and temporal pattern of dynamic topography is presented. Most, but not all, of Australia's epeirogeny can be attributed to rapid northward motion of the Australian plate over a pre‐existing pattern of convective circulation.