Antarctic Plate Research Articles

Origin of the Adventure Subglacial Trench linked to Cenozoic extension in the East Antarctic Craton

The Antarctic plate occupies a unique geodynamic setting being mostly surrounded by divergent or transform margins. Major intracontinental basins and highlands characterize its bedrock, buried under the 34Ma East Antarctic Ice Sheet (EAIS). Their formation atop of the cratonic lithosphere in the interior of East Antarctica remains a major open question. Post-Mesozoic intraplate extensional tectonic activity has been proposed for their development and is supported by this work. Here we focus on the Adventure Subglacial Trench (AST) whose origin is poorly constrained and controversial, as currently available geophysical models suggest either extensional or compressional tectonic origin. The AST is an over 250-km-long, 60-km-wide subglacial trough, elongated in the NNW–SSE direction adjacent to the westernmost flank of the Wilkes Subglacial Basin, and is parallel to regional scale alignments of magnetic and gravimetric anomalies. Geophysical campaigns allowed better definition of the AST physiography showing its typical half-graben geometry. The rounded morphology of the western flank of the AST was simulated through tectonic numerical modelling. We consider the subglacial landscape to primarily reflect a preserved relict of the tectonic processes affecting the interior of East Antarctica in the Cenozoic, due to the negligible erosion/deposition capability of the EAIS. The bedrock morphology was replicated through the activity of the listric Adventure Fault, characterized by a basal detachment at the base of the crust (34km) and a vertical displacement of 2.5km. This length suggests its regional/crustal importance. The predicted displacement is interpreted either as a newly formed fault or as the partial reactivation of a weaker zone along a major Precambrian crustal-scale tectonic boundary. The extensional regime in the AST is part of a more extensive 800-km long intraplate corridor characterized by nearly along-strike extension in Cenozoic times with a left-lateral transpressional component. This corridor may represent the effect of far-field stresses induced by plate motions.

An abandoned rift in the southwestern part of the South Scotia Ridge (Antarctica): Implications for the genesis of the Bransfield Strait

AbstractThe western segment of the South Scotia Ridge is a narrow submarine ridge composed of continental crustal blocks, which hosts the left‐lateral boundary between the Scotia and Antarctic plates. This plate boundary segment gradually merges westward with the Bransfield Strait, a young (<4 Ma) basin located between the South Shetland Islands and the northern segment of the Antarctic Peninsula. Here we present a series of multichannel seismic profiles that reveal the presence of a linear chain of submarine volcanic edifices running parallel to the present‐day Scotia‐Antarctic plate boundary. These edifices consist of alkali basalts (~4 Ma), as shown by published data from a dredge haul. The occurrence, distribution, and shape of these magmatic manifestations suggest that they were emplaced in a rift‐related environment, associated with the activity of the former western segment of the Scotia‐Antarctic plate boundary. When spreading centers of the Phoenix‐Antarctic ridge NW of the South Shetland Islands became inactive at about 3.3 Ma, the former western Scotia‐Antarctic plate boundary was abandoned, and it moved to the present‐day location of the Bransfield Strait, where the motion was accommodated, and where active extension is ongoing. The proposed mechanism for the development of the Bransfield Strait, consistent with the temporal sequence of tectonic events, reconciles discrepancies in tectonic evolutionary models presented till now and does not require the presence of slab‐pull and/or slab retreat forces. The Bransfield Strait is not a classic back‐arc basin, but rather an actively extending marginal basin at the transition from mature rifting to incipient, punctiform spreading.

Incomplete separability of Antarctic plate rotation from glacial isostatic adjustment deformation within geodetic observations

Geodetic measurements of Antarctic solid Earth deformation include signals from plate rotation and glacial isostatic adjustment (GIA). Through simulation, we investigate the degree to which these signals are separable within horizontal GPS site velocities that commonly define plate rotation estimates and that promise new constraints on models of GIA. Using a suite of GIA model predictions that incorporate both 1-D and 3-D Earth rheologies, we show that, given the present location of GPS sites within East Antarctica, unmodelled or mismodelled GIA signal within GPS velocities produces biased estimates of plate rotation. When biased plate rotation is removed from the GPS velocities, errors as large as 0.8 mm yr−1 are introduced; a value commonly larger than the predicted GIA signal magnitude. In the absence of reliable forward models of plate rotation or GIA then Antarctic geodetic velocities cannot totally and unambiguously constrain either process, especially GIA.

Geodetic implications on block formation and geodynamic domains in the South Shetland Islands, Antarctic Peninsula

The South Shetland Islands archipelago is dynamically complex due to its tectonic surroundings. Most islands are part of a formerly active volcanic arc, although Deception, Penguin and Bridgeman Islands, as well as several submarine volcanoes, are characterized by active back-arc volcanism. Geodetic benchmarks were deployed and the movement of the lithosphere to which they were fixed measured to provide geodynamic insight for the South Shetland Islands, Bransfield Basin and Antarctic Peninsula area based on surface deformation. These benchmarks' data add spatial and temporal coverage to previous results. The results reveal two different geodynamic patterns, each confined to a distinct part of the South Shetland Islands archipelago. The inferred absolute horizontal velocity vectors for the benchmarks in the northeastern part of the archipelago are consistent with the opening of the Bransfield Basin, while benchmark vectors in the southwestern part of the archipelago are similar to those of the benchmarks on the Antarctic Peninsula. In between, Snow, Deception and Livingston Islands represent a transition zone. In this area, the horizontal velocity vectors relative to the Antarctic plate shift northeastwards from N to NW. Furthermore, the South Shetland Islands benchmarks, except for that at Gibbs (Elephant) Islands, indicate subsidence, which might be a consequence of the slab roll-back at the South Shetland Trench. In contrast, the uplift revealed by the Antarctic Peninsula benchmarks suggests glacial isostatic adjustment after the Larson B ice-shelf breakup.

Revision of Paleogene plate motions in the Pacific and implications for the Hawaiian-Emperor bend

Research Article| May 01, 2015 Revision of Paleogene plate motions in the Pacific and implications for the Hawaiian-Emperor bend Nicky M. Wright; Nicky M. Wright EarthByte Group, School of Geosciences, University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW 2006, Australia Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar R. Dietmar Müller; R. Dietmar Müller EarthByte Group, School of Geosciences, University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW 2006, Australia Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Maria Seton; Maria Seton EarthByte Group, School of Geosciences, University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW 2006, Australia Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Simon E. Williams Simon E. Williams EarthByte Group, School of Geosciences, University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW 2006, Australia Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Geology (2015) 43 (5): 455–458. https://doi.org/10.1130/G36303.1 Article history received: 23 Sep 2014 rev-recd: 25 Feb 2015 accepted: 03 Mar 2015 first online: 09 Mar 2017 Cite View This Citation Add to Citation Manager Share Icon Share Facebook Twitter LinkedIn MailTo Tools Icon Tools Get Permissions Search Site Citation Nicky M. Wright, R. Dietmar Müller, Maria Seton, Simon E. Williams; Revision of Paleogene plate motions in the Pacific and implications for the Hawaiian-Emperor bend. Geology 2015;; 43 (5): 455–458. doi: https://doi.org/10.1130/G36303.1 Download citation file: Ris (Zotero) Refmanager EasyBib Bookends Mendeley Papers EndNote RefWorks BibTex toolbar search Search Dropdown Menu toolbar search search input Search input auto suggest filter your search All ContentBy SocietyGeology Search Advanced Search Abstract Understanding the relative motion between the Pacific plate and its neighboring plates in the Paleogene has important consequences for deciphering the relationship between absolute and relative plate motions in the Pacific Ocean basin, the history of circum-Pacific subduction, and the cause of the Hawaiian-Emperor bend (HEB). We quantitatively model the Farallon/Vancouver-Pacific-Antarctic seafloor spreading history from 67 to 33 Ma based on a comprehensive synthesis of magnetic anomaly and fracture identifications. We find a well-constrained increase from 75 ± 5 mm/yr to 101 ± 5 mm/yr in Pacific-Farallon full spreading rates between 57.6 Ma and 55.9 Ma, followed by a stepwise increase to 182 ± 2 mm/yr from 49.7 to 40.1 Ma. The increases in Pacific-Farallon spreading rates are not accompanied by any statistically significant change in spreading direction. The 57.6–55.9 Ma surge of Pacific-Farallon spreading reflects an eastward acceleration in Farallon plate motion, as it precedes west Pacific subduction initiation and is not associated with any significant change in Pacific-Antarctic spreading. We interpret the increase in Pacific-Farallon spreading rates after ca. 50 Ma as a consequence of further acceleration in Farallon plate motion. We find no indication of a major change in Pacific plate absolute motion at this time. Our model suggests that changes in relative motion direction between the Pacific and Farallon and Pacific and Antarctic plates were insignificant around the formation time of the HEB (ca. 47.5 Ma), and the bend is largely a consequence of Hawaiian hotspot motion, which ceased rapid motion after 47 Ma. You do not have access to this content, please speak to your institutional administrator if you feel you should have access.

First Estimate of Plate Motion at Maitri GPS Site, Indian Base Station at Antarctica

Abstract We analyse GPS data from the Indian permanent GPS station at Maitri for measuring the plate motion at this site. We find that this site moves at a velocity of 4.6 mm/year predominantly towards north, which is consistent with the expected plate motion of Antarctic plate at this site.

Morphostructural analysis and Cenozoic evolution of Elephant Island, Southern Scotia Arc, Antarctica

Elephant Island, located in the vicinity of the present-day active boundary of the South Shetland Block and the Antarctic and Scotia plates, is a region of particular interest for understanding the past and present geodynamic evolution of the southern Scotia Arc. Lineament from different data sources, field-measured fractures and geomorphological evidences have been analysed in this context. The lineaments extracted from aerial photographs (1,624), from a DEM (348) and from RADARSAT-2 satellite data (1,365) indicate four dominant lineament sets with NE–SW, NW–SE, N–S and W–E strikes. All data sources identified similar lineament families, but differences in the frequency distributions and subsequently on the dominant orientations were observed. The measurements direct of fractures were obtained from 23 sites in the field at which 278 planes were measured. Fracture planes indicate main modes trending in the NNE–SSW and NNW–SSE directions and a secondary mode in the E–W. The major trends of the fracture measurements and the lineaments display a good correlation in the E–W direction. However, there is an angular variation in the azimuth values of the NNE–SSE and NNW–SSE fractures with respect to the N–S, NE–SW and NW–SE orientations of the lineaments of approximately 20°. This trend deviation may be due to the fact that mapped lineaments are composed of small fracture sets that may be related to shear fractures that cannot be distinguished at the aerial photograph or radar satellite data scales. Submerged sea-floor morphological feature orientations match the studied morphostructures on the island and the main tectonic structures in this part of the Scotia Arc. A linkage of the main lineament families to the tectonic stages from the Oligocene to the present has been proposed, taking into account the information of the orientation and sense of movement of the fractures and stresses in the Elephant Island region.

Large-Scale Present-Day Plate Boundary Deformations in the Eastern Hemisphere Determined from VLBI Data: Implications for Plate Tectonics and Indian Ocean Growth

The dynamics of the planet Earth are manifestations of diverse plate tectonic processes which have been occurring since the Archean period of the Earth’s evolution and continue to deform the plate boundaries. Very long baseline interferometry (VLBI) is an efficient space geodetic method that enables precise measurement of plate motion and associated deformations. We analyze here VLBI measurements made during a period of approximately three decades at five locations on the Eastern hemisphere of the globe, which are geographically distributed over five continents (plates) around the Indian Ocean. Computed rate of change of baseline length show the deformation pattern and its rate at the boundaries between the major tectonic plates constituting the Eastern hemisphere of the Earth. The African (Nubian) and Antarctic plates are moving apart at 13.5 mm/year, which is mostly attributed to spreading of the South West Indian Ridge. Similarly, spreading of 59.0 mm/year is observed for the South East Indian Ridge that separates the Antarctic and Australian plates. Shortening at the rate of 3.9 mm/year is estimated across the subduction boundary between Africa (Nubia) and Eurasia. Similar convergence is evident between the Australian and Sunda blocks (of the Eurasian plate). The associated deformation of −54.8 mm/year seems to be chiefly accommodated along the Banda arc system, where the Australian plate is subducting under the Sunda block. VLBI sites within the Eurasian plate, Wettzell in Germany, and Seshan on the South China block, are moving apart at 3.6 mm/year. This relative motion between locations on the same plate is interpreted as a result of the deformation process along a large strike–slip fault, which is identified as the Western boundary of the South China block. Expansion of the Indian Ocean, at +91.5 m2/year, is also estimated from the rate of deformation estimated within the five baselines studied here. From the Hurst exponent values, which are indicators of the future trend of time series data, we predict deceleration of the various tectonic processes occurring at present.

Plate convergence west of Patagonia and the Antarctic Peninsula since 61 Ma

A new plate kinematic model portrays plate motions immediately west and south of Drake Passage in the southeast Pacific Ocean. Overall intermediate-to-slow rate spreading generated oceanic lithosphere as the Phoenix plate diverged from the Antarctic plate. The model shows a history of Phoenix plate motion that is interpretable as having been affected by a northeast-increasing gradient in the slab pull force since chron 18 (39Ma), during which time newer, less dense lithosphere was subducting in the southwest than in the northeast. The model allows first calculations of Phoenix–Farallon (Nazca) plate motion parameters in the south Pacific plate circuit. Using these parameters, it is possible to show that the simplest assumptions about the ridge's segmentation, length and migration are consistent with existing suggestions of its location from consideration of slab window-related volcanism at sites in South America around 50 and 20Ma. The parameters thus define ridge locations that can be used to define which plates were subducting beneath South America and the Magallanes and Antarctic plates, and when. We consider the relationships between the plate convergence rate, obliquity and the history of magmatism on the Antarctic Peninsula and at the North Patagonian batholith, showing that magmatic pulses can be related to accelerations in the plate convergence rate. Between these settings, Phoenix–South American plate motion was almost parallel to the Fuegian trench. Here, magmatism in Paleocene to early Miocene times must be related to the presence of a slab subducted beneath the region by the less oblique collision further north. Later magmatism can be related to migration of the Phoenix–Farallon ridge and Phoenix–Farallon–Antarctic triple junction into the area south of the Fuegian margin, which brought it into slow low-obliquity convergence with first Farallon and then Antarctic plate lithosphere.

Evolution of the stress field in the southern Scotia Arc from the late Mesozoic to the present-day

The geological evolution of the Scotia Arc, which developed between Antarctica and South America, has facilitated the connection between the Pacific and Atlantic oceans and, has important global implications. To improve the knowledge of the late Mesozoic evolution of the southern Scotia Arc, over 6000 brittle mesostructures were measured over the last 20years at different outcrops from the northern Antarctic Peninsula and the South Shetland Islands as well as the James Ross and South Orkney archipelagos. This dataset covers a length of more than 1000km of the arc. Fault data were analysed using the Etchecopar, y-R, Right Dihedra, Stress Inversion and Search Grid Inversion Palaeostress Determination methods. A total of 275 stress tensors were obtained. The results showed that the maximum horizontal stress was in the ENE-WSW and the NW-SE orientations and that the horizontal extension tensors were oriented NE-SW and NW-SE. In addition, seismic activity and focal mechanism solutions were analysed using the Gephart method to establish the present-day stress field and characterise the active tectonics. The results obtained suggest that there is a regional NE-SW compression and a NW-SE extension regime at the present day. The Southern Scotia Arc has a complex geological history due to the different tectonic settings (transform, convergent and divergent) that have affected this sector during its geological evolution from the late Mesozoic until the present day. Six stress fields were obtained from the brittle mesostructure population analysis in the region. The NW-SE and N-S maximum horizontal stresses were related to a combination of Mesozoic oceanic subduction of the former Phoenix Plate under the Pacific margin of the Antarctic Plate, Mesozoic–Cenozoic subduction of the northern Weddell Sea and the Oligocene to the Middle Miocene dextral strike-slip movement between the Scotia and Antarctic plates along the South Scotia Ridge. The NE-SW compression was related to late Miocene to present-day sinistral transcurrent movement along the South Scotia Ridge. Finally, the NW-SE extensional stress field may be related to the development of the following back-arc basins: the Late Cretaceous–Eocene Larsen Basin, the Lower to Middle Miocene Jane Basin and the Pliocene to present-day Bransfield Basin. In addition, the NE-SW and the E-W tensional stress fields were related to the Oligocene opening of the Powell Basin.

Tectonic development, sedimentation and paleoceanography of the Scan Basin (southern Scotia Sea, Antarctica)

The N–S trending Scan Basin is the easternmost deep basin north of the South Scotia Ridge, which is a geologically complex structural elevation that hosts the strike-slip boundary between the Scotia and Antarctic plates. We characterized the main morpho-structural features of the basin by analyzing the available multichannel seismic reflection profiles. The reconstruction of the seismo-stratigraphy reveals the growth patterns of the Scan Basin. Seismic data and gravity modeling support the interpretation that the basin is mainly floored by oceanic crust, however its northern and southern provinces exhibit different seismic attributes. Stratigraphic calibrations with adjacent regions together with the distribution of sedimentary units indicate that this basin was formed by rifting processes and subsequent spreading accretion from the Oligocene to the Miocene. This age attribution suggests that the Scan Basin might be one of the oldest oceanic basins of the southern Scotia Sea—possibly coeval with the Eocene–Oligocene opening of the Drake Passage. The basin is the most direct connection between the Weddell Sea and the Scotia Sea, whereas the stratigraphic features reveal the occurrence of major paleoceanographic changes. The initial phases of the evolution were influenced by mass-transport and turbidite processes of sediment supply from the nearby continental margins of the eastern tip of the Antarctic Peninsula. From the Middle Miocene to the Present-day, the eastward motion of the basin due to plate tectonic and the connection with the Weddell Sea through gateways enabled instauration of the overflow of Weddell Sea Deep Water (WSDW) into the Scan Basin. The WSDW forced the northward migration of the Circumpolar Deep Water (CDW) and became progressively dominant, controlling depositional patterns. The results that we report here should prove essential for understanding the formation of the Scotia Sea, the beginning of the Scotia Arc fragmentation, and the increasing role played by Weddell Sea/Scotia Sea water-mass exchange.

Mass transport processes in the southern Scotia Sea: Evidence of paleoearthquakes

The southern margin of the Scotia Sea hosts the convergent boundary between the Scotia and Antarctic plates where a number of small basins are situated. Mass transport deposits (MTDs) within two of these small basins, Dove and Scan basins, reveal the importance of seismicity, slope instabilities and depositional processes in their growth patterns. Swath-bathymetry and very high-resolution seismic data show that there are over 200 MTDs in these basins in the last 100ky record. MTD characterizations are determined on the basis of their regional distribution, shape, apparent size and depth. Their sedimentary and tectonic implications are discussed, as well as the evidence of different triggering mechanisms in this region, which is characterized at present by moderate-to-high magnitude, shallow to intermediate earthquakes. MTDs are more abundant in the Dove Basin (with lenticular and wedge shapes), suggesting that this basin was affected by active tectonics to a greater degree than the Scan Basin. This finding is significant in the overall evolutionary context of the Scotia Sea region and Scotia–Antarctic plate geodynamics. Nevertheless, other factors —volcanic activity, vigorous bottom-currents, and/or higher sedimentation rates — must also be considered for the generation of MTDs in the Scan Basin, where a variety of processes generated more diverse MTD morphologies. Paleoseismological estimations of the repeated occurrence of wedge shaped MTDs in contact with fault scarps point to potential sources of large magnitude (Mw ~7.2–7.3) paleoearthquakes in several sites, in agreement with the present high magnitudes of regional seismicity. This study shows MTDs to be appropriate as paleoearthquake indicators in active tectonic settings. The distribution of MTDs in the southern Scotia Sea has important implications for geodynamic and geohazard research. They may prove to be unmistakable stratigraphic markers for future basin analysis.

Complementary slip distributions of the August 4, 2003 Mw 7.6 and November 17, 2013 Mw 7.8 South Scotia Ridge earthquakes

The South Scotia Ridge Transform (SSRT) plate boundary between the Scotia and Antarctic plates experienced large strike-slip earthquakes on August 4, 2003 (Mw 7.6) and November 17, 2013 (Mw 7.8). These events have overlapping aftershock zones, which is unusual. A 36°–45° southward dipping fault zone ruptured with left-lateral displacements in each event along the northern margin of the South Orkney micro-continent near 60°S. Slip distributions for the two events are determined using teleseismic body and surface wave recordings along with constraints from GPS ground motion recordings at station BORC on Laurie Island (South Orkney Islands), just south of the SSRT. The aftershock distributions, high-frequency back-projections, and unconstrained body wave finite-fault inversions permit significant overlap of the 2003 and 2013 slip zones; however, the GPS static displacements resolve differences in the large-slip regions of the two ruptures. The 2013 earthquake sequence along the SSRT initiated with Mw 6.1 (November 13) and Mw 6.8 (November 16) foreshocks located ∼50 km west of the mainshock hypocenter, and had aftershocks extending ∼250 km eastward. The rupture spread primarily eastward at ∼2.5 km/s with a total rupture duration of about 120 s, with two distinct patches of large-slip located northwest and northeast of the South Orkney Islands. The rupture swept past BORC, with high-rate GPS (HRGPS) ground motion recordings capturing the time-varying slip history of the faulting. Traditional GPS data require that the largest-slip region of the shorter rupture in 2003 is located in the gap NNE of BORC between the two patches that ruptured in 2013. There appears to be some overlap of lower slip regions. The complementary slip distributions comprise a relatively uniform offset along this portion of the SSRT, which is one of the most seismically active regions of the entire Antarctic plate boundary.

Ten year recurrence time between two major earthquakes affecting the same fault segment

Earthquake ruptures stop when they encounter barriers impeding further propagation. These barriers can theoretically originate from changes of geometry or nature of the seismic faults or from a strong lowering of the tectonic stresses, typically due to the occurrence of a recent major earthquake. We show here that this latter mechanism can be ineffective at stopping rupture expansion: the 17 November 2013 magnitude 7.8 Scotia Sea earthquake has propagated into a 100 km long zone already ruptured 10 years ago by a magnitude 7.6 earthquake. Given the plate velocities between Scotia and Antarctic plates (8–9 mm/yr), simple recurrence models would have predicted that the segment affected by the 2003 earthquake could not be reruptured by a major earthquake during several hundreds of years. This earthquake pair indicates that the variations of the tectonic stress during the seismic history of the fault are small compared to the stresses dynamically generated by a large earthquake.

Present‐day kinematics of the East African Rift

The East African Rift (EAR) is a type locale for investigating the processes that drive continental rifting and breakup. The current kinematics of this ~5000 km long divergent plate boundary between the Nubia and Somalia plates is starting to be unraveled thanks to a recent augmentation of space geodetic data in Africa. Here we use a new data set combining episodic GPS measurements with continuous measurements on the Nubian, Somalian, and Antarctic plates, together with earthquake slip vector directions and geologic indicators along the Southwest Indian Ridge to update the present‐day kinematics of the EAR. We use geological and seismological data to determine the main rift faults and solve for rigid block rotations while accounting for elastic strain accumulation on locked active faults. We find that the data are best fit with a model that includes three microplates embedded within the EAR, between Nubia and Somalia (Victoria, Rovuma, and Lwandle), consistent with previous findings but with slower extension rates. We find that earthquake slip vectors provide information that is consistent with the GPS velocities and helps to significantly reduce uncertainties of plate angular velocity estimates. We also find that 3.16 Myr MORVEL average spreading rates along the Southwest Indian Ridge are systematically faster than prediction from GPS data alone. This likely indicates that outward displacement along the SWIR is larger than the default value used in the MORVEL plate motion model.

Are terrestrial plumes from motionless plates analogues to Martian plumes feeding the giant shield volcanoes?

Abstract On Earth, most tectonic plates are regenerated and recycled through convection. However, the Nubian and Antarctic plates could be considered as poorly mobile surfaces of various thicknesses that are acting as conductive lids on top of Earth's deeper convective system. Here, volcanoes do not show any linear age progression, at least not for the last 30 myr, but constitute the sites of persistent, focused, long-term magmatic activity rather than a chain of volcanoes, as observed in fast-moving plate plume environments. The melt products vertically accrete into huge accumulations. The residual depleted roots left behind by melting processes cannot be dragged away from the melting loci underlying the volcanoes, which may contribute to producing an unusually shallow depth of oceanic swells. The persistence of a stationary thick depleted lid slows down the efficiency of melting processes at shallow depths. Numerous characteristics of these volcanoes located on motionless plates may be shared by those of the giant volcanoes of the Tharsis province, as Mars is a one-plate planet. The aim of this chapter is to undertake a first inventory of these common features, in order to improve our knowledge of the construction processes of Martian volcanoes.

A potential barrier to deep Antarctic circumpolar flow until the late Miocene?

The central Scotia Sea, located between the South American and Antarctic plates, is an integral part of the marine conduit that permits eastward deep-water flow from the Pacific Ocean to the Atlantic Ocean. The geologic history of the central Scotia Sea is therefore critical for a full understanding of the initiation and subsequent evolution of the complete, deep Antarctic Circumpolar Current, widely believed to have been a key factor in the history of Antarctic glaciation. Here, we present new evidence on the nature and age of the central Scotia Sea floor. Multibeam surveys and the first dredged samples indicate that a now-submerged remnant volcanic arc may have formed a barrier to deep eastward oceanic circulation until after the mid-Miocene climatic optimum. Inception and development of a full deep Antarctic Circumpolar Current may therefore have been important, not in the drop in global temperatures at the Eocene-Oligocene boundary as long surmised, but in the subsequent late Miocene global cooling and intensification of Antarctic glaciation.

Geodynamic Reconstructions of the Australides—2: Mesozoic–Cainozoic

The present work, derived from a full global geodynamic reconstruction model over 600 Ma and based on a large database, focuses herein on the interaction between the Pacific, Australian and Antarctic plates since 200 Ma, and proposes integrated solutions for a coherent, physically consistent scenario. The evolution of the Australia–Antarctica–West Pacific plate system is dependent on the Gondwana fit chosen for the reconstruction. Our fit, as defined for the latest Triassic, implies an original scenario for the evolution of the region, in particular for the “early” opening history of the Tasman Sea. The interaction with the Pacific, moreover, is characterised by many magmatic arc migrations and ocean openings, which are stopped by arc–arc collision, arc–spreading axis collision, or arc–oceanic plateau collision, and subduction reversals. Mid-Pacific oceanic plateaus created in the model are much wider than they are on present-day maps, and although they were subducted to a large extent, they were able to stop subduction. We also suggest that adduction processes (i.e., re-emergence of subducted material) may have played an important role, in particular along the plate limit now represented by the Alpine Fault in New Zealand.

Oceanic Material Recycled within the Sub-Patagonian Lithospheric Mantle (Cerro del Fraile, Argentina)

A detailed petrological study of mafic and ultramafic xenoliths from Cerro del Fraile (Southern Patagonia, Argentina) was developed to highlight (1) the mineralogical and geochemical composition of the lithospheric mantle beneath the area, (2) the nature of the metasomatizing agents that infiltrate the mantle wedge above the Antarctic plate, (3) the processes that allow the mantle to be refertilized, and (4) the nature of the material dragged down in the subduction zone and recycled within the South Patagonian sub-arc mantle. Major and trace element analyses of clinopyroxene and orthopyroxene in peridotitic and pyroxenitic rocks suggest that a proto-adakite, deriving from the melting of the subducting Antarctic plate, was responsible for the metasomatic features of the peridotitic rocks and the crystallization of the pyroxenites. A few composite xenoliths bridge the two processescperidotite enrichment and pyroxenite crystallizationcindicating that the variously depleted mantle reacts with the incoming melt to generate a newly fertile mantle domain. This reaction occurs under reducing conditions [log fO2 (QFM) ^1·21 to ^0·34], unusual for mantle wedge settings. Heavy rare earth elements and Al2O3 and MgO contents in pyroxenes indicate a partial melting degree varying from 10 to 25%. The peculiar enrichment in Zr (^Hf), Th and U of the pyroxenes indicates the melting of oceanic sediments, which include manganese nodules and, possibly, organic matter, in agreement with the estimated low oxygen fugacity conditions. Some geochemical analogies have been found between the calculated metasomatic melts and the Austral Volcanic Zone adakites. In this case, the amount of sediment involved in the genesis of the infiltrating melts is larger than that previously proposed for the genesis of the erupted Patagonian adakites. Chemical^physical conditions favouring the upward percolation through the mantle wedge of these SiO2-rich and viscous melts are also discussed.

The breakup of East Gondwana: Assimilating constraints from Cretaceous ocean basins around India into a best‐fit tectonic model

AbstractPublished models for the Cretaceous seafloor‐spreading history of East Gondwana result in unlikely tectonic scenarios for at least one of the plate boundaries involved and/or violate particular constraints from at least one of the associated ocean basins. We link East Gondwana spreading corridors by integrating magnetic and gravity anomaly data from the Enderby Basin off East Antarctica within a regional plate kinematic framework to identify a conjugate series of east‐west‐trending magnetic anomalies, M4 to M0 (~126.7–120.4 Ma). The mid‐ocean ridge that separated Greater India from Australia‐Antarctica propagated from north to south, starting at ~136 Ma northwest of Australia, and reached the southern tip of India at ~126 Ma. Seafloor spreading in the Enderby Basin was abandoned at ~115 Ma, when a ridge jump transferred the Elan Bank and South Kerguelen Plateau to the Antarctic plate. Our revised plate kinematic model helps resolve the problem of successive two‐way strike‐slip motion between Madagascar and India seen in many previously published reconstructions and also suggests that seafloor spreading between them progressed from south to north from 94 to 84 Ma. This timing is essential for tectonic flow lines to match the curved fracture zones of the Wharton and Enderby basins, as Greater India gradually began to unzip from Madagascar from ~100 Ma. In our model, the 85‐East Ridge and Kerguelen Fracture Zone formed as conjugate flanks of a “leaky” transform fault following the ~100 Ma spreading reorganization. Our model also identifies the Afanasy Nikitin Seamounts as products of the Conrad Rise hotspot.