ORCID Profile
0000-0001-8541-1367
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Research Topics
In Research Link Australia (RLA), "Research Topics" refer to ANZSRC FOR and SEO codes. These topics are either sourced from ANZSRC FOR and SEO codes listed in researchers' related grants or generated by a large language model (LLM) based on their publications.
Top 5 Research Topics
ANZSRC Field of Research (FoR)
Geodynamics | Geophysics | Marine Geoscience | Data Structures | Palaeoclimatology | Simulation And Modelling | Geology | Artificial Intelligence and Image Processing | Earth Sciences Not Elsewhere Classified | Information Systems Development Methodologies | Web Technologies (excl. Web Search) |
ANZSRC Socio-Economic Objective (SEO)
Expanding Knowledge in the Earth Sciences | Information processing services | Application packages | Climate Change Models | Resourcing of Education and Training Systems | Expanding Knowledge in the Environmental Sciences | Internet Hosting Services (incl. Application Hosting Services) | Copper Ore Exploration
Related Links
Publications
Mid-Cretaceous seafloor spreading pulse: Fact or fiction?
Publisher: Geological Society of America
Date: 30-07-2009
DOI: 10.1130/G25624A.1
Global plate boundary evolution and kinematics since the late Paleozoic
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 11-2016
Long-term interaction between mid-ocean ridges and mantle plumes
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 25-05-2015
DOI: 10.1038/NGEO2437
Tectonic evolution of Western Tethys from Jurassic to present day: coupling geological and geophysical data with seismic tomography models
Publisher: Informa UK Limited
Date: 11-05-2016
A suite of early Eocene (~ 55 Ma) climate model boundary conditions
Publisher: Copernicus GmbH
Date: 16-09-2014
Abstract: Abstract. We describe a set of early Eocene (~ 55 Ma) climate model boundary conditions constructed in a self-consistent reference frame and incorporating recent data and methodologies. Given the growing need for uniform experimental design within the Eocene climate modelling community and the challenges faced in simulating the prominent features of Eocene climate, we make publicly available our data sets of Eocene topography, bathymetry, tidal dissipation, vegetation, aerosol distributions and river runoff. Major improvements in our boundary conditions over previous efforts include the implementation of the ANTscape palaeotopography of Antarctica, more accurate representations of the Drake Passage and Tasman Gateway, as well as an approximation of sub grid cell topographic variability. Our boundary conditions also include for the first time modelled estimates of Eocene aerosol distributions and tidal dissipation, both consistent with our palaeotopography and palaeobathymetry. The resolution of our data sets is unprecedented and will facilitate high resolution climate simulations. In light of the inherent uncertainties involved in reconstructing global boundary conditions for past time periods these data sets should be considered as one interpretation of the available data and users are encouraged to modify them according to their needs and interpretations. This paper marks the beginning of a process for reconstructing a set of accurate, open-access Eocene boundary conditions for use in climate models.
Circum‐Arctic mantle structure and long‐wavelength topography since the Jurassic
Publisher: American Geophysical Union (AGU)
Date: 10-2014
DOI: 10.1002/2014JB011078
Tectonic speed limits from plate kinematic reconstructions
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 05-2015
Lower mantle structure from paleogeographically constrained dynamic Earth models
Publisher: American Geophysical Union (AGU)
Date: 2013
DOI: 10.1029/2012GC004267
Regional volcanism of northern Zealandia: Post-Gondwana break-up magmatism on an extended, submerged continent
Publisher: Geological Society of London
Date: 16-08-2018
DOI: 10.1144/SP463.9
The role of oceanic plateau subduction in the Laramide orogeny
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 28-03-2010
DOI: 10.1038/NGEO829
GPlates: Building a Virtual Earth Through Deep Time
Publisher: American Geophysical Union (AGU)
Date: 07-2018
DOI: 10.1029/2018GC007584
Abstract: GPlates is an open‐source, cross‐platform plate tectonic geographic information system, enabling the interactive manipulation of plate‐tectonic reconstructions and the visualization of geodata through geological time. GPlates allows the building of topological plate models representing the mosaic of evolving plate boundary networks through time, useful for computing plate velocity fields as surface boundary conditions for mantle convection models and for investigating physical and chemical exchanges of material between the surface and the deep Earth along tectonic plate boundaries. The ability of GPlates to visualize subsurface 3‐D scalar fields together with traditional geological surface data enables researchers to analyze their relationships through geological time in a common plate tectonic reference frame. To achieve this, a hierarchical cube map framework is used for rendering reconstructed surface raster data to support the rendering of subsurface 3‐D scalar fields using graphics‐hardware‐accelerated ray‐tracing techniques. GPlates enables the construction of plate deformation zones—regions combining extension, compression, and shearing that accommodate the relative motion between rigid blocks. Users can explore how strain rates, stretching/shortening factors, and crustal thickness evolve through space and time and interactively update the kinematics associated with deformation. Where data sets described by geometries (points, lines, or polygons) fall within deformation regions, the deformation can be applied to these geometries. Together, these tools allow users to build virtual Earth models that quantitatively describe continental assembly, fragmentation and dispersal and are interoperable with many other mapping and modeling tools, enabling applications in tectonics, geodynamics, basin evolution, orogenesis, deep Earth resource exploration, paleobiology, paleoceanography, and paleoclimate.
Reconstructing slab dip through deep time to explain pulses in kimberlite eruptions
Publisher: Copernicus GmbH
Date: 15-05-2023
DOI: 10.5194/EGUSPHERE-EGU23-10847
Abstract: The recycling of oceanic lithosphere at subduction zones constitutes the largest driving force of plate tectonic motion. The angle at which subducting plates enter the mantle influences the magnitude of this force, the distribution of subduction-related earthquakes, intensity of volcanism, and mountain building. However, the factors that control subduction angle remain unresolved. We develop a novel formulation for calculating the subduction angle based on trench migration, convergence rate, slab thickness, and plate density which reproduces the present-day dynamics of global subduction zones. Applying this formulation to reconstructed subduction boundaries from the Jurassic to present day, we relate subduction angle combined with slab flux to pulses in kimberlite eruptions. High rates of subducting slab material trigger mantle return flow that stimulates fertile reservoirs in the mantle. These convective instabilities transport slab-influenced melt to the surface at a distance inbound from the trench corresponding to the subduction angle. Our deep-time slab dip formulation has numerous potential applications including modelling the deep carbon and water cycles, and an improved understanding of subduction-related mineral deposits.
Sea-level fluctuations driven by changes in global ocean basin volume following supercontinent break-up
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 09-2020
Intraplate volcanism triggered by bursts in slab flux
Publisher: American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)
Date: 18-12-2020
Abstract: Slab flux drives the frequency of volcanic eruptions by stimulating an enriched reservoir in the mantle transition zone.
The role of plume-ridge decoupling on rapid plate motion and intraplate volcanism
Publisher: Copernicus GmbH
Date: 15-05-2023
DOI: 10.5194/EGUSPHERE-EGU23-10441
Abstract: The migration of mid-ocean ridges is driven by asymmetric plate motions on either ridge flank transmitted from far-field subduction forces. Within this model, the geometry and location of mid-ocean ridges are independent of lower-mantle dynamics. However, this fails to recognise the attraction between mid-ocean ridges and mantle plumes. Using numerical models of mantle convection, we show that plumes with high buoyancy flux ( 6000 kg/s) can capture mid-ocean ridges within a 1000 km radius and anchor them in place. If the plume buoyancy flux wanes below 1000 kg/s the ridge may be released, potentially resulting in rapid migration rates that trigger a major plate reorganisation. Plume-ridge interactions are commonly preserved as conjugate large igneous provinces (LIPs), which form on each flank of a mid-ocean ridge as new crust is created. The decoupling of ridges from plumes are demarcated by a switch from conjugate LIPs, formed by a plume beneath a spreading ridge, to trails of intraplate hotspot volcanoes signifying the plume and ridge have separated. We demonstrate that the waning buoyancy flux of the Kerguelen plume, inferred from the geochemistry of eruption products, resulted in its decoupling with the SE Indian Ridge spurring rapid northward migration of the Australian plate. Our modelling predicts that following plume-ridge decoupling, the waning plume can tilt 15& #176 within the upper mantle towards the migrating ridge, providing an explanation for diffuse volcanism and low eruption volumes along the Kerguelen Archipelago. Our results have significant implications for other plume-ridge interactions globally such as the Iceland, Tristan, and Easter plumes, and the generation of intraplate hotspot volcanoes proximal to mid-ocean ridges.
Comparing early to middle Miocene terrestrial climate simulations with geological data
Publisher: Geological Society of America
Date: 12-2010
DOI: 10.1130/GES00544.1
Tectonic evolution and deep mantle structure of the eastern Tethys since the latest Jurassic
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 11-2016
The Late Cretaceous to recent tectonic history of the Pacific Ocean basin
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 03-2016
Response to Comment on Major Australian-Antarctic Plate Reorganization at Hawaiian-Emperor Bend Time
Publisher: American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)
Date: 25-07-2008
Abstract: Accurately locating boundaries between continental and oceanic crust is topical in view of locating offshore boundaries relevant to margin formation models, plate kinematics, and frontier resource exploration. Although we disagree with Tikku and Direen's interpretations, the associated controversies reflect an absence of agreed-upon geophysical criteria for distinguishing stretched continental from oceanic crust, and a lack of s les from nonvolcanic margins.
Reconnaissance Basement Geology and Tectonics of North Zealandia
Publisher: American Geophysical Union (AGU)
Date: 10-2023
DOI: 10.1029/2023TC007961
Geologic and kinematic constraints on Late Cretaceous to mid Eocene plate boundaries in the southwest Pacific
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 2015
The Cretaceous and Cenozoic tectonic evolution of Southeast Asia
Publisher: Copernicus GmbH
Date: 29-04-2014
Abstract: Abstract. Tectonic reconstructions of Southeast Asia have given rise to numerous controversies that include the accretionary history of Sundaland and the enigmatic tectonic origin of the proto-South China Sea. We assimilate a ersity of geological and geophysical observations into a new regional plate model, coupled to a global model, to address these debates. Our approach takes into account terrane suturing and accretion histories, the location of subducted slabs imaged in mantle tomography in order to constrain the evolution of regional subduction zones, as well as plausible absolute and relative plate velocities and tectonic driving mechanisms. We propose a scenario of rifting from northern Gondwana in the latest Jurassic, driven by northward slab pull from north-dipping subduction of Tethyan crust beneath Eurasia, to detach East Java, Mangkalihat, southeast Borneo and West Sulawesi blocks that collided with a Tethyan intra-oceanic subduction zone in the mid-Cretaceous and subsequently accreted to the Sunda margin (i.e., southwest Borneo core) in the Late Cretaceous. In accounting for the evolution of plate boundaries, we propose that the Philippine Sea plate originated on the periphery of Tethyan crust forming this northward conveyor. We implement a revised model for the Tethyan intra-oceanic subduction zones to reconcile convergence rates, changes in volcanism and the obduction of ophiolites. In our model the northward margin of Greater India collides with the Kohistan–Ladakh intra-oceanic arc at ∼53 Ma, followed by continent–continent collision closing the Shyok and Indus–Tsangpo suture zones between ∼42 and 34 Ma. We also account for the back-arc opening of the proto-South China Sea from ∼65 Ma, consistent with extension along east Asia and the formation of supra-subduction zone ophiolites presently found on the island of Mindoro. The related rifting likely detached the Semitau continental fragment from South China, which accreted to northern Borneo in the mid-Eocene, to account for the Sarawak Orogeny. Rifting then re-initiated along southeast China by 37 Ma to open the South China Sea, resulting in the complete consumption of proto-South China Sea by ∼17 Ma when the collision of the Dangerous Grounds and northern Palawan blocks with northern Borneo choked the subduction zone to result in the Sabah Orogeny and the obduction of ophiolites in Palawan and Mindoro. We conclude that the counterclockwise rotation of Borneo was accommodated by oroclinal bending consistent with paleomagnetic constraints, the curved lithospheric lineaments observed in gravity anomalies of the Java Sea and the curvature of the Cretaceous Natuna paleo-subduction zone. We complete our model by constructing a time-dependent network of topological plate boundaries and gridded paleo-ages of oceanic basins, allowing us to compare our plate model evolution to seismic tomography. In particular, slabs observed at depths shallower than ∼1000 km beneath northern Borneo and the South China Sea are likely to be remnants of the proto-South China Sea basin.
Paleophysiography of Ocean Basins
Publisher: Springer Netherlands
Date: 2015
No Change in Southern Ocean Circulation in the Indian Ocean From the Eocene Through Late Oligocene
Publisher: American Geophysical Union (AGU)
Date: 02-2018
DOI: 10.1002/2017PA003238
Obituary: Sandy Island (1876-2012)
Publisher: American Geophysical Union (AGU)
Date: 09-04-2013
DOI: 10.1002/2013EO150001
Early to middle Miocene monsoon climate in Australia: REPLY
Publisher: Geological Society of America
Date: 06-2012
DOI: 10.1130/G33384Y.1
Revision of Paleogene plate motions in the Pacific and implications for the Hawaiian-Emperor bend: REPLY
Publisher: Geological Society of America
Date: 22-03-2016
DOI: 10.1130/G37828Y.1
Plate Motion
Publisher: Springer Netherlands
Date: 2014
Towards community-driven paleogeographic reconstructions: integrating open-access paleogeographic and paleobiology data with plate tectonics
Publisher: Copernicus GmbH
Date: 07-03-2013
Abstract: Abstract. A variety of paleogeographic reconstructions have been published, with applications ranging from paleoclimate, ocean circulation and faunal radiation models to resource exploration yet their uncertainties remain difficult to assess as they are generally presented as low-resolution static maps. We present a methodology for ground-truthing the digital Palaeogeographic Atlas of Australia by linking the GPlates plate reconstruction tool to the global Paleobiology Database and a Phanerozoic plate motion model. We develop a spatio-temporal data mining workflow to validate the Phanerozoic Palaeogeographic Atlas of Australia with paleoenvironments derived from fossil data. While there is general agreement between fossil data and the paleogeographic model, the methodology highlights key inconsistencies. The Early Devonian paleogeographic model of southeastern Australia insufficiently describes the Emsian inundation that may be refined using biofacies distributions. Additionally, the paleogeographic model and fossil data can be used to strengthen numerical models, such as the dynamic topography and the associated inundation of eastern Australia during the Cretaceous. Although paleobiology data provide constraints only for paleoenvironments with high preservation potential of organisms, our approach enables the use of additional proxy data to generate improved paleogeographic reconstructions.
Age, spreading rates, and spreading asymmetry of the world's ocean crust
Publisher: American Geophysical Union (AGU)
Date: 04-2008
DOI: 10.1029/2007GC001743
Plate tectonic reconstructions with continuously closing plates
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 2012
Climate model sensitivity to atmospheric CO2 concentrations for the middle Miocene
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 06-2009
Community infrastructure and repository for marine magnetic identifications
Publisher: American Geophysical Union (AGU)
Date: 04-2014
DOI: 10.1002/2013GC005176
Deconstructing plate tectonic reconstructions
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 21-02-2023
Signatures of downgoing plate-buoyancy driven subduction in Cenozoic plate motions
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 2011
A Quantitative Tomotectonic Plate Reconstruction of Western North America and the Eastern Pacific Basin
Publisher: American Geophysical Union (AGU)
Date: 08-2020
DOI: 10.1029/2020GC009117
Modeling the Miocene climatic optimum: Ocean circulation
Publisher: American Geophysical Union (AGU)
Date: 21-02-2012
DOI: 10.1029/2010PA002041
Ridge subduction sparked reorganization of the Pacific plate‐mantle system 60–50 million years ago
Publisher: American Geophysical Union (AGU)
Date: 24-03-2015
DOI: 10.1002/2015GL063057
Melanesian back-arc basin and arc development: Constraints from the eastern Coral Sea
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 11-2016
Tectonic evolution of the southwest Pacific using constraints from backarc basins
Publisher: Geological Society of America
Date: 2003
Ocean Basin Evolution and Global-Scale Plate Reorganization Events Since Pangea Breakup
Publisher: Annual Reviews
Date: 29-06-2016
DOI: 10.1146/ANNUREV-EARTH-060115-012211
Abstract: We present a revised global plate motion model with continuously closing plate boundaries ranging from the Triassic at 230 Ma to the present day, assess differences among alternative absolute plate motion models, and review global tectonic events. Relatively high mean absolute plate motion rates of approximately 9–10 cm yr −1 between 140 and 120 Ma may be related to transient plate motion accelerations driven by the successive emplacement of a sequence of large igneous provinces during that time. An event at ∼100 Ma is most clearly expressed in the Indian Ocean and may reflect the initiation of Andean-style subduction along southern continental Eurasia, whereas an acceleration at ∼80 Ma of mean rates from 6 to 8 cm yr −1 reflects the initial northward acceleration of India and simultaneous speedups of plates in the Pacific. An event at ∼50 Ma expressed in relative, and some absolute, plate motion changes around the globe and in a reduction of global mean plate speeds from about 6 to 4–5 cm yr −1 indicates that an increase in collisional forces (such as the India–Eurasia collision) and ridge subduction events in the Pacific (such as the Izanagi–Pacific Ridge) play a significant role in modulating plate velocities.
Enigmatic formation of the Norfolk Basin, SW Pacific: A plume influence on back‐arc extension
Publisher: American Geophysical Union (AGU)
Date: 06-2004
DOI: 10.1029/2003GC000643
Topographic asymmetry of the South Atlantic from global models of mantle flow and lithospheric stretching
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 02-2014
A Global Plate Model Including Lithospheric Deformation Along Major Rifts and Orogens Since the Triassic
Publisher: American Geophysical Union (AGU)
Date: 06-2019
DOI: 10.1029/2018TC005462
Zealandia: Earth’s Hidden Continent
Publisher: Geological Society of America
Date: 10-02-2017
DOI: 10.1130/GSATG321A.1
The Louisiade ophiolite: A missing link in the western Pacific
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 06-02-2022
DOI: 10.1111/TER.12578
Abstract: Recent dredging of a 100 km long ridge along the northernmost part of the Louisiade Plateau (LP) recovered serpentinized peridotites, MORB (mid‐ocean‐ridge basalt) and volcaniclastic breccia–conglomerates. Clinopyroxene, Cr‐spinel and bulk rocks show that the serpentinites are harzburgites to dunites, whereas hornblende phenocrysts from volcaniclastic rocks reflect hydrous, andesitic volcanism. The association of MORB, depleted mantle rocks and fingerprints of hydrous arc magmatism is typical of supra‐subduction zone ocean lithosphere formed above a nascent subduction zone. Seismic and high‐resolution bathymetry data reveal structures consistent with an extensive east–west elongated ophiolite estimated to have obducted onto the LP between 53 and 80 Ma. This represents a major eastwards continuation of the Papuan Ultramafic Belt and forms a crucial link with ophiolites farther south in New Caledonia, providing support for major subduction initiation events in marginal basins along the northern and eastern margins of Australia and Zealandia in the Palaeocene–Eocene.
Major Australian-Antarctic Plate Reorganization at Hawaiian-Emperor Bend Time
Publisher: American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)
Date: 05-10-2007
Abstract: A marked bend in the Hawaiian-Emperor seamount chain supposedly resulted from a recent major reorganization of the plate-mantle system there 50 million years ago. Although alternative mantle-driven and plate-shifting hypotheses have been proposed, no contemporaneous circum-Pacific plate events have been identified. We report reconstructions for Australia and Antarctica that reveal a major plate reorganization between 50 and 53 million years ago. Revised Pacific Ocean sea-floor reconstructions suggest that subduction of the Pacific-Izanagi spreading ridge and subsequent Marianas/Tonga-Kermadec subduction initiation may have been the ultimate causes of these events. Thus, these plate reconstructions solve long-standing continental fit problems and improve constraints on the motion between East and West Antarctica and global plate circuit closure.
A reconstruction of the North Atlantic since the earliest Jurassic
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 14-09-2016
DOI: 10.1111/BRE.12214
Kinematics and extent of the Piemont–Liguria Basin – implications for subduction processes in the Alps
Publisher: Copernicus GmbH
Date: 21-04-2021
Abstract: Abstract. Assessing the size of a former ocean of which only remnants are found in mountain belts is challenging but crucial to understanding subduction and exhumation processes. Here we present new constraints on the opening and width of the Piemont–Liguria (PL) Ocean, known as the Alpine Tethys together with the Valais Basin. We use a regional tectonic reconstruction of the Western Mediterranean–Alpine area, implemented into a global plate motion model with lithospheric deformation, and 2D thermo-mechanical modeling of the rifting phase to test our kinematic reconstructions for geodynamic consistency. Our model fits well with independent datasets (i.e., ages of syn-rift sediments, rift-related fault activity, and mafic rocks) and shows that, between Europe and northern Adria, the PL Basin opened in four stages: (1) rifting of the proximal continental margin in the Early Jurassic (200–180 Ma), (2) hyper-extension of the distal margin in the Early to Middle Jurassic (180–165 Ma), (3) ocean–continent transition (OCT) formation with mantle exhumation and MORB-type magmatism in the Middle–Late Jurassic (165–154 Ma), and (4) breakup and mature oceanic spreading mostly in the Late Jurassic (154–145 Ma). Spreading was slow to ultra-slow (max. 22 mm yr−1, full rate) and decreased to ∼5 mm yr−1 after 145 Ma while completely ceasing at about 130 Ma due to the motion of Iberia relative to Europe during the opening of the North Atlantic. The final width of the PL mature (“true”) oceanic crust reached a maximum of 250 km along a NW–SE transect between Europe and northwestern Adria. Plate convergence along that same transect has reached 680 km since 84 Ma (420 km between 84–35 Ma, 260 km between 35–0 Ma), which greatly exceeds the width of the ocean. We suggest that at least 63 % of the subducted and accreted material was highly thinned continental lithosphere and most of the Alpine Tethys units exhumed today derived from OCT zones. Our work highlights the significant proportion of distal rifted continental margins involved in subduction and exhumation processes and provides quantitative estimates for future geodynamic modeling and a better understanding of the Alpine Orogeny.
Seawater chemistry driven by supercontinent assembly, breakup and dispersal: REPLY
Publisher: Geological Society of America
Date: 05-2014
DOI: 10.1130/G35636Y.1
Large fluctuations of shallow seas in low-lying Southeast Asia driven by mantle flow
Publisher: American Geophysical Union (AGU)
Date: 09-2016
DOI: 10.1002/2016GC006434
Eocene nephelinite and basanite from the Fairway Ridge, North Zealandia
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 10-2019
Geological, tomographic, kinematic and geodynamic constraints on the dynamics of sinking slabs
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 2014
Subduction controls the distribution and fragmentation of Earth’s tectonic plates
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 15-06-2016
DOI: 10.1038/NATURE17992
Abstract: The theory of plate tectonics describes how the surface of Earth is split into an organized jigsaw of seven large plates of similar sizes and a population of smaller plates whose areas follow a fractal distribution. The reconstruction of global tectonics during the past 200 million years suggests that this layout is probably a long-term feature of Earth, but the forces governing it are unknown. Previous studies, primarily based on the statistical properties of plate distributions, were unable to resolve how the size of the plates is determined by the properties of the lithosphere and the underlying mantle convection. Here we demonstrate that the plate layout of Earth is produced by a dynamic feedback between mantle convection and the strength of the lithosphere. Using three-dimensional spherical models of mantle convection that self-consistently produce the plate size–frequency distribution observed for Earth, we show that subduction geometry drives the tectonic fragmentation that generates plates. The spacing between the slabs controls the layout of large plates, and the stresses caused by the bending of trenches break plates into smaller fragments. Our results explain why the fast evolution in small back-arc plates reflects the marked changes in plate motions during times of major reorganizations. Our study opens the way to using convection simulations with plate-like behaviour to unravel how global tectonics and mantle convection are dynamically connected.
Early to Middle Miocene monsoon climate in Australia
Publisher: Geological Society of America
Date: 03-12-2010
DOI: 10.1130/G31208.1
Scientific Drilling in the Southwest Pacific Ocean
Publisher: American Geophysical Union (AGU)
Date: 05-03-2013
DOI: 10.1002/2013EO100007
Climate model sensitivity to changes in Miocene paleotopography
Publisher: Informa UK Limited
Date: 12-2009
Supplementary material to "Kinematics and extent of the Piemont-Liguria Basin – implications for subduction processes in the Alps"
Publisher: Copernicus GmbH
Date: 08-10-2020
Sunda-Java trench kinematics, slab window formation and overriding plate deformation since the Cretaceous
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 03-2007
Geodynamic reconstruction of an accreted Cretaceous back-arc basin in the Northern Andes
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 11-2018
Magma production along the Lord Howe Seamount Chain, northern Zealandia
Publisher: Cambridge University Press (CUP)
Date: 18-01-2019
DOI: 10.1017/S0016756818000912
Abstract: One of the world’s most notable intraplate volcanic regions lies on the eastern Australian plate and includes two age-progressive trails offshore (Tasmantid and Lord Howe seamount chains) and the world’s longest continental hotspot trail (Cosgrove Track). While most studies agree that these chains formed by the rapid northward motion of the Australian plate over a slowly moving mantle source, the volcanic output along these trails, their plate–mantle interactions and the source of the magmatism remain unconstrained. A geophysical mapping and dredging c aign on the RV Southern Surveyor (ss2012_v06) confirmed the prolongation of the Lord Howe Seamount Chain to the South Rennell Trough, ∼200 km further north than previously s led. Radiometric dating of these new s les at 27–28 Ma, together with previously published results from the southern part of the chain, indicate straightforward northward motion of the Australian plate over a quasi-stationary hotspot as predicted by Indo-Atlantic and Pacific hotspot models. A peak in Lord Howe Seamount Chain magmatism in late Oligocene time, also seen in the Tasmantid and Cosgrove trails, matches a 27–23 Ma slowdown of Australian plate motion. The average magma flux of the Lord Howe hotspot is estimated at 0.4 m 3 s −1 , similar to rates of crustal production at the South Rennell Trough prior to cessation of spreading in middle Oligocene time, supporting a potential genetic relationship to this spreading system. In addition, plate tectonic modelling suggests that the seamounts and plateaus in the Coral Sea may host the earliest evidence of plume activity in the area.
Catastrophic initiation of subduction following forced convergence across fracture zones
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 07-2003
Reconstructing Ontong Java Nui: Implications for Pacific absolute plate motion, hotspot drift and true polar wander
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 05-2012
Long-Term Sea-Level Fluctuations Driven by Ocean Basin Dynamics
Publisher: American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)
Date: 07-03-2008
Abstract: Earth's long-term sea-level history is characterized by widespread continental flooding in the Cretaceous period (∼145 to 65 million years ago), followed by gradual regression of inland seas. However, published estimates of the Late Cretaceous sea-level high differ by half an order of magnitude, from ∼40 to ∼250 meters above the present level. The low estimate is based on the stratigraphy of the New Jersey margin. By assimilating marine geophysical data into reconstructions of ancient ocean basins, we model a Late Cretaceous sea level that is 170 (85 to 270) meters higher than it is today. We use a mantle convection model to suggest that New Jersey subsided by 105 to 180 meters in the past 70 million years because of North America's westward passage over the subducted Farallon plate. This mechanism reconciles New Jersey margin–based sea-level estimates with ocean basin reconstructions.
A global-scale plate reorganization event at 105−100Ma
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 11-2012
A Global Data Set of Present‐Day Oceanic Crustal Age and Seafloor Spreading Parameters
Publisher: American Geophysical Union (AGU)
Date: 10-2020
DOI: 10.1029/2020GC009214
Controls on back‐arc basin formation
Publisher: American Geophysical Union (AGU)
Date: 04-2006
DOI: 10.1029/2005GC001090
Abstract: The relationship between subduction and back‐arc spreading has been well known since the early days of plate tectonics. However, the reasons why back‐arc basins are associated with some subduction systems but not all has remained elusive. We examine the kinematic controls on subduction and back‐arc basins for both the present‐day and Cenozoic to differentiate between the major competing hypotheses for back‐arc basin formation and to explain their temporal and spatial distribution. Our new data set of subduction and back‐arc basin parameters uses a new set of paleo‐oceanic age grids (Müller et al., 2005) associated with a moving Atlantic‐Indian Ocean hot spot reference frame (O'Neill et al., 2005). The plate model includes detailed reconstructed spreading histories of back‐arc basins based on marine geophysical and satellite gravity data. Our combined rotation and oceanic paleo‐age model provides the age distribution of subducting lithosphere through space and time, convergence rates, and the absolute motion of the downgoing and overriding plates. We find that back‐arc basins develop when the age of subducting normal oceanic lithosphere is greater than 55 million years. Additionally, we establish an age‐dip relationship showing that the intermediate dip angle of the subducting slab is always greater than 30° with back‐arc spreading. Our results suggest that back‐arc basin formation is always preceded by an absolute motion of the overriding plate away from the subduction hinge, thereby creating accommodation space between the overriding and subducting plates. Once back‐arc extension is established, it continues regardless of overriding plate motion, indicating back‐arc spreading is not a simple consequence of overriding plate behaviour. The landward migration of the overriding plate as a precursor to back‐arc extension may indicate that extension on the overriding plate is influenced by the oceanward lateral flow of the mantle. However, once back‐arc extension is established, rollback of the subduction hinge appears to be the primary force responsible for the continued creation of accommodation space. Our analysis indicates the driving mechanism for back‐arc extension is a combination of surface kinematics, properties of the downgoing slab, the effect of lateral mantle flow on the slab, and mantle wedge dynamics.
Middle Miocene tectonic boundary conditions for use in climate models
Publisher: American Geophysical Union (AGU)
Date: 10-2008
DOI: 10.1029/2008GC002046
Reflections on solid Earth research
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 13-01-2021
Parallel volcanic chains generated by plume-slab interaction
Publisher: Copernicus GmbH
Date: 27-03-2022
DOI: 10.5194/EGUSPHERE-EGU22-6571
Abstract: & & & strong& Deep mantle plumes are buoyant upwellings rising from the Earth& #8217 s core-mantle boundary to its surface, and describing most hotspot chains. Mechanisms to explain dual chains of hotspot volcanoes for the Hawaiian-Emperor and Yellowstone chains fail to explain the geochemical similarity and large distances between contemporaneous volcanoes of the Tasmantid and Lord Howe chains in the SW Pacific. Using numerical models of mantle convection, we demonstrate how slab-plume interaction can lead to sustained plume branching over a period of & million years to produce parallel volcanic chains that track plate motion. We propose a three-part model: first, slabs stagnate in the upper mantle, explaining fast upper mantle P-wave velocity anomalies second, deflection of a plume conduit by a stagnating slab splits it into two branches 650-900 km apart, aligning to the orientation of the trench axis third, plume branches heat the stagnating slab causing partial melting and release of volatiles which percolate to the surface forming two contemporaneous volcanic chains with slab-influenced EM1 signatures. Our results highlight the critical role of long-lived subduction on the evolution and behaviour of intraplate volcanism.& /strong& & &
Kimberlite eruptions driven by slab flux and subduction angle
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 06-06-2023
DOI: 10.1038/S41598-023-36250-W
Abstract: Kimberlites are sourced from thermochemical upwellings which can transport diamonds to the surface of the crust. The majority of kimberlites preserved at the Earth’s surface erupted between 250 and 50 million years ago, and have been attributed to changes in plate velocity or mantle plumes. However, these mechanisms fail to explain the presence of strong subduction signatures observed in some Cretaceous kimberlites. This raises the question whether there is a subduction process that unifies our understanding of the timing of kimberlite eruptions. We develop a novel formulation for calculating subduction angle based on trench migration, convergence rate, slab thickness and density to connect the influx of slab material into the mantle with the timing of kimberlite eruptions. We find that subduction angles combined with peaks in slab flux predict pulses of kimberlite eruptions. High rates of subducting slab material trigger mantle return flow that stimulates fertile reservoirs in the mantle. These convective instabilities transport slab-influenced melt to the surface at a distance inbound from the trench corresponding to the subduction angle. Our deep-time slab dip formulation has numerous potential applications including modelling the deep carbon and water cycles, and an improved understanding of subduction-related mineral deposits.
Convergence of tectonic reconstructions and mantle convection models for significant fluctuations in seafloor spreading
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 12-2013
Exploring new drilling prospects in the southwest Pacific
Publisher: Copernicus GmbH
Date: 29-04-2014
Abstract: Abstract. A major International Ocean Discovery Program (IODP) workshop covering scientific ocean drilling in the southwest Pacific Ocean was held in Sydney, Australia, in late 2012. The workshop covered all fields of geoscience, and drilling targets in the area from the Equator to Antarctica. High-quality contributions and a positive and cooperative atmosphere ensured its success. The four science themes of the new IODP science plan were addressed. An additional resource-oriented theme considered possible co-investment opportunities involving IODP vessels. As a result of the workshop, existing proposals were revised and new ones written for the April 2013 deadline. Many of the proposals are broad and multidisciplinary in nature, hence broadening the scientific knowledge that can be produced by using the IODP infrastructure. This report briefly outlines the workshop and the related drilling plans.
Revision of Paleogene plate motions in the Pacific and implications for the Hawaiian-Emperor bend
Publisher: Geological Society of America
Date: 05-2015
DOI: 10.1130/G36303.1
Chapter 2 Geodynamics of the SW Pacific: a brief review and relations with New Caledonian geology
Publisher: Geological Society of London
Date: 2020
DOI: 10.1144/M51-2018-5
The tectonic evolution of the Arctic since Pangea breakup: Integrating constraints from surface geology and geophysics with mantle structure
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 09-2013
Seawater chemistry driven by supercontinent assembly, breakup, and dispersal
Publisher: Geological Society of America
Date: 08-2013
DOI: 10.1130/G34405.1
Insights on the kinematics of the India‐Eurasia collision from global geodynamic models
Publisher: American Geophysical Union (AGU)
Date: 04-2012
DOI: 10.1029/2011GC003883
Global continental and ocean basin reconstructions since 200Ma
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 07-2012
The GPlates Portal: Cloud-Based Interactive 3D Visualization of Global Geophysical and Geological Data in a Web Browser
Publisher: Public Library of Science (PLoS)
Date: 09-03-2016
Kinematic and geodynamic evolution of the Isthmus of Panama region: Implications for Central American Seaway closure
Publisher: Geological Society of America
Date: 26-06-2020
DOI: 10.1130/B35595.1
Abstract: A major topic of debate in earth science and climate science surrounds the timing of closure of the Central American Seaway. While it is clear that the gateway was closed by ca. 2.8 Ma, recent studies based on geological and marine molecular evidence have suggested an earlier closing time of early to mid-Miocene. In this study, we examined the influences of subduction and slab window formation on the time-varying paleoenvironments of the Isthmus of Panama region. We developed detailed reconstructions of the seafloor spreading history in the Panama Basin and incorporated previously published arc block rotations into a revised global plate model. Our reconstructions indicate that the Central American Seaway region has undergone multiple phases of slab window formation and migration, slab detachment, and flat slab subduction since the Oligocene, while kinematically mapped slab windows agree well with slab gaps imaged in seismic tomography. In particular, we found that from the early Miocene, when there is clear evidence for Isthmus of Panama emergence, the region was underlain by a slab window. During the late Miocene, when there is evidence for intermittent arc deepening, and decreased transcontinental migration, we found an increase in subducted slab volumes beneath the Panama arc. Numerical and analogue models and field observations argue that slab windows can induce & km of vertical uplift on the overriding plate. We therefore propose that this previously unexplored geodynamic mechanism can explain the variations in Isthmus of Panama emergence, and intermittent shallow-water connections, reconciling alternative lines of evidence for Central American Seaway closure.
Organization of the tectonic plates in the last 200 Myr
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 07-2013
Paleobathymetry reconstructions during the Mesozoic and uncertainties in oceanic gateway evolution
Publisher: Copernicus GmbH
Date: 15-05-2023
DOI: 10.5194/EGUSPHERE-EGU23-10133
Abstract: The reconstruction of paleobathymetry, in particular the evolution of oceanic gateways, has important implications for paleo-ocean circulation, paleoclimate, as well as biotic and faunal exchanges. During the past ~250 million years there have been major changes in paleobathymetry and oceanic gateways associated with the breakup of the Pangaea supercontinent, including the development of the North and South Atlantic ocean basins and the Central Atlantic seaway. Considerable research effort has been invested into better understanding the global evolution of paleobathymetry and oceanic gateways during the Cenozoic, but there remain large uncertainties about the timing of opening, closure, and physiographic evolution of Mesozoic oceanic gateways and seaways.Here, we present new paleobathymetry reconstructions based on a recent global plate tectonic model (M& #252 ller et al., 2019) spanning the Triassic (~250 Ma) to the present. We reconstruct presently-preserved oceanic crust using new functionality developed in pybacktrack v1.4, a python module for backstripping and reconstructing paleobathymetry. For present-day submerged continental crust we use pybacktrack to reconstruct paleobathymetry based on its rifting and deformation history and assuming a single lithology for the progressive decompaction of sediments. In regions where ancient seafloor is now subducted, we use an established approach of synthetically reconstructing paleobathymetry based on the age-area distribution of oceanic crust (& #8216 age grids& #8217 ) convolved with an age-depth relationship to reconstruct basement depths followed by modelling effects from sediment thickness and seafloor volcanism including large igneous provinces. Our methodology additionally allows for alternative plate tectonic models (and/or absolute reference frames) to be integrated into reconstructions of paleobathymetry. Further, we use our new paleobathymetry reconstructions to explore the formation and evolution of pre-Cenozoic oceanic gateways. We find significant differences in the development and physiography of Mesozoic oceanic gateways and seaways in our new reconstructions compared to a widely used paleogeographic model, which has major implications for paleoceanographic models and interpretations of paleoclimate proxies.
An expression of Philippine Sea plate rotation: the Parece Vela and Shikoku Basins
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 12-2004
Kinematics and extent of the Piemont-Liguria Basin – implications for subduction processes in the Alps
Publisher: Copernicus GmbH
Date: 08-10-2020
DOI: 10.5194/SE-2020-161
Abstract: Abstract. Assessing the size of a former ocean, of which only remnants are found in mountain belts, is challenging but crucial to understand subduction and exhumation processes. Here we present new constraints on the opening and width of the Piemont-Liguria (PL) Ocean, known as the Alpine Tethys together with the Valais Basin. We use a regional tectonic reconstruction of the Western Mediterranean-Alpine area, implemented into a global plate motion model with lithospheric deformation, and 2D thermo-mechanical modelling of the rifting phase to test our kinematic reconstructions for geodynamic consistency. Our model fits well with independent datasets (i.e. ages of syn-rift sediments, rift-related fault activity and mafic rocks) and shows that the PL Basin opened in four stages: (1) Rifting of the proximal continental margin in Early Jurassic (200–180 Ma), (2) Hyper-extension of the distal margin in Early-Middle Jurassic (180–165 Ma), (3) Ocean-Continent Transition (OCT) formation with mantle exhumation and MORB-type magmatism in Middle-Late Jurassic (165–154 Ma), (4) Break-up and mature oceanic spreading mostly in Late Jurassic (154–145 Ma). Spreading was slow to ultra-slow (max. 22 mm/yr, full rate) and decreased to ~ 5 mm/yr after 145 Ma while completely ceasing at about 130 Ma due to motion of Iberia relative to Europe during the opening of the North Atlantic. The final width of the PL Ocean reached a maximum of 250 km along a NW–SE transect between Europe and Adria (Ivrea). In the Cretaceous and Cenozoic, the amount of plate convergence between Adria (Ivrea) and Europe during Alpine subduction (84–35 Ma, 420 km) and collision (35–0 Ma, 260 km) largely exceeded the width of the ocean. We suggest that at least 63 % of the subducted and accreted material was highly thinned continental lithosphere and most of the Alpine Tethys Ophiolites exhumed today derived from OCT zones. Our work highlights the importance of distal rifted continental margins during subduction and exhumation processes and provides quantitative estimates for future geodynamic modelling and a better understanding of the Alpine Orogeny.
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