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Overriding plate thickness control on subducting plate curvature
Author(s) -
Holt Adam F.,
Buffett Bruce A.,
Becker Thorsten W.
Publication year - 2015
Publication title -
geophysical research letters
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.007
H-Index - 273
eISSN - 1944-8007
pISSN - 0094-8276
DOI - 10.1002/2015gl063834
Subject(s) - curvature , subduction , slab , geology , dissipation , radius of curvature , radius , bending , rheology , geometry , geophysics , physics , seismology , mean curvature , thermodynamics , mathematics , tectonics , computer security , mean curvature flow , computer science
Subducting plate (SP) curvature exerts a key control on the amount of bending dissipation associated with subduction, and the magnitude of the subduction‐resisting bending force. However, the factors controlling the development of SP curvature are not well understood. We use numerical models to quantify the role of SP rheology on the minimum radius of curvature, R min . We find that R min depends strongly on the SP thickness when the rheology is viscous. This dependence is substantially reduced when the SP behaves plastically, in line with the lack of correlation between R min and SP thickness on Earth. In contrast, plasticity leads to a strong positive correlation between R min and the overriding plate (OP) thickness. Using an analysis of R min versus OP thickness, we show that such a positive correlation exists on Earth. This suggests that OP structure, in conjunction with SP plasticity, is crucial in generating slab curvature systematics on Earth.