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Transition from continental break‐up to punctiform seafloor spreading: How fast, symmetric and magmatic
Author(s) -
Corti Giacomo,
Van Wijk Jolante,
Bonini Marco,
Sokoutis Dimitrios,
Cloetingh Sierd,
Innocenti Fabrizio,
Manetti Piero
Publication year - 2003
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 - 10.1029/2003gl017374
Subject(s) - geology , seafloor spreading , lithosphere , continental margin , rift , asthenosphere , plate tectonics , tectonics , continental crust , continental shelf , geophysics , paleontology , seismology , petrology , oceanography
We present a comparison between numerical and analogue models focusing on the role of inherited lithospheric structures in influencing the process of continental break‐up. Our results highlight that the presence of pre‐existing anisotropies localizes strain and favors continental break‐up and formation of a new ocean. For a fixed strain rate, the pre‐rift lithosphere configuration influences rift duration, melt production and width and symmetry of the continental margin pair. Model results show a mainly two‐phase tectonic history from continental extension to oceanization. In the first phase extension affects contemporaneously the whole rift structure, while in the second phase asthenosphere upwelling occurs into punctiform regularly‐spaced spots sequentially propagating in an extension‐orthogonal direction.