Synchronous oceanic spreading and continental rifting in West Antarctica

F. J. Davey, R. Granot, S. C. Cande, J. M. Stock, M. Selvans, F. Ferraccioli

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

30 Scopus citations

Abstract

Magnetic anomalies associated with new ocean crust formation in the Adare Basin off north-western Ross Sea (43–26 Ma) can be traced directly into the Northern Basin that underlies the adjacent morphological continental shelf, implying a continuity in the emplacement of oceanic crust. Steep gravity gradients along the margins of the Northern Basin, particularly in the east, suggest that little extension and thinning of continental crust occurred before it ruptured and the new oceanic crust formed, unlike most other continental rifts and the Victoria Land Basin further south. A preexisting weak crust and localization of strain by strike-slip faulting are proposed as the factors allowing the rapid rupture of continental crust.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)6162-6169
Number of pages8
JournalGeophysical Research Letters
Volume43
Issue number12
DOIs
StatePublished - 1 Jan 2016

Keywords

  • continental rifting

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Geophysics
  • General Earth and Planetary Sciences

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