| Title: |
A rapid tectonic plate reorganization event driven by changes at subduction locations in a mantle convection model |
| Authors: |
Guerrero, Joshua Martin; Fairservice, Chad W.; Javaheri, Pejvak; Lowman, Julian P.; Tackley, Paul J.; Tackley, Paul; id_orcid:0 000-0003-4878-621X |
| Source: |
Scientific Reports, 15 (1) |
| Publisher Information: |
Nature |
| Publication Year: |
2025 |
| Collection: |
ETH Zürich Research Collection |
| Subject Terms: |
Mantle convection; Euler pole; tectonic plate; reorganization; internal heating; Geodynamics; Geophysics; Tectonics |
| Description: |
The occurrence of tectonic plate reorganization events is evident throughout the geologic record and appears to be associated with the cessation of mature and/or initiation of new subduction. Subduction initiation that produced the bend in the Hawaii-Emperor seamount chain resulted in the most recent upheaval of plate motion and engendered dramatic changes in plate velocities. Here, applying a method for identifying plate boundaries in a numerical global mantle convection model, we calculate Euler vector time series of self-consistently generated plates over a period of approximately 144 Myr. During this period, global evolution is characterized by two dominant convergent boundaries and the number of major plates identified varies between 9 and 14. Using a 2 Myr sampling rate to track the histories of three enduring plates that share a common triple junction, we observe a major plate reorganization event occurring over approximately 6-8 Myr. The catalyst for the event is identified as the development of a deep thermal feature intrinsic to internally heated convection. A buildup of heat enveloping a mature mantle downwelling accumulates a buoyancy that resists ongoing plate motion and eventually forces the over-riding plates on a new trajectory. ; ISSN:2045-2322 |
| Document Type: |
article in journal/newspaper |
| File Description: |
application/application/pdf |
| Language: |
English |
| Relation: |
https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11850/783687 |
| DOI: |
10.3929/ethz-c-000783687 |
| Availability: |
https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11850/783687; https://doi.org/10.3929/ethz-c-000783687 |
| Rights: |
info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess ; http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/ ; Creative Commons Attribution- NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International |
| Accession Number: |
edsbas.F6DB60FE |
| Database: |
BASE |