Journal Article10.1029/JB076I032P07888
Elevation of ridges and evolution of the central Eastern Pacific.
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TL;DR: In this paper, an empirical relationship between ridge elevation and age of the oceanic crust is presented for the Pacific, Atlantic, and Indian oceans, which is explained by thermal contraction of a cooling lithosphere as it moves away from a center of spreading, and thus is compatible with plate theory.
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Abstract: An empirical relationship between ridge elevation and age of the oceanic crust is presented for the Pacific, Atlantic, and Indian oceans. This relationship is accounted for by the thermal contraction of a cooling lithosphere as it moves away from a center of spreading, and thus is compatible with plate theory. Hence, it is possible to use topographic profiles to predict the age of the ocean floor. Detailed examination of profiles in different areas indicates that slow-spreading ridges (half-rate 3 cm/yr). However, all ridges appear to show a uniform subsidence rate near the ridge crest. This uniform rate makes it possible to use topographic profiles in regions of smooth topography to predict the age of oceanic crust, less than 40 m.y. old, to better than ±2 m.y. Topographic profiles will be particularly useful for predicting age where magnetic anomaly patterns are absent or difficult to interpret. Magnetic, topographic, seismic reflection, twenty-nine new, and all other heat-flow observations across the east Pacific rise and Mathematician and Clipperton seamount chains in the central eastern Pacific are examined. The magnetic and heat-flow observations are too inconclusive to enable a tectonic reconstruction of the area. However, topographic profiles at right angles to the rise between 20°N and the equator show that the Mathematician and Clipperton seamount chains are the old crest of the east Pacific rise. These parts of the rise crest terminated approximately 5 m.y. B.P. by the spreading center jumping 4° to the east. Seismic reflection profiles at right angles to the crest support this conclusion. The topography west of these two chains is used as the basis for a proposed evolution of the central eastern Pacific during the past 20 m.y.
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References
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Sea-floor spreading and continental drift
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The Evolution of the Indian Ocean since the Late Cretaceous
Dan McKenzie,John G. Sclater +1 more
TL;DR: A detailed study of ship and aeroplane tracks across the Indian Ocean was carried out in this paper, and it was shown that Africa is now moving northward at 2 cm/y relative to Antarctica in the South West Indian Ocean.
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