EGU22-13027
https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu22-13027
EGU General Assembly 2022
© Author(s) 2022. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.

How Continents Break-up and New Ocean Ridges are Established 

Marta Pérez-Gussinyé, Javier García-Pintado, Zhonglan Liu, and Leila Mezri
Marta Pérez-Gussinyé et al.
  • Universitaet Bremen, MARUM/Fachbereich Geowissenschaften, Bremen, Germany (gussinye@uni-bremen.de)

The processes that lead to the transition from continental extension and break-up to steady-state mid-ocean ridge formation are not well understood. Particular unknowns are the paleo-water depths at which the continental lithosphere breaks up, the nature of the crust at the so-called continent-ocean transition and when and how a steady-state mid-ocean ridge is established. To understand these questions we use numerical models that couple tectonic deformation, sedimentation, hydrothermal cooling, serpentinisation and melting, as a virtual laboratory. We present results of models run with different velocities that simulate natural examples observed in nature such as the South China sea and the West Iberia-Newfoundland margins. We focus on the evolution of subsidence, heat-flow and nature of the basement as the rift transforms into a steady-state mid-ocean ridge and show how the interplay between tectonics and hydrothermal cooling lead to the different configurations observed in nature.

 

How to cite: Pérez-Gussinyé, M., García-Pintado, J., Liu, Z., and Mezri, L.: How Continents Break-up and New Ocean Ridges are Established , EGU General Assembly 2022, Vienna, Austria, 23–27 May 2022, EGU22-13027, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu22-13027, 2022.