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The Sierras Pampeanas (29 - 35°S) located south of the Altiplano-Puna plateau above the Chilean subduction zone, consist of uplifted foreland basement blocks that are an expression of the eastward propagation of compresive deformation. Their presence is one of the most enigmatic features of the Andes. The formation of these ranges is considered an end member of the thick-skinned foreland deformation style, which involves the deformation of the sedimentary cover and the crystalline basement. At 33°S, the onset of compression occurs at 22Ma, and the change between thin and thick skinned deformation style at 16Ma. However, the mechanism responsible for this evolution remains controversial. Two main hypotheses have been proposed to explain this evolution. The first one atributes the change in foreland deformation style to the setting of the Pampean flat slab at 12 Ma, which is contemporanous to the southward migration and subduction of the Juan Fernandez hotspot ridge at 33S. Alternatively, it has been proposed that the reactivation of pre-existing structures inherited from pre-Neogen tectonic events could better explain the onset of deformation about 10 Ma before the arrival of the flat-slab. To resolve this controversial debate, we have developed a data-driven 3D geodynamic model using the FEM geodynamic code ASPECT. We incorporated the present-day geometrical and thermal configuration of the southern central Andes and the flat-slab from previous models. This approach allowed us to study the structural and thermomechanical factors responsible for the location of deformation in the Sierras Pampeanas (e.g., topography, temperature and composition, strength of the lithosphere and velocity of the plates). Moreover, we investigated the role of the geometry of the Nazca plate on the foreland deformation, and proposed a new mechanism ("flat slab conveyor)" that reconciles the timing of the main geological events (onset of shortening, change in tectonics style of deformation of the foreland, growth of the topography, cessation of volcanic activity, uplift of the basement, and propagation of the deformation). This work expands our understanding of how plates interact at convergent boundaries, in particular at the subduction zones, and how and where deformation is expressed at the surface of the the upper continental plate.

The non-collisional subduction margin of South America is characterized by different geometries of the subduction zone and upper-plate tectono-magmatic provinces. The localization of deformation in the southern Central Andes (29°S–39°S) has been attributed to numerous factors that combine the properties of the subducting oceanic Nazca plate and the continental South American plate. In this study, the present-day configuration of the subducting oceanic plate and the continental upper plate were integrated in a data-driven geodynamic workflow to assess their role in determining strain localization within the upper plate of the flat slab and its southward transition to a steeper segment. The model predicts two fundamental processes that drive deformation in the Andean orogen and its foreland: eastward propagation of deformation in the flat-slab segment by a combined bulldozing mechanism and pure-shear shortening that affects the broken foreland and simple-shear shortening in the fold-and-thrust belt of the orogen above the steep slab segment. The transition between the steep and subhorizontal subduction segments is characterized by a 370-km-wide area of diffuse shear, where deformation transitions from pure to simple shear, resembling the transition from thick to thin-skinned foreland deformation in the southern Sierras Pampeanas. This pattern is controlled by the change in dip geometry of the Nazca plate and the presence of mechanically weak sedimentary basins and inherited faults.

The magnitude of earthquakes on continental normal faults rarely exceeds 7.0 Mw. However, because of their vicinity to large population centers they can be highly destructive. Long recurrence time, relatively small deformations, and limited observations hinder our understanding of the deformation patterns and mechanisms controlling the magnitude of events. Here, this problem is addressed with 2D thermomechanical modeling of normal fault seismic cycles. The 2020 Samos, Greece Mw7.0 earthquake is used as an example as it is one of the largest and most studied continental normal fault earthquakes. The modeling approach employs visco-elasto-plastic rheology, compressibility, free surface, and a rate-and-state friction law for the fault. Modeling of the Samos earthquake suggests the pore fluid pressure ratio on the fault ranges from 0 to 0.7. The model demonstrates that most of the deformation during interseismic and coseismic periods, besides on the fault, occurs in the hanging wall and footwall below the seismogenic part of the fault. The largest vertical surface displacement during the earthquake is the subsidence of the hanging wall in the vicinity of the fault, while the uplift of the footwall and remote part of the hanging wall is significantly smaller. Modeling of the seismic cycles on normal faults with different setups shows the dependency of the magnitude on the thermal profile and dipping angle of the fault; low heat flow and low dipping angle are favorable conditions for the largest events, while steep normal faults in the areas of high heat flow tend to have the smallest magnitudes.

Deformation in the orogen-foreland system of the southern Central Andes between 33° and 36° S varies in style, locus, and amount of shortening. The controls that determine these spatially variable characteristics have largely remained unknown, yet both the subduction of the oceanic Nazca plate and the strength of the South American plate have been invoked to play a major role. While the parameters governing the subduction processes are similar between 33° and 36° S, the lithospheric strength of the upper plate is spatially variable due to structures inherited from past geodynamic regimes and associated compositional differences in the South American plate. Regional Mesozoic crustal horizontal extension generated a < 40-km-thick crust with a more mafic composition in the lower crust south of 35°S; north of this latitude, however, a more felsic lower crust is inferred from geophysical data. To assess the influence of different structural and compositional heterogeneities on the style of deformation in the southern Central Andes, we developed a suite of geodynamic models of intraplate lithospheric shortening for two E–W transects (33° 40′ S and 36° S) across the Andes. The models are constrained by local geological and geophysical information. Our results demonstrate a decoupled shortening mode between the brittle upper crust and the ductile lower crust in those areas characterized by a mafic lower crust (36° S transect). In contrast, a more felsic lower crust, such as in the 33° 40′ S transect, results in a coupled shortening mode. Furthermore, we find that differences in lithospheric thickness and the asymmetry of the lithosphere–asthenosphere boundary may promote the formation of a crustal-scale, west-dipping detachment zone that drives the overall deformation and lateral expansion of the orogen. Our study represents the first geodynamic modeling effort in the southern Central Andes aimed at understanding the roles of heterogeneities (crustal composition and thickness) at the scale of the entire lithosphere as well as the geometry of the lithosphere–asthenosphere boundary with respect to mountain building. Fil: Barrionuevo, Matías. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Mendoza. Instituto Argentino de Nivología, Glaciología y Ciencias Ambientales. Provincia de Mendoza. Instituto Argentino de Nivología, Glaciología y Ciencias Ambientales. Universidad Nacional de Cuyo. Instituto Argentino de Nivología, Glaciología y Ciencias Ambientales; Argentina Fil: Liu, Sibiao. Universitat Potsdam; Alemania Fil: Mescua, Jose Francisco. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Mendoza. Instituto Argentino de Nivología, Glaciología y Ciencias Ambientales. Provincia de Mendoza. Instituto Argentino de Nivología, Glaciología y Ciencias Ambientales. Universidad Nacional de Cuyo. Instituto Argentino de Nivología, Glaciología y Ciencias Ambientales; Argentina Fil: Yagupsky, Daniel Leonardo. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Ciudad Universitaria. Instituto de Estudios Andinos "Don Pablo Groeber". Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Estudios Andinos "Don Pablo Groeber"; Argentina Fil: Quinteros, Javier. German Research Centre for Geosciences; Alemania Fil: Giambiagi, Laura Beatriz. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Mendoza. Instituto Argentino de Nivología, Glaciología y Ciencias Ambientales. Provincia de Mendoza. Instituto Argentino de Nivología, Glaciología y Ciencias Ambientales. Universidad Nacional de Cuyo. Instituto Argentino de Nivología, Glaciología y Ciencias Ambientales; Argentina Fil: Sobolev, Stephan V.. Universitat Potsdam; Alemania Fil: Piceda, Constanza Rodríguez. Universitat Potsdam; Alemania Fil: Strecker, Manfred R.. German Research Centre for Geosciences; Alemania

The formation of the Central Andes dates back to ∼50 Ma, but its most pronounced episode, including the growth of the Altiplano-Puna Plateau and pulsatile tectonic shortening phases, occurred within the last 25 Ma. The reason for this evolution remains unexplained. Using geodynamic numerical modeling we infer that the primary cause of the pulses of tectonic shortening and growth of the Central Andes is the changing geometry of the subducted Nazca plate, and particularly the steepening of the mid-mantle slab segment which results in a slowing down of the trench retreat and subsequent increase in shortening of the advancing South America plate. This steepening first happens after the end of the flat slab episode at ∼25 Ma, and later during the buckling and stagnation of the slab in the mantle transition zone. Processes that mechanically weaken the lithosphere of the South America plate, as suggested in previous studies, enhance the intensity of the shortening events. These processes include delamination of the mantle lithosphere and weakening of foreland sediments. Our new modeling results are consistent with the timing and amplitude of the deformation from geological data in the Central Andes at the Altiplano latitude., Journal of Geophysical Research: Solid Earth, 127 (12), ISSN:2169-9313, ISSN:0148-0227, ISSN:2169-9356

The formation of the Central Andes dates back to ~50 Ma, but its most pronounced phase, including the growth of the Altiplano-Puna Plateau and pulsatile tectonic shortening phases, occurred within the last 25 Ma. The reason for this evolution remains unexplained. Using geodynamic numerical modeling we infer that the primary cause of the pulses of tectonic shortening and growth of Central Andes is the changing geometry of the subducted Nazca plate, and particularly the steepening of the mid-mantle slab segment which results in a slowing down of the trench retreat and subsequent shortening of the advancing South America plate. This steepening first happens after the end of the flat slab episode at ~25 Ma, and later during the buckling and stagnation of the slab in the mantle transition zone. The Intensity of the shortening events is enhanced by the processes that mechanically weaken the lithosphere of the South America plate, which were suggested in previous studies. These processes include delamination of the mantle lithosphere and weakening of the foreland sediments. Our new modeling results are consistent with the timing and amplitude of the deformation from geological data in the Central Andes at the Altiplano latitude.

Subduction initiation induced by a hot and buoyant mantle plume head is unique among proposed subduction initiation mechanisms because it does not require pre-existing weak zones or other forces for lithospheric collapse. Since recognition of the first evidence of subduction nucleation induced by a mantle plume in the Late Cretaceous Caribbean realm, the number of studies focusing on other natural examples has grown. Here, we review numerical and physical modeling and geological-geochemical studies which have been carried out thus far to investigate onset of a new subduction zone caused by impingement of a mantle plume head. As geological-geochemical data suggests that plume-lithosphere interactions have long been important - spanning from the Archean to the present - modeling studies provide valuable information on the spatial and temporal variations in lithospheric deformation induced by these interactions. Numerical and physical modeling studies, ranging from regional to global scales, illustrate the key role of plume buoyancy, lithospheric strength and magmatic weakening above the plume head on plume-lithosphere interactions. Lithospheric/crustal heterogeneities, pre-existing lithospheric weak zones and external compressional/extensional forces may also change the deformation regime caused by plume-lithosphere interaction., Frontiers in Earth Science, 9, ISSN:2296-6463

Controls on the deformation pattern (shortening mode and tectonic style) of orogenic forelands during tectonic shortening remain poorly understood. Here, we use high-resolution 2D thermomechanical ...

Subduction zones are key components of plate tectonics and plate tectonics could not begin until the first subduction zone formed. Plume-induced subduction initiation, which has been proposed as triggering the beginning of plate tectonics (Gerya et al., 2015), is one of the few scenarios that can break the lithosphere and recycle a stagnant lid without requiring any pre-existing weak zones. So far, two natural examples of plume-induced subduction initiation have been recognized. The first was found in southern and western margins of the Caribbean Plate (Whattam and Stern 2014). Initiation of the Cascadia subduction zone in Eocene times has been proposed to be the second example of plume-induced subduction initiation (Stern and Dumitru, 2019).The focus of previous studies was to inspect plume-lithosphere interaction either for the case of stationary lithosphere (e.g., Gerya et al., 2015) or for moving lithosphere without considering the effect of lithospheric magmatic weakening above the plume head (e.g., Moore et al., 1998). In present study we investigate the response of moving oceanic lithosphere to the arrival of a rising mantle plume head including the effect of magmatic lithospheric weakening. We used 3D numerical thermo-mechanical modeling. Using I3ELVIS code, which is based on finite difference staggered grid and marker-in-cell with an efficient OpenMP multigrid solver (Gerya, 2010), we show that plate motion may affect the plume-induced subduction initiation only if a moderate size plume head (with a radius of 140 km in our experiments) impinges on a young but subductable lithosphere (with the age of 20 Myr). Outcomes indicate that lithospheric strength and plume buoyancy are key parameters in penetration of the plume and subduction initiation and that plate speed has a minor effect. We propose that eastward motion of the Farallon plate in Late Cretaceous time could play a key role in forming new subduction zones along the western and southern margin of the Caribbean plate. References:Gerya, T., 2010, Introduction to Numerical Geodynamic Modelling.. Cambridge University Press.Gerya, T.V., Stern, R.J., Baes, M., Sobolev, S.V. and Whattam, S.A., 2015. Plume-induced subduction initiation triggered Plate Tectonics on Earth. Nature, 527, 221–225.Moore, W. B., Schubert, G. and Tackley, P., 1998, Three-dimensional simulations of plume-lithosphere interaction at the Hawaiian swell. Science, 279, 1008-1011.Stern, R.J., and Dumitru, T.A., 2019, Eocene initiation of the Cascadia subduction zone: A second example of plume-induced subduction initiation? Geosphere, v. 15, 659-681.Whattam, S.A. and Stern, R.J., 2014. Late Cretaceous plume-induced subduction initiation along the southern margin of the Caribbean and NW South America: The first documented example with implications for the onset of plate tectonics. Gondwana Research, 27, doi: 10.1016/j.gr.2014.07.011.

Giant earthquakes with magnitudes above 8.5 occur only in subduction zones. Despite the developments made in observing large subduction zone earthquakes with geophysical instruments, the factors controlling the maximum size of these earthquakes are still poorly understood. Previous studies have suggested the importance of slab shape, roughness of the plate interface contact, state of the strain in the upper plate, thickness of sediments filling the trenches, and subduction rate. Here, we present 2‐D cross‐scale numerical models of seismic cycles for subduction zones with various geometries, subduction channel friction configurations, and subduction rates. We found that low‐angle subduction and thick sediments in the subduction channel are the necessary conditions for generating giant earthquakes, while the subduction rate has a negligible effect. We suggest that these key parameters determine the maximum magnitude of a subduction earthquake by controlling the seismogenic zone width and smoothness of the subduction interface. This interpretation supports previous studies that are based upon observations and scaling laws. Our modeling results also suggest that low static friction in the sediment‐filled subduction channel results in neutral or moderate compressive deformation in the overriding plate for low‐angle subduction zones hosting giant earthquakes. These modeling results agree well with observations for the largest earthquakes. Based on our models we predict maximum magnitudes of subduction earthquakes worldwide, demonstrating the fit to magnitudes of all giant earthquakes of the 20th and 21st centuries and good agreement with the predictions based on statistical analyses of observations.

The impingement of a hot buoyant mantle plume onto the lithosphere can result in either breaking of the lithosphere, which might results in subduction initiation or in under-plating of the plume beneath the lithosphere. Key natural examples of the former and latter are formation of subduction along the southern margin of Caribbean and northwestern South America in the late Cretaceous as well as the hotspot chains of Hawaii, respectively. In previous studies the interaction of a buoyant mantle plume with lithosphere was investigated either for the case of stationary lithosphere or for moving lithosphere but ignoring the effect of magmatic weakening of the lithosphere above the plume head. In this study we aim to investigate the response of a moving lithosphere to the arrival of a stationary mantle plume including the effect of magmatic lithospheric weakening. To do so we use 3d thermo-mechanical models employing the finite difference code I3ELVIS. Our setup consists of an oceanic lithosphere, mantle plume and asthenosphere till depth of 400 km. The moving plate is simulated by imposing a kinematic boundary condition on the lithospheric part of the side boundaries. The mantle plume in our models has a mushroom shape. The experiments differ in the age of the lithosphere, rate of the plate motion and size of the mantle plume. For different combinations of these parameters model results show either (1) breaking of the lithosphere and initiation of subduction above the plume head or (2) asymmetric spreading of the plume material below the lithosphere without large deformation of the lithosphere. We find that the critical radius of the plume that breaks the lithosphere and initiates subduction depends on plume buoyancy and the lithospheric age, but not on the plate speed. In general, the modeling results for the moving plate are similar to the results for a stationary plate, but the shapes of the region of the deformed lithosphere differ.

It has recently been demonstrated that the interaction of a mantle plume with sufficiently old oceanic lithosphere can initiate subduction. However, the existence of large lithospheric heterogeneities, such as a buoyant plateau, in proximity to a rising plume head may potentially hinder the formation of a new subduction zone. Here, we investigate this scenario by means of 3‐D numerical thermomechanical modeling. We explore how plume‐lithosphere interaction is affected by lithospheric age, relative location of plume head and plateau border, and the strength of the oceanic crust. Our numerical experiments suggest four different geodynamic regimes: (a) oceanic trench formation, (b) circular oceanic‐plateau trench formation, (c) plateau trench formation, and (d) no trench formation. We show that regardless of the age and crustal strength of the oceanic lithosphere, subduction can initiate when the plume head is either below the plateau border or at a distance less than the plume radius from the plateau edge. Crustal heterogeneity facilitates subduction initiation of old oceanic lithosphere. High crustal strength hampers the formation of a new subduction zone when the plume head is located below a young lithosphere containing a thick and strong plateau. We suggest that plume‐plateau interaction in the western margin of the Caribbean could have resulted in subduction initiation when the plume head impinged onto the oceanic lithosphere close to the border between plateau and oceanic crust., Geochemistry, Geophysics, Geosystems, 21 (8), ISSN:1525-2027

The classical Wilson Cycle concept, describing repeated opening and closing of ocean basins, hypothesizes spontaneous conversion of passive continental margins into subduction zones. This process, however, is impeded by the high strength of passive margins, and it has never occurred in Cenozoic times. Here using thermomechanical models, we show that additional forcing, provided by mantle flow, which is induced by neighboring subduction zones and midmantle slab remnants, can convert a passive margin into a subduction zone. Models suggest that this is a long-term process, thus explaining the lack of Cenozoic examples. We speculate that new subduction zones may form in the next few tens of millions of years along the Argentine passive margin and the U.S. East Coast. Mantle suction force can similarly trigger subduction initiation along large oceanic fracture zones. We propose that new subduction zones will preferentially originate where subduction zones were active in the past, thus explaining the remarkable colocation of subduction zones during at least the last 400 Myr.

Subduction is substantially multi-scale process where the stresses are built by long-term tectonic motions, modified by sudden jerky deformations during earthquakes, and then restored by following multiple relaxation processes. Here, we develop a cross-scale thermomechanical model aimed to simulate the subduction process from 1 minute to million years' time scale. The model employs elasticity, nonlinear transient viscous rheology, and rate-and-state friction. It generates spontaneous earthquake sequences and by using an adaptive time-step algorithm, recreates the deformation process as observed naturally during the seismic cycle and multiple seismic cycles. The model predicts that viscosity in the mantle wedge drops by more than three orders of magnitude during the great earthquake with a magnitude above 9. As a result, the surface velocities just an hour or day after the earthquake are controlled by viscoelastic relaxation in the several hundred km of mantle landward of the trench and not by the afterslip localized at the fault as is currently believed. Our model replicates centuries-long seismic cycles exhibited by the greatest earthquakes and is consistent with the postseismic surface displacements recorded after the Great Tohoku Earthquake. We demonstrate that there is no contradiction between extremely low mechanical coupling at the subduction megathrust in South Chile inferred from long-term geodynamic models and appearance of the largest earthquakes, like the Great Chile 1960 Earthquake.

Plate tectonics is among the most important geological processes on Earth, but its emergence and evolution remain unclear. Here we extrapolate models of present-day plate tectonics to the past and propose that since about three billion years ago the rise of continents and the accumulation of sediments at continental edges and in trenches has provided lubrication for the stabilization of subduction and has been crucial in the development of plate tectonics on Earth. We conclude that the two largest surface erosion and subduction lubrication events occurred after the Palaeoproterozoic Huronian global glaciations (2.45 to 2.2 billion years ago), leading to the formation of the Columbia supercontinent, and after the Neoproterozoic 'snowball' Earth glaciations (0.75 to 0.63 billion years ago). The snowball Earth event followed the 'boring billion'-a period of reduced plate tectonic activity about 1.75 to 0.75 billion years ago that was probably caused by a shortfall of sediments in trenches-and it kick-started the modern episode of active plate tectonics.

Pre-existing weakness zones in the lithosphere such as transform faults/fracture zones and extinct mid-oceanic ridges have been suggested to facilitate subduction initiation in an intra-oceanic environment. Here, we propose that the additional forcing coming from the mantle suction flow is required to trigger the conversion of a fracture zone/transform fault into a converging plate boundary. This suction flow can be induced either from the slab remnants of former converging plate boundaries or/and from slabs of neighbouring active subduction zones. Using 2-D coupled thermo-mechanical models, we show that a sufficiently strong mantle flow is able to convert a fracture zone/transform fault into a subduction zone. However, this process is feasible only if the fracture zone/transform fault is very close to the mid-oceanic ridge. Our numerical model results indicate that time of subduction initiation depends on the velocity, domain size and location of mantle suction flow and age of the oceanic plate.

We study segregation of the subducted oceanic crust (OC) at the core-mantle boundary and its ability to accumulate and form large thermochemical piles (such as the seismically observed Large Low Shear Velocity Provinces (LLSVPs)). Our high-resolution numerical simulations of thermochemical mantle convection suggest that the longevity of LLSVPs for up to three billion years, and possibly longer, can be ensured by a balance in the rate of segregation of high-density OC material to the core-mantle boundary (CMB) and the rate of its entrainment away from the CMB by mantle upwellings. For a range of parameters tested in this study, a large-scale compositional anomaly forms at the CMB, similar in shape and size to the LLSVPs. Neutrally buoyant thermochemical piles formed by mechanical stirring—where thermally induced negative density anomaly is balanced by the presence of a fraction of dense anomalous material—best resemble the geometry of LLSVPs. Such neutrally buoyant piles tend to emerge and survive for at least 3 Gyr in simulations with quite different parameters. We conclude that for a plausible range of values of density anomaly of OC material in the lower mantle—it is likely that it segregates to the CMB, gets mechanically mixed with the ambient material, and forms neutrally buoyant large-scale compositional anomalies similar in shape to the LLSVPs.

The orientation and tectonic regime of the observed crustal/lithospheric stress field contribute to our knowledge of different deformation processes occurring within the Earth's crust and lithosphere. In this study, we analyze the influence of the thermal and density structure of the upper mantle on the lithospheric stress field and topography. We use a 3D lithosphere-asthenosphere numerical model with power-law rheology, coupled to a spectral mantle flow code at 300 km depth. Our results are validated against the World Stress Map 2016 and the observation-based residual topography. We derive the upper mantle thermal structure from either a heat flow model combined with a sea floor age model (TM1) or a global S-wave velocity model (TM2). We show that lateral density heterogeneities in the upper 300 km have a limited influence on the modeled horizontal stress field as opposed to the resulting dynamic topography that appears more sensitive to such heterogeneities. There is hardly any difference between the stress orientation patterns predicted with and without consideration of the heterogeneities in the upper mantle density structure across North America, Australia, and North Africa. In contrast, we find that the dynamic topography is to a greater extent controlled by the upper mantle density structure. After correction for the chemical depletion of continents, the TM2 model leads to a much better fit with the observed residual topography giving a correlation of 0.51 in continents, but this correction leads to no significant improvement in the resulting lithosphere stresses. In continental regions with abundant heat flow data such as, for instant, Western Europe, TM1 results in relatively a small angular misfits of 18.30° between the modeled and observation-based stress field compared 19.90° resulting from modeled lithosphere stress with s-wave based model TM2.

An inclined zone of intermediate-depth seismicity beneath the Pamir orogen in Central Asia has been interpreted as southward subduction of a slab of Asian lithosphere. However, it is not known whether Asian lithosphere subducts intact or only partially. We used arrival times of shallow and intermediate-depth earthquakes, recorded with a temporary (2008–2010) seismic network in this region, to invert for 3D models of seismic velocities in an attempt to answer this question. With local seismicity reaching depths of up to 240 km, the deep structure of the Pamir could be illuminated with high resolution. The resulting velocity models show a north–south contrast in crustal seismic velocities in the Pamir, with very low P velocities (5.7–5.9 km/s at 15–30 km depth), coupled with relatively low vp/vsvp/vs (

The arrival of a plume head at Earth's continental lithosphere is often considered to be an important factor for continental break-up. However, the impact of plume impingement on strength and duration of a rift remains unclear. In this study, we quantify the mechanical and thermal influence of a plume (i.e. lithosphere erosion) on continental break-up. To do that we apply the three-dimensional numerical code SLIM3D that features realistic elasto-visco-plastic rheology. We model the thermo-mechanical response of a segment of Earth's lithosphere that is affected both by extension as well as plume-related lithosphere erosion in order to evaluate the influence on the overall force budget. We find that lithosphere erosion leads to a moderate lithospheric strength reduction of several TN/m. In a force-limited environment, however, this strength reduction may have strong influence on the timing of continental break-up, or it may even control whether continental break-up takes place at all. Additional reduction of the lithospheric strength is likely due to the massive emplacement of dikes that follows intensive melting within the plume head.

Here, we study the 3-D subduction initiation process induced by the interaction between a hot thermochemical mantle plume and oceanic lithosphere using thermo-mechanical viscoplastic finite difference marker-in-cell models. Our numerical modeling results show that self-sustaining subduction is induced by plume-lithosphere interaction when the plume is sufficiently buoyant, the oceanic lithosphere is sufficiently old and the plate is weak enough to allow the buoyant plume to. pass through it. Subduction initiation occurs following penetration of the lithosphere by the hot plume and the downward displacement of broken, nearly circular segments of lithosphere (proto-slabs) as a result of partially molten plume rocks overriding the proto-slabs. Our experiments show four different deformation regimes in response to plume-lithosphere interaction: a) self-sustaining subduction initiation, in which subduction becomes self-sustaining; b) frozen subduction initiation, in which subduction stops at shallow depths; c) slab break-off, in which the subducting circular slab breaks off soon after formation; and d) plume underplating, in which the plume does not pass through the lithosphere and instead spreads beneath it (i.e., failed subduction initiation). These regimes depend on several parameters, such as the size, composition, and temperature of the plume, the brittle/plastic strength and age of the oceanic lithosphere, and the presence/absence of lithospheric heterogeneities. The results show that subduction initiates and becomes self-sustaining when the lithosphere is older than 10 Myr and the non dimensional ratio of the plume buoyancy force and lithospheric strength above the plume is higher than approximately 2. The outcomes of our numerical experiments are applicable for subduction initiation in the modern and Precambrian Earth and for the origin of plume-related corona structures on Venus. (C) 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

We present the GITEWS approach to source modeling for the tsunami early warning in Indonesia. Near-field tsunami implies special requirements to both warning time and details of source characterization. To meet these requirements, we employ geophysical and geological information to predefine a maximum number of rupture parameters. We discretize the tsunamigenic Sunda plate interface into an ordered grid of patches (150×25) and employ the concept of Green's functions for forward and inverse rupture modeling. Rupture Generator, a forward modeling tool, additionally employs different scaling laws and slip shape functions to construct physically reasonable source models using basic seismic information only (magnitude and epicenter location). GITEWS runs a library of semi- and fully-synthetic scenarios to be extensively employed by system testing as well as by warning center personnel teaching and training. Near real-time GPS observations are a very valuable complement to the local tsunami warning system. Their inversion provides quick (within a few minutes on an event) estimation of the earthquake magnitude, rupture position and, in case of sufficient station coverage, details of slip distribution.

The Indonesian archipelago is known for the occurrence of catastrophic earthquake-generated tsunamis along the Sunda Arc. The tsunami hazard associated with submarine landslides however has not been fully addressed. In this paper, we compile the known tsunamigenic events where landslide involvement is certain and summarize the properties of published landslides that were identified with geophysical methods. We depict novel mass movements, found in newly available bathymetry, and determine their key parameters. Using numerical modeling, we compute possible tsunami scenarios. Furthermore, we propose a way of identifying landslide tsunamis using an array of few buoys with bottom pressure units.

Our analysis of new bathymetric data reveals six submarine landslides at the eastern Sunda margin between central Java and Sumba Island, Indonesia. Their volumes range between 1 km³ in the Java fore-arc basin up to 20 km³ at the trench off Sumba and Sumbawa. We estimate the potential hazard of each event by modeling the corresponding tsunami and its run-up on nearby coasts. Four slides are situated remarkably close to the epicenter of the 1977 tsunamigenic Sumba M w = 8.3 earthquake. However, comparison of documented tsunami run-up heights and arrival times with our modeling results neither allows us to confirm nor can we falsify the hypothesis that the earthquake triggered these submarine landslides.

Pull-apart basins are depressions that form as the result of crustal extension along strike-slip systems where the sense of fault stepping or bending coincides with that of fault slip. They are common features of strike-slip systems. We perform a number of numerical thermomechanical experiments to explore how the rheology of the lithosphere influences basin evolution and lithospheric structure beneath the basin. Our modeling shows that basin subsidence results from the competition of extension of the brittle part of the lithosphere, which leads to its subsidence, and of the compensating flow of the deeper ductile part of the lithosphere, which pushes the extended brittle block upwards. The result of this competition is the subsidence rate. Strain partitioning beneath the basin and crustal structures is controlled by (i) the thickness of the brittle layer and basin width, (ii) the magnitude of strike-slip displacement, (iii) the rate of frictional softening of the crust, and (iv) the viscosity of the ductile part of the lithosphere. The thickness of the brittle layer and the viscosity of the underlying ductile part of the lithosphere in turn depend on temperature, composition and material softening. We interpret the modeling results, deducing simple analytical expressions based on the “brittle brick stretching” (BBS) approach, which despite its simplicity describes the structure and evolution of pull-apart basins reasonably well. We also demonstrate that the structure and evolution of the Dead Sea Basin, located at a left step of the Dead Sea Transform in the Middle East, is consistent with a BBS type of deformation with only a minor contribution from compensational flow in the ductile part of the lithosphere. Finally, we show that the formation of a deep narrow pull-apart basin in relatively cold lithosphere, as in the Dead Sea Basin, requires very low friction at major faults (lower than 0.1–0.2). If this condition is not satisfied, strike-slip deformation does not localise and deep basins do not form.

High-resolution three-dimensional thermomechanical simulations of Earth's lithosphere indicate that mantle plumes could have initiated the first subduction zones, but only in the hotter early Earth for old oceanic plates. Taras Gerya and co-authors use high-resolution three-dimensional numerical thermomechanical models to show that mantle plumes could have initiated the first subduction zones. They find that several factors combine to trigger self-sustained subduction: a strong, negatively buoyant oceanic lithosphere, focused magmatic weakening and thinning of lithosphere above the plume, and lubrication of the slab interface by hydrated crust. They also conclude that plume-induced subduction was only feasible in the hotter early Earth for old oceanic plates, as younger plates would have favoured episodic lithospheric drips rather than self-sustained subduction and global plate tectonics. Scientific theories of how subduction and plate tectonics began on Earth—and what the tectonic structure of Earth was before this—remain enigmatic and contentious1. Understanding viable scenarios for the onset of subduction and plate tectonics2,3 is hampered by the fact that subduction initiation processes must have been markedly different before the onset of global plate tectonics because most present-day subduction initiation mechanisms require acting plate forces and existing zones of lithospheric weakness, which are both consequences of plate tectonics4. However, plume-induced subduction initiation5,6,7,8,9 could have started the first subduction zone without the help of plate tectonics. Here, we test this mechanism using high-resolution three-dimensional numerical thermomechanical modelling. We demonstrate that three key physical factors combine to trigger self-sustained subduction: (1) a strong, negatively buoyant oceanic lithosphere; (2) focused magmatic weakening and thinning of lithosphere above the plume; and (3) lubrication of the slab interface by hydrated crust. We also show that plume-induced subduction could only have been feasible in the hotter early Earth for old oceanic plates. In contrast, younger plates favoured episodic lithospheric drips rather than self-sustained subduction and global plate tectonics.

SUMMARY ∼82 000 P and S arrival times from ∼3000 sources recorded by ∼250 seismic stations from the revised ISC catalogue are employed to study a circular area of 6 ◦ radius centred on the Dead Sea. We use the linearized tomographic approach based on the rays constructed in a 1-D spherical velocity model and corrected for the Moho depth variation and relief. All the sources were relocated. As the result of simultaneous iterative inversion we get 3-D P and S velocity anomalies in the crust and uppermost mantle, Moho depth and corrected source parameters. The resulting images fit well with the existing tectonic elements in the study area. In the crust, a narrow P and S low-velocity anomaly marks the position of the Dead Sea Transform (DST) that is interpreted as sediments in the shallower layer and a zone of fractured and deformed rocks in the middle and lower crust. There is a narrow (50 km wide) band of thickening of the crust along the DST in the Arava valley between the Red Sea and Dead Sea and some 100 km north of the Dead Sea. This zone may be associated with the minimum of the lithospheric strength and, therefore, explain the location of the DST in the Arava Valley. The velocity anomalies under the crust and the map of the Moho depth clearly distinguish the oceanic (Levant basin) and continental types of crust (Asia Minor, Zagros, Cyprus and Eratosthenes Mount). Verification of the results takes an important part in this study. Inversions of different starting models and independent processing of data subsets show high robustness of the results. Synthetic tests clearly show the limits of the resolving power of the inversion with the existing data set.

Since the late Miocene, the two main segments of the central Andean high plateau, Altiplano and Puna, demonstrate different styles and magnitudes of tectonic shortening. Through numerical simulation of thermomechanical processes, we show that different shortening modes—pure and simple shear accompanied by thin-or thick-skinned tectonics—might be controlled by strength of the foreland uppermost crust and by temperature of the foreland lithosphere. Mechanical weakening and failure of the thick Paleozoic sediments overlying the cold lithosphere in the Altiplano foreland at 13–9 Ma explains the transition from pure to simple shear shortening accompanied by broad thin-skinned thrusting, started before the major uplift of the plateau. However, the high strength of the uppermost crust combined with a relatively warm lithosphere results in the thick-skinned shortening typical for the foreland of the Puna. Failure of Paleozoic sediments in the Altiplano foreland significantly reduces the force required to shorten the lithosphere, which may be the reason for the increased bulk shortening rate in the late Miocene.

More than 50 per cent of the Earth´s upper mantle consists of olivine and it is generally thought that mantle-derived melts are generated in equilibrium with this mineral. Here, however, we show that the unusually high nickel and silicon contents of most parental Hawaiian magmas are inconsistent with a deep olivine-bearing source, because this mineral together with pyroxene buffers both nickel and silicon at lower levels. This can be resolved if the olivine of the mantle peridotite is consumend by reaction with melts derived from rexycled oceanic crust, to form a secondary pyroxenitic source. Our modelling shows that more than half of Hawaiian magmas formed during the past 1 Myr came from this source. In addition, we estimate that the proportion of recycled (oceanic) crust varies from 30 per cent near the plume centre to insignificant levels at the plume edge. These results are also consistent with volcano volumes, magma volume flux and seismological observations.

We employ 2-D thermo-mechanical modelling to study possible mechanisms for generating large-scale crustal magmas in the Altiplano^Puna region of the Central Andes. The peak of ignimbrite activity in the late Miocene and Pliocene is associated in space and time with tectonic shortening and plateau uplift. A seismic low-velocity zone and other geophysical observations indicate that partial melting in the mid-crust is still present under the ignimbrite province today. We show that neither radiogenic heat production in a thickening crust, nor shear heating due to tectonic shortening, nor heat brought by intrusions of arc magmas into the mid-crust can heat the mid-crust to the degree and within the time frame suggested by the geologic, petrologic and geophysical observations. A viable mechanism to achieve high temperatures within the time constraints is convective heat and mass transfer by partially molten lower crust which itself was heated by enhanced mantle heat flow, possibly associated with delamination of the mantle lithosphere during tectonic shortening and intensified magmatic arc activity. The thermo-mechanical models explain the mid-crustal low-velocity zone and the high and strongly variable surface heat flow observed in the Altiplano. Convection by bulk flow of the crust appears when the middle and lower crust are mechanically weak (quartz-dominated rheology), the basal heat flow from the mantle is high (s 60 mW/m 2 ) and tectonic shortening is active. We argue that these conditions are satisfied in the Central Andes orogen. 6 2002 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.

The Earth's biggest magmatic events are believed to originate from massive melting when hot mantle plumes rising from the lowermost mantle reach the base of the lithosphere. Classical models predict large plume heads that cause kilometre-scale surface uplift, and narrow (100 km radius) plume tails that remain in the mantle after the plume head spreads below the lithosphere. However, in many cases, such uplifts and narrow plume tails are not observed. Here using numerical models, we show that the issue can be resolved if major mantle plumes contain up to 15–20% of recycled oceanic crust in a form of dense eclogite, which drastically decreases their buoyancy and makes it depth dependent. We demonstrate that, despite their low buoyancy, large enough thermochemical plumes can rise through the whole mantle causing only negligible surface uplift. Their tails are bulky (>200 km radius) and remain in the upper mantle for 100 millions of years., The classic mantle plume concept explains large igneous provinces and hotspot magmatism, but often contradicts observed surface uplift and plume morphology. Here, the authors present a plume model that better supports observations by considering low-buoyancy plumes containing up to 15% of recycled oceanic crust.

In this chapter we report on the deep structure of the Dead Sea Transform (DST) as derived from geophysical observations and numerical modelling, calibrated by geological and geodynamic evidence.

The classic example of the not-well-understood rapid change of tectonic plate motion is the increase and then decrease of the convergence rate between the Nazca and South America plates during the past 25–20 m.y. that coincided with the growth of the Andes Mountains. Currently, the decrease in convergence rate is explained either by the increasing load of the Andes or by the appearance of flat slab segments beneath South America. Here, we present an alternative view based on a thermomechanical self-consistent (gravity driven) model of Nazca plate subduction. We explain the changes in the convergence rate as a natural consequence of the Nazca plate penetration into the transition zone and lower mantle after long-term oblique subduction of the Farallon plate. The model is consistent with seismic tomographic images of the Nazca plate beneath South America. Our model also shows that the presence of the Andes does not significantly affect the convergence rate between the Nazca and South America plates.

The 1989 VSP program at the KTB pilot hole was complemented in 1992 by a standard VSP in the KTB super-deep borehole from 3000 to 6013 m. P-wave velocities oscillate around 5.8 km/s in the upper 3150 m in accordance with sonic log velocities and correlate with paragneisses which prevail in this depth range. At about 3150 m depth, velocities increase to 6.4 km/s correlating with metabasites which dominate in the depth range 3150 to 7500 m. Laboratory measurements and petrophysical modelling provide evidence that the intrinsic velocities were reduced by 5–10% by fracture density and porosity at all depth ranges. Subvertical dip (50–70°) in structures and textures prevail, causing about 10% S-wave anisotropy, indicated by direct observations of S-wave splitting. Pronounced P-wave reflections, accompanied by P- to S-wave conversions and a lack of S-wave reflections, occur in the lower depth range only (3000–6000 m) and correlate with fluid-filled fracture systems. Lithological contrasts (gneiss-amphibolite) play a minor role in generating reflections. The most prominent reflecting elements known from surface profiling and 3D-surveys (i.e. the ‘Franconian Lineament’ reflector at about 7 km, and P-wave reflections at 8.3 km with notably absent associated S-wave reflections) coincide with pronounced anomalies observed in the logging data indicating the presence of major fracture zones.

A new technique for interpretation of 3-D seismic tomographic models in terms of temperature, degree of partial melt and rock composition is presented and tested. We consider both anharmonic and anelastic temperature effects on seismic velocities as well as the effects of mineral reactions, composition and partial melt. It is shown that composition effect is small (less than 1% of velocity) if there are no strongly depleted, Mg-rich harzburgites. We calculate anharmonic temperature derivatives of seismic velocities from compositions of mantle xenoliths. The parameters of a non-linear frequency and temperature-dependent model of attenuation have been taken from published laboratory experiments and calibrated using global Q observations in the upper mantle. For every block of the tomographic model we calculate the absolute temperature and melt fraction required to fit the observed V p perturbation, the average temperature of the tomographic layer being constrained by the observed surface heat flow. With these temperatures we calculate attenuation, density, V p and V s from petrophysical modelling, using the average for 80 mantle xenoliths samples from the French Massif Central. The technique is applied to a recently published 3-D teleseismic P wave tomographic model of the upper mantle beneath the French Massif Central. The observed velocity perturbations are probably caused there by variations in temperature. Temperature does not reach the dry solidus temperature (except for a few tomographic blocks), although it comes close to it at the depth of 60–100 km below volcanic areas. At high subsolidus temperatures the contribution of anelasticity to velocity perturbations is at least as important as the combined effect of anharmonicity and mineral reactions. Our model is consistent with the Pn velocities from refraction seismic studies, Q S estimations from surface waves, observed gravity, geoid, topography and surface heat flow, as well as with the composition and temperatures derived from mantle xenoliths. We suggest that the lithosphere-asthenosphere boundary is uplifted to 50–60 km depth beneath the main volcanic fields. The central and southern part of the Massif Central is underlain by the hot mantle body (plume?) with a potential temperature that is 100–200°C higher than the average potential temperature of the upper mantle.

[1] In many cases the initial stage of continental break-up was and is associated with oblique rifting. That includes break-up in the Southern and Equatorial Atlantic, separation from eastern and western Gondwana as well as many recent rift systems, like Gulf of California, Ethiopia Rift and Dead Sea fault. Using a simple analytic mechanical model and advanced numerical, thermomechanical modeling techniques we investigate the influence of oblique extension on the required tectonic force in a three-dimensional setting. While magmatic processes have been already suggested to affect rift evolution, we show that additional mechanisms emerge due to the three-dimensionality of an extensional system. Focusing on non-magmatic rift settings, we find that oblique extension significantly facilitates the rift process. This is due to the fact that oblique deformation requires less force in order to reach the plastic yield limit than rift-perpendicular extension. The model shows that in the case of two competing non-magmatic rifts, with one perpendicular and one oblique to the direction of extension but otherwise having identical properties, the oblique rift zone is mechanically preferred and thus attracts more strain.

[1] We present a three-dimensional finite element thermomechanical model idealizing the complex deformation processes associated with evolution of the San Andreas Fault system (SAFS) in northern and central California over the past 20 Myr. More specifically, we investigate the mechanisms responsible for the eastward (landward) migrationof the San Andreas plate boundary over time, a process thathas largely determined the evolution and present structure of SAFS. Two possible mechanisms had been previously suggested. One mechanism suggests that the Pacific plate first cools and captures uprising mantle in the slab window, subsequently causing accretion of the continental crustal blocks. An alternative scenario attributes accretion to the capture of plate fragments (microplates) stalled in the ceased Farallon-North America subduction zone. Here we test both these scenarios numerically using a recently developed lithospheric-scale code, SLIM3D, that employs free surface, nonlinear temperature- and stress-dependent elastoviscoplastic rheology and allows for self-generation of faults. Modeling suggests that microplate capture is the primary driving mechanism fortheeastwardmigrationoftheplateboundary,whiletheslabwindowcoolingmechanismaloneisincapable of explaining this phenomenon. We also show that the system evolves to the present day structure of SAFS only if the coefficient of friction at mature faults is low (0.08 for the best fit model). Thus, our model provides an independent constraint supporting the “weak fault in a strong crust” hypothesis for SAFS.

[1] The Dead Sea Transform (DST) comprises a boundary between the African and Arabian plates. During the last 15–20 m.y. more than 100 km of left lateral transform displacement has been accumulated on the DST and about 10 km thick Dead Sea Basin (DSB) was formed in the central part of the DST. Widespread igneous activity since some 20 Ma ago and especially in the last 5 m.y., thin (60–80 km) lithosphere constrained by seismic data and absence of seismicity below the Moho, seem to be quite natural for this tectonically active plate boundary. However, surface heat flow values of less than 50–60 mW/m2 and deep seismicity in the lower crust (deeper than 20 km) reported for this region are apparently inconsistent with the tectonic settings specific for an active continental plate boundary and with the crustal structure of the DSB. To address these inconsistencies which comprise what we call the “DST heat-flow paradox,” we have developed a numerical model that assumes an erosion of initially thick and cold lithosphere just before or during the active faulting at the DST. The optimal initial conditions for the model are defined using transient thermal analysis. From the results of our numerical experiments we conclude that the entire set of observations for the DSB can be explained within the classical pull-apart model assuming that the lithosphere has been thermally eroded at about 20 Ma and the uppermost mantle in the region have relatively weak rheology consistent with experimental data for wet olivine or pyroxenite.