Geophysical constraints on the dynamics of spreading centres from rifting episodes on land

Wright, Tim J., Sigmundsson, Freysteinn, Pagli, Carolina, Belachew, Manahloh, Hamling, Ian J., Brandsdóttir, Bryndís, Keir, Derek, Pedersen, Rikke, Ayele, Atalay, Ebinger, Cindy, Einarsson, Páll, Lewi, Elias and Calais, Eric (2012) Geophysical constraints on the dynamics of spreading centres from rifting episodes on land. Nature Geoscience, 5 (4), 242-250. (doi:10.1038/ngeo1428).

Abstract

Most of the Earth's crust is created along 60,000 km of mid-ocean ridge system. Here, tectonic plates spread apart and, in doing so, gradually build up stress. This stress is released during rifting episodes, when bursts of magmatic activity lead to the injection of vertical sheets of magma — termed dykes — into the crust. Only 2% of the global mid-ocean ridge system is above sea level, so making direct observations of the rifting process is difficult. However, geodetic and seismic observations exist from spreading centres in Afar (East Africa) and Iceland that are exposed at the land surface. Rifting episodes are rare, but the few that have been well observed at these sites have operated with remarkably similar mechanisms. Specifically, magma is supplied to the crust in an intermittent manner, and is stored at multiple positions and depths. It then laterally intrudes in dykes within the brittle upper crust. Depending on the availability of magma, multiple magma centres can interact during one rifting episode. If we are to forecast large eruptions at spreading centres, rifting-cycle models will need to fully incorporate realistic crust and mantle properties, as well as the dynamic transport of magma.

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Contributors

Author: Derek Keir

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