The University of Southampton
University of Southampton Institutional Repository

Earth science: The slippery base of a tectonic plate

Earth science: The slippery base of a tectonic plate
Earth science: The slippery base of a tectonic plate
In the theory of plate tectonics, the outer shell of the Earth, known as the lithosphere, consists of several rigid plates, which move relative to each other over the weaker, flowing asthenosphere. The bottom of the lithosphere, the lithosphere–asthenosphere boundary (LAB), is fundamental to our understanding of how plate tectonics works, although an exact understanding of the mechanism that gives the plates their rigidity and defines their thickness remains elusive and widely debated. On page 85 of this issue, Stern et al.1 describe how they have used reflected seismic waves generated by explosive sources in steel-cased boreholes to image the Pacific plate as it descends beneath New Zealand. They find a LAB that is less than 1 kilometre thick at the top of a 10-km-thick channel, in which slow seismic velocities may require the presence of water or melt (Fig. 1). The authors suggest that the thin channel decouples the lithosphere from the asthenosphere and allows plate tectonics to take place. The existence of such a localized channel probably has implications for the driving forces of plate tectonics and mantle dynamics.
0028-0836
39-40
Rychert, Catherine A.
70cf1e3a-58ea-455a-918a-1d570c5e53c5
Rychert, Catherine A.
70cf1e3a-58ea-455a-918a-1d570c5e53c5

Rychert, Catherine A. (2015) Earth science: The slippery base of a tectonic plate. Nature, 518 (7537), 39-40. (doi:10.1038/518039a).

Record type: Article

Abstract

In the theory of plate tectonics, the outer shell of the Earth, known as the lithosphere, consists of several rigid plates, which move relative to each other over the weaker, flowing asthenosphere. The bottom of the lithosphere, the lithosphere–asthenosphere boundary (LAB), is fundamental to our understanding of how plate tectonics works, although an exact understanding of the mechanism that gives the plates their rigidity and defines their thickness remains elusive and widely debated. On page 85 of this issue, Stern et al.1 describe how they have used reflected seismic waves generated by explosive sources in steel-cased boreholes to image the Pacific plate as it descends beneath New Zealand. They find a LAB that is less than 1 kilometre thick at the top of a 10-km-thick channel, in which slow seismic velocities may require the presence of water or melt (Fig. 1). The authors suggest that the thin channel decouples the lithosphere from the asthenosphere and allows plate tectonics to take place. The existence of such a localized channel probably has implications for the driving forces of plate tectonics and mantle dynamics.

This record has no associated files available for download.

More information

Published date: 5 February 2015
Organisations: Geology & Geophysics

Identifiers

Local EPrints ID: 374212
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/374212
ISSN: 0028-0836
PURE UUID: b6d2dcd8-b48f-47eb-8976-c2a0391db8cc

Catalogue record

Date deposited: 09 Feb 2015 11:35
Last modified: 14 Mar 2024 19:04

Export record

Altmetrics

Download statistics

Downloads from ePrints over the past year. Other digital versions may also be available to download e.g. from the publisher's website.

View more statistics

Atom RSS 1.0 RSS 2.0

Contact ePrints Soton: eprints@soton.ac.uk

ePrints Soton supports OAI 2.0 with a base URL of http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/cgi/oai2

This repository has been built using EPrints software, developed at the University of Southampton, but available to everyone to use.

We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. If you continue without changing your settings, we will assume that you are happy to receive cookies on the University of Southampton website.

×