Relation of plate kinematic parameters to deformation along the Andean margin from Late Jurassic to the present
Abstract
The geological consequences of temporal and spatial changes in subduction along the Andean margin from 170 Ma to the present were investigated in the context of a recently developed, global plate kinematic model. Geological events recorded by the overriding continental plate, including the development of extensional basins, orogeny and crustal growth accompanied by thickening and/or magmatism, were contrasted with the age of the subducting oceanic slab(s), the absolute plate velocity of South America both normal and parallel to the trench, and the relative convergence velocity between South America and the subducting slab(s) both normal and parallel to the trench. Preliminary results indicate that the absolute velocity of the overriding plate is strongly correlated with the extent of crustal extension; the development of marginal basins floored by oceanic crust occurred only when the absolute plate velocity of South America was directed away from the trench. This condition did not accompany the development of aborted marginal basins. An abrupt increase in relative convergence rates between the South American continent and the subducting slab also often accompanied the initiation of extension in the overriding plate. However, high convergence rates primarily accompanied the development of fold and thrust belts, and were linked with plateau uplift. Inter-dependencies between the various parameters are investigated to build a more complete model of conditions necessary for the development of significant geological events along continental margins controlled by subduction.
- Publication:
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AGU Fall Meeting Abstracts
- Pub Date:
- December 2011
- Bibcode:
- 2011AGUFM.T13I..03M
- Keywords:
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- 8104 TECTONOPHYSICS / Continental margins: convergent;
- 8150 TECTONOPHYSICS / Plate boundary: general