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TPW unplugged:
Absolute plate motions and true polar wander
in the absence of hotspot tracks, 320 — 130 Ma
Bernhard Steinberger
In collaboration with Trond Torsvik (NGU)
Center for Geodynamics, NGU, Trondheim, Norway
TPW unplugged:
Absolute plate motions and true polar wander
in the absence of hotspot tracks, 320 — 130 Ma
What is true polar wander? (kinematics)
Why distinguish between plate motions
and true polar wander?
The physics of true polar wander (dynamics)
How to distinguish between plate motions
and true polar wander
--> with hotspot tracks (130 — 0 Ma)
--> without hotspot tracks (320 — 130 Ma)
What is true polar wander? (kinematics)
Why distinguish between plate motions
and true polar wander?
The physics of true polar wander (dynamics)
How to distinguish between plate motions
and true polar wander
--> with hotspot tracks (130 — 0 Ma)
--> without hotspot tracks (320 — 130 Ma)
What is true polar wander?
Motion of “Earth as a whole”
relative to its spin axis
What is true polar wander?
Motion of “Earth as a whole”
relative to its spin axis
in practice: mantle reference frame
with no net rotation of whole mantle
regarded as suitable for “Earth as a whole”
What is true polar wander?
Motion of “Earth as a whole”
relative to its spin axis
What is true polar wander?
Motion of “Earth as a whole”
relative to its spin axis
What is true polar wander?
Motion of “Earth as a whole”
relative to its spin axis
TPW vs. plate motions -- A bit of history ...
Both are old ideas Detailed TPW discussion by Darwin (1876)“Continental drift” Wegener (1915)Supported by paleomagnetism in the 1950'sQualitative theory of true polar wander by Gold (1955)Plate tectonics in the 1960'sTPW “Renaissance” since 1990s (Kirschvink, 1997, ...)
What is true polar wander? (kinematics)
Why distinguish between plate
motions and true polar wander?
The physics of true polar wander (dynamics)
How to distinguish between plate motions
and true polar wander
--> with hotspot tracks (130 — 0 Ma)
--> without hotspot tracks (320 — 130 Ma)
Why distinguish between plate
motions and true polar wander?
Reconstructed LIP eruption sites (circles) and hotspots (crosses) plotted on smean tomography model in lowermost mantle.Blobs with other color scale for steep gradients
Plume heads from the edges (-1% contour)of Large Low Shear Velocity Provinces (LLSVPs)Steep gradients along the same contour
What is true polar wander? (kinematics)
Why distinguish between plate motions
and true polar wander?
The physics of true polar wander (dynamics)
How to distinguish between plate motions
and true polar wander
--> with hotspot tracks (130 — 0 Ma)
--> without hotspot tracks (320 — 130 Ma)
30-60 60-30 30-60 600geoid relative to equilibrium shape [m]
seismic velocity anomaly average below 1900 km0.4% 0.4%0.8% 0
2 cm/yr flow
smean tomography model
chemically distinct D''regions?
Flow, density and the geoid:●degree two pattern of seismic anomalies in lower mantle and inferred flow●inferred low-density upwellings correspond to geoid highs, high- density downwellings in lower mantle to geoid lows.
Rotation axis = axis of maximum non-hydrostatic moment of inertiaexpect little tpw, if there is dominant, stable degree-2 geoid, with three different moments of inertialarger tpw possible if there isn't
axis of intermediate moment of inertia
axis of minimum moment of inertia
Maximum speed of true polar wander
With realistic Earth parameters,maximum speed in case (2)about 1 degree / million years
geoid [m]
Reconstruction100 Ma
Withoutgeoid highs related to subduction (presently at ~ equatorial position) axis of maximum non-hydrostatic moment of inertia could have possibly moved along blue circle~ corresponds to rotation of continents relative to spin axis but not overlower mantle
TPW vs. continent rotation over lower mantle
smean lowermost mantle
Center of massAfricanPacificLLSVP
What is true polar wander? (kinematics)
Why distinguish between plate motions
and true polar wander?
The physics of true polar wander (dynamics)
How to distinguish between plate motions
and true polar wander
--> with hotspot tracks (130 — 0 Ma)
--> without hotspot tracks (320 — 130 Ma)
●Use “hotspot tracks” (geometry,
age progression)
● Consider modelled hotspot motion
● Analyse plate motion properties
for the times when hotspot tracks
are available in order to proceed
towards “absolute” plate motions
for times before the oldest hotspot
tracks
How to obtain “absolute” plate motions?
76 Ma
61 Ma
56 Ma
49 Ma47 Ma
0 Ma
Modellinghotspotmotion -an example
Paleomagnetic (declination, inclination) --> “Virtual Geomagnetic Pole” (VGP) Relative plate motions --> common reference frame (here: South Africa)Group data in age bins (“running mean”) to obtain global apparent polar wander path (APWP)
(from Torsvik et al., 2007,Rev. Geophys., in review)
Apparent polar wander
converted from African apparent polar wander path (Torsvik et al., 2007, Rev. Geophys., in review)
Event at 100-110 Ma follows indeedapproximately the “blue circle”
colors for lowermostmantle seismicanomalies(smean)
“True Polar Wander” in mantle reference frame
What is true polar wander? (kinematics)
Why distinguish between plate motions
and true polar wander?
The physics of true polar wander (dynamics)
How to distinguish between plate motions
and true polar wander
--> with hotspot tracks (130 — 0 Ma)
--> without hotspot tracks (“unplugged”; 320 — 130 Ma)
TPW unplugged: the challengeWithout hotspot tracks, can only use paleomagnetic reference frame:by definition, no polar wanderno longitude constraint
Plate motions in hotspot paleomagneticreference frame
(from Torsvik et al., 2007,Rev. Geophys., in review)
100 Ma
Paleomagnetic reference frame
110 Ma
Paleomagnetic reference frame
Paleomagnetic reference frame
110 — 100 Ma
TPW unplugged: the toolFor each time step, compute, for all continents combinedCenter of massInertia tensor IAngular momentum L mean rotation L=I
Three components alongEarth's spin axis(coherent E-W motion)Equatorial axis; longitude as center of mass(coherent rotation)Equatorial axis; longitude90 from center of mass(coherent N-S motion)
TPW unplugged — results
mean rotationmean N-S motion
paleomagnetic global mantle Africa mantle ref. frame
135 Ma
145 Ma
145 — 135 Ma
Center of masscontinentsAfrican LLSVPPacific LLSVP
110 — 100 Ma110 — 100 Ma
Center of masscontinentsAfrican LLSVPPacific LLSVP
TPW unplugged — results
mean rotationmean N-S motion
paleomagnetic global mantle Africa mantle ref. frame
145 Ma
195 Ma
195 — 145 Ma
CAMP (200 Ma)
Center of masscontinentsAfrican LLSVPPacific LLSVP
220 Ma
250 Ma
250 — 220 Ma
CAMP (200 Ma)
Center of masscontinentsAfrican LLSVPPacific LLSVP
Center of masscontinentsAfrican LLSVPPacific LLSVP
195 — 145 Ma
CAMP (200 Ma)
Center of masscontinentsAfrican LLSVPPacific LLSVP
TPW unplugged — results
mean rotation
mean N-S motion
paleomagnetic global mantle Africa mantle modified pm ref. frame
Summary
Rotations in paleomagnetic frame, interpreted as TPW events
Amount time period axis longitude~18 250-220 Ma~-18 195-145 Ma~-10 145-135 Ma near center of mass~10 110-100 Ma of continentssmall 320 Ma - present
10-15 W near CAMP
20-40 E
Northward motionAmount time period~30 320-190 Ma~15 190Ma-present