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Control of seafloor aging on the migration of the Izu-Bonin-Mariana trench

Faccenna, C; Di Giuseppe, E; Funiciello, F; Lallemand, S; van Hunen, J

Authors

C Faccenna

E Di Giuseppe

F Funiciello

S Lallemand



Abstract

Recent global kinematic studies reveal that most of the trenches roll back but a significant number of them advance toward the upper plate. Those advancing trenches are mostly located in the Western Pacific and correspond to the subduction of very old, Mesozoic oceanic lithosphere. While retreating trenches are commonly explained by the slab pull action of the descending lithosphere, the origin of advancing trenches is still debated. Since this relationship is dependent upon the adopted reference frame, we select region where geological studies show the variability of trench migration style with time. The Izu–Bonin–Mariana (IBM) region represents a key example. The detailed reconstruction of the trench migration of the IBM subducting system reveals that after a long episode of asymmetric rollback, the IBM trench recently started advancing. We propose that this change from retreating to advancing trench mode results from the subduction of progressively older and stiffer lithospheric material. We test this hypothesis by means of two-dimensional (2-D) numerical models, reproducing the effects of the lithospheric aging during subduction. The result of our numerical tests shows that the entrance of old and stiff lithosphere forces the trench to advance because the increasing stiffness of the slab prevents the slab to unbend once it has subducted. We adapt this physical result to the IBM evolution, showing that the switch from trench retreat to trench advance can reconcile the shape of IBM slab as previously suggested. Finally we discuss the possibility that the subduction of the Cretaceous lithosphere might have triggered the change of the motion of the Pacific plate around 5 Ma.

Citation

Faccenna, C., Di Giuseppe, E., Funiciello, F., Lallemand, S., & van Hunen, J. (2009). Control of seafloor aging on the migration of the Izu-Bonin-Mariana trench. Earth and Planetary Science Letters, 288(3-4), 386-398. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.epsl.2009.09.042

Journal Article Type Article
Publication Date 2009
Deposit Date May 24, 2010
Journal Earth and Planetary Science Letters
Print ISSN 0012-821X
Electronic ISSN 1385-013X
Publisher Elsevier
Peer Reviewed Peer Reviewed
Volume 288
Issue 3-4
Pages 386-398
DOI https://doi.org/10.1016/j.epsl.2009.09.042
Public URL https://durham-repository.worktribe.com/output/1544126
Publisher URL http://www.sciencedirect.com/science?_ob=ArticleURL&_udi=B6V61-4XHC6HT-2&_user=121711&_coverDate=11%2F15%2F2009&_rdoc=1&_fmt=high&_orig=search&_sort=d&_docanchor=&view=c&_acct=C000009978&_version=1&_urlVersion=0&_userid=121711&md5=b93ce02a7f722adc2ceb8902