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Upper- and mid-mantle interaction between the Samoan plume and the Tonga–Kermadec slabs

Chang, Sung-Joon; Ferreira, Ana M. G.; Faccenda, Manuele; (2016) Upper- and mid-mantle interaction between the Samoan plume and the Tonga–Kermadec slabs. Nature Communications , 7 , Article 10799. 10.1038/ncomms10799. Green open access

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Abstract

Mantle plumes are thought to play a key role in transferring heat from the core–mantle boundary to the lithosphere, where it can significantly influence plate tectonics. On impinging on the lithosphere at spreading ridges or in intra-plate settings, mantle plumes may generate hotspots, large igneous provinces and hence considerable dynamic topography. However, the active role of mantle plumes on subducting slabs remains poorly understood. Here we show that the stagnation at 660 km and fastest trench retreat of the Tonga slab in Southwestern Pacific are consistent with an interaction with the Samoan plume and the Hikurangi plateau. Our findings are based on comparisons between 3D anisotropic tomography images and 3D petrological-thermo-mechanical models, which self-consistently explain several unique features of the Fiji–Tonga region. We identify four possible slip systems of bridgmanite in the lower mantle that reconcile the observed seismic anisotropy beneath the Tonga slab (VSH>VSV) with thermo-mechanical calculations.

Type: Article
Title: Upper- and mid-mantle interaction between the Samoan plume and the Tonga–Kermadec slabs
Open access status: An open access version is available from UCL Discovery
DOI: 10.1038/ncomms10799
Publisher version: http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/ncomms10799
Additional information: This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. The images or other third party material in this article are included in the article’s Creative Commons license, unless indicated otherwise in the credit line; if the material is not included under the Creative Commons license, users will need to obtain permission from the license holder to reproduce the material. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
UCL classification: UCL
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS > Faculty of Maths and Physical Sciences
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS > Faculty of Maths and Physical Sciences > Dept of Earth Sciences
URI: https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/1478170
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