Unusual sea-floor fabric near the Bullard fracture zone imaged by GLORIA sidescan sonar

Livermore, R.A.; Tomlinson, J.S.; Woollett, R.W.. 1991 Unusual sea-floor fabric near the Bullard fracture zone imaged by GLORIA sidescan sonar. Nature, 353 (6340). 158-161. https://doi.org/10.1038/353158a0

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Official URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/353158a0

Abstract/Summary

THE tectonic fabric of the sea floor created at spreading ridges generally curves in the direction of ridge offset near transform faults, owing to the influence of shearing stress on transform faults. Here we present new GLORIA sidescan sonar images from the South American–Antarctic Ridge, showing fabric to the north of the Bullard transform with a reversed sense of curvature. This curvature, and that observed in an area of older sea floor near the eastern ridge–transform intersection, appears to result from post-emplacement deformation, caused by the transmission of shear stresses across transforms. The deformation was probably related to a major Early Miocene change in spreading direction, which would have imposed a component of compression on the transforms. Such a sense of curvature has not, to our knowledge, been observed elsewhere on the deep ocean floor, although apparently similar patterns have been reported in ophiolites.

Item Type:	Publication - Article
Digital Object Identifier (DOI):	https://doi.org/10.1038/353158a0
ISSN:	0028-0836
Date made live:	14 May 2018 12:22 +0 (UTC)
URI:	https://nora.nerc.ac.uk/id/eprint/520048

Item Type:

Publication - Article

Digital Object Identifier (DOI):

https://doi.org/10.1038/353158a0

ISSN:

0028-0836

Date made live:

14 May 2018 12:22 +0 (UTC)

URI:

https://nora.nerc.ac.uk/id/eprint/520048