Disparate crustal thicknesses beneath oceanic transform faults and adjacent fracture zones revealed by gravity anomalies

Article Geosciences, Multidisciplinary

Impact of Spreading Rate and Age-Offset on Oceanic Transform Fault Morphology

Yu Ren et al.

Summary: Oceanic transform faults (OTFs) are an integral part of seafloor spreading and plate tectonics. A new study has systematically quantified the variations in transform morphology and their dependence on spreading rate and age-offset. The research found that the length, width, and depth of OTFs are more systematically correlated with age-offset than spreading rate. This supports recent geodynamic models that propose cross-transform extension scaling with age-offset as a key process in transform dynamics. Furthermore, OTFs with larger age-offsets tend to have longer, wider, and deeper valleys on a global scale.

GEOPHYSICAL RESEARCH LETTERS (2022)

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Article Multidisciplinary Sciences

Extensional tectonics and two-stage crustal accretion at oceanic transform faults

Ingo Grevemeyer et al.

Summary: Oceanic transform faults, which were previously believed to be conservative two-dimensional strike-slip boundaries, are revealed to be more complex due to deeper seafloor along the faults than their associated fracture zones. Accretion at intersections between oceanic ridges and transform faults is asymmetric, with outside corners showing shallower relief and more extensive magmatism. This leads to a two-stage process of accretion at transform-fault systems, different from other regions along mid-ocean ridges.

NATURE (2021)

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Article Geochemistry & Geophysics