Rift processes and crustal structure of the Amundsen Sea Embayment, West Antarctica, from 3D potential field modelling

Abstract

The Amundsen Sea Embayment of West Antarctica is of particular interest as it provides critical geological boundary conditions in better understanding the dynamic behavior of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet, which is undergoing rapid ice loss in the Amundsen Sea sector. One of the highly debated hypothesis is whether this region has been affected by the West Antarctic Rift System, which is one of the largest in the world and the dominating tectonic feature in West Antarctica. Previous geophysical studies suggested an eastward continuation of this rift system into the Amundsen Sea Embayment. This geophysical study of the Amundsen Sea Embayment presents a compilation of data collected during two RV Polarstern expeditions in the Amundsen Sea Embayment of West Antarctica in 2006 and 2010. Bathymetry and satellite-derived gravity data of the Amundsen Sea Embayment complete the dataset. Our 3-D gravity and magnetic models of the lithospheric architecture and development of this Pacific margin improve previous interpretations from 2-D models of the region. The crust-mantle boundary beneath the continental rise and shelf is between 14 and 29 km deep. The imaged basement structure can be related to rift basins within the Amundsen Sea Embayment, some of which can be interpreted as products of the Cretaceous rift and break-up phase and some as products of later propagation of the West Antarctic Rift System into the region. An estimate of the flexural rigidity of the lithosphere reveals a thin elastic thickness in the eastern embayment which increases towards the west. The results are comparable to estimates in other rift systems such as the Basin and Range province or the East African Rift. Based on these results, we infer an arm of the West Antarctic Rift System is superposed on a distributed Cretaceous rift province in the Amundsen Sea Embayment. Finally, the embayment was affected by magmatism from discrete sources along the Pacific margin of West Antarctica in the Cenozoic.