Pacific trench motions controlled by the asymmetric plate configuration

Abstract

We present a novel explanation for absolute trench-normal motions of slabs surrounding the Pacific. Rapid subduction-zone retreat on the eastern side of the Pacific and slow advance in the west can result from the large-scale asymmetric plate configuration. We use simple fluid dynamics to explain the mechanical background of this hypothesis, and we use the results of a simple finite difference scheme to estimate the effect on trench motion velocities. The hypothesis is based on two key assumptions. First, we follow the concept of plate-scale horizontal counterflow in the asthenosphere driven by accretion of asthenosphere into lithosphere and by plate motion. Second, we assume that horizontally wide slabs without large slab windows drift passively in the mantle flow field and do not retreat as a result of flow around the slab. If the asthenosphere transfers flow-related horizontal shear stress into deeper levels of the mantle, an asymmetry in the plate configuration leads to different net pressure forces on the two slabs and thus affects the retreat behavior. In an ocean with an asymmetric ridge position, the slab of the smaller plate should retreat faster than the slab of the large plate, which may even advance. Also, the domain of a slower moving plate should collapse faster than the domain of the faster plate. Our model explains the counterintuitive negative correlation between slab age and retreat velocity observed in the Pacific. It also accords with the topographic asymmetry of the ridge flanks along the Pacific rise. Copyright 2008 by the American Geophysical Union.