Hotspot-ridge interaction in the Indian Ocean: Constraints from Geosat/ERM altimetry

Abstract

Upper-mantle structure of Indian Ocean spreading ridges was investigated by track segments of Geosat/ERM altimeter measurements. To determine the upper-mantle structure of the Earth's gravity field, a low-degree and -order spherical harmonic representation of the geoid was removed. A test of several reference fields suggested that a degree 2-25 field with gradually rolled off coefficients (Sandwell & Renkin 1988) offers an adequate representation of the long-wavelength geoidal undulations. Filtered profiles of three individual ridge segments display a strong asymmetry in geoid versus age trends of conjugated rift flanks. The unusually low geoid slopes on one flank can perhaps best be explained as a dynamic or thermal phenomenon reflecting a flow connection between a neighbouring off-axis hotspot plume and the ridge axis, while the other flank simply cools as it spreads away from the axial zone. It seems reasonable to hypothesize that the Southwest Indian Ridge and the Southeast Indian Ridge act as sinks for plumes beneath Agulhas Plateau and Kerguelen Islands, respectively. The Carlsberg Ridge data suggest that the Réunion hotspot contaminated northwestern African lithosphere until 15 Ma. Moreover, symmetric flattening of geoid versus age trends of conjugated ridge flanks offers evidence that plume events affect geoid versus age trends.