Problem of high heat flow and volcanism associated with zones of descending mantle convective flow

ABSTRACT EVER since the discovery by Vening Meinesz1 of the large negative gravity anomalies associated with the deep oceanic trenches found in the south-west Pacific and elsewhere, it has

frequently been proposed that trenches are the loci of some form of descending mantle flow. With the development of concepts of sea-floor spreading, oceanic trenches have been interpreted as

areas where the spreading ocean floor turns downwards into the upper mantle and is destroyed. Zones of earthquake activity extending from close to the bottom of the trench down to depths of

700 km suggest that the shearing associated with downward motion of the oceanic crust and upper mantle occurs parallel to a plane which dips downwards in the direction of motion at an angle

of about 45° to the surface2 (Fig. 1). Fault plane solutions for the earthquakes along these zones, and apparently anomalous distributions of Q (anelasticity) with depth3, tend to support

this interpretation, although the presence of undeformed sedimentary filling in many trenches must be explained. Access through your institution Buy or subscribe This is a preview of

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EARTHQUAKES AT THE BASE OF AN OVERPRESSURED SUBDUCTION SHEAR ZONE Article Open access 03 August 2020 OCEANIC TRANSFORM FAULT SEISMICITY AND SLIP MODE INFLUENCED BY SEAWATER INFILTRATION

Article 05 August 2021 GLOBAL VARIATION OF SEISMIC ENERGY RELEASE WITH OCEANIC LITHOSPHERE AGE Article Open access 12 January 2021 REFERENCES * Vening Meinesz, F. A., _Ergeb. Kosmischen

Physik_, 2, 153 (1933). Google Scholar  * Sykes, L. R., _J. Geophys. Res._, 71, 2981 (1966). Article  ADS  Google Scholar  * Oliver, J., and Isacks, B. L., _J. Geophys. Res._, 72, 4259

(1967). Article  ADS  Google Scholar  * Vacquier, V., Uyeda, S., Yasui, M., Sclater, J., Corry, C., and Watanabe, T., _Bull. Earthq. Res. Inst._, 44, 1526 (1966). Google Scholar  * Gordon,

R. B., _J. Geophys. Res._, 70, 2413 (1965). Article  ADS  Google Scholar  Download references AUTHOR INFORMATION AUTHORS AND AFFILIATIONS * Division of Geological Science, California

Institute of Technology, Pasadena, California E. R. OXBURGH * Graduate School of Aerospace Engineering, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York D. L. TURCOTTE Authors * E. R. OXBURGH View

author publications You can also search for this author inPubMed Google Scholar * D. L. TURCOTTE View author publications You can also search for this author inPubMed Google Scholar RIGHTS

AND PERMISSIONS Reprints and permissions ABOUT THIS ARTICLE CITE THIS ARTICLE OXBURGH, E., TURCOTTE, D. Problem of High Heat Flow and Volcanism associated with Zones of Descending Mantle

Convective Flow. _Nature_ 218, 1041–1043 (1968). https://doi.org/10.1038/2181041a0 Download citation * Received: 18 April 1968 * Issue Date: 15 June 1968 * DOI:

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