Global thermal and dynamical perturbations due to Cretaceous mantle avalanche |
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| Authors: | Philippe Machetel |
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| Institution: | Laboratoire de tectonophysique, UMR 5568, CNRS/UM2 CC056, Institut des sciences de la Terre, de l''Eau et de l''Espace de Montpellier (Isteem), place Eugène-Bataillon, 34095 Montpellier cedex, France |
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| Abstract: | The numerical models of mantle convection agree to depict avalanches behaviour according to the level of endothermicity of the spinel → perovskite phase change. Their potential effects on the global thermal and dynamical states of the mantle have been computed thanks to a numerical code, which takes into account both the 400-km exothermic and the 660-km endothermic phase changes. The cycle followed by the avalanches is: local layering, destabilization of the 660-km thermal layer, travelling and spreading on the core, and reappearing of the local layering. Therefore, mantle convection is characterized by quiet periods of partial layering embedded in catastrophic events. During the avalanche, the amplitude of the surface velocity is multiplied by two, which would imply an enhanced plate tectonic and ridge activities. The global thermal effects of the avalanche are compatible with a high mantle temperature and an acceleration of Earth's rotation during the Cretaceous. They also offer a coherent explanation to locate the origin of mantle plumes both within the CMB and just below the transition zone. |
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| Keywords: | Mantle convection Phase changes Temperature Length of day Heat flux Tectonics Plumes Convection du manteau Changement de phase Température Longueur du jour Flux de chaleur Tectonique Panache |
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