HR: 0800h
AN: G21C-0658    [Abstracts]
TI: Present-day microplates motion in the central Mediterranean
AU: * D'Agostino, N
EM: dagostin@ingv.it
AB: Motion of microplates in diffuse plate boundaries often accommodates convergence between major plates. In this work we present a kinematic model for the central mediterranean sector of the Eurasia-Nubia plate boundary, derived from GPS and earthquake slip vectors, which describe the crustal motion as resulting from the interactions of two rigid microplates: Adria and Apulia-Ionia. The styles of deformation predicted by the kinematic model along the boundaries of the proposed microplates are consistent with geological observations and present significant implications for the characterization of seismically active regions in the Eurasia-Nubia plate boundary. Microplates rotation rates are succesfully reproduced by a simple slat model in which the edges of the microplates are constrained to move with the adjacent plate or microplate, suggesting a significant coupling between crustal blocks and the primary role of edge-transmitted forces as driving factor for crustal motion. These results are compared with surface wave tomographic models and other seismological observables which suggest that the rigid microplates correspond to regions of high shear wave velocities in the upper mantle and high integrated lithospheric strength. The present-day plate boundary configuration derives from the inherited Mesozoic African margin, from the rapid Neogene evolution of the Tyrrhenian subduction zone and the final fragmentation of the Adriatic promontory.
DE: 1209 Tectonic deformation (6924)
DE: 8002 Continental neotectonics (8107)
DE: 8150 Plate boundary: general (3040)
SC: Geodesy [G]
MN: 2007 Fall Meeting