A revised paleo-reconstruction of the Equatorial Atlantic from new magnetic, gravity, and seismic reflection data, offshore Guinea

Russ Edge, Roy Johnson

Research output: Contribution to journalConference articlepeer-review

Abstract

The Guinea margin, situated within the Equatorial Atlantic represents the final point of separation between Africa and South America during Triassic to Cretaceous rifting to form the North and South Atlantic. Despite being in such a tectonically interesting region, relatively little data have been published about the Guinean continental margin. Consequently, prior plate reconstructions within the Equatorial Atlantic lack sufficient detail to provide a fully reasonable explanation for the complex rift structure observed within new 2-D and 3-D seismic datasets. New observations drawn from the seismic data, and local gravity and magnetic data, permit development of a new paleoreconstruction model across the Guinea Plateau. Furthermore, using magnetic reversals, fracture zones have been extended farther towards the continental margin. This has provided further accuracy and constraint of plate motions, and suggests a greater north-south extensional component is required during initial rifting. These revised plate motions and their timings have provided information on fault kinematics that are observed within the 3-D seismic data, facilitating a more accurate basin development framework. The creation of this more-detailed Equatorial Atlantic plate reconstruction not only aids in better understanding of rift evolution, but presents opportunities for increased insight into how global oceanic circulation patterns and climate change are affected by tectonic activity.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)3021-3025
Number of pages5
JournalSEG Technical Program Expanded Abstracts
Volume32
DOIs
StatePublished - 2013
EventSEG Houston 2013 Annual Meeting, SEG 2013 - Houston, United States
Duration: Sep 22 2011Sep 27 2011

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Geotechnical Engineering and Engineering Geology
  • Geophysics

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'A revised paleo-reconstruction of the Equatorial Atlantic from new magnetic, gravity, and seismic reflection data, offshore Guinea'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this