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Collins GC, Patterson GW, Detelich CE, Prockter LM, Kattenhorn SA, Cooper CM, Rhoden AR, Cutler BB, Oldrid SR, Perkins RP, Rezza CA. Episodic Plate Tectonics on Europa: Evidence for Widespread Patches of Mobile-Lid Behavior in the Antijovian Hemisphere. JOURNAL OF GEOPHYSICAL RESEARCH. PLANETS 2022; 127:e2022JE007492. [PMID: 37035521 PMCID: PMC10078521 DOI: 10.1029/2022je007492] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/19/2022] [Revised: 10/25/2022] [Accepted: 11/01/2022] [Indexed: 06/19/2023]
Abstract
A nearly pole-to-pole survey near 140°E longitude on Europa revealed many areas that exhibit past lateral surface motions, and these areas were examined to determine whether the motions can be described by systems of rigid plates moving across Europa's surface. Three areas showing plate-like behavior were examined in detail to determine the sequence of events that deformed the surface. All three areas were reconstructed to reveal the original pre-plate motion surfaces by performing multi-stage rotations of plates in spherical coordinates. Several motions observed along single plate boundaries were also noted in previous works, but this work links together isolated observations of lateral offsets into integrated systems of moving plates. Not all of the surveyed surface could be described by systems of rigid plates. There is evidence that the plate motions did not all happen at the same time, and that they are not happening today. We conclude that plate tectonic-like behavior on Europa occurs episodically, in limited regions, with less than 100 km of lateral motion accommodated along any particular boundary before plate motions cease. Europa may represent a world perched on the theoretical boundary between stagnant and mobile lid convective behavior, or it may represent an additional example of the wide variations in possible planetary convective regimes. Differences in observed strike-slip sense and plate rotation directions between the northern and southern hemispheres raise the question of whether tidal forces may influence plate motions.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Charlene E. Detelich
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics LaboratoryLaurelMDUSA
- Now at Cornell UniversityIthacaNYUSA
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | - Reid P. Perkins
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics LaboratoryLaurelMDUSA
- Now at Western UniversityLondonONCanada
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Abstract
Venus has been thought to possess a globally continuous lithosphere, in contrast to the mosaic of mobile tectonic plates that characterizes Earth. However, the Venus surface has been extensively deformed, and convection of the underlying mantle, possibly acting in concert with a low-strength lower crust, has been suggested as a source of some surface horizontal strains. The extent of surface mobility on Venus driven by mantle convection, however, and the style and scale of its tectonic expression have been unclear. We report a globally distributed set of crustal blocks in the Venus lowlands that show evidence for having rotated and/or moved laterally relative to one another, akin to jostling pack ice. At least some of this deformation on Venus postdates the emplacement of the locally youngest plains materials. Lithospheric stresses calculated from interior viscous flow models consistent with long-wavelength gravity and topography are sufficient to drive brittle failure in the upper Venus crust in all areas where these blocks are present, confirming that interior convective motion can provide a mechanism for driving deformation at the surface. The limited but widespread lithospheric mobility of Venus, in marked contrast to the tectonic styles indicative of a static lithosphere on Mercury, the Moon, and Mars, may offer parallels to interior-surface coupling on the early Earth, when global heat flux was substantially higher, and the lithosphere generally thinner, than today.
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Hansen VL, López I. Geologic Map of Aphrodite Map Area (AMA; I-2476), Venus. EARTH AND SPACE SCIENCE (HOBOKEN, N.J.) 2020; 7:e2019EA001066. [PMID: 33134435 PMCID: PMC7583386 DOI: 10.1029/2019ea001066] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/26/2019] [Revised: 06/08/2020] [Accepted: 06/13/2020] [Indexed: 06/11/2023]
Abstract
We present a 1:10-M-scale geologic map of the Aphrodite Map Area (AMA) of Venus (0°N-57°S/60-80°E). Geologic mapping employed NASA Magellan synthetic aperture radar and altimetry data. The AMA geologic map, with detailed structural elements and geologic units covering over one eighth of Venus' surface, affords an important and unique perspective to test models of global-scale geologic processes through time. Geologic relations record a history inconsistent with global catastrophic resurfacing. The AMA displays a regional coherence of preserved geologic patterns that record three sequential geologic eras: the ancient era, the Artemis superstructure era, and the youngest fracture zone era. The ancient era and Artemis superstructure, with a footprint covering more than 25% of the surface, are recorded in the Niobe Map Area to the north. The latter two eras likely overlap in time. The fracture zone domain, part of a globally extensive province, marks the most spatially focused tectonomagmatic domain within the AMA. Impact craters are both cut by and overprint fracture zone structures. Twelve percent of AMA impact craters that occur within the fracture zone domain predate or formed during fracture zone development. This observation indicates the relative youth of the fracture zone era and is consistent with the possibility that this domain remains geologically active. The AMA records a rich geologic history of large tract of the surface of Venus and provides an important framework to formulate new working hypotheses of Venus evolution and contribute to planning future studies of the surface of planets.
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Affiliation(s)
- V. L. Hansen
- Department of Earth and Environmental SciencesUniversity of Minnesota, DuluthDuluthMNUSA
| | - I. López
- Department of Biology and Geology, Physics and Inorganic Chemistry, Área de GeologíaUniversidad Rey Juan CarlosMóstoles, MadridSpain
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Lenardic A. The diversity of tectonic modes and thoughts about transitions between them. PHILOSOPHICAL TRANSACTIONS. SERIES A, MATHEMATICAL, PHYSICAL, AND ENGINEERING SCIENCES 2018; 376:20170416. [PMID: 30275163 PMCID: PMC6189555 DOI: 10.1098/rsta.2017.0416] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 08/09/2018] [Indexed: 05/18/2023]
Abstract
Plate tectonics is a particular mode of tectonic activity that characterizes the present-day Earth. It is directly linked to not only tectonic deformation but also magmatic/volcanic activity and all aspects of the rock cycle. Other terrestrial planets in our Solar System do not operate in a plate tectonic mode but do have volcanic constructs and signs of tectonic deformation. This indicates the existence of tectonic modes different from plate tectonics. This article discusses the defining features of plate tectonics and reviews the range of tectonic modes that have been proposed for terrestrial planets to date. A categorization of tectonic modes relates to the issue of when plate tectonics initiated on Earth as it provides insights into possible pre-plate tectonic behaviour. The final focus of this contribution relates to transitions between tectonic modes. Different transition scenarios are discussed. One follows classic ideas of regime transitions in which boundaries between tectonic modes are determined by the physical and chemical properties of a planet. The other considers the potential that variations in temporal evolution can introduce contingencies that have a significant effect on tectonic transitions. The latter scenario allows for the existence of multiple stable tectonic modes under the same physical/chemical conditions. The different transition potentials imply different interpretations regarding the type of variable that the tectonic mode of a planet represents. Under the classic regime transition view, the tectonic mode of a planet is a state variable (akin to temperature). Under the multiple stable modes view, the tectonic mode of a planet is a process variable. That is, something that flows through the system (akin to heat). The different implications that follow are discussed as they relate to the questions of when did plate tectonics initiate on Earth and why does Earth have plate tectonics.This article is part of a discussion meeting issue 'Earth dynamics and the development of plate tectonics'.
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Affiliation(s)
- A Lenardic
- Department of Earth Science, Rice University, Houston, TX 77251-1892, USA
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Arkani-Hamed J, Schaber GG, Strom RG. Constraints on the thermal evolution of Venus inferred from Magellan data. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2012. [DOI: 10.1029/93je00052] [Citation(s) in RCA: 36] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
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Kohlstedt DL, Evans B, Mackwell SJ. Strength of the lithosphere: Constraints imposed by laboratory experiments. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2012. [DOI: 10.1029/95jb01460] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1202] [Impact Index Per Article: 100.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
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Bindschadler DL, Head JW. Tessera Terrain, Venus: Characterization and models for origin and evolution. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2012. [DOI: 10.1029/90jb02742] [Citation(s) in RCA: 72] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
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Young DA, Hansen VL. Poludnista Dorsa, Venus: History and context of a deformation belt. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2005. [DOI: 10.1029/2004je002280] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/10/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- D. A. Young
- Department of Geological Sciences; University of Minnesota at Duluth; Duluth Minnesota USA
| | - V. L. Hansen
- Department of Geological Sciences; University of Minnesota at Duluth; Duluth Minnesota USA
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Ghent RR, Phillips RJ, Hansen VL, Nunes DC. Finite element modeling of short-wavelength folding on Venus: Implications for the plume hypothesis for crustal plateau formation. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2005. [DOI: 10.1029/2005je002522] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
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Reese CC, Solomatov VS, Moresi LN. Heat transport efficiency for stagnant lid convection with dislocation viscosity: Application to Mars and Venus. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 1998. [DOI: 10.1029/98je01047] [Citation(s) in RCA: 107] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/10/2022]
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Affiliation(s)
- Roger J. Phillips
- R. J. Phillips is in the Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, Washington University, Campus Box 1169, One Brookings Drive, St. Louis, MO 63130, USA. V. L. Hansen is in the Department of Geological Sciences, Southern Methodist University, Dallas, TX 75275, USA
| | - Vicki L. Hansen
- R. J. Phillips is in the Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, Washington University, Campus Box 1169, One Brookings Drive, St. Louis, MO 63130, USA. V. L. Hansen is in the Department of Geological Sciences, Southern Methodist University, Dallas, TX 75275, USA
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Smrekar SE, Stofan ER. Corona Formation and Heat Loss on Venus by Coupled Upwelling and Delamination. Science 1997. [DOI: 10.1126/science.277.5330.1289] [Citation(s) in RCA: 97] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/02/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Suzanne E. Smrekar
- Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, MS 183-501, 4800 Oak Grove Drive, Pasadena, CA 91109, USA
| | - Ellen R. Stofan
- Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, MS 183-501, 4800 Oak Grove Drive, Pasadena, CA 91109, USA
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Brown CD, Grimm RE. Lithospheric rheology and flexure at Artemis Chasma, Venus. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 1996. [DOI: 10.1029/96je00834] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
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Smrekar SE, Parmentier EM. The interaction of mantle plumes with surface thermal and chemical boundary layers: Applications to hotspots on Venus. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 1996. [DOI: 10.1029/95jb02877] [Citation(s) in RCA: 47] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/10/2022]
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Abstract
The Magellan imagery shows that Venus has a crater abundance equivalent to a surface age of 300 million to 500 million years and a crater distribution close to random. Hence, the tectonics of Venus must be quiescent compared to those of Earth in the last few 100 million years. The main debate is whether the decline in tectonic activity on Venus is closer to monotonic or episodic, with enhanced tectonism and volcanism yet to come. The former hypothesis implies that most radioactive heat sources have been differentiated upward; the latter, that they have remained at depth. The low level of activity in the last few 100 million years inferred from imagery favors the monotonic hypothesis; some chemical evidence, particularly the low abundance of radiogenic argon, favors the episodic. A problem for both hypotheses is the rapid decline of thermal and tectonic activity some 300 million to 500 million years ago. The nature of the convective instabilities that caused the decline, and their propagation, are unclear.
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Affiliation(s)
- W M Kaula
- Department of Earth and Space Sciences, University of California, Los Angeles 90095, USA
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Magee KP, Head JW. The role of rifting in the generation of melt: Implications for the origin and evolution of the Lada Terra-Lavinia Planitia region of Venus. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 1995. [DOI: 10.1029/94je02334] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
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Stofan ER, Smrekar SE, Bindschadler DL, Senske DA. Large topographic rises on Venus: Implications for mantle upwelling. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 1995. [DOI: 10.1029/95je01834] [Citation(s) in RCA: 67] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/10/2022]
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Simons M, Hager BH, Solomon SC. Global Variations in the Geoid/Topography Admittance of Venus. Science 1994; 264:798-803. [PMID: 17794720 DOI: 10.1126/science.264.5160.798] [Citation(s) in RCA: 65] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/02/2022]
Abstract
Global representations of geoid height and topography are used to map variations in the geoid/topography ratio (admittance) of Venus. The admittance values are permissive of two mutually exclusive models for convection-driven topography. In the first, compressive highland plateaus are expressions of present mantle downwelling, broad volcanic rises are expressions of mantle upwelling, and lowlands overlie regions with no substantial vertical motion in the mantle. In the second, compressive highland plateaus are remnants of an earlier regime of high crustal strain, and most other long-wavelength topographic variations arise from normal convective tractions at the base of the lithosphere.
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Solomon SC, Smrekar SE, Bindschadler DL, Grimm RE, Kaula WM, McGill GE, Phillips RJ, Saunders RS, Schubert G, Squyres SW, Stofan ER. Venus tectonics: An overview of Magellan observations. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 1992. [DOI: 10.1029/92je01418] [Citation(s) in RCA: 231] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
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Schaber GG, Strom RG, Moore HJ, Soderblom LA, Kirk RL, Chadwick DJ, Dawson DD, Gaddis LR, Boyce JM, Russell J. Geology and distribution of impact craters on Venus: What are they telling us? ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 1992. [DOI: 10.1029/92je01246] [Citation(s) in RCA: 331] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/10/2022]
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Smrekar SE, Solomon SC. Gravitational spreading of high terrain in Ishtar Terra, Venus. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 1992. [DOI: 10.1029/92je01315] [Citation(s) in RCA: 37] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/10/2022]
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Squyres SW, Jankowski DG, Simons M, Solomon SC, Hager BH, McGill GE. Plains tectonism on Venus: The deformation belts of Lavinia Planitia. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 1992. [DOI: 10.1029/92je00481] [Citation(s) in RCA: 55] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
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Grimm RE, Phillips RJ. Anatomy of a Venusian hot spot: Geology, gravity, and mantle dynamics of Eistla Regio. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 1992. [DOI: 10.1029/92je01500] [Citation(s) in RCA: 58] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
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Suppe J, Connors C. Critical taper wedge mechanics of fold-and-thrust belts on Venus: Initial results from Magellan. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 1992. [DOI: 10.1029/92je01164] [Citation(s) in RCA: 52] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
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Leitch AM, Yuen DA, Lausten CL. Axisymmetric spherical shell models of mantle convection with variable properties and free and rigid lids. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 1992. [DOI: 10.1029/92je02368] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
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Abstract
A number of important and currently unresolved issues in the global geology and geophysics of Venus will be addressable with the radar imaging, altimetry, and gravity measurements now forthcoming from the Magellan mission. Among these are the global volcanic flux and the rate of formation of new crust; the global heat flux and its regional variations; the relative importance of localized hot spots and linear centers of crustal spreading to crustal formation and tectonics; and the planform of mantle convection on Venus and the nature of the interactions among interior convective flow, near-surface deformation and magmatism.
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Grimm RE, Phillips RJ. Gravity anomalies, compensation mechanisms, and the geodynamics of Western Ishtar Terra, Venus. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 1991. [DOI: 10.1029/91jb00055] [Citation(s) in RCA: 57] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
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Kiefer WS, Hager BH. A mantle plume model for the equatorial highlands of Venus. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 1991. [DOI: 10.1029/91je02221] [Citation(s) in RCA: 86] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
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Venus geology and tectonics: hotspot and crustal spreading models and questions for the Magellan mission. Nature 1990. [DOI: 10.1038/346525a0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
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Bindschadler DL, Parmentier EM. Mantle flow tectonics: The influence of a ductile lower crust and implications for the formation of topographic uplands on Venus. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 1990. [DOI: 10.1029/jb095ib13p21329] [Citation(s) in RCA: 104] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
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