Uplift of the central transantarctic mountains

Phil Wannamaker (), Graham Hill, John Stodt, Virginie Maris, Yasuo Ogawa, Kate Selway, Goran Boren, Edward Bertrand, Daniel Uhlmann, Bridget Ayling, A. Marie Green and Daniel Feucht
Additional contact information
Phil Wannamaker: University of Utah/Energy & Geoscience Institute
Graham Hill: University of Canterbury, Gateway Antarctica
John Stodt: Numeric Resources LLC
Virginie Maris: University of Utah/Energy & Geoscience Institute
Yasuo Ogawa: Volcanic Fluid Research Center
Kate Selway: Macquarie University
Goran Boren: University of Adelaide
Edward Bertrand: GNS Science, Natural Hazards Division
Daniel Uhlmann: First Light Mountain Guides
Bridget Ayling: Great Basin Center for Geothermal Energy, University of Nevada
A. Marie Green: University of Utah
Daniel Feucht: University of Colorado

Nature Communications, 2017, vol. 8, issue 1, 1-11

Abstract: Abstract The Transantarctic Mountains (TAM) are the world’s longest rift shoulder but the source of their high elevation is enigmatic. To discriminate the importance of mechanical vs. thermal sources of support, a 550 km-long transect of magnetotelluric geophysical soundings spanning the central TAM was acquired. These data reveal a lithosphere of high electrical resistivity to at least 150 km depth, implying a cold stable state well into the upper mantle. Here we find that the central TAM most likely are elevated by a non-thermal, flexural cantilever mechanism which is perhaps the most clearly expressed example anywhere. West Antarctica in this region exhibits a low resistivity, moderately hydrated asthenosphere, and concentrated extension (rift necking) near the central TAM range front but with negligible thermal encroachment into the TAM. Broader scale heat flow of east-central West Antarctica appears moderate, on the order of 60–70 mW m−2, lower than that of the U.S. Great Basin.

Date: 2017
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DOI: 10.1038/s41467-017-01577-2

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