The long-term strength of Europe and its implications for plate-forming processes

M. Pérez-Gussinyé () and A. B. Watts
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M. Pérez-Gussinyé: University of Oxford
A. B. Watts: University of Oxford

Nature, 2005, vol. 436, issue 7049, 381-384

Abstract: Crossing a continent The strength of Europe as a political entity is in the balance as the European Union copes with recent ‘No’ votes on a new constitution. Meanwhile there is a debate among geologists as to the strength of the land beneath their feet. Within continents, old regions called cratons have suffered much less deformation than the remaining, younger areas. At issue is the relative strength of the old cratons, as different methods have produced very different estimates for Te, the effective elastic thickness. Pérez-Gussinyé and Watts have established values for the Te of Europe at various points across the continent. With thicknesses of about 60 km, the cratons of ‘old Europe’ are much more rigid than younger continental areas, reflecting the different conditions prevailing in the mantle when they were formed.

Date: 2005
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DOI: 10.1038/nature03854

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