JOURNAL

OFGEOPHYSICAL
RESEARCH,
VOL.102,NO.B6,PAGES
12,035-12,059,
JUNE10,1997

The Chile ridge:

A tectonic framework

$.F.Tebbens,
1 S.C. Cande,
2 L. Kovacs,
3 J.C.Parra,4,
5
J.L. LaBrecque,
6 andH. Vergara
7
Abstract.
A newChileridgetectonic
framework
isdeveloped
based
onsatellite
altimetry
data,
shipboard
geophysical
dataand,primarily,
38,500kmofmagnetic
datagathered
onajointU.S.Chilean
aeromagnetic
survey.Eighteen
activetransforms
withfossilfracture
zones(FZs),
including
twocomplex
systems
(theChileFZ andValdiviaFZ systems),
havebeenmapped
between
thenorthern
endoftheAntarctic-Nazca
plateboundary
(Chileridge)at35SandtheChile
margin
triplejunctionat47S.Chileridgespreading
ratesfrom23 Ma toPresent
havebeen
determined
andshowslowdowns
in spreading
ratesthatcorrespond
totimesofridge-trench
collisions.
TheValdiviaFZ system,previously
mapped
astwoFZswithanuncharted
seismically
activeregionbetween
them,isnowrecognized
to bea multiple-offset
FZ system
composed
of sixFZs separated
by shortridgesegments
22 to 27 km long. At chron5A (-12
Ma),theChileridgepropagated
fromtheValdiviaFZ system
northward
intotheNazcaplate
through
crustformed5 Myr earlieratthePacific-Nazca
ridge.Evidence
forthispropagation
event
includes
theFridayandCrusoe
troughs,
located
atdiscontinuities
in themagnetic
anomaly
sequence
andinterpreted
aspseudofaults.
Thispropagation
eventledtotheformation
of theFriday
microplate,
whichresulted
in thetransferal
of crustfromtheNazcaplateto theAntarctic
plate,and
ina 500-kmnorthward
stepwise
migrationof thePacific-Antarctic-Nazca
triplejunction.Rift
propagation,
microplate
formation,
microplate
extinction,
andstepwise
triplejunctionmigration
arefoundto occurduringlarge-scale
platemotionchanges
andplateboundary
changes
in the
southeastPacific.

Introduction

improved due to the acquisition and analysisof additional

geophysical traverses of the Chile ridge [Herron, 1972;
The Chile ridge is a major branch of the global ridge
Klitgord et aI., 1973; Handschumacher, 1976; Herron et al.,
system,extendingfrom the junction of the Pacific, Antarctic,
1981] and Chile FZ [Anderson-Fontanaet al., 1987]. In the
andNazcaplatesat the JuanFernandezmicroplate[Larsonet
immediatevicinity of the Chile margin triple junction, the
al., 1992,and referencestherein]to the triplejunctionof the
chartingof ridge axis segments,FZs, and magneticisochrons
Antarctic,
Nazca,and SouthAmericanplatesnear46Salong
was furtherimprovedby detailedshipboardsurveys[Candeand
the southernChile trench [Herron et al., 1981; Cande et aI.,
Leslie, 1986; Cande et al., 1987a].
1987b](Figure 1).
In January1990, a team of scientistsfrom the U.S. Naval
Theexistence
of a mid-ocean
'ridgebetween
RapaNui (Easter
Research Laboratory (NRL), Lamont-Doherty Earth
Island)andsouthern
SouthAmericawasfirstpredicted,
onthe
Observatory(LDEO), the Servicio Nacionalde Geologiay

basis
of seismicevidence,by Ewingand Heezen[1956]. The

Mineria,andtheServicio
Hidrografico
y Oceanografico
dola

presence
of the Chile ridge was confirmedby bathymetric
data
Armada de Chile conductedan aeromagneticsurveyof the
collectedon the Scripps Institution of Oceanography
Chile ridge. The aeromagnetic
surveyand satellitealtimetry

Downwind
expedition[Menardet al., 1964]. The spreading
patternon the Chile ridge was first mappedby Herron and

Hayes
[1969]andHerron[1971],usingshipboard
data,andby
Morgan
et aI. [1969],usingaeromagnetic
data. Knowledge
of
magneticanomalies and fracture zone (FZ) locationshas

IDepartment
ofMarine
Science,
University
ofSouth
Florida,
St.
Petersburg,
Florida.

2Scripps
Institution
ofOceanography,
LaJolla,
California.
3Naval
Research
Laboratory,
Washington,
D.C.
4Servicio
Nacional
deGeologia
yMineria,
Santiago,
Chile.
5Now
atGEODATOS,
Santiago,
Chile.
%amont-Doherty
Earth
Observatory
ofColumbia
University,

Palisades,
NewYork.

data [Sandwell,1993;Smithand Sandwell,1995] form the

basis for an improvedchartingof the tectonicfeaturesof the
Chile ridge and its flanks.
This paperdiscussesthe tectonicfeaturesobservedalong
the Chile ridge and its flanks. The most significantnew
featureis the Friday microplatewhich formedduringa chron

5A (-12 Ma) plate boundaryreorganization.A companion

paper[Tebbensand Cande,this issue]presents
reconstructions
of the southeastPacific sincethe late Oligocene,showingthe
evolution of the Chile ridge within the framework of the
southern Pacific

Data

7Servicio
Hidrografico
y Oceanografico
dolaArmada,
Valparaiso,
Chile.
Copyright
1997
bytheAmerican
Geophysical
Union.
Paper
number
96JB0258
!.
0148-0227/97/96JB.02581
$09.00

Ocean.

Tectonicinterpretations
are presented
basedon all available
topographic,magnetic, and satellite altimetry data in the
surveyregion,includingthe 1990 aeromagnetic
surveyof the
Chile ridge. Bathymetryand magneticdatafrom a 1988 RRS
Charles Darwin surveyare presented,includingfour ridge-

12,035

12,036

TEBBENS
ETAL.:CHILERIDGETECTONIC
FRAMEWORK

120"W

115"W

11OW

105"W

1O0"W

95W

90"W

85W

80"W

75W

70"W

30S

Nazca Plate

Figures 7a & 7b

35S

Figures 4a & 4b

Pacific

Plate
40S
ures

6a & 6

,divi&..F.Z...

45S

-fa'tao

Figures 5a & 5b

'?.

Antarctic

5O S

50S

to
.

120W

115"W

110W

105"W

100'W

95W

90W

85W

80W

75W

70W

Figure 1. Major tectonic featuresof the SouthPacific includingridge axes (heavy solid lines), FZs (solid and
dashed lines are known and inferred locations, respectively), nontransformoffset traces (dash-dotted lines),
fossil ridge axes (railroad track pattern), transferredlithosphere(striped areas),PAC-ANT-FAR triple junction
trace (TJT) (dotted lines with heavy dots), and other tectonicdiscontinuities(heavy lines with dots). The 1990
aeromagneticsurvey lines are shown (light dotted lines). Diagonal shadingdenotes transferred lithosphere.
Location maps for Figures 4, 5, 6, and 7 are shown.

The altitude at which aeromagneticdata are collectedaffects

perpendicular
profilessouthof the GuafoFZ. Fourpreviously
unpublishedaeromagneticlines are included which were the resolutionof the recordedsignal. When weatherpermitted,
lines were flown at approximately 500 m elevation, whichis
navigated with a combination of LORAN and inertial
less than 4.0 km over the seafloor at the ridge axis. At this
navigation: two lines cross the Chile ridge axis, one near
38.2S and the other near 39.5S; and two are east-west lines
low altitude, the magneticsignalis comparableto a shipboard
located between 35S and 36S, to the north of the Chile ridge
survey. A few sectionswere flown at altitudesas highas3 krn,
due to poor weatherand equipmentproblems,resultingin the
(D. W. Handschumacher,
unpublisheddata, 1980).
In January1990, a P-3 Orion aircraftequippedwith a proton loss of the short-wavelength information in these track
segments.
precessionmagnetometercollected a total of 37,500 km of
aeromagneticdata (Figures 1 and 2). The survey lines were
orientedalong seafloorspreadingflow lines determinedprior
to the survey by examining altimetry data for FZ orientations.
Total intensity magnetic measurements were reduced to
anomaly form by subtracting the 1985 International
Geomagnetic Reference Field [International Association of
Geomagnetismand Aeronomy (IAGA), 1987] correctedfor 5
years of secular variation. The flights were almost entirely
navigatedwith Global PositioningSystem(GPS). During two
short flight segmentswhen GPS was not available,OMEGA
navigationwas used. The OMEGA-navigatedsegments
are the
sections of the first and fourth aeromagnetictracks north of
the Guafo FZ and west of the ridge axis (181 and 355 km long,
respectively)(Figure 2). Small but significantdeviations(of
the order of 4 kin) in the linearity of the magnetic isochrons
acrossthese track segmentsare believed to be artifactsdue to
inaccuracies in the OMEGA navigation relative to the GPS
navigation. In other regions with only GPS navigation,
offsetsof the order of 4 km are interpretedto be real.

Magnetic anomalieswere identified by comparingthemto a

model basedon the known sequenceof geomagneticpolarity
reversals [Cande and Kent, 1992, 1995]. Representative
magneticprofiles are easily correlatableand identifiablewhen
comparedto a modelprofile (e.g., Figure 3). We includedor,
when necessary, modified the magnetic anomaly

identificationsand/orFZ locationsof Morgan et al. [1969],

Herron and Hayes [1969], Herron [1971], Klitgordet al.
[1973], Handschumacher [1976], Herron et al. [1981],
LaBrecque[ 1986], Candeand Leslie[ 1986],Anderson-Fontana
et al. [ 1986], Molnar et al. [ 1975], and Lonsdale [1994].

Satelliteradaraltimetrydatawerecombined
withshipboard
andaeromagnetic
datato mapthe locationof ridgeaxesand
FZs. Color imageswere createdusingthe gravityanomaly
gridof Smithand Sandwell[1995] whichincorporated
satellite
altimetryprofilesfromERS 1, Geosat,andSeasat.Thegrid
spacingis 1/20th of a degree in longitude. In this paper,

"gravityfield" refersto theSmithand Sandwell[1995]gravity

grid.

TEBBENSET AL.: CHILERIDGETECTON1C

FRAMEWORK
95W

100W

d,!
40 S

90"W

85"W

12,037

80"W

75 W

_
;-_-___
-........
..--...................................
............:...................
./(.n_,_e_.

.._

...................

................................
......
=%:....................
57"ti,e
5
--. --;::.:_v.

.->-<:::'".:'.'
....

.......

:
:'............
'..........................
I ......
'............
' ...........
' .............
""""'
:'"1"'""
.........
I'.
.......................................................
,-.
....................

40"S

..--..-........................................
.....................................................
L"2"'2'
.....;.L.'..._-.....-....-...----2-.."-'"%5'T-..-.'z'--'';";:'.

..........
- - "---.-z.- -

Z/--- ._C':
.j-___.-.

ValdiviaFZ System

line..22
..........

line16 .

45"S

45S

GuanoFZ

Guamblin
FZ

Ta:tta
FZ ....

50S

50"S
1ooow

95W

90W

85W

80W

75W

Figure 2. Location of aeromagneticprofilesshownin Figure 3. Conventionsas in Figure 1.

Locationof Ridge Axes and Fracture Zones

from Altimetry Data
Chile ridge axis segmentshave previously been shown to
havetopographicaxial rift valleys [Herron and Hayes, 1969;
Herron, 1972; Klitgord et al., 1973; Herron et al., 1981;
Cande and Leslie, 1986]. Small and Sandwell [1989]
demonstrated
that axial rift valleys are generally recordedas

lows in satellite altimetry data. Chile ridge axis segments

(locatedwith magnetic data) are found to be associatedwith
gravityfield lows (Plate 1), which are interpretedto be axial
rift valleys. In axial regionswhere the only geophysicaldata
arealtimetrymeasurements,
ridge axis locationswere charted
alongaltimetrylows.
Theoreticalmodelsvary in their predictionof the location

In this work, FZs were located using magnetic and

bathymetry data, where available, and using satellite altimetry
data where traditional data coverage wa sparseor unavailable.
The observedbathymetric expressionsof FZs differ from the
theoretical models. The majority of FZs observed in

bathymetry profiles in this survey region are topographic

troughs, as also observed at FZs formed at the fast spreading
East Pacific Rise (EPR) [Fox and Gallo, 1989] and at the Kane
FZ formed at the slow spreading Mid-Atlantic ridge [Miiller et
ai., 1990].
At the Kane FZ the mismatch between the

topographiclow and geoid low for 37 profiles was--5 km, on

average [Miiller et al., 1990]. For a FZ associated with a
topographictrough the FZ location correspondsto the point
at, or near, a geoid minimum [e.g., Mayes et al., 1990].
Where no bathymetry data were available along the Chile
of a FZ alonga geoidprofile. Sandwell[1984] considered
a ridge, a topographictrough was presumed. FZs and transforms
simpletheoretical cooling model of the oceanic crust, were locatedat or near the geoid minimum, with the additional
modeling
a FZ as a stepin basementwith older,colder,denser constraint that on both flanks of each ridge axis segmentthe
cruststeppingup to younger,warmer, less densecrust. The distancebetween FZs was charted to be as equal as possibleat
geoidmimickedthat stepin basement,with the FZ locatedat conjugatedistancesfrom the axis.

themaximum
gradientof thegeoidanomaly.Parmentier
and
Haxby [1986] consideredthermal bendingstresseswhich
placed
theFZ slightlyoffsetfromthe locationof thesteepest Tectonic Maps and Interpretation
gradient.Wesseland Haxby [1990] consideredadditional

Detailed figures (index map, Figure 1.), including the

magnetic and bathymetric profiles on which the tectonic
differential
subsidence.Wesseland Haxby's[1990] model interpretation is based, were prepared for the regions north
alsoplaces
theFZ slightlyoffsettowardthetroughfromthe (Figures 4a and 4b) and south (Figures 5a and 5b) of the.
Valdivia FZ system. A similar set of figures was compiledfor
location
of steepest
gradient.

complexitiesand have a model which accountsfor slip and

includesflexure from a combination of thermal stressesand

12,038

TEBBENSET AL.: CHILERIDGETECTONICFRAMEWORK

line1 (dh016)

line2 (pro904)
FZ 39

line3 (dh016)
line4 (prn904)
ine5 (prn908)

/ /
Valdivia
FZSystem
FZ 40A

line6 (pro908)

line7 (pro909)
line8 (pro902)
line9 (pro907)

line10(pro902)
line11(pro907)

Chiloe
FZ

line12(pro901)
line13 (pro901)
line14 (pro903)
line15 (pro901)
line16 (pro903)
line17 (prn901)

[600
nTGuafo
FZ I

I t /

[ [

line 18 (chd36)
line 19 (chd36)

5c

5A 5

3 2A AX

2A3

5 5A

5C
Model

Figure 3. Magneticprofilesusedin thespreading

rateanalysis,
projected
at N80E. At bottomis a model
magnetic
profilecreated
usingtheshortintervalspreading
ratesof Table2. Stippling
denotes
datanotusedfor
the spreadingrate analysis.

the regions southwest(Figures 6a and 6b) and northeast

(Figures7a and7b) of the Chile ridge.
At present,the Chile ridge extendsfrom the JuanFernandez
microplate to the Chile margin triple junction and is
composedof 1380 km of ridge axis offset by 18 active

Anderson-Fontanaet al. [1986], which is basedon an RN

Endeavorsurvey.
Between the Chile and Valdivia transformfault systems
there are six transform

faults

and associated FZs.

With

transformfaultswith fossilFZs, includingtwo complexfault

improveddata, particularlyaltimetry data, we find the FZ

orientationsin this regionare ~N88E, about8 differentfrom

systems. In addition, three nontransformoffsets and their off-

those of Herron et al. [1981] and Mamrnerickx and Smith

axis traceshave beenidentified. The lengthof eachridge [1980] (--N80E).

segment ranges from a maximum of 234 km between the
Chiloe and Guafo FZs to 39 km between FZ 37 and FZ 37B to

FZ 37B (Figures4a and4b) waspreviouslyuncharted.Two

gravityfield lows offsetby 94 km are interpretedto be ridge
shorterlengthswithin the complexFZs (Table 1). The sense axissegments
offsetby the transformassociated
with FZ 37B.
of shearis right-lateralalongall the transform
faults,except The locationof e ridge axis segmentsouthof FZ 37B is
FZ 40A immediatelynorthof the Valdiviasystem.
furtherconstrained
by a prominentcentralmagneticanomaly
Chile Ridge North of the Valdivia FZ

anda topographically
well-defined
rift valley. Thelocation
of
theridgeaxissegment
northof FZ 37B is onlyconstrained
by

The tectonicmap of the northernChileridgeregion,north a gravity field low.

of the Valdivia FZ system,is basedon magneticprofiles
Apparenttectoniccomplexities
betweenFZ 37 andFZ 38
(Figures4a), bathymetry
profiles(Figure4b) andthe gravity areobserved
in thegravityfield. On the westflankthereis a
field (Plate1). The 1300-km-longactiveChile transform
fault linearlow that extendssoutheast
from FZ 37 at 98Wto the
systemconnectsthe Juan Fernandezmicroplateto the ridgeaxis,just northof FZ 38B. Thereis a lessprominent
northernmost
segment
of the Chileridge. The interpretationconjugatelow on the eastridge flank. The trendsin the

of the Chile transformfault and associated

FZs is after altimetry
datamayrecord
a pairof pseudofaults
thatformed
by

TEBBENSET AL.: CHILERIDGETECTONIC

FRAMEWOl

C)

12039

12,040

'-FEBBENSET AL.' CHILE RIDGE TECTONIC FRAMEWORK

TEBBENS
ETAL.:CHILE
RIDGE
TECTONIC
FRAMEWORK

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I
I
I
I
I
1_

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12,041

12,042

TEBBENSET AL.: CHILE RIDGE TECTONIC FRAMEWORK

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(x)
i

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TEBBENSET AL.: CHILE RIDGE TECTONICFRAMEWORK

12 043

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I
I

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12,044

TEBBENS
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RIDGE
TECTONIC
FRAMEWORK

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TEBBENSET AL.: CHILERIDGETECTONICFRAMEWORK

105"W

100W

12045

95W

90 W
V !dwiaFZ S .
5

5D
5D

5C

45"S

45"S

6 qE 5D

5C '

.,

2500m
q
3500rn/

ru,, . ,,

4500m
-
,,

.
50"S

50"S

105W

100W

95"W

90W

Figure 6b. Tectonic interpretationof the Antarcticplate at the boundaryof the southwestflank of the Chile
ridge and southeastflank of the Pacific-Antarctic ridge and all available bathymetry data. The track lines
represent3.5 km depth for the profiles. Contouredbasemapis satellite derived gravity field of Smith and
Sandwell [1995]; contour interval is 5 mGal; labeling interval of 20 regal. Other symbols and conventions
are the same as in Figure 6a.

a southward
propagatingridge. The data are not definitive,and
thesefeaturesare not includedin the tectonicinterpretation.
FZ 38B, previouslyuncharted,offsetsmagneticanomalies
at the ridge axis by 102 km (Figures 4a). FZ 38B is a
prominentfeature in the gravity field (Plate 1) and is recorded
asa bathymetriclow in availablebathymetrydata (Figure4b).
BetweenFZ 40A and the Valdivia FZ system,there is a

event which formedthesetroughsalso transferredlithosphere

from the Nazca plate to the Pacific plate, just west of the
Friday trough, and formed a microplate, herein named the

Friday microplate.
Magnetic data. Between the Valdivia FZ systemand the
Chile FZ system, the flanks of the Chile ridge record
continuous magnetic anomaly sequences from the central
small(-5 km), previouslyuncharted,off-axisisochronoffset anomaly to anomaly 5A at the Friday and Crusoe troughs
namedFZ 40B. The shortoffsetof anomalies2A and2 (Figure (Figure 4a). Across each of these troughs we observe a
4a) is constrained
by an aeromagnetic
line to the southof the discontinuity in the magnetic anomaly sequence. On the
offset,and a satellite-navigated
cruiseto the north (R/V Nazca plate, where more magneticdata are available,magnetic
ThomasWashington,1972, cruisesot02). A topographic profiles which cross the Crusoe trough (locations shown in
profilealongthe ridgeaxisshowsno evidencefor a FZ at this Figure 8) are projectedalong flowlines and comparedto model
latitude,
suggesting
no transform
nowexists(Figure4b).
profiles (Figure 9). For the region between the central
magnetic anomaly and anomaly 5A, model spreading rate
Friday and Crusoe Troughs
profiles were createdusing averageChile ridge spreadingrates
The most prominentnew featureschartedbetweenthe (Table 2). To the east of the Crusoe trough, from anomalies
ValdiviaFZ andChile FZ are a pair of topographic
troughs 5D through 6B, model spreading rates were created using
whichboundthe limits of seafloorproducedby Chile ridge latitude-dependentspreadingrates (Table 3). In this regionthe
spre,ding:
the Friday and Crusoetroughs. The troughsare observedisochrons"fan" from north to south, with spreading
visibleas continuous
lows in the gravityfield (Plate 1). As ratesincreasingto the south(Figures4a and 7a). Thus the use
will be shownin the tollowingdiscussion,
the propagation of a single (average) spreading rate for each interval for

12,046

TEBBENS
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9-11HO

TEBBENS
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FRAMEWORK

12,047

!
i

,,

%.

II

I.

12,048

TEBBENSET AL.' CHILERIDGETECTONICFRA_MEWO

Table1. Properties
of Transform
FaultsandOtherOffsets
of theChileRidge
,,,

Name

Latitude,

Off set,*

Offset,

km

m.y.

+N
-36.3
-37.0
-37.3
-37.9
-38.4
-38.9
-40.2

1124.
167.
95.
26.
103.
87.
-49.

-41.0
-41.2

122.
113.

-41.3
-41.3
-41.4
-41.6

114.
176.
79.
37.

-41.9

12.

-42.2

15.

-42.9

31.

-43.0

30.

43.8

15.

-44.6
-45.7
-45.9

292.
82.
53.

Ridge
Length*,

km
,,

Chile FZ
FZ 37
FZ 37B
FZ 38
FZ38B
FZ39
FZ 40A

Distance,

Type of Offset

,,,

km

9
9
?
.93
3.19
2.57
1.42

FZ
F-Z
FZ?
F-Z
F-Z
FZ
FZ

83.
31.
79.
52.
66.
142.
96.

Valdivia system
Valdivia
Valdivia
Valdivia
Valdivia

A
B
C
D

Valdivia
Valdivia

E
F

41 54' offset
42 !2' offset

27.
24.
24.
25.
22.
153.

28.*

37._

nontransform
nontransform

88?

Chiloe FZs

Chiloe (north)
Chiloe (south)
4348 ' offset
Guafo
Guamb!in
Darwin
,

16.
229.

84.

1.75

!45.

nontransform

8.46
2.70
1.64

157.
44.

72.

,,

Total ridgelengthis 1342kin, meanridgelengthis 74.55km, andridgelengthstandard

deviationis 58.38 km.
Left stepis positive.

Distance
tonext
FZsouth.

Distance
tonext
nontransform
offset
south
Distance from nontransform offset to next FZ south.

profilesat differentlatitudes
is notappropriate
Themagnetic ridge. The observationof faster spreading rates is instead
modelincludesa jump in the anomalysequence
at the Crusoe consistent with the interpretation that crust between the
trough,from anomaly5A to 5D.

Crusoeand Selkirk troughsformed at the Pacific-Nazcaridge.

Predicted
magnetic
profilesfor theregioneastof theCrusoe This interpretationis also supportedby plate reconstructions
trough(anomalies
5D to 6A) requirespreading
ratesfasterthan [Tebbensand Cande,this issue].

those determined for the Chile ridge (Figure 9).

The magneticanomalysequenceobservedwestof the Friday
Handschumacher[1976] interpretedthat magneticanomalies trough(anomaly5D and younger)continueseastof the Crusoe
5E, 6, and 6A observedin this region formed at the Chile trough(anomaly 5E and older) (Figure 4a). This observation
95W

90W

85W

80W

.o

line

FZ 38

......

.o.

line E (aho)

40S

40 S

.........

-..--

......

7 ,-;\ti2:lt,,q-=---'
i--a.,-

..___

95W

...-.,-

i:!:!:i:i:i:i:
:.:.:.:.:.:.:---- --'

............

:i:i!i:i:!!!i

.....>
....................

.:'*"....- ------:......
---.-

.,--.-

..................
_ .,.,..-- __. -----"-'

'--' -'-'

.:,:-:,:::.:: ..--..*,...'?"-'-----..=...,.----- '"-'

___ '.'--...a'
-----,....;.::::i::::::::
.,**...
.----- .:.:.:.:.:::,

_..---- --'-

90W

..,.---

-.--.....--.

.----"-

..----.---- ---- ----..._....-.-__...

_.....----..---...-. --"_ J
...--.-

_..... ------ -.-----

.,,.:.:.a-.

_....-

_....

._-..-

,:

85W

80W

Figure 8. Locationmapfor magneticprofilesacrossthe Crusoetroughwhichare modeledin Figure9.

TEBBENS
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FRAMEWORK

5 5A

12,049

5C

LINE A

LINE B

6A

LINE C
AX

LINE D

LINE E

5 5A '

5E

6
LINE F

1O0

,,

200

300

', ...... ,

400

500

600

700

800

900

1000

,, Distance(km)

11O0

Figure 9. Observed
magnetic
profiles(heavyprofiles)compared
with modelprofilescreatedwith the
interpretation
thatthereis anagediscordance
attheCrusoe
trough,
withChileridgespreading
ratesto thewest
of the troughandPacific-Nazca
spreading
ratesto the eastof thetrough.The locations
of theridgeaxis
(vertical
solidlineatleft)andCrusoe
trough
(vertical
dotted
line)areascharted
onthetectonic
maps.

12,050

TEBBENS
ETAL.: CHILERIDGETECTONIC
FRAMEWORK

Table 2, NeogeneSpreading
Ratesof the Chileridge

Ma
,

Half-SpreadingRate,
mm/yr

Half Spreading
Rate,mm/yr

Time Interval,

Time Interval

(PolarityChron)*

ln(o)-2n(y)
2n(y)-2An.in(y)
2An. ln(y)-3n. ln(y)
3n.ln(y)-3An.ln(y)

0-0.780
0.780-1.770
1.770-2.581
2.581-4.180
4.180-5.894

26.5
30.3
32.8
29.6
35.0

2.6
3.0
4.9
3.7
3.8

25
25
26
27
31

31.3

3An. 1n(y)- 3Br.2n(y)

3Br.2n(y)-4An(y)
4An(y)-4Ar.2n(y)

5.894-7.341
7.341-8.699
8.699-9.580

44.3
45.0
48.9

3.1
2.9
4.3

29
24
22

45.6

4Ar.2n(y)-5 An. In(y)

5An.ln(y)-SBn. ln(y)

9.580-!1.935
11.935-14.800

40.6
35.5

3.6
2.8

16
10

5Bn.1n(y)-5Cn.1n(y)
5Cn.ln(y)-5Dn(y)
5Dn(y)-5En(y)

14.800-16.014
16.014-17.277
17.277-18.281

46.2
55.5
52.4

4.9
2.8
2.6

7
8
8

5En(y)-6n(y)
6n(y)-6An.in(y)
6An.1n(y)-6Bn.1n(y)
6Bn.1n(y)-6Cn.in(y)

18.28!- 19.048
19.048-20.518
20.518-22.588
22.588-23.353

61.9
67.4
57.1
60.4

1.6
2.5
7.6
5.2

4
4
2
2

0-In(o)

37.8

51.4

61.3

, .....................

*Nomenclature
is afterHarlandet al. [1990],asmodifiedby CandeandKent[1992,1995]withanappended
(o) {or (y)} to specifythe old {or
young}agelimit of eachchron.

is consistentwith the interpretationthat a ridge (now the

northernChile ridge) propagatedthroughand separatedthis
once continuoussequenceof anomalies. Further,the oldest
magneticanomaliesobservedwest of the Friday trough, in a
regionof transferredlithosphere,becomeyoungerfrom south
(anomaly5D at 40S) to north (anomaly5C at 39S) (Figure
4a). These observationsindicatethe ridge propagatedthrough
progressivelyyoungercrustfrom southto north.
Bathymetry data. The Friday and Crusoe troughsboth
consist of rough topography, often two bathymetrichighs
surrounding a central low (Figure 4b). Where satellitenavigated bathymetric data are available, each trough is
located at the central bathymetric low. This interpretationis
consistentwith previous models of rifting of old oceanic
lithosphere [Mammerickx and Sandwell, 1986], with the
modificationthat we find no evidencefor a precursorswell.
The troughs are roughly equidistantfrom the Chile ridge
axis, with the distancebetween troughsdecreasingfrom south
to north (Figure 10), also suggesting northward ridge
propagation. Magnetic data also indicate northward
propagation:just north of the Valdivia FZ systemthe oldest

knownChile ridge crustis anomalySAD(y), while just south

of theChileFZ the oldestknownChileridgecrustis younger,

anomaly 5(0) (Figures 4a and 10). These magneticdata
suggestpropagationinitiated at the Valdivia FZ systemat
chron5AD(y) and ended at the Chile FZ at chron 5(0). This
interpretationindicates an average propagationrate of 136
km/Myr (452 km north in 3.33 Myr). Although basedon
limited data, the northern Chile ridge propagationrate is
remarkablysimilarto the initial propagationrate foundfor the
easternrift of the Eastermicroplateof -135 km/Myr [Naarand
Hey, 1991].
The jumps in the ages of magneticanomaliesacrossboth
the Friday and Crusoetroughsare each5 Myr. This agejump
is expectedto correspond
with a stepin bathymetry,basedon
the relationshipthat seafloordepthincreasesas a functionof
the squareroot of its age [Parsonsand Sclater, 1977]. Such
topographic steps have been observed across tectonic
boundaries where there are age offsets of comparable
magnitude,suchas FZs [e.g., Fox and Gallo, 1986], failedrifts
[Mammerickx and Sandwell, 1986; Batiza, 1989] and
propagating rifts [Hey, !977]. Limited bathymetric data

Table 3. Pacific-Farallon
Half Spreading
ratesObservedon the NazcaPlate
Rate Used in Model

Anomaly
!nterval

Time Interval,
Ma

Line A,
mm/yr

LineB,
mm/yr

LineC,
mm/yr

Line D,

Line E,

mm/yr

mm/yr

Line F,
mm/yr

5C-5D
5D-5E
5E-6
6-6A
6A-6B
6B-6C
6C-7
7-7A
7A-8
8-9
9-10

17.31-16.03
18.32-17.31
19.08-18.32
20.55-19.08
22.60-20.55
23.36-22.60
24.72-23.36
25.48-24.72
25.80-25.48
27.00-25.80
28.22-27.00

88.84
92.03
59.11

56.92

85.36
155.25
87.75
79.02

73.56
80.68
46.80

Line G,

mm/yr

(Figure9),
Where Unknown,

mm/yr

,,,

73.12
97.15
52.22
116.49

87.17
88.92

97.41
89.05
62.26

94.69
97.05
107.17
126.55
83.26

80.
80.
80.
80.
80.
120.

120.
120.
88.
79.
81.

TEBBENS
ETAL.:CHILE
RIDGE
TECTONIC
FR.
AMEWO

260

-35'

265

12,051

270

275
-35'

......

Chile FZ

km

500 km

495 km

90 km

........

530
546 km

.40

5_64.
k.m

1091

-_-_-_-_.....

5?_7

.40

-_-_- -_-__-_-..-_

260
265
270
275
Figure
10. Observed
present-day
distances
between
theFriday
andCrusoe
troughs
areshown
inbold
typeto

theeastoftheaxis.Justnorth
oftheshaded
lines,
neareach
trough,
arethetrough
toridgeaxisdistances.
For
a givensegment
thetrough
to ridgeaxisdistances
aredifferent
foreachflank,suggesting
asymmetrical

spreading
orridge
jumps.
Thedistance
between
thetroughs
decreases
fromsouth
tonorth,
which
weinterpret

asevidence
for a northward
propagation
of theridgeaxisthrough
theNazcaplate. Seetextfor further
evidence.
Thepropagating
ridgeaxisevolved
tobecome
thenorthern
Chileridge.

reveala stepin the bathymetryacrossthe Friday and Crusoe 1993; Searleet al., 1993]. The lack of mirror symmetry
troughs(Figure 4b) in agreementwith that predictedby betweenthe FridayandCrusoetroughsmaybe explained
by
Parsons
and Sclater's[1977] age versusdepthrelationship their formingas pseudofaults
of a clockwise-rotating
Friday
(Figure11). The magnitude
of the Fridaytroughstepis greater microplate.The lackof symmetryis the primaryevidence
that
thanthat predictedby the model bathymetry(Figure 11), therewasa microplate
andnotan instantaneous
rift jump.
perhaps
dueto the proximityof the profileto ValdiviaFZ A.
In summary,two prominentbathymetrictroughsin the

The shapeof the Friday and Crusoetroughsare not mirror region north of the Valdivia FZ system,on the old side of
imagesof each other. This lack of mirror symmetryof anomaly5A, boundtheoldestcrustformedat the Chileridge.
pseudofaults
is also observedat the Easter and JuanFernandez These troughsare interpreted to be the outer flanks of a
microplates
wherethe lack of symmetryhasbeenexplained
by propagating
rift. The ridge beganpropagating
shortlybefore
microplate
rotationduringpropagation[e.g.,Schouten
et al., chron5A, cuttingthroughcrustformed5 Myr earlierat the
Chile

RidgeAxis

SelkirkTrough

-lOOO-

FridayTrough

CrusoeTrough

-2000 ~

-3000-

......
, .,..,
,./.,..'/"'"*
'
,,x,,
....

-4000-

-5000-

-6000

-1500

-1000

-500

500

1000

1500

2000

Distancefromridgeaxis(km)

Figure 11. Observed

shipboard
topography
acrossthe Friday(cruisec1803)and Crusoe(cruisesot02)

troughs.
Model
bathymetry
using
theformula
depth
= 2500+ 350*(age
1/2)(ageinmillion
years,
depth
in

kilometers)
afterParsonsandSclater[1977].Onbothflanks,wemodela gapin agefrom12.6Ma (chron5Amiddle)to 17.6 Ma (5D-old), according
to the magneticinterpretation
(Figure4a). The locationof the
predictedgap,manifested
as a stepin the modeledbathymetry,
corresponds
with the observed
locationof each
trough.
,

12,052

TEBBENSET AL.: CHILE RIDGE TECTONIC FRAMEWORK

Pacific-Nazca ridge. The plate boundary reorganizationthat

includedthis propagationformed the Friday microplate.

withintheValdiviaFZ formedatthesamespreading
rateasthe
magneticanomaliesformed farther south,betweenthe
ValdiviaFZ system
andtheChiloeFZ, theageof theoldest

V aldivia

Valdivia FZ crust is ~chron 5C.

FZ

System

The Valdivia FZ system was previously mapped as two

transforms with their associatedFZs (FZ 41 and the Valdivia

Chile Ridge South of the Va!divia FZ System:

Nontransform

Offsets

and

Their

Traces

FZ) separatedby a seismicallyactive region with no identified

ridges,transforms,or FZs [e.g., KIitgord et aI., 1973; Herron
Between
theValdivia
FZ system
andtheChilemargin
triple
et al., 1981; Mayes et al., 1990]. This region is now junction,the Chile ridge is offsetby four transformfaults
interpretedto be a FZ systemcomposedof six parallelFZs, (Figures5a and5b). The locationof the associated
FZs,the
with seismicactivity in the vicinity of the ridge segmentsand Chiloe,
Guafo,
Guamblin,
andDarwin
FZs,havechanged
only
transforms,separatedby distancesrangingfrom 22 to 27 km. slightly from earlier charts.
FZ 41 is renamed FZ A of the Valdivia FZ system. The
One modification
is that the ChiloeFZ, from magnetic
Valdivia FZ regionis still sparselysurveyed;thereare almost anomaly
4A (8.7Ma) to theridgeaxis,appears
in bathymetric
no magnetic data west of the ridge axis segments. The profilesto be composed
of two parallelFZs 16 km apart
southernfour ridge axis segmentsare well-recordedas lows in (Figure5b). The ChiloeFZ maybe composed
of twoFZsin
the gravity field, as are the trends of the transformsand FZs oldercrustaswell,assuggested
by someof thebathymetry
(Plate 1).
profileson the eastsideof the ridgeaxis (Figure5b).

Evidencefor the five narrow corridorsof crustcomposing

Alongthe Chileridge,southof theValdiviaFZ system,

the

the Valdivia FZ system include offsets in the observed

magneticdata are of sufficienttrack densityto indicatethe

magneticanomalysequences
(Figures4a and5a): EachFZ has
been chartedbetweenthe observedoffsets in the anomaly
sequences
and parallel to trendsobservedin the gravity field
(Plate 1). Bathymetric profiles crossingthe Valdivia FZ

presenceof several nontransformoffsets with off-axis traces.

Basedon the assumptionthat nontransformoffsetsform at the

system record multiple troughs, consistent with the

interpretationof severalFZs, but the sparsedata do little to
further control transformfault and FZ locations(Figures4b

are symmetricalaboutthe ridge axis.

In the vicinity of the ridge axis, the nontransformoffsets
are observedas lows in the gravity field. Fartherfrom the
ridge axis, in crust older than anomaly 4A (9 Ma),

and 5b).

Within the narrow corridorsof the Valdivia FZ system,

thereare remarkablywell-recorded
magneticanomalies
(Figure
5a). For example,a profile betweenValdivia FZs C and D on
the eastridge flank recordsa continuousanomalysequence

ridgeaxisandthuswouldbe symmetrical
on bothridgeflanks,
nontransform
offsettracesare chartedas pairsof features
that

nontransform offset traces that are charted on the basis of

from anomaly 2A (2.6 Ma) to 5AA (13.03 Ma), an interval of

magneticdata are usually not observedin the gravityfield.

The dependence
of FZ gravitysignalon spreading
rate,with
lower amplitudesobservedat fasterspreadingrates,hasbeen
shownby Shaw [1988] and may explainthe lack of a signal

over 10 Myr. Surprisingly,this profile collectedon the flank

observedoff-axis, in crust formed during times of faster

of a shortridge segmentis indistinguishable

from profiles spreadingrates.
collectedon the flanks of the longerridge segmentbetween
Prior to the 1990 aeromagneticsurveyand the availability
the Valdivia and ChiloeFZs in termsof observed
spreading of Geosatand ERS 1 data, the only featuresidentifiedwhich
rate and quality of magneticanomalies. Ridge axis locations offset the Chile ridge were simple transformfaults. The
within the Valdivia FZ system were determined by recognition of nontransform offset traces and FZ systems
extrapolating from observed magnetic anomalies, using reveals an increasingly more complicated segmentation
anomalyto ridge axis distancesobservedsouthof the Valdivia patternof the Chile ridge.
FZ system,and, for the southernmost
four (of five) segments,
correspondwith distinctaltimetry lows (Plate 1).
Pacific-Antarctic-Nazca (Farallon) Triple
Boundingthe V aldivia FZ systemcrustto the eastand west
Junction Trace
are WNW trendinglows in the altimetrydata (Plate 1) which
are interpretedas tectonicboundaries.Evidencefor the eastern
The Pacific-Antarctic-Farallon
triple junctiontrace,on the
boundaryis a changein the orientationof the magnetic Antarcticplate between-4530'Sand 53S, is after Candeet
anomaliesand FZs acrossthe boundarywhich suggests
that al. [1989]. At 50S,thisboundaryis well-constrained,
asit is
crustto the west formedat the Chile ridge while crustto the betweenmagneticanomaly16 formedon the westflank of the
eastformedat thePacific-Nazca
ridge. Thereis alsoa jumpin Chileridgeand magneticanomaly16 formedon the eastflank
the age of oceaniccrustacrosseachboundary. For instance, of thePacific-Antarctic
ridge(PAR) (Figure6a). Theboundary
eastof theeastern
extension
of ValdiviaFZ D thereis a jump is markedby a slighttroughin thebathymetry
data(Figure6b;

from anomaly5C formedat the Valdivia FZ systemof the ~50S, 93.5W).

Chileridgeto anomaly6A formedat thePacific-Nazca
ridge
West of the westernmostChiloe FZ and Valdivia FZ system,
(Figure 5a).
it appearsthata trough(troughB) at 101W,43S(Figures
1
The oldest magnetic anomalies within the Valdivia FZ
systemare at least as old as anomaly 5B, as recordedon the

and 6b), separatescrust formed at the Chile ridge and crust

formed at the PAR. At 43S, the oldest identifiableisochron

eastridgeflankbetween
FZs C andD andFZs E andF (Figure onthewestflankof theChileridgeis anomaly
6A (Figure
6a).
5a). To estimatethe oldestcrustalagewithin the ValdiviaFZ
system,we examinedthe distance,measuredparallelto the

The oldest known isochron on the east flank of the PAR at

43Sis anomaly
5A. Between
troughB andanomaly
6A ofthe
Chileridgeis a roughly360-km-wide
regionof unidentifiable
eachsegment
of theValdiviaFZ system
andthegravitylows magnetic anomalies and rough topography. Plate
boundingthe Valdivia FZ system. Assumingthat all crust reconstructions
suggest
troughB formedat chron6(o),witha
Valdivia FZs, between the oldest observedanomalies within

TEBBENS
ETAL.:CHILERIDGETECTONIC
FRAMEWORK

conjugate
troughA locatedonthewestflankof thePacific-

lOO

Antarctic
ridge(Figure1). With sparsedata,thereareat least
three
possible
tectonicexplanations.
TroughB maybe (1) the

pseudofault
of a propagating
ridge,withtroughA asthe

ChileRidge-TrenchCollisions

- 80
t xx

conjugatepseudofault;(2) one side of a separated

(nonpropagating)
fault,theconjugate
to whichis trough
A; or
(3)therough-smooth
boundary
[i.e.,Mamrnerickx,
1992]of a
rapidslowdown
in spreading,
perhapsdue to this ridge
segment
being a former segmentof the EPR that was
"captured"
by the slowerspreading
PAR. If the lastcaseis
correct,this region may have undergonean evolution similar

x-x-

70

CHIERIDGE

60

'

40

30

to thatwhich formed the Friday and Crusoetroughsandthe

Fridaymicroplate,
just to the north,wherethePAC-ANT-NAZ

'

20

triplejunctionlater (chron5A) jumpednorthward

fromthe
ValdiviaFZ systemto the Chile FZ.

12,053

100 3A4A 5B5E 6C

Discussion

10

Chile Ridge Spreading Rates

15

20

25

Ag, (Ma)

spreading
rateswere calculatedfor 17 short(.-.2Myr) intervals

igure 12n. Averagehf spreadingratesof th Chil fidg

for th past25 Myr (Tabl 2). PAR hf-sprading ratesfor the
sam rim intervals wr, calculatedby intolating btwn
th pols of Cande et al. [1995] and using rhs pols to
dtn
gpradingratesfor a potion of th PAR adjacentto
th Chil ridge,at 40S, 112W. r
is a gnral dcmasin
spreading rate of th Chil ridge, prhaps related to the
dcras in ag of th subductingslab of th Nazca plate.
Thr is a ngativ co,clarion btwn spreadingratesof th

between chron 6C (23.3 Ma) and the Present (Table 2).

Chil fidg d PAR. Th times of two maor slowdownsin

Chile ridge spreading rates were determined using 18

satellite navigated magnetic profiles aligned nearly

perpendicular
to the ridge axis (Figure 2). The magnetic
profiles
wereprojectedalongsynthetictracksstrikingN80E,
perpendicular
to the ridge axis. Only well-formedmagnetic
anomalies, not crossing FZs or "higher-order offsets"
[Mtcdonaldet al., 1991], were used (Figure 3). Average

Spreading
rateswere also calculatedfor five longer(~5 Myr)

Chil fidg spreading

rat, 14 to 10 Ma d 6 Ma, cospond

intervalswithin which the spreading rates were found to be

relativelyconstantor, in the case of chron 3A to the Present,

with Chil ridge/trenchcollisions.

variedin a uniformmanner(i.e., a slowdecrease).All reported

ratesare half-spreadingrates.

As the Chile ridge is nearthe equatorof the Euler poleof

pole). Similarly, the predictedspreadingrate variationof the

chron5A Nazca-Antarcticpole [Tebbensand Cande,thisissue]
spreading
rate along the entire ridge axis. The predicted was 0.8 mm/yr (37.8 mm/yr at the northernmost
Chile ridge
along-axisspreadingrate variation along the Chile ridge and37 mm/yrat the Chilemargintriplejunction). As the
using
thechron2A Nazca-Antarctic
poleof Tebbens
and Cande modeledvariationsin spreadingrate along-axisare slight,and
[thisissue]is 0.6 mm/yr (30.3 'mm/yr at the northernmost far lessthanonestandarddeviationin spreading
rate (c,Table
segment
of the Chile ridge, 80 from the pole,and30.9 mrrdyr 2), the spreadingrateswere not adjustedfor varyingdistance
justnorthof the Chile margintriple junction,90 from the from the poles of rotation.
rotation, at any given time there is minimal variation in

"-'

WestFlank: EastFlank

6C

5E

",''

'"''

-25

-20

5B

....

-15

4A

'"''''

-10

3A c?g
'''

-5

X 3A

4A

5B

5E

:''

"-'''

''

'-' ''

10

15

20

.......

6C

25

Age (Ma)
Figure 12b. Individualageversusdistance
fromthe ridgeis points(circles)determined
from magnetic
profileson theeastandwestflas of theChileridge(Figure3). AverageChileridgespreading
rates(Table2
andFigure12a) are annotated,
andpresented
graphically
(solidlines),with crosses
markingchanges
in
average
spreading
rate. Chges in slopeindicate
changes
in spreading
rate. Seetextfor discussion.

12,054

TEBBENS
ETAL.:CHILERItX3ETECTONIC
FRAMEWORK

Our averagedspreadingrates showthat the Chile ridge was

spreadingrapidly between chrons6C and 5E (61.3 mm/yr),
was slightly slower between chrons5E and 5B (51.4 mm/yr),
slowed to intermediate rates between chrons 5B and 4A (37.8

mm/yr), increasedspeedbetween chrons4A and 3A (45.6

mrn/yr), and sincethen has slowedto an averageof 31 mm/yr
(Figure 12a). The trend toward slower spreadingratesin the
last few million yearsis supportedby the observationthat the

ridge at anomaly 5C. Evidence for this rotation is a 10o

changein azimuth of magneticisochronsfrom chron5D to
chron5B at 43S (Figure6a) and a changein the strikeof the
Chiloe and Guafo FZs (Figure 6b). The counterclockwise
rotationof the Chile ridge placedthe Agassiztransformunder

extension
andled to the initiationof the ValdiviaFZ system
spreading
within the separated
Agassiztransform.
The rotation of the Chile ridge from chrons5D to 5B also

currentspreadingrate, as measuredacrossthe centralanomaly,

placedthe othertransforms
of the Chile ridge,all right-lateral

is 26.5 mm/yr (Table 2). For variationsin spreadingrate on

an anomaly by anomaly basis and for individual ridge
segments,see Tebbens[ 1994].
Anotherway to analyzespreadingratesis to plot ageversus
distancefrom the ridge axis [e.g., Klitgord et al., 1975]. A
plot of distance versus age for all reversals used in the
spreading rate calculations provides an independent
determinationof the times of spreadingrate changes(Figure
12b). In particular, changesin slope indicate times when
spreadingrates changed. There is minimal scatter in the
observed distance from the ridge axis at each age. The
observedslopesare well fit on both flanks by the calculated
averagespreadingrates(Table 2). Spreadingratesare foundto
be generally symmetric,although the eastflank is observedto
have slightly s!ower than average rates for the intervalsfrom

offsets, under extension, but only the Agassiz transform

developed into a multiple offset transform system. The

4 to 9 Ma and 16 to 19 Ma.

relativelengthof theAgassiztransform
to otherChileridge
transforms may explain why it was the only transformto
separateduringthe ridge rotation. The Agassiztransformwas
over 750 km long, more than 3 times longer than any other
Chile ridge transform. The Agassiztransformconnected
the

(then)northernmost
Chile ridgeto the PAC-ANT-NAZtriple
junction [Tebbensand Cande, this issue], analogousto the
present-day
Chile transform.
Friday

Microplate

At chron 5A(o), the Chile ridge propagatednorthwardfrom

theValdivia FZ towardthe ChallengerFZ throughthen5-Myrold crust (approximatelyanomaly 5D) formed at the Pacific.
Nazca ridge. The scars of this propagationevent are the

Interestingly, there is a correlation between the times of Crusoeand Friday troughs,the limits of the oldestcrustformed
decreasesin spreadingrates and the times of collisions of alongthis sectionof the Chile ridge. As a consequence
of this
Chile ridge segmentswith the Chile trench. The middle propagationevent, crustwas transferredfrom the Nazcaplate
Mioceneslowdownbetween15 and 9 Ma roughlycorresponds to the Antarctic plate which comprisesthe Friday microplate
to the time of col!isionof a major segmentof the Chile ridge core(Figures1 and 13).
with the Chi!e trenchbetween 14 and 10 Ma [Candeand Leslie,
Figure 13 presentsa schematicrepresentationof the plate
1986]. The secondslowdown,at anomaly3A, is the time of boundariesjust before and after the chron 5A propagation
the next major ridge-trench collision at 6 Ma [Cande and event and demonstrates the propagation-induced
Leslie, 1986].
The most recent ridge-trench collision, reorganizationof plate boundaries (upper) and the plate
100,000 years ago, occurred during an interval of normal boundary origins of the crust comprising each plate. The
po!arity, which was the interval of slowest observedChile
chron5A propagationevent resultedin a major plateboundary
spreadingrates,0.78 Myr to Present(Table 2). Spreadingrate reorganization,discussedbelow.
variationswithin the past 0.78 m.y. are not constrainedby
Initial propagation. The propagation event appearsto
the average values presentedhere, so whether this colli'sion have initiated from the northernmost transform fault of the
correlates with a distinct change in spreadingrate is not newly formed Valdivia transform fault system (Figure 13,
resolved. Whether there is a significant causal relationship before). Intratransformorigins of propagatingridgesof
betweenChile ridge spreadingrates and Chile ridge-trench microplates
havebeenstudiedby Bird and Naar [1994],who
collisionsis unclear: a correspondingincreasein spreading found the eastern rifts of the Easter and Juan Fernandez
rate duringintervalsof transformfault subructionis clearly microplatesalso apparentlyinitiated along transformfaults.
observedduringthe 10 and 6 Ma transformsubruction,but not The location of crust which later would form the core

duringthe transformfault subduction

precedingthe 3 Ma (and
0.1 Ma) ridge-trenchcollisions(Table 2).
The distinctdecreasein Chile ridge spreadingrate at 6 Ma
(chron3A) was notedby Cande and Kent [1992] to be nearly
synchronouswith other circum-Pacific events, including
distinctincreasesin spreadingrates on the Pacific-Antarctic
and SoutheastIndian ridges, a clockwiserotationin spreading
directionon the SoutheastIndian ridge [e.g., Munschyet al.,
1992], and the initial rifting of the Lau Basin at 5.6 Ma [Leg
135 Scientific Party, 1992]. These events are synchronous
with a Chile ridge-trench collision, discussedabove, and
slightlyprecedethe initial propagationof the eastridgeof the
JuanFernandezmicroplateat 5.1 Ma [Bird and Naar, 1994].
Formation

of the Valdivia

FZ

System

Southof the Valdivia FZ, magneticprofiles(Figure6a) and

gravity field trends (Figure 6b) document a 10
counterclockwiserotation in spreadingdirectionon the Chile

(transferred
lithosphere)
of the Fridaymicroplateis indicated
for reference.

During propagation. The propagatingridge separated

Nazcaplatecrustformedat the EPR andtransferred
lithosphere

locatedbetweenthe propagating
ridge andthe EPR fromthe
Nazcaplate to the Antarcticplate (Figure 13, after,"Friday
microplate
core").TheEPRwaswestof theinitiallocation
of
the propagatingridge. The southernmostEPR becamean

"overlapped
ridge"in microplate
terminology
[Naar,1992]
andformed
thewestern
microplate
boundary.
Thetransferred
lithosphere
wasnotrigidlyattached
to anyof themajorplates

(Pacific,Antarctic,or Nazca plates). The transferred

lithosphere
(labeled
Fridaymicroplate
corein Figures
1 and
13) andmaterialaccreted
at theridgeaxescompose
theFriday
microplate.Assuming
the oceanic
platesbehaved
rigidly,the
overlappedridge slowedand possiblychangedspreading
direction
relativeto therestof theEPR[e.g.,Naar,1992].In
the gravityfield, thereis a slight,but distinct,linearlowat

TEBBENS ET AL.: CHILE RIDGE FECTONIC FRAMEWORK

.........

.......
:!':'-"-':?g,
- ' '

....

:-PLATE
....

12 055

...........
..'
::
PACIFIC:
:
II Challenger
e.
..........

............

......
-::
.

::::

:: x:::::: Iv3tg'-;'"

.... :::::oh,::,:::::.
-ooze- -/ ........

:::::::::::

'

BEFORE

..........

...............

'':::::::-

:::::::::: 3I'":':x:.

AFTER

Figure 13. Schematic plate reconstruction(left) before and (right) after the chron 5A plate boundary
reorganization The top row depictswhich crustcompriseseach plate. Note that a region north of the Valdivia
transtorreis transferredfrom the NAZ plate to the ANT plate. The bottom row depictsat which plate boundary
the crust formed. Note that the sectionof ridge southof the ChallengerFZ changesfrom southernmostEPR to
northernmostPAR due to the reorganization. Note that the northernmostChile ridge extends 500 km north,
from terminating at the Valdivia transform(before) to the Chile transform(after).

~103W on chron --5A crust on the east flank of the EPR, near

thewesternboundaryof the Friday microplate(Plate 1). This

low trendsparallel to the nearby magnetic isochrons(e.g.,
anomaly5A) on the Antarcticplate and appearsto reflect ridge
axisadjustments.Again assumingthe plateswere rigid, active
transformfaulting occurredalong the northernand southern

Mathematician microplate, which is defined as an abandoned

transform fault of the O'Gorrnan FZ [Mammerickx et al.,
1988]. The ridge to the west of the extinct microplate, the
southernmost
sectionof the EPR prior to propagation,became

the northernmost
segmentof the Pacific-Antarcticridge.
The extinct Friday microplate is now boundedto the north
boundaries
of the microplate: the Chile transformand the by a poorly located portion of a former transform(perhaps
formerAgassiz' transform[Tebbensand Cande, this issue], part of the Challenger FZ, Figure 13), to the south by a
portionof Valdivia FZ A, to the west by chron5A cruston the
respectively.
Propagation complete. Propagationceasedwhen the Pacific-Antarcticridge east flank, and to the eastby chron5A
propagating
ridge reachedthe ChallengerFZ. The Challenger crust on the Chile ridge west flank.
FZ formed at an offset of the Pacific-Farallon EPR. The new
The chron 5A plate boundary reorganizationresultedin the

ridgeaxis apparentlyrapidlyadjustedto accommodate

the

most recent northward migration in the location of the Pacific-

sameplatemotionsas the Chile ridge southof the Valdivia FZ

Antarctic-Nazcatriple junction, from the Valdivia FZ system

to the Chile FZ (Figure 13).

systemand is now the northern Chile ridge (between the

ValdiviaFZ systemand the Chile FZ). The Challenger

FZ
Implications to General Models of Microplate
becamea reactivatedtransform(the present-dayChile Evolution
transform)
connecting
the newnorthernChileridgeto thenew
The evolutionof the Friday microplatediffers from that of
location
of thePacific-Antarctic-Nazca
triplejunction.The
extinctFriday microplatebecameincorporatedinto the other known extinct microplates. Based on microplates
Antarctic
plate. The extinctFridaymicroplate
includes
the worldwide, Mammerickx et al. [1988] described the evolution
transferred
Nazcaplatecrustandthe crustwhichformedat the of a microplate to involve (1) initial rifting, offset from
microplate
boundaries
(Figure13, lowerrow). Thesouthern anotherridge,(2) an intervalwhen bothridgesare active (.3)
boundary
of themicroplate,
a portion
of Valdivia
FZ A, which gradual failure of one ridge, and (4) resumptionof full

hadbeenanactivetransform
faultduring
riftpropagation,
was spreading at the dominant ridge and preservationof a
abandoned.
This is similarto the southern
boundary
of the microplate(initially) near this ridge. While more detailed

12,056

TEBBENS ET AL.: CHE RIDGE TECTONIC FRAMEWORK

mo_
ro.

TEBBENS ET AL.: CH/LE RIDGE TECTONIC FRAMEWORK

12,057

of six closelyspaced
models
of microplateevolutionhave beendeveloped The ValdiviaFZ systemis composed

shortridgesegments
which
[Schouten
etal., 1993,andreferences
therein],
these
basic (22-27km offset)FZs separating
active for the last 15 Myr. The
steps
have
remained.
AttheFriday
microplate
weseeevidencehavebeencontinuously

forthefirsttwosteps
described
above,
butneither
ridgeever ValdiviaFZ systemevolvedfrom a singlelong left-lateral
the Chile ridge to the Pacificfailed.Instead,
aftermicroplate
extinction,
bothridgeaxesof offsettransformconnecting
themicroplate
continued
spreading
andwere"captured"
as Antarctic-Nazcatriple junction at the time of a 10
rotationin spreadingat chron5C.
portions
of majorplateboundaries.
Thissignificantcounterclockwise

A plateboundary
reorganization
at chron5A involvedthe
northward
propagation
of
a
ridge
axis
fromthe ValdiviaFZ
junction
migration.
systemto the Chile FZ; two pseudofaults,
the Crusoeand
Effectsof Ridge Subruction
Fridaytroughs,
wereformedasa result.Thiseventtransferred
fromtheNazcaplateto theAntarcticplateto form
The southernend of the Chile ridge is actively being lithosphere
the Fridaymicroplate.The Friday microplatediffersfrom
subducted
downtheChiletrench.Herronet al. [1981]werethe
previously
studiedextinctmicroplates
in thatbothridgeaxes
firstto make the surprisingobservationthat the actively
of themicroplate
continued
spreading;
theywere"captured"
by
subducting
ridgeaxishasvery little effecton the seafloor
majorridgeaxes. The eastandwestridgeaxesof theextinct
spreading
process
nearthetrench
axis.Thisobservation
has microplateare now segmentsof the Chile and Pacificbeenfurthersupported
by the observations
on multichannel
Antarcticridges,respectively.The chron5A reorganization,
seismic,
SeaBeamandGLORIA surveys[Candeet al., 1988;
which includedrift propagation,microplateformation,and
Candeet al., 1990; Tebbenset al., 1990]. The new tectonic
microplate
extinctionwith no failed ridge,resultedin a 500
maps
in thispaperalsorevealno evidence
for Nazcaplate km northwardstepwisemigration in the location of the
breakup
or Chile ridge rotationassociated
with ridge

difference
resultsin a processwe call "stepwise"
triple

subduction.
This differsfrom the subduction
of the Pacific-

Pacific-Antarctic-Nazcatriple junction.

Farallon
ridgeoff NorthandCentralAmericas,
whereMenard
[1978]
foundevidence
for "pivoting
subduction,"
wheresmall

Acknowledgments.
We thankthe dedicated
personnel
of theNaval
Research
Laboratory
FlightDetachment
andOperational
Services.The
portions
separate
fromthe mainoceanic
plateandrotate. workwasinitiatedaspartof S.F.T.'sdissertation
whenS.F.T.andS.C.C.
Iterron et al. [1981] suggestedthe lack of "pivoting were both at Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory of Columbia
subruction"
at the Chile ridgeis probablydueto the geometry University. G. Westbrookprovidedmagneticand bathymetricdata

ofplateinteraction:(1) the anglebetween

the spreadingfrom RRS CharlesDarwin cruise36-88.
centeron the Chile ridge and the Peru-Chiletrenchis only

about
15 andperhaps
toosmallto requirepivoting;
and(2)
theoffsetsalongthe Chileridgedisplace
theridgecrestaway
fromthe trenchin the oppositesenseto the Farallonplate
boundary
in the northeastPacific. In addition,"pivoting
subruction"in the northeast Pacific is associatedwith the

D. Handschumacher
provided

ProjectMagnetaeromagnetic
data collectedby the Office of Naval
ResearchprogramelementONR-61153N underthe directionof H.C.
EppertJr. W. HaxbyprovidedGeosatdataandassistance
priorto the
1990 aeromagnetic
survey. D. Sandwellprovidedaccessto computer
programsand early accessto the Sandwelland Smith [1992] gravity
grid. This paperbenefitedfrom discussions
with and/orreviewsof T.
Atwater, S. Carbotte, W. Haxby, K. Klitgord, P. Lonsdale, M.
Kuykendal!,D. Naar, M. Tivey, and, especially,H. Schoutenwho

subruction
of relativelyyoung,uniformageFaralloncrust.In explained his microplate model [Schoutenet al., 1993] and its
contrast,
while near zero-ageNazca crustis subducting
at the implications
for the Fridaymicroplate.B. Batchelder
draftedFigures4
colliding
section
of the Chileridge,olderNazcaplatecrust(up and 5. This researchwas supportedby NationalScienceFoundation
to~35Myr old)is subducting
farthernorth[CandeandHaxby, grantOCE-89-18612.
1991]. Platesubduction
appearsto be the dominantdriving
forceof platemotionswith older, colder,densersubducting References
crustprovidinggreaterdrivingforce [Forsythand Uyeda, Anderson-Fontana,S., J. F. Engeln, P. Lundgen, R. L. Larson, and S.
1975;Lithgow-Bertelloni
andRichards,1995]. Subruction
of
Stein, Tectonicsand evolution of the Juan Fernandezmicroplateat
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2005-2018, 1986.
Americamay dominateChile ridge plate motions,including
S., J. F. Engeln, P. Lundgren,R. L. Larson,and S.
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ETAL.:CHILE
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TEL'TONIC
FRAIVIEWO
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S.C.
Can'"-"--'"de,
Scripps
Institution
ofOceanography,
MS0215,
LaJolla,

12,059

S.F. Tebbens,
Departmentof MaxineSciences,
Universityof South
Florida, St. PetersburgCampus, 140 Seventh Avenue South,
St.Petersburg,
FL 33701-5016.(e-mail: tebbens@marine.usf.
edu)
H. Vergara,ServicioHidrograficoy Oceanografico
do la Armada,

CA 92093.(e-mail: cande@gauss.ucsd.edu)
Valparaiso,Chile.
L. Kovacs,Naval ResearchLaboratory,Washington,
DC 203755350.(email:skip@hpSc.nrl.navy.mil)
J.L.LaBrecque,Lamont-Doherty
Earth Observatory
of Columbia
University,
PaliSades,
NY 10964.
(Received
December
5, 1994;revised
June24, 1996;
J.C.ParraGEODATOS, Santiago,Chile.
accepted
August20, 1996.)