Propagating rifts on midocean ridges

Abstract

Spreading center jumps identified west of the Galapagos Islands near 95°W occur in a pattern consistent with the propagating rift hypothesis. A new rift is gradually breaking through the Cocos plate. Each successive jump is slightly longer than the preceding jump. The new spreading center grows at a new azimuth toward the west as the old one dies. The jumps are a manifestation of rift propagation. We extend the analysis of propagating rifts to the case of continuous propagation and predict patterns of magnetic anomalies and bathymetry consistent with the observed patterns. In particular, we correctly predict the trends of fossil spreading centers and V patterns of magnetic anomaly offsets required by the propagating rift hypothesis. Similar V patterns have been observed on many other spreading centers and have been interpreted in various ways. The propagating rift hypothesis appears to offer a simple explanation, consistent with rigid plate tectonics, for each of these patterns. This hypothesis may also have important implications for continental rifting.