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Science 29 July 1994:
Vol. 265. no. 5172, pp. 621 - 624
DOI: 10.1126/science.265.5172.621
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Articles

Arctic Ocean Gravity Field Derived From ERS-1 Satellite Altimetry

Seymour Laxon 1 and David McAdoo 2

1 Mullard Space Science Laboratory, Department of Space and Climate Physics, University College London, Holmbury Saint Mary, Dorking, Surrey RH5 6NT, UK.
2 Geosciences Laboratory, Ocean and Earth Sciences, National Ocean Service, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Silver Spring, MD 20910, USA.

The derivation of a marine gravity field from satellite altimetry over permanently ice-covered regions of the Arctic Ocean provides much new geophysical information about the structure and development of the Arctic sea floor. The Arctic Ocean, because of its remote location and perpetual ice cover, remains from a tectonic point of view the most poorly understood ocean basin on Earth. A gravity field has been derived with data from the ERS-1 radar altimeter, including permanently ice-covered regions. The gravity field described here clearly delineates sections of the Arctic Basin margin along with the tips of the Lomonosov and Arctic mid-ocean ridges. Several important tectonic features of the Amerasia Basin are clearly expressed in this gravity field. These include the Mendeleev Ridge; the Northwind Ridge; details of the Chukchi Borderland; and a north-south trending, linear feature in the middle of the Canada Basin that apparently represents an extinct spreading center that "died" in the Mesozoic. Some tectonic models of the Canada Basin have proposed such a failed spreading center, but its actual existence and location were heretofore unknown.


THIS ARTICLE HAS BEEN CITED BY OTHER ARTICLES:
New aerogeophysical study of the Eurasia Basin and Lomonosov Ridge: Implications for basin development.
J.M. Brozena, V.A. Childers, L.A. Lawver, L.M. Gahagan, R. Forsberg, J.I. Faleide, and O. Eldholm (2003)
Geology 31, 825-828
   Abstract »    Full Text »    PDF »
Marine gravity from Geosat and ERS-1 altimetry in the Weddell Sea.
D. C. McAdoo and S. W. Laxon (1996)
Geological Society, London, Special Publications 108, 155-164
   Abstract »    PDF »


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