List of fracture zones

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List of fracture zones
Approximate surface projection on oceans of named fracture zones (orange). Also shown are relevant present plate boundaries (white) and associated features (lighter orange). Click to expand to interactive map.'"`UNIQ--ref-00000001-QINU`"'
Major active fractures zones worldwide are in the orange shaded areas perpendicular to the black lines of the mid-ocean ridges of the major oceanic plates. 2008 age of ocean plates.png
Major active fractures zones worldwide are in the orange shaded areas perpendicular to the black lines of the mid-ocean ridges of the major oceanic plates.

Fracture zones are common features in the geology of oceanic basins. Globally most fault zones are located on divergent plate boundaries on oceanic crust. This means that they are located around mid-ocean ridges and trend perpendicular to them. The term fracture zone is used almost exclusively for features on oceanic crust; similar structures on continental crust are instead termed transform or strike slip faults. Some use the term "transform fault" to describe the seismically and tectonically active portion of a fracture zone after John Tuzo Wilson's concepts first developed with respect to the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. [1] The term fracture zone has a distinct geological meaning, but it is also used more loosely in the naming of some oceanic features. Fracture zones are much longer than wide, but may have feature complexity within their width. Not all named fracture zones are active, indeed only the central portion of those still forming usually is, in an area of active transform faulting associated with a mid-ocean ridge. Classic fracture zones remain significant ocean floor features with usually different aged rocks on either side of the fracture zone due to past tectonic processes. Some fracture zones have been created by mid-ocean ridge segments that have been subducted and that part may no longer exist.

Contents

Pacific Ocean

Major Pacific trenches (1-10) and fracture zones (11-20): 1. Kermadec 2. Tonga 3. Bougainville 4. Mariana 5. Izu-Ogasawara 6. Japan 7. Kuril-Kamchatka 8. Aleutian 9. Middle America 10. Peru-Chile 11. Mendocino 12. Murray 13. Molokai 14. Clarion 15. Clipperton 16. Challenger 17. Eltanin 18. Udintsev 19. East Pacific Rise (S-shaped) 20. Nazca Ridge Pacific elevation2.jpg
Major Pacific trenches (1–10) and fracture zones (11–20): 1. Kermadec 2. Tonga 3. Bougainville 4. Mariana 5. Izu–Ogasawara 6. Japan 7. Kuril–Kamchatka 8. Aleutian 9. Middle America 10. Peru–Chile 11. Mendocino 12. Murray 13. Molokai 14. Clarion 15. Clipperton 16. Challenger 17. Eltanin 18. Udintsev 19. East Pacific Rise (S-shaped) 20. Nazca Ridge

Most fracture zones in the Pacific Ocean originate from large mid-ocean ridges (also called "rises") such as the East Pacific Rise, Chile Rise and Juan de Fuca Ridge. The plates that host the fractures are Nazca, Pacific, Antarctic, Juan de Fuca and Cocos among others. Fracture zones being subducted under Southern and Central America are generally southwest–northeast oriented reflecting the relative motion of Cocos, Nazca and the Antarctic plates.

Chile Rise

The fracture zones of the Chile Rise trend in a west to east fashion with the most southern ones taking a slightly more southwest to northeast orientation. This non-perpendicular relation to Chile's coast reflects the oblique subduction of Nazca plate under southern Chile. West of Chile rise the fracture zones are hosted in the Antarctic plate. Some fracture zones such as Chile and Valdivia make up large sections of the Nazca-Antarctic plate boundary.

Map of the Chile Rise and its fracture zones in Nazca and the Antarctic plates Chile Rise.jpg
Map of the Chile Rise and its fracture zones in Nazca and the Antarctic plates
Active Pacific Ocean fracture zones are perpendicular to the mid-ocean ridges (black lines) in orange shaded region. Since the map was prepared ages not shown of south-west Pacific and north Pacific Ocean floors may have been characterised. Pacific seafloor crust age 2.gif
Active Pacific Ocean fracture zones are perpendicular to the mid-ocean ridges (black lines) in orange shaded region. Since the map was prepared ages not shown of south-west Pacific and north Pacific Ocean floors may have been characterised.
NameMinimum length
in km		Length of transform
boundary in km		Position at Ridge [2] [3]
Chile fracture zone 2,250 (1,400)1,100 (680) 35°32′24″S104°37′3″W / 35.54000°S 104.61750°W / -35.54000; -104.61750
Chiloé fracture zone 1,750 (1,090)50 (30) 42°59′43″S83°11′5″W / 42.99528°S 83.18472°W / -42.99528; -83.18472
Darwin fracture zone 50 (30) 45°54′29″S76°25′31″W / 45.90806°S 76.42528°W / -45.90806; -76.42528
Desolación fracture zone 0
Esmeralda fracture zone 0 49°06′47″S80°12′33″W / 49.11306°S 80.20917°W / -49.11306; -80.20917
Guafo fracture zone 1,550 (960)280 (170) 44°47′55″S80°15′53″W / 44.79861°S 80.26472°W / -44.79861; -80.26472
Guambin fracture zone 1,300 (810)70 (40) 45°44′7″S77°27′32″W / 45.73528°S 77.45889°W / -45.73528; -77.45889
Madre de Dios fracture zone 0
Mocha fracture zone 450 (280)0 39°14′24″S77°22′59″W / 39.24000°S 77.38306°W / -39.24000; -77.38306
Taitao fracture zone 0
Tres Montes fracture zone 0
Valdivia fracture zone 2,100 (1,300)650 (400) 41°23′25″S87°23′36″W / 41.39028°S 87.39333°W / -41.39028; -87.39333

East Pacific Rise

The East Pacific Rise includes the Pacific–Antarctic Rise (Pacific plate and Antarctic plate boundary) in some usages and in others relates only to the boundaries between the Pacific plate and the Nazca plates which includes the Juan Fernández plate and Easter microplate.

Nazca plate boundary

NameMinimum length
in km		Length as plate
boundary in km		Coordinates
Easter fracture zone
Mendaña fracture zone 0
Nazca fracture zone 0 19°49′28″S77°35′53″W / 19.82444°S 77.59806°W / -19.82444; -77.59806 [3]
Quiros fracture zone 0

Pacific–Antarctic Rise

NameMinimum length
in km		Length as plate
boundary in km		Coordinates
Challenger fracture zone
Menard fracture zone 0
Raitt fracture zone 0
Eltanin fracture zone 0
Heezen fracture zone 0
Tharp fracture zone 0
Udintsev fracture zone 0
Le Géographe fracture zone 0
Astronome fracture zone 0
Antipodes fracture zone 0
Le Petit Prince fracture zone 0
Saint-Exupéry fracture zone 0
Le Renard fracture zone 0
La Rose fracture zone 0
Heirtzler fracture zone 0
Pitman fracture zone 0
Erebus fracture zone 0

Cocos–Nazca spreading center

Western Pacific

Some of the fracture zones in the western Pacific Ocean are associated with the smaller plate boundaries of the active back-arc basin spreading center of the North Fiji Basin being the Hunter fracture zone and North Fiji fracture zone. The Parece Vela Rift (Parece Vela fracture zone province) is also associated with the back-arc basin of the Parece Vela Basin (West Mariana Basin) at the intersection of the Philippine Sea plate and Mariana plate. [4] : 70–73 

South of the Equator

North of the Equator

West of East Pacific Rise and Gulf of California Rift Zone

A map of the Juan de Fuca plate Juan de fuca plate.png
A map of the Juan de Fuca plate
Age of ocean floor, with fracture zones in the north Pacific Ocean. Hawaii-Emperor seamount chain in black. North Pacific ocean floor crust age.png
Age of ocean floor, with fracture zones in the north Pacific Ocean. Hawaii-Emperor seamount chain in black.

(some are inactive) [5]

Juan de Fuca and Gorda Ridges

Surveyor, Molokai, Pioneer and Murray fracture zones shown in the list were created by ridge segments that no longer exist. [5]

Northeast Pacific

Atlantic Ocean

Major fractures zones of the Atlantic can be seen on this ocean depth map Atlantic bathymetry.jpg
Major fractures zones of the Atlantic can be seen on this ocean depth map
Active Atlantic Ocean fracture zones are perpendicular to the mid-ocean ridges (black lines) in orange shaded region Atlantic Oceanic-Crust.jpg
Active Atlantic Ocean fracture zones are perpendicular to the mid-ocean ridges (black lines) in orange shaded region

In the Atlantic Ocean most fracture zones originate from the Mid-Atlantic Ridge, which runs from north to south, and are therefore west to east oriented in general. There are about 300 fracture zones, with an average north–south separation of 55 kilometres (34 mi): [6] two for each degree of latitude. Physically it makes sense to group Atlantic fracture zones into three categories: [7]

  1. Small offset: length of transform fault less than 30 kilometres (19 mi)
  2. Medium offset: offset over 30 kilometers
  3. Large offset: offset several hundreds of kilometers

Mid-Atlantic Ridge (Northern Hemisphere)

NameMinimum length
in km		Length of
transform fault in km		Position at Ridge [2] [3]
Saint Paul fracture zone [2] 1451454 0°39′40″N27°55′52″W / 0.661°N 27.931°W / 0.661; -27.931
Saint Peter fracture zone [2] 33340 2°31′55″N31°00′29″W / 2.532°N 31.008°W / 2.532; -31.008
Strakhov fracture zone [2] (formerly:Four North [8] )1814100 3°55′59″N32°06′58″W / 3.933°N 32.116°W / 3.933; -32.116
Sierra Leone fracture zone [2] 111152 6°13′48″N33°35′17″W / 6.230°N 33.588°W / 6.230; -33.588
Bogdanov fracture zone [2] 17384 7°08′06″N34°21′04″W / 7.135°N 34.351°W / 7.135; -34.351
Vernadsky fracture zone [2] 194107 7°41′35″N37°28′59″W / 7.693°N 37.483°W / 7.693; -37.483
Doldrums fracture zone [2] 381144 8°07′08″N38°45′00″W / 8.119°N 38.750°W / 8.119; -38.750
Arkhangelskiy fracture zone [2] 69199 8°51′18″N39°56′17″W / 8.855°N 39.938°W / 8.855; -39.938
Vema fracture zone [2] 822300 10°43′34″N42°19′59″W / 10.726°N 42.333°W / 10.726; -42.333
Mercurius [9] 39 12°07′55″N43°55′26″W / 12.132°N 43.924°W / 12.132; -43.924
Marathon fracture zone [9] 78 12°36′40″N44°25′48″W / 12.611°N 44.430°W / 12.611; -44.430
Fifteen Twenty fracture zone, also known
as Barracuda or Cabo Verde [2] 		1195195 [9] 15°19′12″N45°52′16″W / 15.320°N 45.871°W / 15.320; -45.871
Vidal fracture zone [7] 50 17°49′55″N46°35′20″W / 17.832°N 46.589°W / 17.832; -46.589
Luymes South fracture zone [7] 30 18°32′28″N46°27′54″W / 18.541°N 46.465°W / 18.541; -46.465
Luymes North fracture zone [7] 24 18°58′01″N46°07′41″W / 18.967°N 46.128°W / 18.967; -46.128
Snellius fracture zone [7] 41 20°36′58″N45°45′22″W / 20.616°N 45.756°W / 20.616; -45.756
Kane fracture zone [2] 1040150 [10] 23°43′05″N45°34′59″W / 23.718°N 45.583°W / 23.718; -45.583
Northern fracture zone [7] 10409 25°41′20″N45°11′35″W / 25.689°N 45.193°W / 25.689; -45.193
Tyro fracture zone [7] 15 29°21′54″N43°00′25″W / 29.365°N 43.007°W / 29.365; -43.007
Atlantis fracture zone [2] 84366 30°04′05″N42°22′19″W / 30.068°N 42.372°W / 30.068; -42.372
Cruiser fracture zone [7] 9 32°19′23″N40°11′42″W / 32.323°N 40.195°W / 32.323; -40.195
Charis fracture zone [7] 13 33°03′32″N39°37′41″W / 33.059°N 39.628°W / 33.059; -39.628
Hayes fracture zone [2] 624151 33°36′54″N38°26′20″W / 33.615°N 38.439°W / 33.615; -38.439
Oceanographer fracture zone [2] 751148 35°08′56″N35°33′43″W / 35.149°N 35.562°W / 35.149; -35.562
Tydeman fracture zone 21 36°38′28″N33°27′50″W / 36.641°N 33.464°W / 36.641; -33.464
Pico fracture zone (to the west) [7] [2] 71967 37°28′05″N31°53′56″W / 37.468°N 31.899°W / 37.468; -31.899
East Azores fracture zone (to the east) [7] [2] 75867 37°28′05″N31°53′56″W / 37.468°N 31.899°W / 37.468; -31.899
Kurchatov fracture zone [2] 17420 40°32′13″N29°27′22″W / 40.537°N 29.456°W / 40.537; -29.456
Petrov fracture zone [2] 749 40°32′13″N29°27′22″W / 40.537°N 29.456°W / 40.537; -29.456
Maxwell fracture zone [2] 21 47°38′10″N27°31′37″W / 47.636°N 27.527°W / 47.636; -27.527
Faraday fracture zone [2] 50623 49°42′40″N28°38′10″W / 49.711°N 28.636°W / 49.711; -28.636
Charlie-Gibbs fracture zone [2] 2000350 [7] 52°37′26″N33°11′53″W / 52.624°N 33.198°W / 52.624; -33.198
Bight fracture zone [2] 33623 56°43′16″N33°47′31″W / 56.721°N 33.792°W / 56.721; -33.792
Jan Mayen fracture zone [2] 374211 71°22′19″N9°24′18″E / 71.372°N 9.405°E / 71.372; 9.405
Greenland fracture zone (to the west) [11] 0365 74°02′N8°49′E / 74.04°N 8.82°E / 74.04; 8.82
Senja fracture zone (to the east) [11] 0398 74°02′N8°49′E / 74.04°N 8.82°E / 74.04; 8.82

Fracture zones involved in the early opening of the North Atlantic

American sideAfrican side
Hudson fracture zone
Snorri fracture zone
Cartwright fracture zone
Julian Haab fracture zone
Minna fracture zone
Leif fracture zone
Newfoundland fracture zone [12]
Kelvin fracture zone [13] Canary fracture zone [13]
Cape Fear fracture zone [13] Cape Verde fracture zone [13]
Bahama fracture zone [13] Guinea fracture zone [13]

Mid-Atlantic Ridge (Southern Hemisphere)

NameMinimum length
in km		Length of
transform fault in km		Position at Ridge [2] [3]
Romanche fracture zone [2] 2445950 0°29′S20°29′W / 0.49°S 20.49°W / -0.49; -20.49
Chain fracture zone [2] 1315269 1°12′47″S14°13′44″W / 1.213°S 14.229°W / -1.213; -14.229
Ascension fracture zone [2] 1149264 6°55′41″S12°16′59″W / 6.928°S 12.283°W / -6.928; -12.283
Bode Verde fracture zone [2] 3018232 11°41′10″S13°56′10″W / 11.686°S 13.936°W / -11.686; -13.936
Cardno fracture zone [2] 164987 14°04′34″S14°03′22″W / 14.076°S 14.056°W / -14.076; -14.056
Tetyaev fracture zone [2] 810122 16°16′16″S13°43′08″W / 16.271°S 13.719°W / -16.271; -13.719
Saint Helena fracture zone [2] 118419 16°37′01″S14°20′38″W / 16.617°S 14.344°W / -16.617; -14.344
Hotspur fracture zone [2] 1446113 17°43′16″S13°19′44″W / 17.721°S 13.329°W / -17.721; -13.329
Martin Vaz fracture zone [2] 132426 18°35′38″S12°37′59″W / 18.594°S 12.633°W / -18.594; -12.633
Rio Grande fracture zone [2] 1774156 29°04′52″S13°04′01″W / 29.081°S 13.067°W / -29.081; -13.067
Tristan Da Cunha fracture zone [2] 101426 38°23′17″S16°47′46″W / 38.388°S 16.796°W / -38.388; -16.796
Gough fracture zone [2] 105742 40°38′13″S16°38′13″W / 40.637°S 16.637°W / -40.637; -16.637
Conrad fracture zone (to the west) [2] 3160 55°11′06″S0°07′59″W / 55.185°S 0.133°W / -55.185; -0.133
Bouvet fracture zone (to the east) [2] 1980 55°11′06″S0°07′59″W / 55.185°S 0.133°W / -55.185; -0.133

Indian Ocean

The Indian Ocean fracture zones are mainly related to the Southwest Indian Ridge and Southeast Indian Ridge mid-ocean ridges.

Active Indian Ocean fracture zones are perpendicular to the mid-ocean ridges (black lines) in orange shaded region Southwest Indian Ridge Oceanic-Crust.jpg
Active Indian Ocean fracture zones are perpendicular to the mid-ocean ridges (black lines) in orange shaded region

Southwest Indian Ridge

Carlsberg Ridge

Central Indian Ridge

Lakshadweep-Chagos Ridge

Southeast Indian Ridge

Southern Ocean

Active Southern Ocean fracture zones are perpendicular to the mid-ocean ridges (black lines) in orange shaded region Antarctica Oceanic-Crust.jpg
Active Southern Ocean fracture zones are perpendicular to the mid-ocean ridges (black lines) in orange shaded region

References

  1. ↑ Hekinian, R. (2014). "Fracture Zones and Transform Faults". Sea Floor Exploration: Scientific Adventures Diving into the Abyss. Switzerland: Springer International Publishing. pp. 3, 255–300. doi:10.1007/978-3-319-03203-0_1. ISBN   9783319032023.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 Name from GEBCO gazetteer, position refined by means of etopo2 and sample data of GPlates
  3. 1 2 3 4 "Marine Gazetteer:fracture zone" . Retrieved 25 October 2023.
  4. ↑ Sdrolias, M; Roest, WR; Müller, RD (2 December 2004). "An expression of Philippine Sea plate rotation: the Parece Vela and Shikoku basins". Tectonophysics. 394 (1–2): 69–86. doi:10.1016/j.tecto.2004.07.061.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 Kruse, SE; McCarthy, MC; Brudzinski, MR; Ranieri, ME (10 June 1996). "Evolution and strength of Pacific fracture zones". Journal of Geophysical Research: Solid Earth. 101 (B6): 13731–40. doi:10.1029/96JB00645.
  6. ↑ Gilman, Larry; Lerner, K. Lee. "Mid-Ocean-Ridges". Water Encyclopedia. Retrieved 2011-11-29.
  7. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 Müller, R. Dietmar; Roest, Walter R. (1992). "Fracture Zones in the North Atlantic from Combined Geosat and Seasat Data" (PDF). Journal of Geophysical Research. 97 (B3): 3337–50. Bibcode:1992JGR....97.3337M. doi:10.1029/91JB02605. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2012-03-28. Retrieved 2011-11-30.
  8. ↑ Udintsev, G.B. (1996). "Equatorial Segment of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge". Unesco. Archived from the original on 2012-09-07. Retrieved 2011-12-05.
  9. 1 2 3 Roest, W. R.; Collette, B. J. (1986). "The Fifteen Twenty fracture zone and the North American – South American plate boundary". Journal of the Geological Society. 143 (5): 833–43. Bibcode:1986JGSoc.143..833R. doi:10.1144/gsjgs.143.5.0833. S2CID   128413673.
  10. ↑ Tucholke, Brian E.; Schouten, Hans (1988-03-01). "Kane fracture zone". Marine Geophysical Research. 10 (1–2): 1–39. Bibcode:1988MarGR..10....1T. doi:10.1007/BF02424659. S2CID   129456202.
  11. 1 2 "Map with Jan Mayen, Greenland and Senja fracture zones". Ocean Drilling Project. Retrieved 2011-12-16.
  12. ↑ Auzende, J.M.; Olivet, J.L.; Bonnin, J. (1970). "Marge du Grand Bank et la fracture de Terre-Neuve". Compt. Rend. (in French). 271: 1063–66.
  13. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Le Pichon, Xavier; Fox, Paul J. (1971-09-10). "Marginal Offsets, fracture zones, and the Early Opening of the North Atlantic" . Journal of Geophysical Research. 76 (26): 6294–308. Bibcode:1971JGR....76.6294L. doi:10.1029/JB076i026p06294.
  14. ↑ "IHO-IOC GEBCO Gazetteer of Undersea Feature Names, March 2011 version; www.gebco.net". GEBCO. Archived from the original on 2012-04-21. Retrieved 2011-11-16.
  15. 1 2 3 Patriat, P., Sauter, D., Munschy, M., & Parson, L. (1997). A survey of the Southwest Indian Ridge axis between Atlantis II fracture zone and the Indian Ocean Triple Junction: Regional setting and large scale segmentation. Marine Geophysical Researches, 19(6), 457–80.
  16. ↑ Wobbe, F; Gohl, K; Chambord, A; Sutherland, R (2012). "Structure and breakup history of the rifted margin of West Antarctica in relation to Cretaceous separation from Zealandia and Bellingshausen plate motion". Geochemistry, Geophysics, Geosystems. 13 (4). doi: 10.1029/2011GC003742 .
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