Structure and evolution of the sea floor south of South Africa

Geophysical results from the continental margin south of South Africa are consistent with a fault-controlled origin for the steep, linear continental slope. Accepting that the faulting was most probably of the shear type, caused by the transcurrent motion of the Falkland Plateau past South Africa, a model for the evolution of the sea floor adjacent to the margin is proposed. In this model the Agulhas Plateau is considered to be an oceanic feature, possibly an abandoned sea-floor spreading centre.