Symmetric conjugation of continent-ocean boundary structures along the Norwegian and East Greenland Margins

A characteristic structural feature of the Norwegian continental margin that has been described from multichannel seismic data, as well as DSDP and ODP drilling, is a major buildup of layered extrusive basaltic rocks forming wedges that dip seaward along the entire margin. Models for their origin describe them as either products of a late-stage intra-continental rift phenomenon, with the volcanic rocks overlying attenuated continental crust, or as an integral component of the oceanic crust formed during the first few million years of seafloor spreading in the Norwegian-Greenland Sea. From studies of the Norwegian margin alone it was not possible to unequivocally distinguish between the two proposed models so an investigation of the conjugate portions of the East Greenland margin was undertaken which used two-ship multichannel seismic acquisition as its focus. We found that the wedges were not only present on the East Greenland margin, but that details of their along-strike variability are mirrored on both margins, together with their spatial relationship to the oldest magnetic lineation pattern. The wedges are relatively small in the northern part of the margin where they occur almost entirely landward of lineation #24. Moving south we see that the wedges broaden, encroach into the pattern of lineation #24, then develop into two separate wedges, the seaward of which is associated with lineation #23. Lineations #24 and #23 on both margins are distorted when associated with wedges. We believe that these data lend strength to a tectonic association of the wedges with nascent plate boundary processes. Their observation in many margins throughout the world suggest that a prolific volcanic phase may be commonly associated with the inception of a divergent plate boundary, and we believe that the most likely mechanism to generate the excess volcanism is the ‘convective partial melting’ scheme recently proposed by Mutter and Buck (1986) and Mutter et al. (in press).