A proposal for the kinematic modelling of W-dipping subductions - possible applications to the Tyrrhenian-Apennines system

In W-dipping subduction zones there is a general eastward progression of the back-arc basin-accretionary wedge-foredeep complex. With the forward progression, early stages of the complex are revealed by slices of upper crust and sedimentary cover abandoned to the west left floating above a new section of mantle. A major shear zone should form at the new Moho separating upper crust slices of earlier accretionary stages and the eastward flowing mantle. The mantle wedging at the top of the subduction plane could be responsible for the uplift of the central parts of the belt. The retreating of the subduction hinge is interpreted as due to the push generated by the ‘eastward mantle flow detected in the hot spot reference frame. The foredeep depth is mainly a function of the radius of curvature of the subduction hinge. The frontal wedge is constructed from the stacking of the upper layers of the subducting plate and the syntectonic clastics that fill the foredeep which are progressively involved in thrusting and later by extension. In order to preserve volume balance, the lithosphere of the eastern plate before subduction has to be the same size as that which has been subducted: due to the longer length of the arc with respect to the original length of the linear margin between the two converging plates, laterally stretched subducted lithosphere is predicted at depth. W-dipping subductions usually have a short life probably due to their inherent capability to produce new lateral heterogeneities of the lithosphere (the thin back-arc) which are a key factor in controlling and generating new subductions (both E- and W-dipping). This model is applied to the Apennines-Tyrrhenian Sea system.