Tectonic types of deepwater basins and structural segmentation of the North Atlantic

Typification of tectonic structures is one of the important lines of tectonic research. Recently, I have published several articles, which are concerned with deepwater oceanic basins. This paper is focused on tectonic typification of deepwater basins of the North Atlantic. They are attributed to three types: perispreading, central thalassogenic, and pericontinental. The first type comprises the Irminger, Iceland, Greenland, and Lofoten basins. The first two basins are associated with the Reykjanes Ridge and the two others, with the Mohns Ridge. The central thalassogenic type is exemplified in the Norwegian Basin, while the pericontinental type in the Rockall Trough. Two systems of basins are distinguished by morphostructural and historical-geological features: the northern system of the Oligocene-Quaternary structures and the southern system of the Paleocene-Quaternary structures. The Greenland-Faroe tectonovolcanic zone serves as their tectonic interface. In the tectonic typology of their deepwater basins, the North Atlantic is closer to the Indian than to other oceans. The present-day configuration of the northern basins is determined by neotectonics. The tectonic movements in the northern system of basins at this stage were more contrasting than in the southern system. This explains the greater depth of the former basins. The spatial position of the deepwater basins belonging to different types determines the tectonic segmentation of the oceanic bottom. The southern, central, and northern latitudinal segments correspond to different geodynamic states of the Earth’s interior.