The crust and upper mantle structure and the stretching mechanism of the Okinawa Trough

The major aim of this study is to put forwad a valid model to explain the gravity anomalies observed over the Okinawa Trough which the crustal structure and a reasonable model of the downgoing slab themselves cannot explain. The result of inversion indicates that the lithosphere above the center of the trough thins out to 45% of the normal thickness (63 km) of the lithosphere of the East China Sea. Fur ther, the originations of lithospheric force are discussed. The tensional stress of about 160 bar arising from density contrast in the Okinawa Trough is recognized to be the most important causative factor in the stretching of the trough. Contribution No. 1487 from Institute of Oceanology. Academia Sinica