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Reconstructing the Mesozoic evolution of the Gulf of Mexico Basin: A new model incorporating optimised and focused lithospheric deformation
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  • Satyam Pratap Singh,
  • Sabin Zahirovic,
  • Maria Seton,
  • Nicky M Wright,
  • Nicholas Atwood,
  • Catherine Belgarde,
  • Claire Mallard
Satyam Pratap Singh
University of Sydney

Corresponding Author:[email protected]

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Sabin Zahirovic
University of Sydney
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Maria Seton
University of Sydney
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Nicky M Wright
University of Sydney
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Nicholas Atwood
BHP Metals Exploration - North America
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Catherine Belgarde
BHP Metals Exploration
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Claire Mallard
University of Sydney
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Abstract

The Gulf of Mexico (GoM) is one of the most extensively studied offshore regions, but its Mesozoic evolution remains uncertain. The presence of a thick sedimentary cover and Jurassic salt poses challenges for geophysical imaging, hindering our understanding of the Mesozoic depositional history and crustal architecture evolution. Current tectonic models with rigid plates fail to capture key aspects of GoM evolution. This study introduces a new deformable plate model with optimised focused deformation designed to dynamically adjust stretching factors (SF) during rift evolution. Our model, which calculates crustal thickness and tectonic subsidence (TS) through time and accounts for stretching and thermal subsidence, can explain the depositional history of the pre-salt section and crustal architecture evolution of the GoM. Our model produces a predicted present-day crustal thickness with a root mean square error of 5.6 km with the GEMMA crustal thickness model. The resultant TS of ~1.5 km before the Yucatán block drifted, provides routes for the deposition of red beds through the paleo drainage systems of the northern GoM as successor basin infilling. The model explains ~40 Myrs of missing sedimentary strata, which we attribute to rapid subsidence in the central GoM, shifting red beds deposition beneath the Jurassic salt formations. Extension rate and SF calculations reveal a transition from a magma-rich to a hyperextended margin, with possible mantle exhumation. Our model can be useful in understanding the extent of other Jurassic deposits in the GoM basin and offers a robust framework for comprehending global passive rift margin evolution.
28 Nov 2023Submitted to ESS Open Archive
30 Nov 2023Published in ESS Open Archive