The back-arc region is the area behind a

volcanic arc A volcanic arc (also known as a magmatic arc) is a belt of volcanoes formed above a subducting oceanic tectonic plate, with the belt arranged in an arc shape as seen from above. Volcanic arcs typically parallel an oceanic trench, with the arc ...

. In island volcanic arcs, it consists of

back-arc basin A back-arc basin is a type of geologic Structural basin, basin, found at some convergent boundary, convergent plate boundaries. Presently all back-arc basins are submarine features associated with island arcs and subduction zones, with many found ...

s of

oceanic crust Oceanic crust is the uppermost layer of the oceanic portion of the tectonic plates. It is composed of the upper oceanic crust, with pillow lavas and a dike complex, and the lower oceanic crust, composed of troctolite, gabbro and ultramaf ...

with abyssal depths, which may be separated by remnant arcs, similar to island arcs. In continental arcs, the back-arc region is part of the continental platform, either dry land ( subaerial) or forming shallow marine basins.

Formation

Back-arc deformation is a product of

subduction Subduction is a geological process in which the oceanic lithosphere and some continental lithosphere is recycled into the Earth's mantle at the convergent boundaries between tectonic plates. Where one tectonic plate converges with a second p ...

at convergent plate tectonic boundaries. It initiates and evolves behind the

on the overriding plate of a subduction zone. The stresses responsible for the deformation in this region of a subduction zone result from a combination of processes. The absolute motion of the upper plate as it moves towards or away from the

trench A trench is a type of digging, excavation or depression in the ground that is generally deeper than it is wide (as opposed to a swale (landform), swale or a bar ditch), and narrow compared with its length (as opposed to a simple hole or trapping ...

strongly contributes to deformation in the back-arc region. Since the downgoing slab is partly anchored in the viscous layers of the mantle, and therefore its lateral movement is significantly slower than the surface plate, then any motion of the overriding plate will cause extensional or compressional stress in the back-arc region depending on the direction of motion. In addition, mantle convection in the

upper mantle The upper mantle of Earth is a very thick layer of rock inside the planet, which begins just beneath the crust (geology), crust (at about under the oceans and about under the continents) and ends at the top of the lower mantle (Earth), lower man ...

wedge caused by the downward movement of the subducted slab causes stress in the upper plate and the high heat flow that characterizes back-arcs. The pulling effect of the slab as it goes down into the mantle causes a rollback motion of the trench, which also applies stress on the back-arc region of the upper plate. However, this last process has less of an impact on deformation compared to upper plate motion. Back-arcs can form on either oceanic crust or continental crust. In the case of oceanic crust, most back-arc regions are subjected to tensional stresses and thus develop a spreading center where new oceanic crust is formed. The composition of this new crust is similar to

mid-ocean ridge A mid-ocean ridge (MOR) is a undersea mountain range, seafloor mountain system formed by plate tectonics. It typically has a depth of about and rises about above the deepest portion of an ocean basin. This feature is where seafloor spreading ...

basalt Basalt (; ) is an aphanite, aphanitic (fine-grained) extrusive igneous rock formed from the rapid cooling of low-viscosity lava rich in magnesium and iron (mafic lava) exposed at or very near the planetary surface, surface of a terrestrial ...

(MORB), although it contains higher amounts of water.

Back-arc extension vs. compression

The back-arc deformation may be either extensional or compressional. The overriding plate will shorten when its motion is directed towards the trench, resulting in a compression of the back-arc region. This type of deformation is associated with a shallow dipping subducted slab. Inversely, an overriding plate moving away from the trench will result in extension, and a back-arc basin will form. This extensional deformation is associated with a steeply dipping slab. The extreme cases of these two types of back-arc deformation can be found in Chile and at the Marianas arc. The shallow dipping slab subducting beneath Chile at an angle of about 10–15° causes a compressional stress on the back-arc region behind the Andes. On the other extreme, the slab going down into the mantle at the Marianas subduction zone is so steep it is nearly vertical. This is the perfect example of an oceanic back-arc basin experiencing extensional forces. The Oriente in Ecuador (the eastern part of the country covered by rainforest) is also a good example of an extensional back-arc basin, this time in a continental setting. The continental crust in this area east of the Andes has been stretched out and covered by layers of sediments.

References

{{reflist Plate tectonics Subduction

Formation

Back-arc extension vs. compression

See also

References