Pattern of spreading segments about the Rodriguez Triple Junction varying since ~5 m.y.

What is it about?

The Indian Ocean Triple Junction, otherwise known as the Rodriguez Triple Junction, is the point where the African, Indo-Australian and Antarctic plates meet. It is also where the Central Indian Ridge (CIR), Southwest Indian Ridge (SWIR) and Southeast Indian Ridge (SEIR) meet. From earlier work, the triple junction was expected to be a ridge-ridge-ridge type (three ridges meeting at a point). In this article, the pattern of sea-floor spreading fabrics imaged with a reconnaissance sonar, bathymetry, gravity and magnetic anomalies were interpreted to decipher the pattern of spreading segments around the triple junction and how it has evolved over time. A series of short-offset fracture zones have offset the spreading centres of the CIR in a pattern that has varied over time.

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