@misc{12852,
  keywords = {Conference},
  author = {Stuart Clark},
  title = {South Atlantic Spreading Velocities and Timescales},
  abstract = {Plate reconstructions based on hierarchical spherical rotations have been around for many years. For the breakup of Pangea and Gondwana, these reconstructions are based on two major sources: magnetic isochrons and geological evidence for the onset of rifting and the tightness of the fit between continents. These reconstructions imply spreading velocities and it is the changes in velocities that can be used to probe questions of the forces moving plates around. In order to calculate the velocities correctly though, the importance of the choice of geologic time scale is often ignored. In this talk, we focus on the South Atlantic and calculate the spreading velocity errors implied by the choice of time scale for three major epochs: the Cenozoic and Late Mesozoic, the Cretaceous Quiet Zone and the Late Cretaceous to the Early Jurassic. In addition, we report the spreading velocities implied through these phases by various available magnetic isochron-derived reconstructions and the geological fits for South America and Africa used by large scale global reconstruction as well as in recent papers. Finally, we will highlight the implications for the choice of the mantle reference frame on African plate velocities.},
  year = {2013},
  month = {December},
  note = {AGU poster T23G-2685},
}