Lithospheric seismic and thermo-compositional structure of the Anatolian Plate and its geodynamic implications
File(s)
Author(s)
Zhou, Pengzhe
Type
Thesis or dissertation
Abstract
Understanding the mechanisms responsible for the uplift of continental plateaus remains a fundamental challenge in Earth science because crustal thickening, lithospheric removal, and mantle buoyancy can all contribute to surface elevation. The Anatolian Plateau provides an exceptional natural laboratory for investigating these competing processes. However, previous Moho depth estimates differ by up to 21 km, meaning that the crustal contribution to isostatic elevation remains uncertain. Additionally, robust constraints on lithospheric thickness and mantle temperatures remain limited. In this study, new constraints on crustal thickness, lithospheric structure, and mantle thermal structure beneath Anatolia are obtained using joint inversion of Rayleigh-wave group velocities and receiver functions, together with a Bayesian thermo-compositional inversion of multiple geophysical datasets.
Crustal thicknesses range from 25 km to 44 km, but correlate poorly with topography. This observation, combined with pronounced spatial variability in residual topography, residual Bouguer anomalies, and upper-mantle seismic velocities, indicates that buoyant mantle makes a substantial and laterally heterogeneous contribution to the uplift of the Anatolian Plateau. The heterogeneous detectability of the seismic LAB across Anatolia further suggests spatially variable lithospheric removal.
Thermo-compositional inversion indicates that the lithosphere is generally thin (40–85 km) across the Anatolian Plateau, and that mantle potential temperature increases markedly from west to east. The spatial correlation between hot mantle and thin lithosphere (<55 km) beneath parts of eastern Anatolia implies that the influx of hot mantle is largely confined to eastern Anatolia and may have promoted lithospheric thinning through focused lithospheric dripping.
Beyond Anatolia, this thesis demonstrates how integrating complementary geophysical datasets can help distinguish the relative role of crustal and mantle contributions to plateau uplift. More broadly, the results suggest that continental plateaus commonly reflect spatially variable combinations of crustal thickening, lithospheric removal, and mantle buoyancy rather than any single geodynamic mechanism.
Crustal thicknesses range from 25 km to 44 km, but correlate poorly with topography. This observation, combined with pronounced spatial variability in residual topography, residual Bouguer anomalies, and upper-mantle seismic velocities, indicates that buoyant mantle makes a substantial and laterally heterogeneous contribution to the uplift of the Anatolian Plateau. The heterogeneous detectability of the seismic LAB across Anatolia further suggests spatially variable lithospheric removal.
Thermo-compositional inversion indicates that the lithosphere is generally thin (40–85 km) across the Anatolian Plateau, and that mantle potential temperature increases markedly from west to east. The spatial correlation between hot mantle and thin lithosphere (<55 km) beneath parts of eastern Anatolia implies that the influx of hot mantle is largely confined to eastern Anatolia and may have promoted lithospheric thinning through focused lithospheric dripping.
Beyond Anatolia, this thesis demonstrates how integrating complementary geophysical datasets can help distinguish the relative role of crustal and mantle contributions to plateau uplift. More broadly, the results suggest that continental plateaus commonly reflect spatially variable combinations of crustal thickening, lithospheric removal, and mantle buoyancy rather than any single geodynamic mechanism.
Version
Open Access
Date Issued
2026-03-27
Date Awarded
2026-09-01
Copyright Statement
Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International Licence (CC BY-NC)
License URL
Advisor
Bastow, Ian
Publisher Department
Department of Earth Science & Engineering
Publisher Institution
Imperial College London
Qualification Level
Doctoral
Qualification Name
Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)