JOURNAL OF GEOPHYSICALRESEARCH,VOL. tot, NO.

Btl, PAGES25,485-25,497,
NOVEMBER t0, 1996

Continental collisions in wide aspect ratio and high

Rayleigh number two-dimensional mantle convection
models

JulianP. Lowmanand Gary T. Jarvis•

Centre for Researchin Earth and SpaceScience,York University,North York, Ontario, Canada

Abstract. Distinct rigidly movingoceanicand continentalplates of finite thickness

are incorporated into a two-dimensionalnumerical model of mantle convection. We
investigateupper mantle convectionin modelshavingaspectratios as great as 24
and compareour findingswith the results of earlier studieswhich were limited to
aspectratio 4 models. In addition, we implementmodelsof whole mantle flow by
specifyinghigh Rayleighnumberconvectionand thinner nondimensionalplates. We
are thus able to compare the results of continental collision models which include
similarly sized continentsin the casesof upper and whole mantle convection. For
eachcaseconsideredwe model a pair of identicalcontinentsbeing carried toward
a site of plate convergenceby underlyingcounterrotatingmantle convectioncells.
Upon collision,the continentsform a motionless,rigid, model supercontinent,
while oceanicplate material continuesto recyclethroughthe mantle. Followingthe
continentalcollision,our modelsof uppermantleconvectionexhibit a reorganization
of the convective planformbelowthe modelsupercontinent into a smallerwavelength
modewhichis unableto generatethe net stressneededto break apart the continent;
alternating compressiveand tensile deviatoric stressassociatedwith the small scale
flow resultsin a low integrated stress. In contrastthe large scaleof whole mantle
convectionenablesflow reversalsto produceshear stressesacting in a common
directionover extensiveareasof the baseof a continent,the integratedeffect of
which is capableof causingcontinentalrifting. The conventionalview of the role
of thermal blanketingin continentalrifting doesnot apply in the whole mantle
convection scenario.

Introduction tonics paradigm. Furthermore, as many as four such

The distribution of lower Paleozoic shallow marine cycleshave been inferred for the Atlantic region, oc-
faunas in North America and Europe results from a
curringwith periodsof 400-500Myr [Anderson,1982;
collision which occurred between those continents in Hoffman,1989].
upper Paleozoictimes. This associationwas first rec- It is likely that the sequenceof events which charac-
ognizedby J. Tuzo Wilson in 1966. Wilson[1966] terizes the Wilson cycle results from both near-surface
explainedthat the Appalachianorogendelineatesthe and deep convectiveeffects. For example,associating
suture of the two prehistoric continental margins and an increasein subcontinentaltemperatures with an in-
that the Atlantic later reopenedbeginningin the Lower creasein continentalstresses,
someauthors[Anderson,
Cretaceous. Wilson's hypothesisreconciledconfusing 1982;Goodwin, 1985;Hoffman,1989]havearguedthat
fossil records, which had puzzled scientistsfor over a the breakupof a large supercontinentfollowsthe trap-
century, with the developingtheory of plate tectonics. ping of geothermalheat by continents. However,this
Cyclic closingand reopening of paleooceanbasins is viewhasbeenchallenged
by Lowmanand Jarvis[1995]
now commonlyreferredto as the Wilsoncycle[Wind- on the basisof convectionmodelswith internal heating.
ley, 1984],an acceptedmanifestationof the plate tec- Althoughsubcontinentaltemperaturesincreasein these
models, the associatedflow velocitiesfail to produce
significantstressesin the overlyingcontinent. Thus it
appearsthat continentalbreakup cannot be causedby
• Also at Department of Earth and AtmosphericScience, the trapping of geothermalheat alone. An alternative
York University, North York, Ontario, Canada. explanationfor continental rifting dependenton near-
Copyright 1996 by the American GeophysicalUnion. surfaceeffectswassuggested
by Busse[1978]whereby
a feedback between crustal thickness and mantle flow
Paper number 96JB02568. results in oscillating convection. In contrast, Gurnis
0148-0227
/ 96/ 96JB-02568$09.00 [1988]andLowmanandJarvis[1993,1995]haveargued
25,485
25,486 LOWMAN AND JARVIS: TWO-DIMENSIONAL CONTINENTAL COLLISION MODELS

on the basis of numerical models that hot upwellings The model consistsof two layerscoupledby a mutual
rising from deep in the mantle exert stresseson the boundary. The thicker bottom layer is the deformable
continentallithospherecapable of rifting a superconti- mantle which we model as an infinite Prandtl number,
nent. These upwellings originate as a consequenceof constantviscosity,Boussinesqfluid. Overlying this vis-
the changesin mechanicalboundary conditions at the couslayer is a thinner upper layer which comprisesthe
surface which follow a continental collision. rigidly moving plates. With the exceptionof narrow re-
To date, numerical studies of mantle convection in- gions at the plate boundaries, each plate moves rigidly
corporatingfinite thicknesscontinentshave shownthat at a uniform horizontal velocity. Together, the stipu-
at modestRayleighnumbers(,, 105)mantleupwellings lated horizontal and vertical velocitiesalong the base of
situated below continentswill grow in intensity and im- the plates provide mechanical boundary conditions at
part a shearstresson the baseof the continent, causing the top of the viscousmantle.
it to either migrate [Gurnis,1988; Gurnis and Zhong, A number of earlier studiesspecifiedsurfacevelocity
1991]or breakapart [Gurnis,1988;Lowmanand Jarvis, as a boundaryconditionon mantleflow a priori [e.g.,
1993, 1995]. However,these studieshave been lim- Parmentier and Turcotte, 1978; Lux et al., 1979; House-
ited to models having relatively narrow continents and man, 1983; Davies,1988]. However,suchan approach
Rayleigh numbers appropriate to upper mantle convec- may lead to either driving or impeding the mantle cir-
tion. At a Rayleighnumberof 107, pertinentto the culation when the chosenplate velocity is not consistent
wholemantle [e.g., Jarvisand Peltier, 1989],the con- with the buoyancydistribution in the model. A refine-
vective flow dynamics become fundamentally different ment of the prescribed velocity boundary condition is
from the motions associatedwith upper mantle convec- obtainedby adopting a uniform surfacevelocity equal to
tion models. Therefore we cannot assume that results the mean surfacevelocity found in the free-slip bound-
obtained at an upper mantle Rayleigh number can be ary caseof an otherwiseidenticalmodel [Jarvis and
scaled to the whole mantle; numerical calculations at Peltier, 1981]. Althoughthe aforementioned studies
high Rayleigh numbersare required. simulate the constant surfacevelocity observedwithin
In this paper we will consider some of the differ- plate interiors, they do not includethe finite thicknessof
ences which occur in subcontinental mantle flow for the tectonic plates which are characterizedin the Earth by
two casesof upper mantle and whole mantle convec- low strain rates throughoutthe rheologicallithosphere.
tion. The depth of upper mantle convection requires More recent studies have combined a constant veloc-
that our modelsinclude continentswith a much greater ity boundary condition with a viscousplate rheology
width than the depth of the modeled mantle. Conse- to mimic finite thicknessplates. In thesestudies,plate
quently,we considermodelswith aspectratios as large velocity is chosento meet the explicit requirement that
as 24 in a Cartesiangeometrycorresponding to a hor- no net forcebe appliedto the plates[Gableet al., 1991;
izontal dimensionof 16,080 km and study aggregated King et al., 1992]. If it is further assumedthat plate
continents up to 8040 km in width. As in our previ- edgesare weak, this requirement reducesto one of no
ous studies, we impose horizontal reflection symmetry net shear at the base of the plate.
about the midplane of each model so that the numer- Each of thesestudiesadheresto the notion that plate
ical solution domain may be restricted to one half of velocity reflects the distribution of buoyancy within
the horizontal extent of the model. To model the upper the mantle. This philosophy has motivated the time-
mantle,we use Jarvis and Peltier's[1989]estimateof dependentboundaryconditionswe employin this study.
the Rayleigh number of 255,000. For the whole man- At each time step, we obtain two successivesolutions
tle weprescribe a Rayleighnumberof 107. The aspect for the stream function field; the first is a temporary,
ratio of our whole mantle models is limited to 4, corre- or trial, solution, while the secondis the actual solution
spondingto a horizontal dimensionof 11,600 km, and used to march the temperature field forward in time.
the largestmodelsupercontinent consideredis 5800 km We solvefor the trial stream functionfield correspond-
in width. Our purposeis to identify what conditionsare ing to the temperature field below the plates using a
necessary to impart criticalshearstresses on the baseof free-slip boundary condition at the base of the plates.
a large continent. The implicationsof our resultsper- On the basis of this trial solution, each plate in the
tain to the breakup of continentsand the perpetuation two-layer model is assigneda constant velocity. The
of the Wilson cycle. magnitudeof this velocityis obtainedby averagingthe
horizontal velocity at the surfaceof the free-slip calcu-
Model Description lation, over the lateral extent of the regionbetweenthe
plate boundaries. To update the actual stream function
Our mathematical method utilizes a two-dimensional field belowthe plates,we specifythe resultingpiece-wise
streamfunction-vorticityformulation. The finite-differ- constant velocity of the plates as the upper mechanical
encescheme
described
by JarvisandPeltier[1982]with boundary condition on mantle flow.
reflecting sidewall boundary conditions was used to Since our plate velocitiesare determinedsolely from
solvethe resultingequations,with modificationsto al- the buoyancypresent in the viscousmantle, the plate-
low for rigidly movingplates. A detaileddescriptionof driving force associatedwith the plate's own thermal
our model and its mathematical formulation is given by structure (i.e., lithosphericthickening[Hager, 1978;
Lowmanand Jarvis[1995]. Hager and O'Connell,1981])is absentfromthesemod-
 LOWMAN AND JARVIS: TWO-DIMENSIONAL CONTINENTAL COLLISION MODELS 25,487

els. From independent tests using a material prop- low. In thesemodelsshearstresses,

rxz (wherex and z
erty model[Wang and Jarvis, 1996]similarto that of refer to the horizontal and vertical coordinates,respec-
King andHager[1990]weestimatethat the inclusionof tively), are integratedalongthe no-slipboundaryat the
plate-driving forces associatedwith lithospheric thick- base of the supercontinents,to determine at each point
eningwouldproduceplate velocitiesapproximately10% the net horizontal force acting on the rigid continental
higher than the plate velocities we have obtained in plates. On vertical planes within the rigid continental
thesemodels. Lithgow-Bertelloni and Richards[1995] plate we determine the mean deviatoric normal stress,
reached a similar conclusionin their study of forcesre- r•x, by dividing the horizontal force by the plate thick-
sponsiblefor plate motion. In a sensitivity test we have ness. Thus, at a distance6 landward of the continental
found that increasingplate velocitiesby an additional margin one obtains, at any given time, the relation
10% doesnot qualitatively affect the results presented
here.
Mass exchangebetweenthe two layersof the models - 1fm+•
rx•:(x)dx (1)
occurs only at narrow predefined zoneslocated at the
plate margins. An equal amount of mass flows out of where the shear stressr•z is integrated along the b•e
of the continent, h is the thickness of the continental
the mantle and into the oceanic plates, at sites of plate
construction, as that which is returned to the mantle,plate, and x = m is the horizontal coordinate of the
at sites of plate destruction. At these sites of mass continental margin.
exchangebetweenthe layers(henceforthreferredto as We •sume that continental plates on Earth are non-
massflux zones), vertical velocitiesare nonzero. The deformableand that normal stressesvanishat their up-
width of the massflux zonesequalsthe thicknessof the per surface. Consequently,at each horizontal coordi-
plates. By simulating plates in this manner, we allow nate the vertically averagedvalueof the stressdifference
hot mantle material to reach the surface of the model at (a• -a•), or equivalently(r• --r•), reducesto r•.
sites of plate divergence.Furthermore, sincecold plate Whether or not the aggregatedcontinental blocks in
material is injected into the mantle at zones of plate our model should break apart and disperseis therefore
convergence,the body forcesassociatedwith subduc- determinedby the m•imum value of r•(5) • given
tion are included explicitly in our model. The result of by (1); if r•(5) exceeds
a criticalvalue,ryld,for some
our modelingapproachis that rigid oceaniclithosphere value of •, then the blocks are allowed to break at the
participates in the overall convectivecirculation. correspondinglocation and are free to disperse. We
We initiate a model run by introducing continental haveestimateda valueof ryld= 80 MPa, b•ed on the
blocks into a flow which is symmetric about its mid- workof BraceandKohlstedt[1980]and Kohlstedtet al.
plane and in which oceanicplates are being continu- [1995]but notethat this is a crudesimplification
of the
ouslyrecycled.This is achievedby designatingsections yield properties of continental plates.
of the plates as being continental. The positionsof the The b•ic convection equations were nondimension-
continental blocks within the plates are then tracked as alized usingas characteristicscalesd, the depth of the
the plates move. Continental lithospherediffers from two layers of the model combined; AT, the temper-
oceanic lithosphere in these models in that it cannot aturedifference
across
the layerand V =
be subducted. This conditionis enforcedby requiring the advectivevelocityscale,whereg is the gravitational
that the vertical velocity on the base of the continental acceleration,a is the coefficientof thermal expansion,
portions of the plates vanish at all times. Prior to the and • is the kinematicviscosityof the mantle. (Values
arrival of a continent at a subduction zone the model of these parameters for the upper mantle were taken
is unaffected by the presenceof the continental litho- from Ja•is and Peltlet [1989].)
We determine the dimensionless deviatoric stress
sphere which is incorporated into the plates.
During the first stage of each model's evolution a components,
rij, from the nondimensional
velocitygra-
pair of identical continents are carried toward a cen- dientsusingthe relationr• = (Ou•/Oxl+ Ouj/Ox•). In
tral massflux zoneby underlyingcounterrotatingman- practice, our formulation of the problem requires that
tle convectioncells. Continentscollide upon arriving velocity gradients be obtained from the stream func-
at the midplaneof the mathematical
modelto forma tion. To obtain solutionsfor the stream function, •, in
rigid, motionlesssupercontinent(which we define, in the lower layer, we solve the dimensionlessbiharmonic
the context of our model, as a continent composedof equation
aggregatedcontinentalblocks). Continuingmotion of v4½= -OT/Ox (2)
the oceanic plates requires the creation of new plate [e.g.,McKenzieet al., 1974]usingthe horizontalgradi-
boundaries which we introduce as mass flux zones at the ents of the temperature field, T. Implementingthe ve-
supercontinentmargins. Thus boundary conditions at locity function boundary condition at the plate-mantle
the plate-mantle interface are time-dependentnot only boundary requires an iterative technique to reach the
becauseof the continuallychangingplate velocitiesbut final solution at each time step, • the w- • formula-
also because of the relocation of mass flux zones follow- tion of the problem does not allow for specifyingthis
ing continental aggregation. conditionexplicitly[Richter,1973;Lowmanand Jarvis,
Followingthe formation of a supercontinentwe mon- 1995].A free-slipboundaryconditionis specified
at the
itor continental stressesinduced by the mantle flow be- lower boundary.
25,488 LOWMAN AND JARVIS: TWO-DIMENSIONAL CONTINENTAL COLLISION MODELS

Thedimensionless
vorticity,
•, streamfunction, beneaththe entirecontinent[e.g.,Lowmanand Jarvis,
and velocity,•, are related through the expressions 1993, 1995]. In this study we reducethe influenceof
mirror symmetryby employingwidecontinentsin large
z- v xv aspectratio upper mantle modelsand high Rayleigh
and numbers in our whole mantle models.
Y- V x •b. (4)
The solenoidalvelocity field Y = (u,O,w) there- Results
fore implies • - (0, a•,0), •b - (0,•b,0) and •7 - Previous numerical studies have examined the effects
of continents on mantle convection models which are in-
Having obtainedthe stream function field which is trinsicallysteady[MimouniandRabinowicz, 1988;Gur-
consistentwith the plate-mantle boundary condition, nis, 1988; Lowmanand Jarvis,1993, 1995]. Lowman
weupdatethe temperaturefieldusingthe dimensionless and Jarvis[1993,1995]arguedthat the benefitof this
energy equation approachwas the removal of transient phenomenain
the convectingmantle which could be confusedwith
= + (5) effectsarising from the influenceof continentson the
whereR - (gaATdS/ny)and n is the thermaldiffu- mantle, which they wishedto isolate. Although these
sivity. Equation(5) is solvedthroughoutthe combined studiesprovided a rudimentary understandingof the
two layersof the modelwith boundaryconditionsT - 0 effectsof continentson mantle flow, they failed to in-
at the upper boundaryof the movingplate and T - AT corporatecontinentshavingthe appropriatedimensions
at the lower boundary of the viscouslayer. into a model of mantle convectionemployingan appro-
As with all numericalmodelswe have incorporated priate Rayleigh number.
a number of simplifyingassumptions,suchas constant Beforeanalyzing the resultsof modelswith wide con-
viscosity,uniformchemistry,planar symmetry,and two- tinents and high Rayleighnumbers,we considerthe im-
dimensionalgeometry,in order to render tractable the plications of our modelingapproachon the mantle flow
mathematicsof the problemwe wishedto study. Conse- in general. This will help separateeffectsowingto the
quently,our flow modelscannotsimulatepreciselycon- nature of the deep mantle flow as we have modeled it
vectiveflow in the Earth's mantle. Nevertheless,we ex- from behaviorprecipitated by a continentalcollision.
pect that the essence of the relevantphysicsis captured We specifya dimensionalplate thicknessbetween90
in thesemodels.We considerthe greatestlimitation of and 100 km for all the models presentedherein. The
the model to be its two dimensionality.Although the precisethicknessis a function of grid resolution. In
downwellingsheetsintrinsic to two-dimensionalmod- our models of whole mantle convectionincorporating
els may be a reasonableapproximation of subducted plates up to 5800 km in width, we find that the up-
oceanic plates, upwelling three-dimensionalcylindri- per thermal boundary layer thicknessis comparableto
cal plumesin the mantle[e.g.,Houseman,1988]may the plate thickness.Consequently,thermal instability is
producesubstantiallydifferenteffectsto the upwelling suppressedat the upper boundary. However,modelsof
sheetsof two-dimensional models. (A transitionfrom upper mantle convectionwhichincludeplates with sim-
upwellingsheetsto a systemof plumeshas been shown ilar dimensionalwidths require wide aspect ratio con-
recentlyby Guillouand Jaupart[1995]in laboratory vection cells. The intrinsic limit on heat transport as-
tank models incorporating simulated continents and sociatedwith these wide aspectratio cells (discussed
Rayleighnumbersappropriateto the mantle.) A full below) resultsin upper thermal boundarylayerswith
understandingof the dynamicsof the breakupof super- a thicknessgreater than that of our mechanicalplate.
continentswill eventuallyrequirethe additionaldegrees Nevertheless,these thick boundary layers remain sta-
of freedom associated with three-dimensional numerical ble in our modelsof upper mantle convectionfor plates
models. up to 5360 km in width. When plate widths are in-
An important limitation within the two-dimensional creasedto 8040 km, hot parcelsbreak away from the
framework of our model is the assumptionof mirror head of the upwellingbelow the site of plate accretion
symmetry about the midplane. We make this assump- and are swept along in the large-scaleflow below the
tion both as a numerical expedienceand in order to plate-mantle boundary. The resulting horizontal tem-
isolate the consequences of continental collision while perature gradientsbelow the mechanicalplate gener-
avoiding behavior specificto any particular choiceof ate vorticity and thereby lead to thermal instabilities
asymmetry. One consequenceis that our model su- in the upper boundary layer. Despite these instabili-
percontinent remains stationary, while the mantle flow ties, single-cellflowspersistbeneathour oceanicplates
reorganizesitself in responseto the changeof surface in all cases. We attribute this behavior to the stabiliz-
boundaryconditions.Another is that the upwellingor ing influencesof both the platesand the constantveloc-
downwellingat this plane remainsvertical and cannot ity boundary conditionat the top of the viscouslayer,
drift away from this location. In models with narrow which is also known to be conduciveto larger aspect
continentsand low Rayleighnumbersthe fixed nature ratio cells[Luxet al., 1979;Houseman, 1983].
of the centralupwelling(or downwelling)likely influ- Unlike the top boundary layers in our models, the
encesthe flow pattern, and hence the shear stresses, lowerthermal boundary layersare free to developther-
 LOWMAN AND JARVIS: TWO-DIMENSIONAL CONTINENTAL COLLISION MODELS 25,489

surface. At the free-slip bottom boundary the entrain-

mal instabilities; these appear regularly along the bot-
tom of the modeled mantle with a spacing compara- ment of hot fluid into regularlyspacedupwellingsthins
ble to the total layer depth. Generally,the upwellingsthe lower thermal boundary layer and thereby allows
which grow from these instabilitiesget swept along in for efficient heat flow into the mantle, as in the case
the large-scalecirculation. Upon arriving at an up- of regular B•nard convection. To balance overall heat
wellingwhichextendsto the surface(suchas thoseas- flow acrossthe convectinglayer, the mean temperature
sociatedwith plate divergencein these models), hot of the mantle must increase(seeFigure 1). This is a
parcelsadd to the buoyancyof the rising flow, creat- form of thermal insulationthat is causedby the rigid-
ing pulsesin the overallkinetic energy and heat flow ity of the oceanicplates, upon which the thermal effects
of the model. Similar features have been describedby of continentsare superimposed.
other authors for somewhat smaller aspect ratio flows
[e.g., Lux et al., 1979;Houseman,1983;Davies,1988; Upper Mantle Convection
Weinsteinet al., 1989].
For an upper mantle Rayleigh number of 255,000, Figure 2 showsisothermcontoursfrom three differ-
our start-up models remain steady for pairs of coun- ent upper mantle modelsincorporatingcontinentswith
terrotating convectioncells with aspect ratios of 2 or increasingwidths. The panels in Figure 2 illustrate
less. However, when the aspect ratio of the cell is 4 or both the initial formation of subcontinental mantle up-
higher, time-dependentflow occurs. On entering into wellings,which followssoonafter the continentalcolli-
this intrinsically time-dependentregime, we find that sions,and the state of the evolvingconvectiveflow at a
the mean temperature of the mantle increaseswith as- later time. Each panelhasa width of 8d (i.e., 5360 km,
pect ratio. This behavior is due to the dissimilar na- givenan uppermantledepthof d- 670km) and is sym-
ture of heat transport at the upper and lower bound- metrical about the vertical midplane which coincides
aries of the model. Suppressionof vertical velocity in with the location of the continental suture. The aggre-
the mechanicalplates (exceptat the massflux zones) gatedcontinentshavewidthsof 1.36d,2d, and 4d in the
increasesthe stability of the upper thermal boundary pairs of panels in Figures 2a, 2b, and 2c, respectively,
layer and results in its continued thickening over the and the plate thicknessis 0.14d. The top panel of each
breadth of the model. Consequently,surfaceheat flow pair featuresdownwellingsthat havedevelopedfrom the
is less efficient than it would be in the case of a free introduction of mass flux zones at the continental mar-

0.75

N 0.5

0.25

0 ' I
0 0.25 0.5 0.75 1

Temperature
Figure 1. Dependenceof mean temperature on height in upper mantle convectionmodels. A
heightof zero (i.e., z = 0) corresponds to a depth d -- 670 km in the Earth. The plate-mantle
boundary is indicated by a horizontal line. Each profile is labeled with the dimensionlesswidth
of the plates in the associatedmodel. The profileslabeled 1, 1.5, and 2 are from steady state
solutions,whereasthe profileslabeled4, 8, and 12 wereselectedat randomtimes from nonsteady
solutions.
25,490 LOWMAN AND JARVIS: TWO-DIMENSIONAL CONTINENTAL COLLISION MODELS

panels of Figure 2c show that following the collision

of two significantlylarger continents(each2d wide, so
that w = 4d), the downwelling that had existedbetween
the continentsprior to their collisionpersistsbelow the
newly formed supercontinent,in contrastto all previous
models. In this casean upwelling grows beneath each
half of the supercontinent. Continual growth of these
upwellingshassignificantlydifferenteffectson the stress
b imparted on the baseof a continentin comparisonwith
a singlecentralupwelling(as will be discussed in detail
below).
We find that neither the aspectratio of the model nor
the time chosen for the introduction of continents into
the model affects the basic impact of the continental
collisionon the mantle flow. Figure 3 showsisotherms
for the left-hand half of two model runs in which a con-
C
tinental collisionhas recently taken place. The aspect
ratios for these two models are 16 and 24. However, be-
causeof spacelimitations we showonly the model fields
to the left of the central plane of symmetry. Thus the
right-handedgeof eachpanelin Figure 3 corresponds to
the midplaneof the supercontinent.The plate thickness
is the same as in Figure 2, the width of the aggregated
Figure 2. Isotherm contoursfrom three model runs continentsis 4d (as in Figure 2c, top panel) and the
incorporating continentsof different widths. The as- Rayleigh number is 255,000 in both cases. Both pan-
pect ratio of the frames is 8. Each frame is symmetric els showmodelsin which post continental collisionflow
about its vertical midplane. The pairs of panels in- has taken place for a similar duration to that associ-
clude supercontinents of widths (a) 1.36d, (b) 2d and ated with Figure 2c, top panel. As in the top panel of
(c) 4d. The Rayleighnumber is 255,000in all three Figure 2c an upwellinghas started to developbelowthe
cases. Continental boundaries are marked by arrows at
the top of the panels, as is the plate-mantle boundary continent well away from the continental suture plane.
at the right-handsideof the panels.Solutionswereob- The casesillustratedin Figures2c (top panel), 3a,
tained on uniform numerical meshes of 176 horizontal and 3b showthat regardlessof the sizeof the aspectra-
x88 vertical elements. tio of a model, continentsof a given size seemto affect
the mantle flow similarly when they collide. The results
illustrated in Figure 3 alsoindicate a fundamentaldif-
ginsfollowinga continentalcollision.The positionsof ference between the results of this study and previous
the continentalmarginsand the depth of the plates are findings. Lowmanand Jarvis[1993, 1995]attributed
marked by arrowson the perimetersof the panels. In subcontinental flow reversals below smaller continents
the first panel a subcontinentalupwellinghas developed to the stagnationof the subcontinentalflow which fol-
directly under the centerof the aggregatedcontinents, lowed the dissipationof the downwellingto which the
replacingan originaldownwelling.This observationis aggregated continents were initially attracted. The
consistentwith previousresults obtained from an as- growthof a stagnantregionin the fluid then led to over-
pect ratio 4 model with similarly specifiedcontinents heating of the subcontinentallower thermal boundary
[LowmanandJarvis,1995].We findthat regardless
of layer and the developmentof an upwelling. This differs
the aspectratio of the model, a subcontinentalflow re-
versalforms directly beneath a pair of aggregatedcon-
tinents when their combinedwidth is 1.36d (as in Fig-
ure 2a). However,for slightly wider supercontinents,
two separatesubcontinentalinstabilitiesare triggered
in the lower thermal boundary layer (a result which
was only partially observedin previousstudies). The
top panel of Figure 2b, for example,showsa pair of ini- Figure 3. Isothermcontoursfrom the left-hand side
tial instabilitiesthat have developedwell away from the of two modelsincorporatingcontinentalblockseachof
midplane of the panel. However,as the model evolves,
width 2d. (The blockshavejoined to form a supercon-
these instabilities are drawn toward each other and com-
tinent of width w = 4d in the figure.) The left-hand
marginof the supercontinent is markedat the top of
bine at the plane of symmetry. Eventually,the original eachpanel by an arrow, as is the plate-mantlebound-
downwellingbelow the continentalsuture dissipatesas ary at the right-hand side of the panels. The aspect
in Figure2a and an upwellingdevelops(Figure2b, bot- ratios are (a) 8 and (b) 12. The Rayleighnumberis
tom panel). Our previousstudiesconsidered only mod- 255,000. Solutionswere obtained on numericalmeshes
els with supercontinentshaving a width w _<2d. The of 352 x 88 (Figure3a) and 528 x 88 (Figure3b).
 LOWMAN AND JARVIS: TWO-DIMENSIONAL CONTINENTAL COLLISION MODELS 25,491

from the modelsof Figures 2c, 3a, and 3b. In the latter genceat the symmetry plane has been closedover by
cases,instabilities develop as soon as the lower thermal the continentalcollisionand is marked at the surfaceby
boundary layer is impacted by downwellingsemanat- a continentalsuture. In Figure 4c the cold masssinking
ing from the new subductionzoneson the continental from the new plate boundaryat the continentalmargin
margins. cuts off the large-scalecirculationin the lower thermal
Figure 4 showsa sequenceof isothermcontoursfrom boundary layer. Consequently,motion toward the left
a model with an aspect ratio 24. Continental blocks of the panel ceasesin the lower boundary layer below
each of width 6d have been introduced into the initial the new supercontinent. In Figures 4d-4j the subcon-
flow field. As in Figure 3 we present only the model tinental flow reorganizesitself, culminating in the for-
fieldsto the left of the central plane of symmetry. Con- mation of two dominantsubcontinentalupwellingsnext
tinental margins are marked at the top of the panels to the continentalmarginsand intermittently occurring
and the plate-mantle boundary is indicated by an ar- smaller upwellingswhich are carried toward the larger
row at the right-handsideof eachpanel. In Figure 4a a upwellingsby a longwavelengthsubcontinentalcircula-
continental collision is imminent as the continents ap- tion extendingfrom the midplaneof the supercontinent.
proach the site of plate convergenceat the right-hand At the sametime, the angleof the downwellingemanat-
side of the panel. Until this point the introduction ing from the continentalmargin has changedfrom shal-
of continental lithospherehas not affected the mantle low to steeply dipping. Although the subcontinental
flow. In Figure 4b the continent has collided with its mantle has heated considerablyby the time of Figure 4j,
twin at the symmetry plane at the right of the panel, the integratedeffectof the subcontinentalconvectionis
thus forming a supercontinentwith a width w = 12d. to keep the continent in a state of deviatoric horizontal
New sitesof oceanicplate subductionhave been created compressionat the continental suture. Moreover, the
at the supercontinent 's margins by the introduction of shear stressesexerted on the continent by individual
new mass flux zones. The former site of plate conver- upwellingsare insufficientto induce rifting elsewhere.
In Figures5 and 6 we illustrate the buildup of stresses
on the supercontinentof Figure 4.
Figure 5 showsthe mean deviatoric stress, Txx, at
the continentalsuture for the model of Figure 4, as a
function of time. This stressis the integratedeffect of
the tractions on the baseof the continentfrom margin
to suture zone. Negative values are associatedwith a
net force producing deviatoric horizontal compression
at the continentalsuture zone (i.e., forcesdirectedto
the right in the panelsof Figure4), whilepositivevalues
would indicate deviatoric horizontal tension. Figure 5
showsthat the integrated effect of shear stresson the
base of the supercontinentdiscussedin the description
of Figure 4 is compressiveat all times_at the suture
zone.

In Figure 6 we plot sample profiles of the subconti-

nental shearstress,Txz (dashedlines), and the mean
deviatoricnormalstress,T• (solidlines),as a function
of position. Figure 6a corresponds to Figure 4c. Flow
under the edge of the supercontinentin Figure 4c is
indicated by significantdeviatoric compressionat the
continentalmargin in Figure 6a. However,immediately
Figure 4. Isotherm contoursfrom the left-hand side to the right of this narrow region of compressionis an
of a model of upper mantle convectionincorporating extensiveregionof deviatorictension(positiveT•-•) as-
continental sociatedwith the upwellingthat has developedfrom the
blocks each with a width of 6d. The blocks
coalescein this model to form a supercontinentwith a initial subcontinentalbottom boundarylayerinstability
width of 12d. The model Rayleigh number is 255,000 whichfollowedthe continentalcollision.To the right of
and the aspectratio of the framesshownis 12. Markings the upwelling, Figure 6a illustrates that the continent
at the top of Figure4a indicatethe locationof the mar- is predominantlyin a state of compression.Figure 6b
gins of one continentalblock. A corresponding mark- showsthe deviatoricstressfieldscorresponding to Fig-
ing at the top of subsequent panelsshowsthe location ure 4j. The deviatoric compressionat the continental
of the left-hand margin of a newly formed superconti- margin has subsided,and a region of deviatoric ten-
nent. The total elapsed time between the continental
sion now extendsout to the continentalmargin. The
collisionand the isothermsillustratedis (in millionsof
years):(a)-, (b) 22.85,(c) 36.75,(d) 78.33,(e) 133.77, alternatingshearstressesassociatedwith the two large
(f) 189.21,(g) 203.06, (h) 216.92, (i) 255.18,and (j) subcontinentalupwellingsare illustrated clearly in the
279.23. Solutions were obtained on numerical meshes left portion of the profiles.The right sideof the profiles
of 528 x 88. is dominatedby compression
(negativeT•-•) associated
25,492 LOWMAN AND JARVIS: TWO-DIMENSIONAL CONTINENTAL COLLISION MODELS

lOO I I I plate recyclesas the continental blocks integrated into

the plates travel on their collision course toward the
vertical midplane. In contrastto modelshaving a lower
Rayleigh number this initial flow is extremely time de-
pendent even for small aspectratio cells. Figures 7a-7d
show intermittent pulses in the mantle upwellings at
the sides of each panel which result from the arrival,
at the base of the upwellings,of hot instabilities from
the lower thermal boundary layer. Closer to the sur-
/ J face, hot parcels of fluid are carried below the plates
by the large-scaleconvectiveflow, unable to reach the
surfacedue to the finite thicknessof the plates. In Fig-
ure 7e, continental collision has taken place and the
flow begins to develop in a manner similar to our pre-
I I
-200 vious models. However, due to the high Rayleigh num-
o lOO 200 300 ber of the convectiveflow the cold downwellingsem-

8O
Figure 5. Mean deviatoric normal stressat the con-
tinental suture (i.e., r•-j(5 = 6d)) of the modelrun de-
picted in Figure 4, as a function of time. Stressesat
times correspondingto Figures4c and 4j are indicated
4O t I I I
by arrows and are labeled accordingly.Stressesare di-
mensionalizedby multiplying the nondimensionalstress ,,t -.........?.:•L.
LL,.•/,._..._•_•:.;..•:LL,.;
by•R(n/d2), wherer/isthedynamic
viscosity
oftheup-
per mantle,102•Pa.s, and n is the thermaldiffusivity,
1.5x 10-•m2s-• [JarvisandPeltier,1989].

-8O
with the subcontinentallong wavelengthcell described
above which descends below the continental suture and
-120
generatesan extensiveregion of negative rxz.
0 1000 2000 3000 4( }00
The temperature field shown in Figure 4j and the
correspondingstressprofilesof Figure 6b both indicate a Distance(kin)
that the mirror symmetry imposedat the central plane
of the supercontinentis not influencingthe flow or stress
patterns closeto the continentalmargins. Subcontinen- 8O I I I

tal mantle flow closeto the continentalmargin is dom-

inated by the major downwellingof cold oceanicplate 40 -
material there. It is isolated from flow at the symme-
try plane by additional small-scaleconvectioncellswith
aspect ratios of approximatelyunity. o ...... ',. ,-....

Whole Mantle Convection •., -40

We shall now consider the effects of continental col-

-80
lisionson a whole mantle convectionmodel. Figure 7
depicts a sequenceof isotherm contours derived from a
wholemantle convectionmodelcharacterizedby the for- -120 • • •
mation of a supercontinent with a width of 1.44d (this 0 1000 2000 3000 4000
modelis referredto as modelA in the text below). We
model wholemantle flowby specifyinga Rayleighnum- b Distance
(kin)
ber of 10•. The nondimensional
thickness
of the plates
in our whole mantle models is 0.034d, corresponding Figure 6. Deviatoricshearstress,rxz (dashedlines),
on the base of the continent and mean deviatoric nor-
to a dimensionalthicknessof 99 km given a mantle
depth of d= 2900 km. The continental blocks which mal stress,Yxx (solidlines), within the continent,for
the model run depictedin Figure 4, as a function of po-
join to form the supercontinentin Figure 7 are there- sition. Figure 6a correspondsto Figure 4c and Figure
fore 2088 km wide individually and the model super- 6b correspondsFigure 4j. Distance on the horizontal
continent width is 4176 km. The time evolution of the
axis is measuredinland from the continentalmargin of
panels in Figure 7 proceedsdownward and from left to the frames in Figure 4. Dimensionalizationis as in Fig-
right. In the first four panels(Figure7a-7d)the oceanic ure 5.
 LOWMAN AND JARVIS: TWO-DIMENSIONAL CONTINENTAL COLLISION MODELS 25,493

Figure 7. Isothermcontours for wholemantleconvection modelA, incorporating twocontinental

blockseachwith a widthof 0.72dand thickness of 0.034d. The Rayleighnumberis 107. The
panelsproceedsequentially in time downwardfromthe top left. The total elapsedtimesbetween
the continentalcollisionand the isothermsillustratedis (in millionsof years)29.86 (Figure7e);
68.63(Figure7f); 108.02(Figure7g);137.67(Figure7h); 163.73(Figure7i); 184.72(Figure7j);
207.00(Figure7k); 241.38(Figure71);282.83(Figure7m); 302.58(Figure7n); 494.65(Figure
7o);529.99(Figure7p);559.21(Figure7q);586.51(Figure7r); 613.89(Figure7s);641.46(Figure
7t); and 667.33(Figure7u). Solutionswereobtainedon numericalmeshesof 352 x 176.

anatingfrom the supercontinent marginsbreak off in percontinentdepictedin Figure 7. Although deviatoric

pulsesfrom the sourcesof coldplate material. Through- tension occurs at the continental suture after the forma-
out the evolution of this model the cold plate material tion of the subcontinentalupwelling(Figure 7), it does
subductedat the supercontinentalmargins shearsun- not reachthe yield stressof 80 MPa at any time during
der the edgesof the continentalplate producinglarge the modelrun (a durationof ,• 1.5 Gyr). However,Fig-
amountsof deviatoric compression.Followingthe dis- ure 8 suggeststhat a similar convectivepattern beneath
sipation of the downwellingassociatedwith the origi- a larger supercontinentmight producea greater devia-
nal subductionzone at the symmetry plane, the lower toric tension at the suture, sincethe area of integration
boundarylayer starts to overheatbelow the supercon- on the base of the plates would be increased.
tinent as describedearlier for an upper mantle model The isotherm contoursof Figure 9 illustrate the evo-
with supercontinentwidth w = 1.36d. This overheating lution of a wholemantleconvectionmodelincorporating
is indicated by the appearanceof two young subconti- wider continentalblockseachwith a width equal to the
nental upwellingswhich merge at the symmetry plane depth of the model layer, d (we refer to this model as
beforereachingthe baseof the supercontinent(Figures model B below). The panelsin Figure 9 are lettered
7h-7k). This initial pulseof hot material to the surface in chronological order (a-n). In Figure 9 the continents
is followedby the formation of a fixed upwellingat the collide at the midplane of the frames to form a super-
symmetryplane which continuesto pulse (Figures7p- continent of width w = 2d (i.e., 5800km). As in Figure
7u). The behavioralstagesexhibitedby this model are 7 the collisionis followed by overheatingof the bottom
similarto thosedescribed by LowmanandJarvis[1993, boundary layer, culminating in the formation of two
1995]previously in a modelwith comparable nondimen- upwellingswhich migrate to the symmetry plane where
sionalmeasurementsbut a lowerRayleighnumber. The their buoyancy combines. However, in this case the re-
main differenceis the inherent pulsingexhibited by the sultant upwellingproducesa sufficientlybroad region
mantle upwellings and downwellingsat this Rayleigh of divergingflow below the supercontinentto drive nor-
number. At lower Rayleigh numbers,when a subconti- mal stressesat the suture zone up to the yield stress
nental upwellingdevelops,it continuallygrowsin vigor threshold. Consequently,continentalrifting and even-
and the preferredaspectratio of the subcontinentalcon- tual breakup can occur.
vectioncellsresultsin a gradual resistanceto the shear Stress at the suture zone of the supercontinent in
compressiveflow under the edge of the continent. At Figure 9 is shownas a function of time in Figure 10.
higher Rayleighnumbers,sustainedvigoroussubconti- The total time that elapsesbetween the initial conti-
nental convection cells do not develop. nental collisionand eventual breakup is approximately
Figure 8 shows the mean deviatoric normal stress, 310 Myr. The differingoutcomesof modelsA and B
rx•, as a function of time at the suture zone of the su- are a consequence of the different widths of the super-
25,494 LOWMAN AND JARVIS' TWO-DIMENSIONAL CONTINENTAL COLLISION MODELS

• oo

50
-100
-150
0 500 1000 1500
Tim•
Figure 8. Mean deviatoric normal stress, rx•, at
the continental suture of the whole mantle convection
model run depicted in Figure 7, as a function of time.
Dimensionalstressin the plates is obtained by multiply- Figure 9. Isotherm contoursfor whole mantle con-
ingthe dimensionless valuesby •lR•/a•, where•/is the vectionmodel B, initially incorporatingtwo continental
dynamic viscosity at the baseof the plates,102•Pa-s, blocks each with a width of d and thickness of 0.034d.
and • - 1.5 x 10-6m2s -1. Deviatoric stressesat times The Rayleighnumberis 107. The panelsproceed se-
correspondingto Figures 7e, 7g, 7n, and 7u are indi- quentially in time downward from the top left. The
cated by arrows and are labeled accordingly. total elapsedtime betweenthe continental collisionand
the isothermsillustratedis (in millionsof years)8.50
continents. (Figure9b); 22.66(Figure9c); 46.56(Figure9d); 74.24
Once a flow reversal occurs below a su-
percontinent(with a former downwellingbecomingan (Figure 9e); 100.87 (Figure 9f); 118.58 (Figure 9g);
upwelling),deviatorictensionoccursthroughoutthe su- 134.39(Figure 9h); 149.99 (Figure 9i); 164.38(Figure
9j); 178.76(Figure9k); 193.15(Figure91);310.41(Fig-
percontinent,reachinga peak at the suture zone. Since
ure 9m), and 318.68 (Figure 9n). Solutionswere ob-
the deviatoric normal stressesexperiencedat the suture tained on numerical meshes of 352 x 176.
zone result from the integrated tractions on the baseof
the continent, more stress is imparted when the conti- models of upper mantle convectiveflow below aggre-
nent is wider (providedthere is only onesubcontinental gated continentswith a width equalto twicethe depth
plume). of the upper mantle since comparable stressesto the
The influenceof the plane of mirror symmetryis ev- whole mantle convectioncasecannot be produced. Fig-
ident in modelsA and B. The upwellingswhich create ure 11 showsone instant in the evolvingflow beneath
deviatoric tension in the continent are drawn together
at the symmetry plane. In model A, they remain there lOO I [ I

while repeatedly pulsing, an artifact of the imposed

symmetry. However,in model B the secondrising pulse
of hot material generatessufficientdeviatorictensionin 5o
the continentto causerifting; repeatedupwellingat the
samepoint wasnot required. The vigor of this upwelling
suggeststhat rifting would likely occur regardlessof its
exact location, provided the supercontinent was wide
enough. Thus the assumptionof mirror symmetry ap-
pears to be less restrictive in model B than in similar
aspect ratio modelsat lower Rayleigh numbers.
-lOO
Whole Mantle Versus Upper Mantle
Models
-150 , •
The resultspresentedin Figures7 through 10 demon- 0 1 O0 200 300
strate that within the context of our models, stresses Time
sufficientto break a supercontinentcan result from the Figure 10. Mean deviatoric normal stressat the con-
divergenceof subcontinentalconvectiveflow if whole tinental suture of the model run depictedin Figure 9,
mantle convection is modeled and the width of the su- as a function of time. The curve terminates when the
percontinent is equal to twice the depth of the whole deviatoric tensile yield stress,80 MPa, is reached. Di-
mantle. However, this result does not apply to our mensionalizationis as in Figure 8.
 LOWMAN AND JARVIS: TWO-DIMENSIONAL CONTINENTAL COLLISION MODELS 25,495

The mean deviatoric tensile stressproducedin the con-

tinent abovethe secondsite of flow divergenceinland
from the margin is essentiallythe same as that at the
first site, producedby the subcontinentalcell associated
with the subductingoceanicplate. Thus the deviatoric
normal stress experienced in the continent above each
successivepoint of flow divergencewill not increaseto-
ward the centerof a supercontinentunderlaidby many
convection cells.

Figure 11. Isotherm contoursfrom the left-hand half Summary and Discussion
of four different modelsof upper mantle convectionin-
Continental and oceanicplates were includedin a nu-
corporating supercontinentswith widths, w, equal to
merical model of mantle convection and continental col-
2d,6d,8.6d, and 12d (top to bottom panels, respec-
tively). The Rayleigh number is 255,000 and the as- lision. Continuallychangingmechanicalboundarycon-
pect ratio of the panels is 12. The plate thicknessis ditions at the upper surfaceallow for the simulation of a
0.14d. Solutions were obtained on numerical meshes of closingoceanbasin,in analogywith the periodicclosing
528 x 88. and reopeningof the Atlantic Ocean.
Despite showingan increasein subcontinentaltem-
supercontinents of different widths well after a colli- perature followingthe aggregationof a pair of continen-
sion has occurred. The aspect ratio of each model is tal blocks, our models of upper mantle convectionin-
24; only the left-hand half is shown. In each case a dicate that stressesgeneratedby divergingmantle flow
continenthas collidedwith its twin at the right-hand belowthe aggregatedcontinentsare insufficientto pro-
wall (as in Figure 3). The widths of the modeledsu- ducecontinentalrifting. Thermal blanketing,resulting
percontinentsare 2d, 6d, 8.6d, and 12d from the top to from the presenceof an overlyingcontinent,occursas a
the bottom panels, respectively. In the top panel an consequence of thick continentallithosphereinhibiting
upwellingforms below the aggregatedcontinent'smid- convectivecurrents from reachingthe Earth's surface
plane as in the case of model B, which incorporates [Anderson,1982; Ballard and Pollack, 1987; Gumis,
continents of the same nondimensional width. How- 1988;LowmanandJarvis,1993,1995].However,on the
ever, the stressgeneratedby the upwellingon the base scaleof upper mantle convectionthesemodelssuggest
of this small continent is insufficient to break the conti-
that subcontinentalflow will organizeinto a planform
nental block. This caseillustratesthat althoughsmall characterized by small-scale convectioncells(Figure4),
continental fragmentsmay be subjected to a state of resultingin conflictingstresseson the baseof the con-
mean deviatorictensioneverywherealongtheir length tinent (Figure 6). Consequently, the integratedstress
by small-scale uppermantleconvection,the vigorof the along the base of the supercontinentproducesa mean
flowis insufficientto producestresses of the magnitude deviatoric stress normal to the continental suture well
that are likely to break continents.In the secondpanel
belowthe yield stresswe havespecified(80 MPa) for
the dimensionalwidth (4020km) of the supercontinent continentallithosphere(Figure5).
is comparableto the dimensionalwidth of the super- The models presentedhere indicate that in the case
continentin Figure7 (4176km). However,we conclude of whole mantle convection,the subduction of oceanic
that continental breakup will not occur in this casefor plates at the marginsof a thick continentalplate may
reasons
differentto thosecitedin the discussion
of Fig- be the key event in the triggering of a subsequentcon-
ure 7. Namely, the alternating compressive
and tensile tinental breakup. Unlike modelshaving lower Rayleigh
deviatoric stress associated with subcontinental small numbers, models of whole mantle convection indicate
scalemulticell flow is not conduciveto breakup. For that mantle upwellingsascendingfrom a depth d impart
this reason we also conclude that the continent in the enoughstresson the baseof a continent,as they diverge
third panelof Figure11 will not break,despitehavinga at the continentalbase,to causecontinentalrifting well
comparabledimensional width (5762km) to the whole before overheatingof the subcontinentalmantle takes
mantleconvectionscenariobreakupmodelthat we pre- placedue to thermal blanketing(Figure 9). This dif-
sentedin Figure 9. Finally, in the last panelof Figure fers considerablyfrom the caseof convectionat upper
11 we present isothermsfrom the model of Figure 4. mantle Rayleigh numbersin which the vigor of subcon-
The continentalwidth (8040km) nowencompasses half tinental upwellingsincreasesslowly with time. In the
of the surfaceof the model, but at no point is the 80 latter case,thermal blanketingoccursdue to the inabil-
MPa yieldstressexceeded.Our findingsindicatethat in ity of newly developedupwellingsin the upper mantle
caseswheremultiplesubcontinental convection cellsap- to producestressescapableof breakingup a continent.
pear, eachpair of cellsdrivenby a commonupwelling The resultsof modelsA and B indicatethat at the high
has an integratedstresscloseto zero. An exception Rayleigh numbers associatedwith whole mantle con-
to this pattern is the tension-producing cell associated vection thermal blanketing is unlikely to be the cause
with the subducting oceanic plate at the continental of continentalbreakup. At high Rayleigh numbersthe
margin. This observationwasillustratedin Figure 6b. vigorof subcontinental
upwellings
fluctuates(Figure8)
25,496 LOWMAN AND JARVIS: TWO-DIMENSIONAL CONTINENTAL COLLISION MODELS

and neither the temperature of the subcontinentalman- sentedhere (in which convectivemotion is limited to
tle nor the vigor of the subcontinentalflow appreciates. rolls), but we suggestthat wider convectioncellsassoci-
These findingsindicate that in the caseof whole man- ated with deep whole mantle convectionwould produce
tle convection,it is the shifting of subductionsites to greater continentalstressesthan in the caseof upper
the outer marginsof the supercontinentthat plays the mantle convection as in the casespresentedhere.
dominant role in the breakup of a continent rather than
thermal blanketing. Acknowledgments. Financial support by the Natural
Model A indicates that whole mantle Sciencesand EngineeringResearchCouncil of Canada for
flow reversals
may occurwithout inducingrifting in a continentover- ongoingresearchon mantle convectionat York University is
gratefully acknowledged.We are also thankful for partial
lying a new upwelling. This result implies a critical funding supplied by Lithoprobe, Canada's National Geo-
continentalwidth must be exceededin order to gener- scienceProject. We are grateful to Winston Tao for helpful
ate the stressnecessaryto rift a continent. Our models commentson an early draft of th•s manuscript and Shao-
suggestthat the breakupof a supercontinent into frag- jiang Wang for calculationsto estimate the importance of
ments comparable in width to the depth of the whole lithosphericthickening. We thank C.W. Gable, S.D. King
mantle will occurwhen subductionis initiated at previ- and S. Zhong for helpful reviews.
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