Geophys. J. Int.

(2000) 142, 461–477

Extension across the Indian–Arabian plate boundary:

the Murray Ridge

R. A. Edwards, T. A. Minshull* and R. S. White

Department of Earth Sciences, University of Cambridge, Bullard L aboratories, Madingley Road, Cambridge, CB3 0EZ, UK.
E-mail: edwards@esc.cam.ac.uk

Accepted 2000 March 10. Received 2000 March 10; in original form 1997 December 30

SU M MA RY
Seismic reflection profiles from the Murray Ridge in the Gulf of Oman, northwest
Indian Ocean, show a significant component of extension across the predominantly

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strike-slip Indian–Arabian plate boundary. The Murray Ridge lies along the northern
section of the plate boundary, where its trend becomes more easterly and thus allows
a component of extension. The Dalrymple Trough is a 25 km wide, steep-sided half-
graben, bounded by large faults with components of both strike-slip and normal
motion. The throw at the seabed of the main fault on the southeastern side of the half-
graben reaches 1800 m. The northwest side of the trough is delineated by a series of
smaller antithetic normal faults. Wide-angle seismic, gravity and magnetic models show
that the Murray Ridge and Dalrymple Trough are underlain by a crystalline crust up
to 17 km thick, which may be continental in origin. Any crustal thinning due to
extension is limited, and no new crust has been formed.
We favour a plate model in which the Indian–Arabian plate boundary was initially
located further west than the Owen Fracture Zone, possibly along the Oman continental
margin, and suggest that during the Oligocene–Early Miocene Indian Ocean plate
reorganization, the plate boundary moved to the site of the present Owen Fracture
Zone and that motion further west ceased. At this time, deformation began along the
Murray Ridge, with both the uplift of basement highs, and subsidence in the troughs
tilting the lowest sedimentary unit. Qalhat Seamount was formed at this time.
Subsequent sediments were deposited unconformably on the tilted lower unit and then
faulted to produce the present basement topography. The normal faulting was
accompanied by hanging-wall subsidence, footwall uplift, and erosion. Flat-lying recent
sediments show that the major vertical movements have ceased, although continuing
earthquakes show that some faulting is still active along the plate boundary.
Key words: Arabian Sea, crustal structure, extension, faulting, plate boundary.

change in direction occurs to a more easterly trend. This marks

IN TR O DU C TI O N
The Murray Ridge forms the northernmost extension of the
Owen Fracture Zone in the Arabian Sea, and as such comprises
part of the boundary between the Indian and Arabian plates
(Fig. 1). At the southern end of this plate boundary the seafloor
spreading centres marked by the Sheba and Carlsberg ridges
are offset approximately 300 km along the Owen Fracture
Zone. Rifting along the Sheba Ridge extends into the Gulf of
Aden and separates the African and Arabian plates. The Owen
Fracture Zone strikes NNE to a latitude of 22°N, where a
* Now at: School of Ocean and Earth Science, University of
Southampton, Southampton Oceanography Centre, European Way,
Southampton, UK.
the southern end of the Murray Ridge. The northern end of
the Murray Ridge is buried beneath the thick sediments of the
Indus Fan. Here the Indian–Arabian plate boundary terminates
at a triple junction located near Karachi. To the west, the
Makran subduction zone marks the convergence of the Arabian
and Eurasian plates, while the Indian–Eurasian plate boundary
extends to the north along the strike-slip Ornach-Nal fault
system.
Present-day extensional tectonics along the Murray Ridge,
where a series of fault-bounded grabens are offset by bathy-
metric highs, has been recognized from both seismic reflection
data (White 1984; Minshull et al. 1992) and earthquake focal
mechanisms (Quittmeyer & Kafka 1984). Global and local
plate circuits suggest that the Murray Ridge is undergoing

© 2000 RAS 461

462 R. A. Edwards, T . A. Minshull and R. S. W hite

40O 50O 60O 70O 80O Early Miocene (23 Ma), major changes in plate geometry
resulted in the evolution of the Sheba Ridge and opening of
the Gulf of Aden. This change in plate motions coincided with

ult
EURASIAN

Fa
al
30
O
PLATE a brief period of compression and uplift along the Owen

ch-N
30O Fracture Zone (Whitmarsh 1979).

Orna
PE
R
Two main hypotheses for the evolution of the Gulf of Oman
SI
AN
MAKR

G
AN and the Owen Basin have been proposed, and these are shown
U
LF
KARACHI
ARABIAN GULF
OF OM
AN in Fig. 2. Whitmarsh (1979) suggests that the plate boundary
O PLATE RAY
MUR GE
20 RID has been located along the Owen Fracture Zone since India

S IN
20O

NE
BA
first started to move northwards at 90 Ma. In this model, the

ZO
EN

RE
oceanic crust in the Gulf of Oman and Owen Basin must be
OW

TU
SHEBA R
AC

ID late Jurassic–Early Cretaceous in age, having been formed

FR

GE
GULF OF ADEN INDIAN
when east and west Gondwanaland first separated (Fig. 2a).
EN

O
PLATE
OW

10
10
O In the second model, proposed by Mountain & Prell (1990),
C
AFRICAN the plate boundary initially lay further west along the Oman
AR
L

continental margin, while the Mascarene Basin opened and the

SB

PLATE
ER

G RI
DG
E Carlsberg Ridge developed (Fig. 2b). During the Oligocene–
Early Miocene the plate boundary then switched to the present-

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O O
50 60
Figure 1. Location map of the Arabian Sea showing the schematic
plate tectonic setting. Oceanic spreading ridges are marked by double
lines, other extensional plate boundaries by thick dashed lines, strike-
slip faults by single lines, ocean–continent collision by solid triangles,
and continent–continent collision by open triangles. Adapted from
Jacob & Quittmeyer (1979).
oblique extension at a very slow full rate of ~2 mm yr−1
(Gordon & DeMets 1989; DeMets et al. 1990). In this paper
we present recently processed multichannel seismic (MCS)
lines across the Murray Ridge to provide better constraints
on the present-day tectonic regime and the tectonic history of
the region.
EVO LU TI O N O F TH E G UL F O F O M A N,
AR A B IA N SE A A N D O W EN BA S I N
The Gulf of Oman occupies the roughly triangular region
bounded to the north by the Makran subduction zone, to the
southwest by the Oman continental margin, and to the south-
east by the Murray Ridge and Owen Fracture Zone (Fig. 1). This
area of the northwestern Indian Ocean has had a complicated
tectonic history since the break-up of Gondwanaland.
The evolution of the Indian Ocean began with the separation
of west and east Gondwanaland during the Mesozoic (Besse
& Courtillot 1988). The continental margins of eastern Africa
are marked by a series of Late Jurassic–Early Cretaceous basins
formed by the separation of India–Madagascar–Antarctica
from Africa–Arabia (Mountain & Prell 1990). At this time,
India and Madagascar were moving south with respect to Africa
(Fig. 2). This separation ceased at approximately anomaly
M0 time (102 Ma). By 90 Ma, a new spreading centre had
developed between Madagascar and India–Seychelles to form
the Mascarene Basin. At 65 Ma, spreading jumped to the north
to leave the Seychelles on the African plate. This coincided
with an increase in the spreading rate and with extensive
volcanic activity which formed the Deccan Traps (e.g. White
& McKenzie 1989). India continued its rapid movement north,
at rates between 150 and 200 mm yr−1, until the Palaeocene–
Eocene boundary (55 Ma) when it is possible that initial
contact had been made between India and the continental
blocks to the north (Powell 1979). During the Oligocene and
70O
day Owen Fracture Zone when the Sheba Ridge was formed,
and motion ceased along the Oman continental margin. In
this model the crust in the Owen Basin and Gulf of Oman
would be Palaeocene–Eocene in age.
The data currently available in the area do not strongly
favour either one of these hypotheses. Heat-flow data from the
Gulf of Oman (Hutchison et al. 1981) suggest that the oceanic
crust is Late Cretaceous in age. Seafloor spreading magnetic
anomalies are not observed in the Gulf of Oman, giving further
support to a Late Cretaceous age for the oceanic crust since
it would have formed during the Cretaceous magnetic quiet
zone. Preliminary interpretation of a wide-angle seismic line
across the southeast Oman continental margin by Barton et al.
(1990) favours some strike-slip motion along the margin,
parallel to the Owen Fracture Zone, lending some support to
the model of Mountain & Prell (1990).
S EI S M IC D ATA S E TS AVAI LA B LE I N TH E
A R EA
The principal data set in the area comprises a suite of multi-
channel seismic (MCS) reflection lines acquired across the
southern Murray Ridge on the RRS Charles Darwin (Fig. 3).
The data were collected using a 48-channel, 2.4 km streamer
and a 1600 in3 airgun array. The airguns were fired every 20 s,
which, with a speed of 4.5–5.0 kt, gave a shot spacing of ~50 m.
As a result of the calm sea conditions the data are generally
of excellent quality. The processing sequence for these data
included deconvolution before stack, bandpass filtering, velocity
analysis and normal moveout correction prior to stacking. An
f–k migration with a constant velocity of 1500 m s−1 was also
performed. In addition to the MCS data, an ocean-bottom
seismograph (OBS) wide-angle seismic profile was also acquired
along the axis of the Dalrymple Trough, coincident with MCS
line CAM28.
Other single-channel seismic data are also available in the
research area. The second main data set consists of a series of
eight single-channel seismic lines which cross the Murray Ridge
(Fig. 3). These were acquired on the RRS Shackleton in 1980.
Further single-channel seismic data are available from the US
Navy Ship W ilkes, which shot a number of east–west-orientated
lines across the Gulf of Oman.

© 2000 RAS, GJI 142, 461–477

 T he Indian–Arabian plate boundary 463

(a) 141 Ma 65 Ma 53 Ma 23 Ma

ARA EUR
AFR EUR
ARA ARA
IND I
ARA
SEY
IND SEY
AFR SEY AFR AFR
IND SEY
MAD

MAD
MAD

MAD
ANT

(b) 141 Ma 65 Ma 53 Ma 23 Ma

ARA EUR
AFR EUR

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ARA ARA
IND I
ARA
SEY
IND SEY
AFR SEY AFR AFR
IND SEY
MAD

MAD
MAD

MAD
ANT

141 Ma 65 Ma 53 Ma 23 Ma

Figure 2. Cartoon showing the two main hypotheses for the evolution of the Gulf of Oman: (a) the model of Whitmarsh (1979), and ( b) the model
of Mountain & Prell (1990). See text for further explanation. Grey shaded regions show the possible ages of oceanic crust in the two models. The
locations of the boundaries between the different ages of crust are intended for guidance only and are not accurate. The black dot shows the
approximate location of the Murray Ridge. AFR, African plate; ANT, Antarctic plate; ARA, Arabian Plate; EUR, Eurasian plate; IND, Indian
plate; MAD, Madagascar; SEY, Seychelles microplate.

grabens here are generally wider than the Dalrymple Trough

MO R P H O LO GY O F T HE M U R RAY R ID GE
From the available bathymetric and seismic data, the Murray
Ridge can be considered to extend from Qalhat Seamount at
22°N to approximately 24°N, where the topographic expression
of the ridge is buried beneath the thick sediments of the Indus
Fan. The ridge itself can be divided into two main segments,
which have different morphologies.
The southern Murray Ridge consists of a 150 km long,
25 km wide, fault-bounded trough, the Dalrymple Trough
(Figs 3 and 4), which is flanked on its southeastern side by
a steep-sided ridge. To the northwest, a low, broad swell is
apparent from the bathymetry. The floor of the Dalrymple
Trough reaches depths of 4400 m, some 1000 m deeper than
the seafloor in the Gulf of Oman to the northwest. The
Dalrymple Trough trends 045° while the southeastern ridge
trends 055°. The two are separated by a 2000–2500 m deep
sediment-covered platform, the width of which increases from
10 km in the south to 35 km in the north. Profiles across the
southern Murray Ridge are therefore very asymmetric.
The northern portion of the Murray Ridge is much more
symmetric in character (Figs 3 and 4). Fault-bounded grabens
are again observed but these are flanked to the northwest
and southeast by broader, lower-lying topographic highs. The
to the south, with widths of 30–55 km, and are delineated by
faults with smaller surface throws. The trend of these northern
grabens is 055°, i.e. more easterly than the Dalrymple Trough
but the same as the southeastern ridge.
Southern Murray Ridge
The Dalrymple Trough is crossed by MCS lines CAM16,
CAM17 and CAM29, and single-channel seismic lines SH2
and SH3 (Fig. 3). Lines CAM16 and CAM17 also cross the
topographic high of the Murray Ridge at their southeastern
ends. All the lines exhibit a similar morphology (Fig. 4). The
most striking feature on the seismic sections is the large normal
fault which bounds the southeastern edge of the Dalrymple
Trough (Fig. 5). The throw of the fault at the seabed is 1800 m
on CAM17. The Dalrymple Trough contains sediments with
a thickness of more than 2 s TWT (two way traveltime)
(approximately 2 km). Acoustic basement in the trough can-
not be observed on any of the reflection profiles. Lines from
CAM16 to CAM29 show the sediments of the trough dipping
gently to the southeast with dips of up to 2° (Fig. 6). The large
southeastern fault is therefore the main fault of a half-graben,
and the sediments in the hanging wall have been rotated

© 2000 RAS, GJI 142, 461–477

464 R. A. Edwards, T . A. Minshull and R. S. W hite

60o E 61o E 62o E 63o E 64o E 65o E 66o E

PAKISTAN

o
25o N 25 N
1000
00
2000 MAKRAN 20

SH
SH
SH

8
7
6
SH
3000

5
24o N 24o N

SH
GULF OF OMAN

4
SH

00
30
3
CA
SH2
SH

M2
30

1
00
E
23o N 23o N

9
CA G
M1 CA 0 ID
3 M1 00 R

3000
4
CA 7 DT AY
M1 R
R

28
C
4 U

AM

AM
M

16
2000 INDUS

C
QALHAT FAN
o o
22 N SEAMOUNT 22 N
3000

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CA
M1
0 9
00 o
21o N 2 21 N
Z
OF

100 km
o
20 N 20o N
60o E 61o E 62o E 63o E 64o E 65o E o
66 E

Figure 3. Bathymetry of the Gulf of Oman and Murray Ridge. Bathymetric contours in metres are taken from a 5×5 min grid of all the available
shipboard data in the area. Solid lines mark the multichannel seismic profiles available from RRS Charles Darwin cruise 18, broken lines show the
single-channel seismic profiles from RRS Shackleton cruise 1/80. DT, Dalrymple Trough; OFZ, Owen Fracture Zone. White stars show the location
of two dextral strike-slip earthquakes (Quittmeyer & Kafka 1984). Locations of Figs 6, 7, 8 and 9 are shown by the bold portions of line.

downwards (Minshull et al. 1992). The sediments show slight
upward folding due to either drag on the fault plane or
differential compaction from the centre to the edge of the
basin. The northwestern wall of the Dalrymple Trough is
bounded by several antithetic normal faults, the throws of
which increase from the southern end of the trough towards
the northern end. Individual reflectors are difficult to trace
across the faults even though the throw of the fault may be
small, suggesting a component of strike-slip motion (Fig. 6).
On profile SH3 the structure is more reminiscent of a full
graben, with the downfaulted sediments now dipping towards
the northwest, suggesting a switch in the main fault from the
southeastern wall to the northwestern wall of the trough
(Fig. 4). Profile CAM28, which lies along the axis of the
Dalrymple Trough (Fig. 3), shows gentle folding of the lower
sedimentary sequences at its northeastern end (Fig. 7), indicating
a small component of compression along the plate boundary.
Irregularities in the shape of the plate boundary could lead to
localized compression as the two plate slide past each other.
The synclines of the folds contain ponded sediments. Acoustic
basement cannot be observed on profile CAM28.
Profiles CAM16, CAM17, CAM29 and SH3 run almost
exactly orthogonal to the walls of the Dalrymple Trough, so
may be used to estimate fault dips if the faults are assumed to
run parallel to these major scarps. Dips were estimated by
fitting straight lines to the faults imaged on the profiles and
assuming a mean seismic velocity of 2 km s−1, appropriate for
the faulted upper part of the sediment column. Dips measured
from the unmigrated single-channel profiles were corrected for
migration. The antithetic faults on the northwestern flank of
the trough dip at 30°–50°, but the main fault to the southeast
dips at only ~20°. Towards the northern end of the Dalrymple
Trough, where the structure becomes more symmetrical,
both bounding faults dip at only ~25°. The total horizontal
extension may be estimated by summing the horizontal offsets
corresponding to each seabed fault scarp. This approach
assumes that the tilting of individual blocks is small and that
there has been no syn- or post-rift sedimentation, and no
erosion of the footwall. A more rigorous approach is not
possible because the stratigraphy cannot be correlated reliably
across the major faults. The tilt of the bedding is generally
small (Fig. 4), but on the northern Murray Ridge there is
evidence for considerable synrift sedimentation. In addition,
only faults with vertical offsets of greater than ~200 m could
be measured reliably. Any such estimate of the total extension
is therefore a minimum. Application of this approach to the
southern five profiles of Fig. 4 yields a total extension of
5–7 km.
The main topographic high of the Murray Ridge is located
to the southeast of the Dalrymple Trough. Here the footwall
of the main normal fault shows 2 s TWT of sediments overlying
a rough acoustic basement (Fig. 5). The sediments are back-
tilted away from the fault as unloading of the footwall has
led to uplift (White 1984). This sediment-covered platform
increases in width by 25 km from the southwest to the northeast
(Fig. 4). The thick, relatively flat-lying sediments in the footwall

© 2000 RAS, GJI 142, 461–477

 T he Indian–Arabian plate boundary 465

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Figure 4. Line drawings of the seismic profiles that cross the Murray Ridge. Profiles are aligned along the axis of the ridge. The stippled region
marks acoustic basement. Individual sedimentary reflectors shown are not necessarily consistent between different profiles or across major faults,
but are intended to show sediment dip and unconformities only. DT denotes the Dalrymple Trough. The vertical axes show two-way traveltime
in seconds.

© 2000 RAS, GJI 142, 461–477

466 R. A. Edwards, T . A. Minshull and R. S. W hite
500 1000 1500 2000 2500 3000
0
NW
2
4
TWT [s]
v v
v v
6
1
8
10 km
10
Figure 5. MCS profile CAM17 across the southern Murray Ridge showing the Dalrymple Trough. The section has been f–k-migrated with a con-
stant velocity of 1500 m s−1. Every fourth trace is plotted. Labelled sedimentary units correspond to: (1) turbidites deposited on basement—these
have then been deformed and uplifted prior to the deposition of (2); (3) flat-lying recent sediments.
suggest that these are older sediments which have been elevated
by faulting, rather than sediments deposited after the faulting.
These sediments must be relatively rigid, in other words old
and lithified, to maintain the shape of the fault plane. This
‘hanging basin’ is bounded to the northeast by the outcropping
basement of the Murray Ridge. The sediment layers terminate
abruptly against the acoustic basement, suggesting that the
basement has either been faulted upwards, or that it formed a
topographic high prior to deposition of the sediments. Along
line CAM17 the Murray Ridge appears to be tilted towards
the southeast, suggesting that the ridge may be a tilted fault
block (Fig. 5). There is no evidence for uplift of the Murray
Ridge coeval with deposition of the sediments to the northwest.
The elevated topography of the Murray Ridge might be
explained by a phase of compression across the plate boundary.
Similar features are observed at the Mendocino Transform
Fault, which separates the Juan de Fuca/Gorda plate and the
Pacific plate (Godfrey et al. 1998). The Mendocino Transform
Fault is flanked by the Mendocino Ridge, an elevated tilted
block which slopes away from the plate boundary, similar to
the geometry of the Murray Ridge. Godfrey et al. (1998)
interpret the Mendocino Ridge as a pop-up feature caused by
compression across the plate boundary. Sediment cores from
DSDP sites 223 and 224, located at 18°N and 16°N, respectively,
on the Owen Fracture Zone, show evidence of uplift in the
Early Miocene (Whitmarsh 1974). This uplift has been attri-
buted to the plate reorganization at that time, as the Gulf of
Aden started to open. A small change in the plate motions
could lead to compression across the Owen Fracture Zone
and Murray Ridge. Any uplift due to compression across the
Murray Ridge is therefore probably also Miocene in age.
The southeastern side of the Murray Ridge is less sharply
delineated. To the east the thick sediments of the Indus Fan
can be observed (Fig. 8), but the flank of the ridge exhibits
3500 4000 4500 5000 5500 6000 6500 7000
SE
CAM17
3
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rather enigmatic structures which may represent volcanic flows
interfingering with the sediments. At 6.5 s TWT, beneath the
sediments, an interface with multiple hyperbolic reflections
can be seen. This interface has a similar character to acoustic,
volcanic basement. However, this reflector is underlain by a
strong reflection at just over 7 s TWT (Fig. 8). It is possible
that the deeper reflector represents the true basement which
has been overlain by volcanic or debris flows, the tops of which
are represented by the shallower interface with hyperbolic
reflections.
To the northwest of the Dalrymple Trough, the thick sedi-
ments and acoustic basement on the Arabian plate are well
imaged on MCS lines CAM16, CAM17 and CAM29. Basement
highs can be observed towards the northwestern end of all
three lines (Fig. 4), and these mark the boundary between the
undisturbed sediments of the Gulf of Oman to the west and
the faulted sediments of the Dalrymple Trough and Murray
Ridge to the east. To the southeast of these basement highs,
the sediments dip at a shallow angle towards the Dalrymple
Trough and contain numerous minor normal faults. The
basement also deepens towards the southeast. The acoustic
basement is overlain by a thin layer (up to 0.5 s TWT) of
highly reflective sediments which infill the topographic lows
of the basement and onlap the basement highs (Fig. 5). This
suggests that these sediments are turbidite flows. The basement
has subsequently been tilted to the southeast and the base-
ment high uplifted, causing uplift of the turbidite unit on its
southeastern flank.
The younger sediments are deposited unconformably on
the underlying turbidites. These units thicken towards the
Dalrymple Trough and onlap onto the lower unit towards the
northwest, suggesting continued subsidence of the Dalrymple
Trough. The sediments have then been faulted, possibly by
reactivation along existing faults.
© 2000 RAS, GJI 142, 461–477
 T he Indian–Arabian plate boundary 467

NW CDP SE
3000 2500 2000 1500 1000
0

CAM29 10 km
2

4
TWT [s]

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10

CDP
3000 3500 4000 4500 5000 5500
0

CAM17
2

4
TWT [s]

10

CDP
4500 4000 3500 3000 2500 2000
0

CAM16
2

4
TWT [s]

10
Figure 6. Part of MCS profiles CAM16, CAM17 and CAM29 showing the Dalrymple Trough. The sections have been f–k-migrated with a
constant velocity of 1500 m s−1. Every second trace is plotted. See Fig. 3 for locations.

© 2000 RAS, GJI 142, 461–477

468 R. A. Edwards, T . A. Minshull and R. S. W hite

SW CDP NE
6500 7000 7500 8000
4
CAM28 10 km

6
TWT [s]

10
Figure 7. Part of MCS profile CAM28 at the northeastern end of the Dalrymple Trough showing gentle folding along the axis of the trough. The

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section has been f–k-migrated with a constant velocity of 1500 m s−1. Every second trace is plotted. See Fig. 3 for location.

NW CDP SE
Northern Murray Ridge
1000 500
2 The northern portion of the Murray Ridge has a very different
CAM16 morphological expression from its southern counterpart. The
10 km steep-sided graben of the Dalrymple Trough and the high
elevation of the ridge are replaced by much more subdued
4 topography to the north (Fig. 4). Single-channel seismic pro-
files SH4 and SH5 show a wide graben without elevated flanks.
Again the graben is filled with thick sediments and the acoustic
basement cannot always be detected. The faults which define
TWT [s]

6 Dalrymple Trough, and individual faults cannot be traced
8 selves sag downwards into a broad basin shape. This suggests
10
Figure 8. Part of MCS profile CAM16 showing the southeastern
flank of the Murray Ridge and the adjacent thick sediments of the
Indus Fan. The section has been f–k-migrated with a constant velocity
of 1500 m s−1. Every second trace is plotted. See Fig. 3 for location.
All of the seismic reflection profiles across the southern
Murray Ridge show a thin veneer (0.2 s TWT) of flat-lying
recent sediments. Although these sediments are faulted across
the main normal faults, they post-date the major fault move-
ments along the ridge, such as the footwall uplift along the
main normal fault (Fig. 5). The main phase of deformation along
the southern Murray Ridge appears to have ceased, and any
current deformation is limited to small-scale fault reactivation.
The Murray Ridge is, however, seismically active, showing
that faulting is still occurring. Focal mechanisms determined
for two earthquakes along the northern Murray Ridge (Fig. 3)
have predominantly dextral strike-slip motion (Quittmeyer &
Kafka 1984).
the graben have much smaller seabed throws than those of the
from profile to profile. The southeastern end of line SH4 shows
thick sediments terminating abruptly against possibly faulted
acoustic basement to the southeast, while the sediments them-
that the main locus of extension may have originally been
located at the southeastern end of the line but has switched to
its current location, leaving a relict basin on the flanks of the
current graben. The northwestern end of line SH4 shows
the acoustic basement clearly. Like the case for the southern
Murray Ridge, the oldest sediments appear to have been
uplifted along with the acoustic basement, and more recent
sediments are unconformable on the deeper, uplifted unit
(Fig. 4). A similar pattern can also be observed at the south-
eastern end of line SH7. Lines SH5 and SH6 show the widest
grabens, and there is some evidence, particularly on line SH5,
for an uplifted horst in the centre of the graben.
Moving to the north, the character of extension changes
again, and structures more reminiscent of the southern Murray
Ridge are observed along lines SH7 and SH8, with a steeper-
sided, narrow graben (Fig. 4). The sediments in the graben on
line SH7 dip towards the southeast. The floor of the graben
shallows towards the north due to increased sediment input
from the Indus Fan.
The wide grabens observed in the northern portion of the
Murray Ridge suggest that there has been greater extension
here than to the south. This agrees well with the strike of the
ridge, which becomes more easterly towards the north (Fig. 3).
The ridge is therefore at a greater angle to the strike-slip Owen

© 2000 RAS, GJI 142, 461–477


Fracture Zone, and a greater component of extension can be
expected. Like the case for the southern Murray Ridge, the
deformed sediments to the north are overlain by a thin layer
of flat-lying recent sediments.
Qalhat Seamount and the transition to the Owen Fracture
Zone
Qalhat Seamount is located at 22°N, 62°E, at the intersection
of the Murray Ridge and the Owen Fracture Zone. This is
the northerly of two closely spaced seamounts, which sit on the
Arabian plate. The seamount is crossed by two MCS profiles,
CAM14 and CAM19 (Fig. 3). From the bathymetric and
MCS data, Qalhat Seamount is identified as a steep-sided,
flat-topped, symmetrical feature which rises 2000 m above the
abyssal plain to depths of just 300 m below the sea surface.
Examination of MCS line CAM14, which crosses the
northern edge of the seamount (Fig. 9), shows the upper 2.5 s
TWT of flat-lying sediments in the Gulf of Oman onlapping
the northwestern flank of the seamount. The seamount must
therefore pre-date the deposition of these sediments. The base
of this sedimentary package is marked by an unconformity
with highly reflective layered sediments beneath. The reflective
character of this lowermost unit appears to be the same as
that of the turbidite unit observed on line CAM17 (Fig. 5). To
the northwest this lower sediment package infills the topo-
graphy of the undulating acoustic basement, but towards the
southeast it appears to be interfingered with rough volcanic
(debris flow?) units on the seamount’s flank. The acoustic,
presumed oceanic, basement of the Gulf of Oman can be
traced under the flank of the seamount.
The top of the seamount is marked by a flat subhorizontal
unconformity which separates 0.3 s TWT of sediments above
from rough acoustic basement below. This flat unconformity
indicates that the seamount was once subaerial, was eroded,
3000 3500 4000 4500 5000 5500 6000 6500
0
NW CAM14
2
4
TWT [s]
10 km
10
Figure 9. Part of MCS profile CAM14 showing the thick sediments in the Gulf of Oman and Qalhat Seamount. The section has been
f–k-migrated with a constant velocity of 1500 m s−1. Every fourth trace is plotted. The plate boundary is located between CDPs 8300 and 9000.
The Arabian Plate extends to the northwest; the Indian Plate extends to the southeast. See Fig. 3 for location.
© 2000 RAS, GJI 142, 461–477
T he Indian–Arabian plate boundary 469
and then subsided. The unconformity slopes gently towards
the southeast, suggesting that the subsidence is not uniform.
This increased subsidence towards the plate boundary may be
explained by either downward bending of the plate, due to the
load of the seamount, increasing towards the edge of the plate
(assuming that the Arabian and Indian plates are not coupled
across the Owen Fracture Zone) or by extension and there-
fore crustal thinning and associated subsidence at the plate
boundary.
Moving south of Qalhat Seamount, the transition from the
Murray Ridge to the Owen Fracture Zone can be considered
complete. There is little evidence of extension, although the
plate boundary remains an abrupt feature only 20 km wide.
The Owen Fracture Zone is characterized morphologically by
a ridge comprising a steep easterly facing scarp and a more
gentle western scarp, located on the Arabian plate. The plate
boundary itself is located at the foot of the steep eastern scarp
(Whitmarsh 1979; Mountain & Prell 1990). This topographic
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relief forms a continuous barrier to the turbidites, and hence
marks the western limit of the Indus Fan.
C O M PA R I SO N S WI TH TH E M O RP H O LO G Y
O F M I D- O C EA N R ID GE S A N D
CON TI NE NTA L R IF TS
The Murray Ridge exhibits extension in a transtensional
regime, and as such might be expected to show morphological
similarities to either, or both, continental rifts or mid-ocean
ridges. The topography of both the Mid-Atlantic Ridge and the
East African Rift show similarities to the Dalrymple Trough:
a narrow, steep-sided deep flanked by elevated ridges (Mutter
& Karson 1992; Hayward & Ebinger 1996). Mutter & Karson
(1992) relate the morphological similarities of slow spreading
mid-ocean ridges and continental rifts to their dependence on
7000 7500 8000 8500 9000 9500 10000
SE
PLATE
BOUNDARY
470 R. A. Edwards, T . A. Minshull and R. S. W hite
mechanical processes rather than magmatic processes. The dip
on the main fault of the Southern Murray Ridge is, however,
smaller than for mid-ocean-ridge normal faults, which typically
dip at 30°–60° (e.g. Huang & Solomon 1988) and may have
even steeper dips at the seabed (Karson et al. 1987). Dips
below 30° have been found in continental settings such as the
Woodlark Basin, where extension is occurring along a low-
angle (~27°) basin-bounding normal fault (Taylor et al. 1999),
and on rifted margins (Reston et al. 1996).
Plate circuit calculations show that the present-day motion
along the Owen Fracture Zone is 2 mm yr−1 of right-lateral
strike-slip (Gordon & DeMets 1989), making this the slowest-
slipping plate boundary on Earth today. From plate tectonic
reconstructions there is no evidence for changes in the plate
motions since the Oligocene–Early Miocene plate reorganization
(Besse & Courtillot 1988). Prior to this time the motion along
the Owen Fracture Zone is not well constrained, the two main
hypotheses suggesting either no motion, or considerable strike-
slip motion as India moved northwards. There is no evidence
for extension along the Murray Ridge/Dalrymple Trough before
23 Ma. Thus, the current extension rate across the Dalrymple
Trough must be extremely slow. At such slow rates, conductive
cooling of the upwelling mantle beneath the thinning litho-
sphere would prevent decompression melting such as usually
occurs beneath oceanic spreading centres (e.g. Bown & White
1994). At the Southwest Indian Ridge, where the full spreading
rate is 12–16 mm yr−1 (Chu & Gordon 1999), this cooling
effect results in only ~4 km of melt generation compared
to the ~7 km normally observed (Muller et al. 1997); the
Dalrymple Trough probably marks a more extreme example
of the same process. From the magnetic and seismic data there
is no evidence for any magmatism related to extension within
the Dalrymple Trough.
From the seismic reflection profiles discussed above it is
clear that the Murray Ridge exhibits segmentation along its
length; different portions of the ridge have different structural
styles. The southern and northern Murray Ridge form two
clearly separate segments, and the northern Murray Ridge
could be divided again between lines SH6 and SH7 where the
graben width changes rapidly (Fig. 4). From the bathymetry,
the main graben can be seen to be offset to the east from line
SH3 to SH4 (Fig. 3). It appears that the northern segment of
the Murray Ridge has undergone more extension than the
southern segment, as the graben is wider and the surface
throws of the faults are smaller. The northern segment has the
appearance of a full graben, while the southern segment shows
the morphology of a half-graben. This is a pattern observed
on continental rifts, where as the rift develops the morphology
changes from a half-graben to a full graben with smaller fault
lengths and throws as the crust becomes thinner (Hayward &
Ebinger 1996). The coverage of seismic data over the Murray
Ridge is not sufficiently dense to determine the form of the
segment ends, so we cannot tell whether these are marked by
normal faults or by purely strike-slip motion
Although the extensional deformation along the Murray
Ridge shows similarities to both continental rifts and mid-
ocean ridges, comparisons are best made with similar tectonic
settings where both strike-slip and extensional tectonics are
present within pull-apart basins along ‘leaky’ transform faults.
A good example of rift basins along a transform fault is
provided by the Dead Sea Transform, which runs from the
Gulf of Elat, north as far as Turkey and separates the Arabian
plate from the Israel–Sinai subplate (Wdowinski & Zilberman
1997; Ben-Avraham 1985). Seismic reflection profiles across
the Gulf of Elat show a series of asymmetric, steep-sided, fault-
bounded basins containing thick sediments that tilt either to
the west or to the east (Ben-Avraham 1985). The Gulf of Elat
therefore shows strong similarities to the Dalrymple Trough.
Ben Avraham (1992) suggests that the asymmetric basins are
caused by strike-slip motion along one bounding fault (the
deeper side), while the other side of the basin is defined by a
series of normal faults. If this model is applied to the Murray
Ridge it predicts that the main strike-slip motion is along the
southeastern boundary of the Dalrymple Trough. From the
seismic reflection profiles, sedimentary units cannot be traced
across all the faults on the northwestern side of the trough,
also suggesting that there is some strike-slip motion along this
side of the basin.
W I DE- A N GL E S EI S MI C DATA
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Limited wide-angle seismic data are available from a short
reversed profile located along the axis of the Dalrymple
Trough, coincident with MCS line CAM28. The data were
recorded by two ocean-bottom seismographs (OBS) and shot
using a single 700 in3 airgun. The source-to-receiver ranges
were determined from the navigation and checked by ray
tracing the direct water wave. Because the airgun source
volume is small the data quality is rather poor and it is difficult
to identify arrivals at offsets greater than 20 km (Fig. 10).
Traveltimes of first and second arrival phases were picked, and
the picks were assigned uncertainties of 50–75 ms. The data
were iteratively forward modelled using the  code of
Zelt & Smith (1992). Fig. 11 shows the observed and computed
traveltimes and the best-fit velocity model obtained. The root-
mean-square misfit between the observed and calculated travel-
times is 45 ms, which is comparable with the traveltime pick
uncertainty: the model is therefore the smoothest that can be
produced within the resolution of the data. The upper two
sedimentary layers, with velocities of 1.75 and 2.15 km s−1,
were determined from the stacking velocities of MCS line
CAM28. The final model comprises an almost 1-D structure
with a crystalline crustal thickness of 12–14 km, overlain by
~3 km of sediments. The upper crust beneath the sediments
is modelled by a layer with velocities of 4.6–5.4 km s−1, which
are constrained by first arrivals observed out to 25 km offset.
These velocities are comparable to those found in oceanic
layer 2, or in the upper part of continental crust. The velocity
of the lower crust is unconstrained, as refracted arrivals are
not observed. Velocities in the lower crust of 5.6–6.7 km s−1
were included in the model. If these are the correct lower-
crustal velocities, the crustal thickness has to be of the order
of 12–14 km to fit the reflected Moho arrival observed at long
offsets. Alternatively, the lower crust could be modelled with
higher velocities of 6.6–7.2 km s−1, more reminiscent of oceanic
layer 3, which would require a slightly thicker crust, or with
lower velocities which should allow the crust to be thinner
and still fit the observed Moho reflection.
G R AVI TY DATA A N D M O DE LLI N G
Fig. 12(a) shows the satellite gravity data over the Gulf of
Oman. The Murray Ridge and the Dalrymple Trough are
marked by very large positive and negative free-air gravity
© 2000 RAS, GJI 142, 461–477

Offset [km]
-30 -20
0
6
t - x/6.0 [s]
10
12
14
OBS9 Hydrophone
Figure 10. Wide-angle seismic data recorded on OBS 9 at the northeastern end of the line along the Dalrymple Trough. The data have been
bandpass filtered from 6 to 15 Hz, and are plotted with a reduction velocity of 6 km s−1.
anomalies, respectively. The anomalies range from 230 to
−150 mgal. To the south, Qalhat Seamount also shows a large
positive anomaly. The large magnitude of these anomalies
suggests that the Murray Ridge and Dalrymple Trough are
not isostatically compensated.
To help constrain the crustal structure under the Murray
Ridge and Dalrymple Trough, a simple 2-D gravity model was
computed. The free-air gravity anomaly was extracted from
gridded satellite data (Smith & Sandwell 1995) along MCS
line CAM17 (Fig. 3). The profile was also extended 120 km to
the northwest, into the Gulf of Oman (Fig. 12). The bathymetry
and depth to the top of basement were taken from MCS line
CAM17. As further constraints are not available, the top of
basement was assumed to extend horizontally into the Gulf
of Oman from the end of CAM17, at a depth of 7.5 km. The
sediments overlying the basement were modelled as a single
layer. From the wide-angle seismic modelling, the average
interval velocity for the whole sediment column was deter-
mined to be 3.2 km s−1, and this corresponds to a density of
2.4 g cm−3, according to the relationship of Hamilton (1978).
Densities in the crust were derived from the velocities obtained
during the wide-angle seismic modelling using the velocity–
density relationship of oceanic crust of Carlson & Herrick
(1990). The crustal structure at 110 km along the gravity model
is tied to the wide-angle seismic model, with 3 km thick
upper crust (density 2.61 g cm−3) and 10 km thick lower crust
(density 2.84 g cm−3). The upper mantle was assigned a density
of 3.33 g cm−3. As no constraints are available for the crustal
structure other than the tie with the wide-angle seismic profile,
the upper crust was assumed to have a constant thickness
across the model.
Fig. 13 shows the best-fit gravity model. The root-mean-
square misfit between the observed and calculated anomalies
© 2000 RAS, GJI 142, 461–477
T he Indian–Arabian plate boundary 471
-10 0 10 20
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is 9.7 mgal. The greatest misfit occurs at 140–160 km along
the model, over the crest of the Murray Ridge. The calculated
anomaly contains a short-wavelength feature which is not
observed in the satellite gravity data. This may be due to either
a 3-D effect from the Murray Ridge, or the long-wavelength
nature of the satellite data, which will not resolve anomalies
with wavelengths of less than 20 km (Marks 1996). The final
gravity model has a crystalline crust 13 km thick under the
Dalrymple Trough. If our assumptions about densities are
correct, the Murray Ridge and the low basement high to the
northwest of the Dalrymple Trough are both underlain by
crust with a thickness of ~17 km. To the northwest, the Gulf
of Oman is underlain by a crust 6 km thick. Calculation of the
pressure along the base of the model shows relatively large
lateral variations in pressure over distances of several tens of
kilometres (Fig. 13). This suggests that the model is not in
isostatic balance, and some form of additional dynamic support
may be necessary for the lithosphere to withstand the lateral
pressure changes. More accurate crustal thickness information
will come from new wide-angle seismic data, which suggest
slightly lower densities, velocities and crustal thicknesses
(Edwards et al. 1998).
M A GN ET IC D ATA A ND M O D EL LIN G
A compilation was made of all the shipboard magnetic data
available in the Gulf of Oman. After examination of track
crossovers and the elimination of bad tracks, the data were
reduced to IGRF95, and the anomalies were gridded on a
5×5 min grid (Wessel & Smith 1991). Fig. 12(b) shows the
magnetic anomalies in the study area. Perhaps the most
interesting feature of the contour plot is the lack of any strong
magnetic anomaly associated with the topographic high of
the southern Murray Ridge. This suggests that the ridge does
472 R. A. Edwards, T . A. Minshull and R. S. W hite

SW NE

OBS 13 OBS 9
(a)
2

4
T - X/6.0 (s)

9
0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80

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CAM17 DISTANCE (km)

0 10
10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80
(b) 0
1.51
2.60 1.75
1.75
1.75

3.50 5 2.15

4.10
4.60 4.60
DEPTH (km)

5.40 5.40
10
5.60 5.60 5.60

15

6.70
20 6.70 7.80
7.80

8.00 8.00 8.00

25

Figure 11. (a) Observed and computed traveltimes for the two OBHs used to record the wide-angle seismic data in the Dalrymple Trough, plotted
with a reduction velocity of 6 km s−1. ( b) The best-fit velocity model for the wide-angle seismic line showing the rays traced. Note the poor ray
coverage of the lower crust. Velocities are shown in km s−1.

not have a volcanic origin, although basaltic tuffs have been
dredged from the northeast end of the ridge (Barker 1966).
Likewise, the Dalrymple Trough does not have a magnetic
signature.
The strongest magnetic anomalies are observed to the
northwest of the Murray Ridge. A linear positive anomaly is
flanked on its northwestern side by a parallel negative anomaly,
the location of which coincides with the Little Murray Ridge,
a buried basement high (White 1983). These two anomalies
appear to be offset twice along their length: once at 22°N and
again at 24°N. These offsets may be related to the segmentation
observed along the Murray Ridge. The magnetic data show
no evidence for seafloor spreading anomalies in the Gulf of
Oman. Any magnetic anomalies in the Gulf of Oman are
parallel to the Murray Ridge and the Little Murray Ridge and
hence are probably related to the evolution of these ridges.
A 2-D magnetic model was constructed along the same
profile as the gravity model in Fig. 13, using layer thicknesses
from the gravity model and varying only the magnetizations
of the five blocks shown. The magnetic anomaly was taken
from the gridded magnetic data set. The observed and calcu-
lated magnetic anomalies and the preferred final magnetic
model are shown in Fig. 14. Magnetic models are notoriously
non-unique, and although the preferred final model was chosen
because it reproduced well the main features of the observed
data (i.e. the prominent high over the basement high to the
northwest of the Dalrymple Trough, the weak low over the
Dalrymple Trough, and the weak high over the Murray Ridge),
alternative models may also provide a good fit. The palaeo-
inclination and -declination of the oceanic crust in the Gulf
of Oman were set at −19° and −10°, respectively. These
values were estimated from the plate reconstructions of Bess
& Courtillot (1988), assuming the crust is Eocene in age.
Whole-crust magnetization has been assumed in the model,
and the sediments are assumed to be effectively non-magnetic.
The final model shows reversely magnetized crust, with a
NRM of −2.5 A m−1, extending under the Gulf of Oman
(Fig. 14). More weakly reversely magnetized crust is included
in the model to 90 km, the northwest edge of the Dalrymple
Trough. The crust under the Dalrymple Trough and Murray
Ridge has been modelled with a weak induced magnetization
of 0.2–0.9 A m−1. The magnetic anomaly was also calculated
assuming a strong NRM of −5.0 A m−1 in the upper 3 km of
crust under the Gulf of Oman, as might be expected for oceanic
crust. This model also provides an adequate fit to the observed
anomaly (Fig. 14).

© 2000 RAS, GJI 142, 461–477

 T he Indian–Arabian plate boundary 473

(a) o
o
60 E
o
62 E
o
64 E
o
66 E o

26 N 26 N

200
175
o o
150

free air gravity anomaly (mGal)

24 N 24 N 125
100
75
50
25
o o 0
22 N 22 N -25
-50
-75

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-100
-125
o o
-150
20 N 20 N
-175
-200
o o o o
60 E 62 E 64 E 66 E

(b) o
o
60 E
o
62 E
o
64 E
o
66 E o

26 N 26 N

400
350
o o
300
24 N 24 N 250
200
150
100 magnetic anomaly (nT)
50
o o 0
22 N 22 N -50
-100
-150
-200
-250
o o -300
20 N 20 N
-350
-400

o o o o
60 E 62 E 64 E 66 E
Figure 12. (a) Satellite free-air gravity anomalies in the Gulf of Oman. The location of the gravity model in Fig. 13 is shown by the white line.
Bathymetric contours are shown in black, and seismic profiles by the thicker black lines. ( b) Magnetic anomalies in the Gulf of Oman. The
anomalies are gridded on a 5×5 min grid from all available shipboard data. The lower right-hand box shows the location of tracks. The white
line shows the location of the magnetic model in Fig. 14.

© 2000 RAS, GJI 142, 461–477

474 R. A. Edwards, T . A. Minshull and R. S. W hite
NW
Pressure
900
(MPa)
800
Free-air Gravity Anomaly (mgal)
100
observed anomaly
calculated anomaly
0 0
-100
0 0
2.40
10
Depth (km)
20
30
-100 -50
Figure 13. 2-D gravity model across the Murray Ridge. The middle panel shows the observed (thick line) and calculated (thin line) anomalies; the
lower panel shows the best-fit gravity model. The upper panel shows the pressure along the base of the model. Densities are labelled in kg cm−3.
The model is tied to the wide-angle model at 110 km model distance. Model location is shown in Fig. 12.
IN TER P R ETATI ON O F TH E M O DE LS —
CR US TA L S TR U CTU RE
The wide-angle seismic, gravity and magnetic models have
provided information about the nature and thickness of the
crust under the Murray Ridge and Dalrymple Trough (Figs 11,
13 and 14). The most striking result of the modelling is that
the crust is much thicker than would be expected in a normal
oceanic setting. The wide-angle seismic and gravity data have
suggested a crystalline crustal thickness of ~13 km under the
Dalrymple Trough, and ~17 km under the Murray Ridge.
Normal oceanic crust has a thickness of ~7 km (White et al.
1992), and this is similar to the 6 km thick crust (excluding
sediments) which is modelled under the Gulf of Oman using
the gravity data. The magnetic model includes reversely mag-
netized crust with a relatively high NRM of −2.5 A m−1 in
the Gulf of Oman, again suggesting oceanic crust in this region.
While the Gulf of Oman appears to be underlain by normal
oceanic crust, the crust under the Dalrymple Trough and
Murray Ridge is very different in character. The thick crust
under the Dalrymple Trough and Murray Ridge may be
explained by three different hypotheses: (1) the crust is oceanic
in origin and has been thickened by the addition of volcanic
material; (2) the crust is oceanic in origin and has been
thickened by compression and crustal shortening; and (3) the
crust is continental in origin. These three hypotheses are
discussed below.
SE
Pressure
900
(MPa)
800
Free-air Gravity Anomaly (mgal)
100
-100
2.40
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2.61
10
Depth (km)
2.84
3.33 20
30
0 50 100 150
Distance (km)
The absence of strong magnetic anomalies over the Murray
Ridge (Fig. 12b) suggests that the ridge is not volcanic in
origin, although the seismic reflection data and dredged tuffs
do suggest limited volcanism along the southeastern margin
of the ridge (Fig. 8). The preferred magnetic model in Fig. 14
includes weakly magnetized, 0.2–0.9 A m−1, crust underlying the
Murray Ridge and Dalrymple Trough. If the crust had been
heavily intruded by volcanic material, a higher magnetization
would be expected. From the magnetic and seismic reflection
data the Murray Ridge does not appear to be volcanic in origin.
The plate tectonic model of Whitmarsh (1979), which
postulates that the Indian–Arabian plate boundary has lain
along the Owen Fracture Zone since India first started to
move northwards at 90 Ma, requires considerable compression
along the Murray Ridge due to its more easterly strike (Fig. 2).
However, this is difficult to reconcile with the seismic reflection
data which show relatively undeformed uplifted sediments
on the northwestern side of the Murray Ridge, suggesting that
the uplift has occurred as a discrete event following sediment
deposition, rather than coeval with the deposition of the sedi-
ments over an extended period of time. Uplift along the Owen
Fracture Zone to the south, resulting in a change in deposition
from lower Miocene turbidites to middle Miocene pelagic
sediments at DSDP site 224, has been described by Whitmarsh
(1974), who relates the uplift to a small change in the plate
motions. A short phase of compression and uplift along the
Murray Ridge (possibly during the Miocene) is supported by
the seismic reflection data.
© 2000 RAS, GJI 142, 461–477

NW
200
observed anomaly
Magnetic Anomaly (nT)
calculated anomaly
100
0 0
-100
0 0
10 -2.5
Depth (km)
20
30
-100 -50
Figure 14. 2-D magnetic model. The upper panel shows the observed (thick line) and calculated (thin line) anomalies; the lower panel shows the
preferred crustal model. The dashed line shows the calculated anomaly for a model with a strongly (−5.0 A m−1) magnetized upper 3 km of crust
for −120 to −90 km model distance, over the Gulf of Oman. Magnetizations are labelled in A m−1. Model location is shown in Fig. 12.
The weak induced magnetization of the crust under the
Murray Ridge and Dalrymple Trough suggests that the crust
may not be oceanic in origin. Miles & Roest (1993) modelled
seafloor spreading magnetic anomalies in the Arabian Sea and
placed the ocean–continent boundary off western India at
~19° north, along the Laxmi Ridge. From their interpretation,
the Indus Fan and Murray Ridge are underlain by thinned
continental crust. Malod et al. (1997) and Miles et al. (1998)
have also proposed that the Indus Fan is underlain by thinned
continental, or transitional, crust. The velocity structure of the
lower crust is commonly used as a means of distinguishing
between oceanic crust, which exhibits characteristic layer 3
velocities of 6.6–7.2 km s−1, and thinned continental crust,
where these velocities will be absent (Whitmarsh et al. 1986).
Unfortunately, refracted arrivals from the lower crust are not
seen in the wide-angle data, making the distinction between
oceanic and thinned continental crust very difficult. However,
the weak induced magnetization, and the thick crystalline crust
do favour a continental origin for the crust.
The gravity model shows that any crustal thinning due
to extension under the Dalrymple Trough itself is limited
(Fig. 13). The trough appears to be a down-faulted block, with
any thinning confined to the crust immediately beneath the
bounding faults. As the Murray Ridge/Dalrymple Trough
forms the plate boundary, the faults must penetrate the entire
crust, and this is supported by the gravity model. Thick crust
under the Dalrymple Trough was also proposed by Whitmarsh
(1979), who modelled a gravity profile across the Dalrymple
Trough and southern Murray Ridge using a ~10 km thick
low-density (2.35–2.70 g cm−3) crust beneath the Dalrymple
Trough to fit the observed gravity low.
© 2000 RAS, GJI 142, 461–477
T he Indian–Arabian plate boundary 475
SE
200
Magnetic Anomaly (nT)
100
-100
0.9
-2.0 -1.5 0.2 10
Depth (km)
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20
30
0 50 100 150
Distance (km)
From the magnetic model (Fig. 14) the Indian–Arabian plate
boundary appears to be located along the northwestern edge
of the Dalrymple Trough, where a large change in magnetic
properties from crust with a strong negative magnetization
to crust with a weak positive magnetization is observed. This
observation does not agree with the model of Ben-Avraham
(1992), which predicts that the plate boundary is located on
the southeastern boundary of the Dalrymple Trough. It is
probable that strike-slip motion is occurring along both
margins of the trough.
CON CLU SION S
Interpretation of a series of multichannel seismic lines has
shown the form of deformation of the Murray Ridge and
has provided clues as to the evolution of this feature. The
Dalrymple Trough is clearly an extensional feature and the
seismic reflection data show a series of grabens delineated by
large-offset normal faults. Seabed offsets of resolvable faults
suggest a minimum total extension of 5–7 km. The seismic
reflection and magnetic data from the Dalrymple Trough show
no evidence for the generation of new igneous crust. This can
be attributed both to the limited amount of extension, and to
the slow extension rate, which allows for conductive cooling
of the upwelling mantle, thus preventing significant mantle
melting as it decompresses. The morphology of the Dalrymple
Trough bears a strong resemblance to continental rifts, and
particularly to pull-apart basins along transform faults.
Wide-angle seismic, gravity and magnetic modelling suggest
that the Murray Ridge and Dalrymple Trough are underlain
by 13–17 km thick crust. Any localized crustal thinning due
476 R. A. Edwards, T . A. Minshull and R. S. W hite
to extension appears to be very limited. The origin and nature
of the crust cannot be reliably determined from the above
data. Although the thickness and low magnetization of the
crust under the Murray Ridge and Dalrymple Trough suggest
a continental origin, the possibility that the ridge and trough
are underlain by deformed oceanic crust cannot be ruled out.
The seismic reflection data suggest that, although most of
the features along the Murray Ridge can be explained by
extension, another mechanism is needed to account for all
the elevated topography observed. The elevated flanks of the
graben can easily be accounted for by uplift due to extension
by, for example, isostatic unloading of the footwall. However,
the high elevation of the southern Murray Ridge is more
difficult to explain by extension alone.
We propose the following speculative geological history of
the Murray Ridge. As India moved northwards during the
Cretaceous, the Indian–Arabian plate boundary was located
to the west of the Owen Fracture Zone, possibly along the
southeast Oman continental margin. The oceanic crust in
the Gulf of Oman, formed at the proto-Carlsberg Ridge, is
Palaeocene–Eocene in age, older crust having been subducted
to the north beneath the Makran convergent margin. The first
sediments deposited on the new oceanic crust were turbidite
flows, the source of which probably lay to the northeast as
continent–continent collision first began between India and
the continental blocks to the north. The basement high to the
northwest of the Murray Ridge and the Murray Ridge itself
were then uplifted, deforming the flat-lying turbidites above the
basement. At this time the onset of extension was experienced
and the basement started to subside towards the present-day
Dalrymple Trough. This coincided with the plate reorganization
during the Early Miocene that resulted in the opening of
the Gulf of Aden. Motion along transform faults between the
Owen Fracture Zone and the southeast Oman continental
margin possibly ceased at this time, and any motion between
the Arabian and Indian plates was confined to the Owen
Fracture Zone. Also at this time the Qalhat seamounts were
formed on the edge of the Arabian plate. As the Murray Ridge
was uplifted the sediments from the Indus Fan were diverted
to the southeast. Subsidence continued in the Dalrymple
Trough and thick sediments were deposited unconformably on
the turbidite unit below. After the deposition of the majority
of the sediments, the present-day large normal and strike-
slip faults were formed, giving a half-graben structure in the
Dalrymple Trough and a full-graben structure along the northern
Murray Ridge. This was accompanied by further (footwall)
uplift of the Murray Ridge and accompanying erosion. Finally,
large vertical movements ceased and a thin veneer of recent
sediments was deposited.
AC KN O WL ED GM E NTS
We thank the officers and crew of RRS Charles Darwin cruise
CD18. This work was supported by the Department of Earth
Sciences, Cambridge contribution 5592. RAE was supported
by NERC grant GR3/8838, and TAM by a Royal Society
University Research Fellowship.
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