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  • Title: Evidence for a large-scale remnant of subducted lithosphere beneath Fiji.
    Author: Chen WP, Brudzinski MR.
    Journal: Science; 2001 Jun 29; 292(5526):2475-9. PubMed ID: 11431564.
    Abstract:
    We combine spatial variations of P- and S-wave speeds, 1000 fault plane solutions, and 6600 well-determined hypocenters to investigate the nature of subducted lithosphere and deep earthquakes beneath the Tonga back-arc. We show that perplexing patterns in seismicity and fault plane solutions can be accounted for by the juxtaposition of a steep-dipping Wadati-Benioff zone and a subhorizontal remnant of slab that is no longer attached to the actively subducting lithosphere. The detached slab may be from a previous episode of subduction along the fossil Vitiaz trench about 5 to 8 million years ago. The juxtaposition of slabs retains a large amount of subducted material in the transition zone of the mantle. Such a configuration, if common in the past, would allow the preservation of a primordial component in the lower mantle.
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