45S 130E: Australia-Antarctic Ridge

Steven Dutch, Professor Emeritus, Natural and Applied Sciences, Universityof Wisconsin - Green Bay

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Scale: 1 pixel = 10 km. 10-degree grid;             Lambert Conformal Conic Projection, Center 45S 130E

Sea Floor Age Sea Floor Age, Tectonics and Volcanism Era-Level Geology Era-Level Geology, Tectonics and Volcanism Period-Level Geology Period-Level Geology, Tectonics and Volcanism Period-Level Geology, Bathymetry and Ocean Floor Ages Topography and Bathymetry Topography, Bathymetry and Plate Boundaries Topography, Bathymetry, Tectonics and Volcanism        Global Geology Index

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Sea Floor Age

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Legend

Ocean Floor Ages

Tectonic Structures

Topography

Land Geology

Notes and References

Discussion

This map shows the Australia-Antarctic Ridge. Australia moved almost due north from Antarctica.

New Zealand's story is far more complex. New Zealand would be a respectable continent if it were above sea level. The Lord Howe Rise, the submerged northern extension of New Zealand, doesn't fit the east coast of Australia at all. It is no doubt a mosaic of small plates that shifted as New Zealand and Australia split apart.  New Zealand is split by the Alpine Fault, a transform fault between the Australian and Pacific Plates. The block southeast of the Alpine Fault, consisting of most of the South Island (Middle Earth) and the submerged Chatham Rise, can only be fit to Antarctica by rotating 90 degrees.

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Created 11 April 2014, Last Update 19 January 2020