Definition
Subduction erosion defines a process in a subduction zone where material of the overriding upper plate is scraped off from its bottom by the downgoing lower plate. The offscraped material is transported downward within a subduction mélange into deeper parts of the subduction zone where it is added to the upper plate by melting and comprehension into magmatic melts of the volcanic arc.
Occurrences
About half of the convergent plate boundaries on Earth are dominated by the process of subduction erosion or at least non-accretion instead of accretion in an accretionary wedge (von Huene and Scholl 1991), which is the opposite process characterized by the formation of sedimentary accretionary wedges (Fig. 1). Examples of such accretionary wedges are represented in SW Japan, Sumatra, large portions of the Gulf of Oman (Makran subduction zone), in the Lesser Antilles, and in smaller areas of western North America. During subduction erosion, rock material is scraped off from the...
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Bibliography
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Meschede, M. (2014). Subduction Erosion. In: Harff, J., Meschede, M., Petersen, S., Thiede, J. (eds) Encyclopedia of Marine Geosciences. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-6644-0_120-1
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-6644-0_120-1
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