You are testing two possible Euler pole positions to see which one is the better
ID: 293510 • Letter: Y
Question
You are testing two possible Euler pole positions to see which one is the better solution to describe the relative motion of two plates. For each Euler pole you have calculated the velocity that should be expected at 5 sites along a spreading ridge (based on their distances to the prospective Euler poles). For each of the 5 sites you also have actual velocity data from magnetic sea floor isochrons. The data look like this:
SITE Calculated V for Euler pole 1 Calculated V for Euler pole 2 Actual V at each site
1 8 mm/yr 6 mm/yr 7 mm/yr
2 13 mm/yr 9 mm/yr 11 mm/yr
3 18 mm/yr 15 mm/yr 17 mm/yr
4 27 mm/yr 24 mm/yr 25 mm/yr
5 36 mm/yr 32 mm/yr 33 mm/yr
A. Determine quantitatively, which of the two poles is a better fit to the data.
B. Based on your calculations for part A, should the proposed Euler pole be moved closer to the sites listed or moved further away? Explain your answer?
Explanation / Answer
The bias between velocities for each pole and the actual data is:
Pole 1: 1,2,1,2,3
Pole 2: -1,2,-2,-1,-1
Since the bias is lesser in the data from pole 2, it is a better fit to the actual data.
Based on the biases, we find that the proposed Euler Pole should be moved closer to the site as the calculated velocities must increase to fit the actual data. Moving away from the sites would mean a greater bias and a mismatch between calculated and actual velocities.
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