Research Projects

Understanding the dynamic of oblique subduction is the prime focus of this research proposal. This project will develop both buoyancy-driven and kinematically controlled, isostatically-supported, three-dimensional whole-mantle laboratory and numerical models to investigate subducting plate-overriding plate-mantle interaction at the scale of the India-Asia collision-subduction system. One innovation for this set-up is incorporating large tectonic plates that scale to the dimensions of large tectonic plates on Earth (of the order 5000-8000 km laterally and ~100 km thick). The majority of earlier studies on laboratory-scaled subduction models did not incorporate overriding plates. Secondly, the proposed research will test how the strength of the overriding continental plate controls the subduction velocity and overriding plate deformation. Finally, this proposal is expected to provide insights into the cause of continued convergence between India and Asia even after the complete disappearance of the subducted Tethys Sea.