PLATE TECTONIC MOVEMENT OF THE SOCOTRAN PLATFORM, GULF OF ADEN

The movement of the Socotran platform in the Gulf of Aden is modeled using GPlates 1.4 open-source software, an interactive plate-tectonics visualization and manipulation program that allows reconstructions of geologic and paleogeographic features through time. The current coastline of Socotra was digitized using Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) Global Digital Elevation Model Version 2 (GDEM V2) and added to a pre-existing polygon dataset of the Red Sea-Gulf of Aden rift system. A geologic map of the island of Socotra, Yemen and the region of Dhofar, Oman was digitized and georeferenced in order to correlate lithologies between the two areas (Bosworth et al., 2005, Samuel et al., 1997). GPlates was then used to recreate the pole and angle of rotation of the landmass relative to the movement of the African, Somali, Arabian and Indian plates using both novel and existing hypothesis of the rotation of the island of Socotra relative to Dhofar region of Oman (Bosence, 1997; Morrison et al., 1997; Birse et al., 1997). Finally, an animation was created modeling the plate movements in this region.

References Cited

Birse, A.C.R., Bott, W.F., Morrison, J., and Samuel, M.A., 1997, The Mesozoic and Early Tertiary tectonic evolution of the Socotra area, eastern Gulf of Aden, Yemen: Marine and Petroleum Geology, v. 14, p. 675–684.

Bosence, D.W.J., 1997, Mesozoic Rift Basins of Yemen: Marine and Petroleum Geology, v. 14, p. 611–616.

Bosworth, W., Huchon, P., and McClay, K., 2005, The Red Sea and Gulf of Aden Basins: Journal of African Earth Sciences, v. 43, p. 334–378, doi: 10.1016/j.jafrearsci.2005.07.020.

Morrison, J., Birse, A., Samuel, M.A., Richardson, S.M., Harbury, N., and Bott, W.F., 1997, The Cretaceous sequence stratigraphy of the Socotran Platform, the Republic of Yemen: Marine and Petroleum Geology, v. 14, p. 685–699.

Samuel, M.A., Harbury, N., Bott, R., and Thabet, A.M., 1997, Field Observations from the Socotran Platform: Marine and Petroleum Geology, v. 14, p. 661–673.