Ocean basins form as continents break apart and seafloor spreading begins. The Atlantic Ocean began to form in the Early Jurassic (~190 million years ago) as the Pangaea supercontinent rifted. This project seeks to understand how the central Atlantic Ocean first formed. Geologic data of this time suggest an anomalous geology at the time of initial seafloor spreading, but for reasons that are poorly understood. New marine seismic data will address the first ~50 million years of seafloor spreading in the western Atlantic, next to Eastern North America. The new seismic data will reveal the evolution of oceanic crust and mantle as the Atlantic formed. Participation by students and early-career scientists will give them first-hand experience in marine geophysics.
