A 3D gravity and thermal model for the Barents Sea and Kara Sea

• 3D lithosphere-scale density and thermal model of the Barents Sea and Kara Sea
• Densities of the uppermost mantle should be considered for 3D gravity modelling.
• The regional thermal field is controlled by the eastwards deepening LAB.

In the frame of this study, we investigate the lithosphere-scale 3D physical state of the Barents Sea and Kara Sea region. Therefore, we test an existing 3D structural model against the gravitational field by considering the heterogeneous upper mantle to further assess the structural and density configuration of the continental crystalline crust. The resulting 3D density configuration of the crust is discussed in terms of its relationships with the spatial distribution of tectonically different domains. In addition, it provides the base for a lithology-controlled parameterisation of the crust with thermal properties to calculate the 3D conductive thermal field. The deeper thermal field is controlled by the depth configuration of the lithosphere–asthenosphere boundary. Accordingly, deeper isotherms such as the 450 °C isotherm deepen from below the rifted SW Barents Sea towards the intracratonic basins of the eastern Barents Sea and Kara Sea, indicating an increase of the lithospheric strength in the same direction. Temperature measurements of the upper 800 m below the SW Barents Sea reveal an increased thermal gradient which cannot be reproduced by a steady-state 3D conductive model alone. Beside fault-induced fluid flow to be active there, an alternative scenario could involve a phase of subsidence long enough to increase the temperature of the upper 800 m, followed by an uplift and erosion phase that prevented the positive thermal anomaly to propagate towards larger depths. The final lithosphere-scale 3D model is the first to integrate the geological, density and thermal configuration of the entire Barents Sea and Kara Sea region and hence provides an ideal base for future thermomechanical studies addressing, for instance, questions on the present-day, past and future relationships between lithospheric strength and deformation.