This study will determine the absolute plate velocity of the Izanagi Plate of the Western Paleo Pacific during the early Cretaceous. Preliminary modelling suggests that the Izanagi Plate reached velocities as high as 20 cm/yr, substantially faster than those of present day plates. An independent measure of the Izanagi Plate motion will be obtained from paleomagnetic study of an accreted oceanic rise in the Tokoro belt of Hokkaido, Japan, thought to be a remnant of the plate. The Tokoro belt comprises pillow basalts and flows, radiolarian chert, pelagic limestone, and overlying continentally-derived rocks. Preliminary paleomagnetic data from the Tokoro belt suggests an equatorial origin for the pelagic limestones and implies a minimum plate velocity of 13 cm/yr. A thorough paleomagnetic investigation of the Tokoro belt will be undertaken to determine the absolute plate velocity of the Izanagi Plate. The results will provide fundamental new data on accretion rates at continental margins and will provide necessary constraints for modelling of plate-driving mechanisms.
