WilsonZyklus

Wilson Zyklus, also known as the Wilson Cycle, describes the periodic opening and closing of ocean basins caused by the movement of tectonic plates. First proposed by the Canadian geophysicist J. Tuzo Wilson in the 1960s, the concept links continental rifting, seafloor spreading, and eventual subduction into a single cyclical process that can span hundreds of millions of years.

The cycle begins with a continental interior undergoing extensional forces that generate a rift zone. As the rift widens, lithospheric thinning allows mantle upwelling and the formation of a new oceanic crust, marking the onset of seafloor spreading. A passive margin develops on either side of the nascent ocean, accompanied by the accumulation of sedimentary basins.

Over time, the oceanic plate migrates away from the rifted continent. Convection in the mantle eventually leads to the initiation of subduction zones along the oceanic margins. Subduction consumes the oceanic lithosphere, forming volcanic arcs and accretionary wedges. As the ocean basin contracts, the continents on opposite sides approach one another, culminating in a collisional orogeny that closes the ocean and creates a mountain belt.

The Wilson Cycle provides a framework for interpreting the geological record of past supercontinents such as Rodinia, Pangea, and Gondwana. Modern examples include the Atlantic Ocean, which is in an early rifting stage, and the Mediterranean, which illustrates a later, closing phase. The model underpins plate tectonic theory and assists in understanding the distribution of natural resources, seismic hazards, and the long‑term evolution of Earth’s surface.