Global Continental Residual Topography Estimates from Crustal Structure Analysis

Stephenson et al. (2024) provide a global database of 4,120 measurements of continental residual topography, derived by correcting for crustal thickness and density variations. The data is based on an inventory of 26,725 crustal thickness estimates and a parametrization from 1,136 laboratory velocity-density measurements. The repository includes the associated software and manuscript, with a static version current as of March 2024.

Use Cases

• Modeling mantle convection patterns based on long-wavelength residual topographic anomalies.
• Correlating lithospheric thickness variations with observed residual topography.
• Validating geodynamic models against spot measurements of emergent marine strata and intraplate magmatism.
• Analyzing the relationship between residual topography and upper mantle seismic velocity anomalies.

Strengths

• Includes 4,120 specific measurements of continental residual topography.
• Derived from a substantial global inventory of 26,725 crustal thickness estimates.
• Uses a conversion parametrization grounded in 1,136 laboratory measurements.
• Repository bundles data, source software (SMV2rho v1.0.1), and the original manuscript.

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Row count for the underlying SeisCruST database is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.
• Excludes Antarctica; geographic coverage is not fully global for all continents.

Provenance

Source

Accompanies the article by Stephenson et al. (2024) in the Journal of Geophysical Research: Solid Earth.

Collection Method

Assembled from local seismological datasets (wide-angle/refraction surveys, calibrated reflection profiles, receiver functions) and laboratory measurements.

Freshness

Static repository snapshot as of 07/03/2024; metadata lists a last updated date of 2026-06-05.

Geography

Global coverage for major continents, excluding Antarctica.