Global Continental Residual Topography Estimates from Crustal Structure Analysis

A 2024 study by Stephenson et al. provides 4,120 new measurements of continental residual topography, isolating mantle-driven elevation after correcting for crustal isostasy. The data is derived from a global inventory of 26,725 crustal thickness estimates and 1,136 laboratory velocity-density measurements. It was published in the Journal of Geophysical Research: Solid Earth and hosted by the Australian Ocean Data Network.

Use Cases

• Model mantle convection patterns based on long-wavelength residual topographic anomalies.
• Correlate lithospheric thickness variations with residual topography estimates.
• Validate geodynamic models using comparisons with free-air gravity and upper mantle seismic velocity anomalies.
• Study intraplate magmatism distribution younger than 10 Ma in relation to residual topography.

Strengths

• Based on a substantial global inventory of 26,725 continental crustal thickness estimates.
• Uses a physical parametrization grounded in 1,136 laboratory measurements of seismic velocity and density.
• Provides 4,120 specific measurements of residual topography with quantified wavelength ranges (1,000–5,000 km).

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.
• Excludes Antarctica from its continental coverage.

Provenance

Source

Stephenson et al. (2024), Journal of Geophysical Research: Solid Earth, via Australian Ocean Data Network (data_gov_au).

Collection Method

Assembled from local seismological datasets and laboratory measurements, with corrections applied for crustal isostatic effects.

Freshness

Last updated 2026-06-27 16:24:17.458586; freshness should be verified.

Geography

Global coverage of major continents, excluding Antarctica.