Plate reconstruction based upon age data of Japanese accretionary complexes

The ages of the oceanic plates for the Japanese accretionary complexes are plotted against time of accretion. The plots show that Early Cretaceous transform faulting modified the arrangement of the pre-middle Cretaceous accretionary complexes and that three or four mid-ocean ridges have collided with the Japan arc since Permian time. The plate configuration for the western North Pacific is reconstructed. -Author