Processed multichannel seismic data in the Woodlark Basin and D'Entrecasteaux Islands region, off Papua New Guinea, acquired during the R/V Maurice Ewing survey EW9203 (1992)

This was a study of the extensional mechanisms in the Woodlark basin where westward propagation of seafloor spreading is accompanied by active continental extension in the D'Entrecasteaux islands and flanking basins immediately landward of the propagator. The overall objective was to investigate continental breakup and initiation of seafloor spreading in a region where it is presently active. The aims of the project were to determine: (1) whether intra-continental extension is occurring along low-angle detachment faults or normal faults, (2) whether seismogenic faults can be correlated with faults observed in the seismic sections, (3) the whole crustal geometry of structures that bound the core complexed of Goodenough and Fergusson islands, and (4) whether the transition from intra-continental extension through to continental breadup reflect an evolution of extensional mechanisms. Data collection was funded by NSF grant OCE90-12730. Processing of this data set was funded by NSF OCE 0525671.