ACTIVE FRAGMENTATION OF THE NORTH-AMERICA PLATE AT THE MEXICAN TRIPLE JUNCTION AREA OFF MANZANILLO

The identification of 1) the exact location of the East Pacific Rise (EPR)-Rivera Fracture Zone (RFZ) eastern junction, 165 km west of the Acapulco Trench axis, 2) the absence of a clear Rivera-Cocos Plate boundary between the Acapulco Trench axis and the EPR-RFZ eastern junction and, 3) the Jalisco Block (JB) offshore boundary that connects the Colima Graben (CG) to the Tamayo Fracture Zone (TFZ) northward suggests that the Jalisco Block is being transferred from the North America Plate to the Pacific Plate north, rather than south, of the Tamayo Fracture Zone.