Professor of Marine Geology and Geophysics
Isostasy and flexure of the lithosphere is a unique book which presents an overview of isostasy, a phenomenon of fundamental importance to the Earth Sciences.
Isostasy is a simple concept, yet it has long perplexed students of geophysics, geodesy and geology. The author has overcome this problem through the use of a simplified mathematical treatment, numerous geological examples and, an extensive bibliography. The book begins by tracing the ideas behind local and regional models of isostasy, arguing that only flexure is in accord with geological observations. It then proceeds to describe the theoretical background, the observational evidence and, the constraints that flexure has provided on physical properties of the lithosphere. The book concludes with a discussion of flexure's role in understanding the evolution of the surface features of the Earth and its neighboring planets.
This book is intended for use as a graduate-level text for students of geophysics, geodesy and geology and other related fields. It will also be of interest to researchers in gravity and geodesy, tectonics and basin analysis.