Alpha Cordillera

basin, Arctic Ocean

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June 18, 2026

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The Alpha Cordillera is a submarine mountain range within the Arctic Ocean. It is an aseismic ridge, meaning it is not associated with earthquake activity. This ridge divides the Arctic Ocean into two major basins: the Eurasia Basin and the Amerasia Basin. The depth of the basins varies, with the Atlantic side being over 13,000 feet deep and the adjacent basin around 11,000 feet deep. The Alpha Cordillera's origin is not fully understood, but it is believed to have formed by the rotation of the Arctic-Alaska lithospheric plate away from the North American Plate during the Cretaceous Period.12

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Arctic Ocean
Topography of the ocean floor
…two unequal basins by the Alpha Cordillera (Alpha Ridge), a broad, rugged submarine mountain chain that extends to within 4,600 feet of the ocean surface. The origin of this seismically inactive ridge, which was discovered in the late 1950s, is undetermined and holds the key to understanding the origin of…
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…two unequal basins by the Alpha Cordillera (Alpha Ridge), a broad, rugged submarine mountain chain that extends to within 4,600 feet of the ocean surface. The origin of this seismically inactive ridge, which was discovered in the late 1950s, is undetermined and holds the key to understanding the origin of…
Read More