# Continental rifts losing driving forces can still complete breakup

## TL;DR

This study shows that continental rifts can still break apart even if the forces driving them weaken over time.

## Contribution

The study introduces a new modeling approach to show how continental breakup can occur under varying driving forces.

## Key findings

- Later initiation of traction reduction and slower reduction rates promote continental breakup.
- A 25% reduction in boundary traction can still lead to breakup under optimal conditions.
- Non-monotonic extension velocity evolution is observed and explained by dynamic force balance.

## Abstract

The complex evolution of continental rift systems results from the intricate interplay of external driving forces and the rift system’s responses. For this reason, allowing plate kinematics to emerge from the force balance can provide deeper insights than imposing prescribed velocity boundary conditions. This study investigates the influence of temporally varying driving forces, possibly resulting from changes in slab dynamics, on rift evolution using numerical and semi-analytical models. We examined the effects of varying the timing (\documentclass[12pt]{minimal}
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\begin{document}$$V_\text {E}$$\end{document}). Our models demonstrate that later initiation of traction reduction and slower reduction rates promote continental breakup. A 25% reduction in boundary traction can still lead to continental breakup under optimal conditions, while a 50% reduction generally results in failed rifts. Non-monotonic \documentclass[12pt]{minimal}
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\begin{document}$$V_\text {E}$$\end{document} evolution, including temporary velocity increases during force reduction, is observed and explained by dynamic force balance. Our results show that a continental rift can accelerate towards breakup even when it is currently extending slowly due to a reduced driving force that can arise from many different situations.