A test of alternative Caribbean plate relative motion models

The new NUVEL-1 data set for global relative plate motions is used here to discriminate between the two prevailing models for Caribbean plate motion. One model, by Jordan (1975), assumes that North America-Caribbean motion is reflected by the spreading rate inferred from magnetic anomalies at the Cayman Spreading Center and the azimuths of nearby transforms. The other model, by Sykes et al. (1982), uses rates and azimuths inferred from the geometry of the Lesser Antilles Wadati-Benioff zone. Overall, it is found that the data fit the Jordan geometry better, that the data used in global plate motion models are more suitable than rates and azimuths inferred from the geometry of the Wadati-Benioff zone for determining relative motions, and that incorporation of all relevant plate boundaries is essential.