1 The High Arctic geopotential stress field and its implications for the geodynamic 2 evolution 3 Christian Schiffer1*, Christian Tegner2, Andrew J. Schaeffer3, Victoria Pease4, Søren B. 4 Nielsen2 5 1Department of Earth Sciences, Durham University, Durham DH1 3LE, UK 6 2Centre of Earth System Petrology, Department of Geoscience, Aarhus University, 8000 7 Aarhus, Denmark 8 3Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Ottawa, 120 9 University, Ottawa ON Canada, K1N 6N5 10 4Department of Geological Sciences, Stockholm University, 106 91, Sweden 11 *Corresponding Author (email:
[email protected]) 12 13 14 Abstract 15 We use new models of crustal structure and the depth of the lithosphere-asthenosphere 16 boundary to calculate geopotential energy and its corresponding geopotential stress field for 17 the High Arctic. Palaeo-stress indicators such as dykes and rifts of known age are used to 18 compare the present-day and palaeo stress field. When both stress fields coincide, a 19 minimum age for the configuration of the lithospheric stress field may be defined. We 20 identify three regions in which this is observed. In North Greenland and the eastern 21 Amerasia Basin the stress field is likely the same as during the late Cretaceous. In western 22 Siberia, the stress field is similar to that of the Triassic. The stress directions on the eastern 23 Russian Arctic shelf and the Amerasia Basin are similar to that of the Cretaceous. The 24 persistent misfit of the present stress field and Early Cretaceous dyke swarms associated 25 with the High Arctic Large Igneous Province indicates a short-lived transient change of the 26 stress field at the time of dyke emplacement.