How rigid is Europe's lithosphere?

The integrated strength distribution and variations of the effective elastic plate thickness (Te) have been estimated for the European lithosphère based on thermal and rheological data for the crust and upper mantle. The new results show a significant spatial variability demonstrating that both 'jelly sandwich' and 'crème brÛlée' models might be valid depending on lithospheric physical conditions. In most of Europe crustal strength provides a relatively large contribution (50%) to the lithospheric strength. Western Europe appears mostly characterized by mechanically decoupled lithospheric layers, low strength and Te < 30 km. The contribution of the mechanically strong mantle to Te is low in most parts of western Europe. No clear relationship between Te and thermal age is found in the continent: the values for the tectonic provinces older than 85 Ma are significantly smaller than theoretically expected for their age and crustal thickness, whereas the opposite is true for the younger provinces.