Av Jörg Ebbing, NGU	01.11.2005 12:40

Topographically, the Scandes mountain range can be divided in the Northern and Southern Scandes. Comparisons between the present topographic expression and the gravity field and the geoid show that the axis of highest elevation in the Northern Scandes is shifted eastwards compared to the minimum of the Bouguer anomaly, while the two coincide perfectly in the Southern Scandes.

Flexural, isostatic calculations yield a small component of regional isostatic compensation for the lithosphere of the Southern Scandes. This and comparison with regional seismic experiments shows that additional support of the isostatic sytem is required from the lithospheric mantle. On the other side, for the topographic load of the Northern Scandes no regional isostatic support can be resolved. Local subsurface loading and horizontal tectonic forces overprint the isostatic compensations and increase the tectonic complexity.

These distinctive features of the Scandes cannot be convincingly explained by currently existing models of the present and Neogene uplift and the isostatic mechanism of the Scandes. Notably, the offshore prolongations of the major onshore detachments stemming from the Late Caledonian orogenic collapse control the crustal geometry in the deep Møre and Vøring basin, offshore Norway.