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Figure F9. Simplified cartoon of the opening of the Japan Sea (modified from Tamaki et al., 1992). Crustal thinning and extension prevails at the initial stage. Seafloor spreading was triggered by the breakup of the lithosphere along the strike-slip margin at the eastern side of the Japan Sea. The spreading center propagated southwestward to increase the area of the oceanic crust while the southern Japan Sea was undergoing thinning.

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