Editing Sedimentary basin (section)

=== Lithospheric flexure === 
[[File:Viscoelastic lithospheric flexure.png|thumb|Schematic illustration of viscoelastic lithospheric flexure]]
[[Lithospheric flexure]] is another geodynamic mechanism that can cause regional subsidence resulting in the creation of a sedimentary basin. If a load is placed on the lithosphere, it will tend to flex in the manner of an elastic plate. The magnitude of the lithospheric flexure is a function of the imposed load and the ''[[flexural rigidity]]'' of the lithosphere, and the wavelength of flexure is a function of flexural rigidity of the lithospheric plate. Flexural rigidity is in itself, a function of the lithospheric mineral composition, thermal regime, and effective elastic thickness of the lithosphere.<ref name="AllenandAllen" />

Plate tectonic processes that can create sufficient loads on the lithosphere to induce basin-forming processes include:
* formation of new mountain belts through [[orogeny]] create massive regional topographic highs that impose loads on the lithosphere and can result in [[foreland basin]]s.
* growth of a [[volcanic arc]] as the result of subduction or even the formation of a [[Hotspot (geology)|hotspot volcanic chain]].
* growth of an [[accretionary wedge]] and thrusting of it onto the overriding tectonic plate can contribute to the formation of forearc basins.

After any kind of sedimentary basin has begun to form, the load created by the water and sediments filling the basin creates additional load, thus causing additional lithospheric flexure and amplifying the original subsidence that created the basin, regardless of the original cause of basin inception.<ref name="AllenandAllen" />