Can you suggest a book that discusses Extension as a volcano origin? How
does this differ from a hot spot? Are there any recently active
'extension' volcanoes ?
Marcy
Dear Marcy,
I suggest reading the sections about rift volcanoes in
Volcanoes
by Peter
Francis and
Volcanic Successions
by
R.A.F Cas and J.V. Wright.
Volcanoes in rift systems are associated with extension and usually occur
in linear chains in or adjacent to the rift (either oceanic or
continental). Magma is fed from the asthenosphere to the surface through
cracks in the lithosphere. Hot spot volcanoes are associated with narrow
mantle plumes that rise through the mantle to feed the hotspot.
Migration of the lithospheric plate over the hotspot can produce a line
of volcanoes (see the
Hot Spot lesson)
. Volcanoes
in both settings tend to erupt basalt.
Erebus is an active
volcano in an extensional setting.
Thanks for your question.
Steve Mattox, University of North Dakota
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