Hot Spots- Key terms Flashcards
What is a mantle plume?
A mantle plume is upwelling magma heated by the hot spot in the Earth’s mantle
What is an island chain?
A succession of volcanoes formed by the plate moving over a hot spot like a conveyor belt
What is a sea mount?
When older volcanoes in an island chain are no longer active and are worn down by marine erosion, becoming low enough to be beneath the surface
What is a supervolcano?
When a pool of magma is trapped beneath continental crust and builds up pressure until it erupts in a huge explosion
What is a caldera?
A caldera is when the land above the pool if magma can no longer be supported and so collapses forming a huge depression
What is a hot spot?
A hot spot is a small area in the Earth’s crust where an unusually high amount of radioactivity leads to volcanic activity
