Mantle plume

A mantle plume is a proposed mechanism of convection within the Earth's mantle, hypothesized to explain anomalous volcanism.^[2] Because the plume head partially melts on reaching shallow depths, a plume is often invoked as the cause of volcanic hotspots, such as Hawaii or Iceland, and large igneous provinces such as the Deccan and Siberian Traps. Some such volcanic regions lie far from tectonic plate boundaries, while others represent unusually large-volume volcanism near plate boundaries.

as previously theorized and widely accepted, the predominant, steady state plate tectonic regime driven by upper , mainly the sinking of cold plates of lithosphere back into the asthenosphere.

mantle convection

the punctuated, intermittently dominant mantle overturn regime driven by plume convection that carries heat upward from the core-mantle boundary in a narrow column. This second regime, while often discontinuous, is periodically significant in mountain building^[10] and continental breakup.^[11]

[6]

Continental break-up;

Fertility at mid-ocean ridges;

Enhanced volcanism at plate boundary junctions;

Small-scale sublithospheric convection;

Oceanic intraplate extension;

Slab tearing and break-off;

Shallow mantle convection;

Abrupt lateral changes in stress at structural discontinuities;

Continental intraplate extension;

Catastrophic lithospheric thinning;

Sublithospheric melt ponding and draining.

– Loss of the portion of the lowermost lithosphere from the tectonic plate to which it was attached

Delamination (geology)

– Upheavals or depressions of land exhibiting long wavelengths and little folding

Epeirogenic movement

– The formation of mountain ranges

Orogeny

– Hypothetical volcanic eruption event caused by the buildup of gas deep underneath a craton

Verneshot

– volcanism that takes place away from the margins of tectonic plates

Intraplate volcanism

on YouTube by Facts In Motion.

Mantle Plumes Explained

Seismic-tomography image of Yellowstone mantle plume

Large Igneous Provinces Commission

– managed and maintained by Gillian R. Foulger.