Intraplate Volcanism
We know why igneousactivity is initiated along plate boundaries, but why do eruptions occur in the interiors of plates? Hawaii's Kilauea is considered the world's most active volcano, yetitis sit uated thousands of kilometers from the nearest plate boundary in me the middle of the vast Pacific plate(Figure 9.36C). Other sites of intraplate volcanism(meaning"within the plate) include the e Canary Islands, Yellowstone, and several volcanic centers that ed you may be surprised to learn are located in the Sahara Desert of Africa. Geologists now recognize that most intraplate volcanism of occurs where a mass of hotter than normal mantle material called l a mantle plume ascends toward the surface(Figure 9.360) in Although the depth at which(atleast some) mantle plumes orig n- inate is still hotly debated, some appear to form deep within Earth at the core-mantle boundary. These plumes of solid yet nt mobile mantle rock rise toward the surface in a manner similar to to the blobs that form within a lava lamp. (These are the lamps