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Tamu Massif

Coordinates:33°N158°E/ 33°N 158°E/33; 158
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Tamu Massif
Abathymetric mapof the volcano
Map
Summit depth1,980 metres (6,500 ft)[1]
Height4,460 metres (14,620 ft)[1]
Location
LocationNorthwest Pacific Ocean
RangeShatsky Rise
Coordinates33°N158°E/ 33°N 158°E/33; 158
Geology
TypeSeamount(underwater volcano),shield volcano
Age of rock144.6 ± 0.8 Ma[2]

Tamu Massifis aseamountin the northwestPacific Ocean,[3]sitting atop a triple junction ofmid-ocean ridges.[1]Tamu Massif is located in theShatsky Riseabout 1,600 km (990 mi) east ofJapan.The massif covers an area of about 553,000 square kilometres (214,000 sq mi). Its summit is about 1,980 m (6,500 ft) below the surface of the ocean, and its base extends to about 6.4 km (4.0 mi) deep.[1]It is about 4,460 metres (14,620 ft) tall.

* Tamu
Massif
Shatsky Rise
Emperor Seamounts Chain
Hawaiian Ridge
Japan
Kamchatka
Alaska
* Tamu
Massif
Shatsky Rise
Emperor Seamounts Chain
Hawaiian Ridge
Japan
Kamchatka
Alaska
Location of Tamu Massif[4][5]

William Sager,amarine geophysicistfrom the Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences at theUniversity of Houston,began studying Tamu Massif around 1993 at theTexas A&M College of Geosciences.In September 2013, Sager and his team concluded that Tamu Massif is "the biggest single shield volcano ever discovered on Earth". Other igneous features on the planet are larger, such as theOntong Java Plateau,but it has not yet been determined if they are indeed just one volcano or rather complexes of several volcanoes.[6]

Etymology

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The nameTamuis taken from the initials ofTexas A&M University.[7]William Sager, a geology professor and one of the lead scientists studying the volcano, previously taught at Texas A&M. Amassif,which means "massive" in French, is a large mountain or a section of the planet's crust that is demarcated by faults and flexures.

Geology

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The Tamu Massif was formed about 145 million years ago during the LateJurassicto EarlyCretaceousperiod[1]over a relatively short period of time (a few million years) and then became extinct.[1]Tamu Massif was formed during a single geologically brief eruptive period, which scientists had previously thought was impossible on Earth.[8][9]If confirmed, the suggestion that it could be a singlevolcano[10]would make the Tamu Massif the largest known volcano onEarth,dwarfing the current record-holder,Pūhāhonu,in theHawaiian Islands.The main part of Tamu's rounded dome extends over an area of 450 km × 650 km (280 mi × 400 mi), totaling more than 292,500 km2(112,900 sq mi), many times larger than Mauna Loa, which has an area of 5,000 km2(1,900 sq mi), and about half the area of theMartianvolcanoOlympus Mons.[a]The entire mass of Tamu consists ofbasalt.Itsslopesare very gradual, ranging from less than half a degree to one degree near its summit. The Shatsky Rise oceanic plateau is comparable in size toCaliforniaorJapan,[1]but Tamu Massif, which is the plateau's oldest and largest edifice, is comparable in size toNew Mexico,[1][12]orBritainandIrelandtogether.[4]A study in 2016 found that Tamu Massif likely encompassed the entire Shatsky Rise, meaning that Tamu Massif has an area of about 533,000 square kilometres (206,000 sq mi), surpassing Olympus Mons in surface area, though it has not yet been determined which of the two volcanoes has a greater mass.[9]

Usingmagnetic lineations,researchers discovered that there are three bathymetric highs and a low ridge, a topography that would imply three separate volcanoes; but theplume-headmodelindicates a single massive volcano.[10][13]Based on multichannel seismic profiles and rock samples fromIntegrated Ocean Drilling Program(IODP) core sites, Tamu Massif appears to be a single massive volcano made of lava flows that emanated from the volcano centre and formed its shield shape; however, the profiles have large gaps in them, leaving open the possibility that it may represent the activity of more than one volcano.[10]A subsequent study in 2016 found that the massif was likely generated by a single volcano.[9]In 2015, researchers found that the volcano's structure bore patterns ofmagnetic stripingon either side, indicating that the volcano is likely a hybrid of amid-ocean ridgeand ashield volcano.Geologic data also indicated that Tamu Massif formed at thejunction of threemid-ocean ridges, which was a highly unusual occurrence.[14]

A study found that theMoho line,the boundary between the Earth's crust and mantle, extends more than 30 kilometres (19 mi) beneath the base of Tamu Massif, meaning that the volcano is unlikely to ever erupt again, since magma is presumably unable to penetrate a barrier that thick.[9]

See also

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  • Mauna Loa– The third-largest volcano on Earth; also the largest active volcano and the largest volcano extending above sea level
  • Pūhāhonu- The second-largest volcano on Earth, the largest shield volcano on Earth, nearly twice as large as Mauna Loa
  • Ring of Fire
  • Tharsis– A massive volcanic plateau on the western hemisphere of Mars that includes Olympus Mons

References

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Informational notes

  1. ^However, other Martian volcanoes,Alba MonsandSyrtis Major,have areas more than twice that of Olympus Mons.[11]

Citations

  1. ^abcdefghDennis Bryant (2013-09-05)."Possibly the largest single volcano on Earth".Maritime Magazine.Retrieved2013-10-04.
  2. ^J. J. Mahoney (2005). "Jurassic-Cretaceous boundary age and mid-ocean-ridge–type mantle source for Shatsky Rise".Geology.33(3): 185.Bibcode:2005Geo....33..185M.doi:10.1130/G21378.1.
  3. ^Witze, Alexandra (5 September 2013). "Underwater volcano is Earth's biggest".Nature.doi:10.1038/nature.2013.13680.
  4. ^abRik Myslewski (2013-09-05)."The Solar System's second-largest volcano found hiding on Earth".theregister.co.uk.Retrieved2013-09-07.
  5. ^"Bottomfish fisheries by Japan, Russia, and Republic of Korea occur on various seamounts in the northwest Pacific within international waters".pifsc.noaa.gov.Honolulu, HI: Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center,NOAA.Retrieved2013-09-07.
  6. ^"Scientists Confirm Existence of Largest Single Volcano On Earth".ScienceDaily.2013-09-05.Retrieved2013-09-07.
  7. ^"World's Largest Volcano Now Named TAMU".Tamu Times.Texas A&M University. 2013-09-05. Archived fromthe originalon 2013-09-08.Retrieved2013-09-07.
  8. ^Trevor Nace (28 November 2015)."World's Largest Volcano Tamu Massif – Mapped For Clues To Earth's Interior".Forbes.Retrieved3 July2019.
  9. ^abcdStephen Chen (24 March 2016)."Tamu Massif even more massive: world's largest volcano almost same size as Japan, widest in solar system".South China Morning Post.Retrieved2 July2019.
  10. ^abcWilliam W. Sager (2013). "An immense shield volcano within the Shatsky Rise oceanic plateau, northwest Pacific Ocean".Nature Geoscience.6(11): 976–981.Bibcode:2013NatGe...6..976S.doi:10.1038/ngeo1934.
  11. ^J. B. Plescia (2004)."Morphometric properties of Martian volcanoes".Journal of Geophysical Research.109(E3): E03003.Bibcode:2004JGRE..109.3003P.doi:10.1029/2002JE002031.
  12. ^Meeri Kim (2013-09-06)."New Mexico-size volcano discovered in the depths of the Pacific Ocean".Washington Post.Retrieved2013-09-10.
  13. ^William Sager."Tectonic Evolution of Shatsky Rise: A Plateau Formed by a Plume Head or Not?".MantlePlumes.org.Retrieved2013-09-07.
  14. ^Witze, Alexandra (19 November 2015). "The world's biggest volcano is a magnetic mix-up".Nature.doi:10.1038/nature.2015.18842.S2CID181358030.
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