Sager, William W., Sano, Takashi and Geldmacher, Jörg (2011) How do oceanic plateaus form? Clues from drilling at Shatsky Rise. Eos, Transactions American Geophysical Union, 92 (5). pp. 37-38. DOI 10.1029/2011EO050001.

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Abstract

Oceanic plateaus are huge basaltic constructions whose eruptions may briefly outstrip even global mid-ocean ridge magma production. Although they form great undersea mountains, their origins are poorly understood. A widely accepted explanation is that oceanic plateaus are built by massive eruptions from the head of nascent thermal mantle plumes that rise from deep in the mantle to the surface [e.g., Duncan and Richards, 1991]. An alternative is that plateaus erupt by decompression melting of fusible patches in the upper mantle at plate edges or zones of extension [Foulger, 2007].

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