(ORDO NEWS) — Scientists from the Imperial College London have explained the exact mechanisms of the origin of magma in volcanic processes using the example of tectonic shifts in the eastern Caribbean.
The findings of the observations, described in the journal Science Advances, help to understand the type and speed of volcanic eruptions, the composition of erupted magma, and other mechanisms of volcanic activity.
It is known that due to tectonic processes, one tectonic plate can go under another, plunging into the Earth‘s mantle and melting the accumulated water that gets there through faults in the earth’s crust.
As a result, magma rises to the surface. However, until now, little was known about the exact origin of magma underground.
The study used 3D earthquake and ocean floor data from the eastern Caribbean that formed the volcanic Lesser Antilles.
It turned out that seismic waves pass through various materials, after which they slow down or accelerate, as well as the strength of earthquakes in general. The process is most weakened by hot and molten rock.
The analysis showed that the zone of the strongest seismic attenuation was shifted to the side of the volcanoes.
The researchers hypothesized that this is because water is forced out of the plate and then carried down, causing the mantle to melt outside the volcanic system.
The molten material then accumulates at the base of the overburden before it travels back to the base of the volcano.
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