Submarine Volcanoes

General features of the ocean basins.

Map courtesy of NASA and the Smithsonian Institution.

The most productive volcanic systems on Earth are hidden under an average of 8,500 feet (2,600 m) of water. Beneath the oceans a global system of mid-ocean ridges produces an estimated 75% of the annual output of magma . An estimated 0.7 cubic miles (3 cubic kilometers) of lava is erupted. The magma and lava create the edges of new oceanic plates and supply heat and chemicals to some of the Earth's most unusual and rare ecosystems.

Contact between young pillow lavas erupted in mid-1980s and older lavas with light dusting of sediment.

Hand-held photo from submersible Alvin taken on Cleft segment of southern Juan de Fuca Ridge.

Photo by Bill Chadwick of NOAA and Oregon State University.

If an estimate of 4,000 volcanoes per million square kilometers on the floor of the Pacific Ocean is extrapolated for all the oceans than there are more than a million submarine (underwater) volcanoes. Perhaps as many as 75,000 of these volcanoes rise over half a mile (1 kilometer) above the ocean floor. Technology and hard work by a group of tenacious explorers/geologists have allowed us our first detailed glimpses of submarine volcanoes. The following pages outline some of the basic characteristics and features of submarine volcanoes.





Plate Tectonic Setting Map of the Earth's tectonic plates. Based on a map prepared by the U.S. Geological Survey. Like continental volcanoes, submarine volcanoes are most common where tectonic plates move towards or away from each other. In the case of divergent plate boundaries, where plates are spreading away from each other, the rate of plate movement plays an important role in determining the type of volcano that forms and the rate of eruptive activity. Submarine volcanoes at convergent plate boundaries (subduction zones) are much like their subaerial ("under air" or continental) counterparts except that the weight of the overlying water modifies their eruption style. Hot spots leave linear "tracks" of seamounts across the ocean basins and build some of Earth's largest volcanoes. Hot Spot Volcanism Hot Spot Volcanism Hot Spot volcanoes are recognized by an age progression from one end of the chain to the other. An active volcano commonly serves as an "anchor" at one end of the chain. The most studied and best well-known hot spot volcanoes and seamounts define the Hawaii-Emperor volcanic chain. The origin and evolution of Hawiian volcanoes, seamounts, and guyots are described in the Hawaiian Volcano Lessons. Left: Another noteworthy hot spot track extends from India to the island of Reunion. About 66-68 million years ago present-day India was above the hot spot and great volumes of basaltic lava erupted to produce the Deccan Traps. As the plate moved northeast over the hot spot more volcanic centers formed: the Maldives from 55-60 million years ago, the Chagos Ridge 48 million years ago, the Mascarene Plateau 40 million years ago, and the Mauritus Islands from 18-28 million years ago. The youngest volcanoes, Piton des Neiges and Piton de la Fournaise, formed in the last 5 million years. The summits of these volcanoes make the island of Reunion. Piton des Neiges is extinct . Piton de la Fournaise is one of the most active volcanoes on Earth. Map from Scarth (1994). Right: Piton de la Fournaise is also one of the biggest volcanoes on Earth. From the ocean floor it is over 21,600 feet (6,600 m) tall. The base of the volcano has a diameter of 135 miles (220 km)(the base of Mount St. Helens has a diameter of about 9 km). Because of Piton de la Fournaise's great size it is unstable and collapses to form giant landslides like those in Hawaii. This SIR-C image shows the summit of the volcano and the scarps of the giant landslides. Image courtesy of Pete Mouginis-Mark, University of Hawaii. A volcano above a hot spot does not erupt forever. Eventually the movement of the tectonic plate carries the volcano off of its magma supply. The volcano becomes extinct and cools. The plate beneath the volcano (and above the hot spot) also cools. The rocks that make the volcano and plate become more dense. The volcano and the plate gradually subside as they move away from the hot spot. Even giant volcanoes, like Mauna Loa on Hawaii, will eventually disappear into the ocean. As the volcano subsides below sea-level the top is eroded flat by waves. This series of steps leads to a series of evolutionary stages that are well illustrated by the Hawaii-Emperor volcanic chain. This series of steps explains the formation of most guyots, seamounts with flat tops. Other explanations proposed for the formation of guyots include extrusion of lava from ring-shaped conduits. This topographic map of a large guyot is from Vogt and Smoot (1984). The North Arch volcanic field was recently discovered north of Oahu and is related to the Hawaiian hot spot. The volcanic field is on the Hawaiian Arch. The arch is about 600 feet (200 m) high and formed by the weight of the adjacent islands causing the crust to bend. The volcanic field is made of flood basalts that cover an area of 9,650 square miles (25,000 square km). The flows extend about 60 miles (100 km) north and south away from the arch. The youngest lava range in age from 750,000 to 900,000 years old. The oldest flows are about 2.7 million years old. The field is made of sheetflows and small hills of pillow lava and hyaloclastite Chemically, the lavas are similar to the rejuvenated stage of Hawaiian volcanoes The North Arch volcanic field began erupting when the Waianea and Koolau volcanoes of Oahu were large shields and continue to erupt until Haleakala volcano on Maui was formed. Map from Clague and others (1990). Submarine Volcanoes at Convergent Plate Boundaries Convergent Plate Boundaries Sections of the Ring of Fire , subduction zones that surround much of the Pacific Ocean, are underwater. Submarine volcanoes at these convergent plate boundaries are much like their counterparts on land. Many of these volcanoes form new islands that last only a short time. Left: Perhaps the most famous submarine volcano is Krakatau, a submerged caldera located between Java and Sumatra. The 1883 eruption killed at least 36,400 people. Most of these people were killed by tsunami . Above: Metis Shoal, a submarine volcano near the Tonga Islands, has erupted nine times since 1851. The summit of the volcano is only a few meters below sea level. The 1979 eruption lasted more than two months, producing a small island that lasted several months before being washed away, and sending rafts of pumice as large as 15x30 miles (25x45 km) floating to the northwest. The most recent eruption began in early June of 1995. As an island grew above sea level a lava dome , about 90 feet feet (30 m) high and 450 feet (150m) is diameter, formed in only a few days. Explosions threw ash to heights of 1500 feet (500 m). A week later the dome was three times larger. The dome stopped growing in late June and may resist erosion for some time. Photo of the dome courtesy Brad Scott, June 28 1995, while on board the Tongan tug Hifofua. Right: Kavachi, a submarine volcano in the Solomon Islands, has built itself above sea level at least nine times since 1950. The volcano has had 25 known submarine eruptions since 1938. Most of these eruptions include small to moderate explosions. This photograph was taken by John Grover in the early 1960s. Slide courtesy U.S. Geological Survey. Left: Another very active submarine volcano is Monowai seamount , about midway between the Tonga and Kermadec island groups. The volcano is about 3,000 feet (1,000 m) high and less than 600 feet (200 m) below sea-level. Monowai has erupted at least eight times since 1977. An eruption was suspected in 1944. Most eruptions were detected using acoustics but during the 1977-1979 eruption upwelling and discolored seawater was observed. Monowai erupted most recently in September of 1996 and in April of 1997. Top: Bathymetric map of Monowai seamount. The contour interval is 100 m. Bottom: Profile across Monowai seamount. Vertical exaggeration = 3.7. From Davey (1980). Right: The New World Seamount (top corner of this image),north of Lihir island in Papua New Guinea is 2.5 miles (4 km) wide at its base and has a conical peak. The volcano rises about 1,800 feet (600 m) off the seafloor and has a deep central crater . Sheet and pillow lava flows, volcanic breccias and lag deposits have been photographed at the summit. This seamount is extinct and never rose above sealevel. The subaerial SAR data of Lihir Island was supplied with permission by Lihir Mining Co. Ltd., while the bathymetry data was collected during the R/V SONNE SO-94 Research Cruise (EDISON PROJECT) organized by Freiberg University of Mining & Technology and funded by the German Federal Ministry for Research and Technology (BMFT Grant 03G0094A to P. Herzig). Additional information about the seamount and other seamounts and volcanoes in the area is available on the CSIRO Exploration & Mining (Magmatic-Hydrothermal Cu-Au Group) homepage. The New World Seamount and the volcanoes that make Lihir Island are associated with the subduction of the Pacific Plate under the North Bismarck microplate. The tectonics in this part of the world is very complicated. A spreading center creates the North and South Bismarck microplates. The Pacific plate is subducted under the North Bismarck Plate. The Solomon Sea microplate is subducted under the South Bismarck microplate. Map from Herzig and others (1994). Some submarine volcanoes host economic deposits of metals. For example, Kuroko deposits, named for an occurrence in Japan, are hosted in dacite and rhyolite domes and their associated breccias that formed on the basaltic ocean floor. Deposits of zinc, copper, lead, and gold formed when the volcano was active. The volcanoes are later uplifted above sea level or added to the margin of the continent. Modern volcanoes that are forming this type of deposit are found in back-arc basins, areas of rifting behind active volcanic arcs. Understanding modern volcanic environments helps geologist search for more metal deposits. This cross-section of a typical Kuroko deposit is from Sato (1974) and Franklin and others (1981). Submarine Volcanoes at Divergent Plate Boundaries Submarine Volcanoes at Divergent Plate Boundaries A section of the mid-Atlantic Ridge where the African and South American Plates are created. A rift valley over a mile (2 km) deep marks the axis of the ridge. Depths range from 1900 (pink) to 4200 meters (dark blue). Image used with permission of Ken Macdonald. Divergent (or spreading centers) plate boundaries are characterized by features called mid-ocean ridges. Combined, the ridges are nearly 46,000 miles (74,000 km) long. The ridges are home to Earth's highest mountains, deepest canyons, and longest escarpments. The shape of the mid-ocean ridge and the style and rate of volcanism is controlled by the rate the plates move apart. Growth of tectonic plates at mid-ocean ridges. This photo shows a ropy lava flow erupted in April 1991, on the floor of the axial summit collapse trough of the East Pacific Rise near 9 degrees 50.6'N. Note dead tubeworms. Photography courtesy of Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution and members of the Adventure dive (Principle Investigators: D. Fornari, R. Haymon, K. Von Damm, M. Perfit, M. Lilley, and R. Lutz). New oceanic plates are created at mid-ocean ridges. About 2.4 cubic miles (10 cubic km) of new oceanic crust is added each year (not all of this magma is erupted by volcanoes). This is about 100 times the volume of lava erupted by Kilauea each year. Mid-ocean ridges are divided into these groups based on their spreading rates: Slow: 1-5 cm/yr total opening rate

Medium: 5-10 cm/yr total opening rate

Fast: 10-20 cm/yr total opening rate Fast: 10-20 cm/yr Fast Spreading: Pacific Rise Computer-generated topographic map of the east Pacific Rise near 9 degrees north. Blues and greens represent lower elevations. Yellows and reds represent higher elevations. The narrow axis (red linear features) and narrow or absent axial rift, characteristics of fast-spreading mid-ocean ridges, are obvious. The spreading centers overlap near the middle of the image. The cones in the top-right corner of the image are a linear chain of near-axis seamounts on the Pacific Plate. The seamounts are greater than 200 m tall. The Clipperton transform fault offsets the ridge at the top of the image. View is to the north. Compare with map below. Image courtesy of Stacey Tighe, University of Rhode Island. Image from U.S. Geological Survey's This Dynamic Earth. Fast-spreading mid-ocean ridges move 100-200 mm/yr. The East Pacific Rise is perhaps the best studied fast-spreading mid-ocean ridge. The ridge segment that creates the Nazca and Pacific plates moves up to 5.6 inches (142 mm) each year. The topography across fast-spreading mid-ocean ridges is less pronounced relative to slow-spreading mid-ocean ridges. Geologists believe the amount of heat and magma plays an important role in defining the morphology and behavior of the ridge. At a slow-spreading mid-ocean ridge magma is supplied at a slow rate and the oceanic plates cool, causing the crest of the ridge to subside. At a fast-spreading mid-ocean ridge the magma supply rate is higher. This keeps the plates warmer and the crest of the rise does not subside. Cross-section of East Pacific Rise at 3 degrees S from Macdonald (1982). Vertical exaggeration = 4x. In contrast with slow spreading mid-ocean-ridges, where hundreds of seamounts form in the rift along the crest or the ridge, volcanism at fast spreading mid-ocean-ridges is much like the subaerial fissure erupts associated with volcanic rift zones. This photo shows a curtain of fire during an eruption of Mauna Loa in Hawaii. Photo by Robin Holcomb, U.S. Geological Survey's Hawaiian Volcano Observatory, July 5, 1975. Left: This map shows segments of the East Pacific Rise near the Clipperton Transform. The thick black lines show the location of the spreading axes along the rise. The thick red lines indicate portions of the rises where the presence of an axial magma chamber has been inferred. Stars show the location of active hydrothermal vent areas. Compare to the computer-generated topographic map at the top of this page. Modified from Macdonald and Fox (1988). Magma chambers extend tens of kilometers along the axes of fast spreading mid-ocean-ridges. These magma chambers feed the fissure eruptions. Some magma chambers are only little more than half a mile (one kilometer) beneath the seafloor. This cross-section of the oceanic crust along the northern East Pacific Rise is based on a model proposed by Sinton and Detrick (1992) and modified by Perfit and others (1994). The cross-section is 5 miles (8 km) across and 3 miles (5 km) deep. The ' Moho ' marks the base of the crust and the top of the mantle . ASC is the Axial Summit Caldera . In addition to fissure eruptions, another style of volcanism occurs at fast-spreading mid-ocean ridges. Central-vent eruptions away from the axis of the spreading center form near-axis seamounts (Scheirer and Macdonald, 1995). These volcanoes range in height from 150-7,500 feet (50-2500 m). Small seamounts are much more common than large ones with the characteristic height of seamounts in the Pacific ranging from 180-900 feet (60-300 m). The summits of the volcanoes can be flat or include craters. The flanks of the volcanoes have gentle slopes between 5 and 25 degrees. This image is constructed from side scan data and shows the P9 degrees 05 seamount chain. Image courtesy of Ken Macdonald (see Journal of Geophysical Research, v. 100, no. B2, p. 2239-2259). Fresh lava at the summits of these volcanoes indicates they continue to erupt up to 50 miles (80 km) from the spreading center. Most of the off-axis seamounts form linear chains away from the spreading center with the most recent activity closer to the rise. The origin of near-axis seamounts, volcanoes that form away from the axis of the spreading center is controversial. Some geologist suggests "mini-hotspots" feed these volcanoes. Other geologists have postulated that broad mantle upwellings beneath the ridge feed magma to the volcanoes. This type of volcanism produces about 1.5-2 percent of new oceanic crust (Shen and others, 1993). The volume of lava erupted at near-axis seamounts is small relative to hot spot volcanoes like Hawaii. This diagram compares the volumes erupted at seamounts along the northern East Pacific Rise (NEPR), the southern East Pacific Rise (SEPR), and the Hawaiian hot spot in the last 2 million years. The Hawaiian hot spot has produced about 20 times more lava, relative to the northern East Pacific Rise, during this period. The volume of lava erupted at the southern East Pacific Rise is about 3 times greater than the northern East Pacific Rise. Volume estimates from Scheirer and Macdonald (1995). Medium: 5-10 cm/yr Medium Spreading-Rate Mid-Ocean Ridges Mid-Ocean Ridges with medium spreading rates are transitional in character between slow- and fast-spreading ridges. The rift valley of a mid-ocean ridge with a medium spreading (5-10 cm/yr) is only about 50-200 m deep. The rift is only 5 km across. Cross-section of East Pacific Rise at 21 degrees N from Macdonald (1982). Vertical exaggeration = 4x. The Juan de Fuca Ridge, only about 200 miles (300 km) west of the state of Washington, is perhaps the most studied ridge with a medium spreading rate. The Juan de Fuca Ridge creates part of the Pacific plate and all of the Juan de Fuca plate. Map of the northeast Pacific from Johnston and Embley (1990). Note the presence of linear seamount chains associated with hot spots. One of the most interesting features of the Juan de Fuca Ridge is the Axial volcano. This active volcano is located at the intersection of the Cobb-Eikelberg hotspot and the Juan de Fuca Ridge. The hot spot has produced the Cobb-Eikelberg chain, a broad band of seamounts which extend over 900 miles (1,500 km) to the northwest. Image courtesy of U.S. Dept. of Commerce / NOAA / OAR / ERL / PMEL / VENTS Program. Axial seamount is a broad volcano with a summit caldera and two rift zones. The large size of the volcano (roughly 12 by 18 miles; 20 x 30 km) is related to the input from the hotspot. The presence of the caldera suggests eruption from a shallow magma chamber and subsequent collapse. The summit of the volcano is less than a mile (1.4 km) below sea level. Recent lava flows and active hydrothermal systems suggest the volcano is active. This cross-section of the volcano shows pillow lavas (black ovals) which are older than 50,000 years. Sheet flows that range in age from 9,000-5,000 years drape the flanks of the volcano. Sheet flows less than 5,000 years old fill the floor of the caldera. From Zonenshain and others (1989). Slow: 1-5 cm/yr Slow: Mid-Atlantic Ridge Slow-spreading mid-ocean ridges, like the Mid-Atlantic Ridge, are broad and have a deep central rift valley. Some rifts are 6 miles (10 km) wide and 2 miles (3 km) deep. Faults are numerous and create rough topography. Cross-section of Mid-Atlantic Ridge at 37 degrees N from Macdonald (1982). Vertical exaggeration = 4x. Active volcanic centers at slow-spreading mid-ocean ridges are discontinuous and consist of very small coalesced seamounts. Smith and Cann (1990) found a minimum of 481 seamounts along a 500 mile (800 km) segment of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. The seamounts range from 150-1,800 feet (50-600 m) in height. Most are about 180 feet (60 m high). Smith and Cann (1992) used bathymetric data to construct this map of volcanoes on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Seamounts range in shape from pointy to flat-topped cones. Older volcanoes and flows shown in darker grays. Fissures not shown. Smith and others (1997) compared seamounts and submarine hummocks and hummocky ridges along the Mid-Atlantic Ridge to the Laki fissure and associated cones in Iceland. The cone in the foreground is about 600 feet (200 m) in diameter and 90 feet (30 m) high, comparable in size to volcanic features along the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Photo by Thor Thordarson. Smith and Cann's detailed estimate of the number of volcanoes along the mid-ocean ridges is ten-times greater than earlier studies. Extrapolating their results for all of the North Atlantic suggests there are as many as 85 million seamounts on the ocean floor. 2.5 million of these are over 600 feet (200 m) tall. The style in which new oceanic crust is created is different at slow- and intermediate -spreading ridges, relative to fast-spreading ridges, because large numbers of small seamounts form the crust along the axis of the ridge. The amount of magma is not enough to generate the large fissure eruptions which occur at fast-spreading mid-ocean ridges like the East Pacific Rise. This cross-section from Smith and Cann (1992) shows the crustal structure of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. The crust is made of seamounts and fissure-fed flows (area above magma chamber ). Normal faults bound the edges of the ridge's inner valley. Small separate magma bodies (gray ovals) feed individual volcanoes. The solidified magma bodies make the lower oceanic crust. Super-slow mid-ocean ridges move at rates of less than 25 mm/year and are considered to be the most common type of ridge (when measured by the length of ridge). They are found in the Southwest Indian Ridge and the Arctic. Study of this type of spreading center is only beginning because of the complicated logistics of working in the Southwest Indian Ocean (trying to work under the Arctic ice would be to expensive and extremely difficult). Researchers hope to use what they learn from super-slow mid-ocean ridges to test their models of how slow and fast mid-ocean ridges behave. The largest volume of oceanic crust is generated at the fast-spreading mid-ocean ridges. Very slow-spreading ridges, like the Southwest Indian Ridge, constitute the largest single class of mid-ocean ridges (Solomon, 1989).

Submarine Eruptions If the global estimate of one million submarine volcanoes is correct perhaps many thousands of these volcanoes are active. In contrast, few submarine volcanoes are caught in the process of erupting. Of the nearly 8,000 known volcanic eruptions in the last 10,000 years only about 300 were submarine. From 1975 to 1985, 160 volcanoes erupted but only 24 of these were submarine. Most of these submarine eruptions were in shallow water. Recent technological advances have allowed volcanologists to detect and respond to eruptions, even eruptions in very deep water. This close-up photo shows a drip of the 1991 lava flowing over the irregular surface of the margin of the axial summit collapse trough, depth 8,216 feet (2505m). Photography courtesy of Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution and members of the Adventure dive (Principle Investigators: D. Fornari, R. Haymon, K. Von Damm, M. Perfit, M. Lilley, and R. Lutz). Argo I photograph taken in 1989 showing contact between new, glassy lobate lava flow on East Pacific Rise crest near 9 degrees 18'N estimated to be ~ 1-2 years old, and older sediment dusted lobate lava (in center of photo), depth ~8,690 feet (2650m). Photo courtesy of D. Fornari, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution. Volcanologists use the following types of observations to recognize very recent eruptions at the East Pacific Rise: lava surfaces completely devoid of sediment cover,

lava surrounding recently extinct hydrothermal chimneys that are still colonized by vent animals,

hydrothermal chimneys that are still colonized by vent animals, uncolonized lava partially covering older lavas that are colonized by anemones and other vent animals,

the presence of organisms covering some of the freshest lava surfaces,

evidence for changes in axial morphology since previous dives, and

the presence of warm to hot water shimmering directly off of lava surfaces. From the SEPR Final Report The following are descriptions of a few of the recent and well documented submarine eruptions. Several lines of evidence indicate that Axial volcano has erupted in the last few years. Photos and sidescan sonar data show fresh lava at the summit and along one rift. Subsidence in the summit caldera , possibly coincident with an intrusion into or eruption on a rift, was measured in 1988. Three different geophysical methods suggests a magma body only 1-2 km below the caldera floor (see Applelgate and Embley, 1992). This photo shows a flat "lineated" sheet flow in the summit caldera of Axial Volcano. The grayish material is pelagic sediment deposited since time of eruption. Photo is from a towed camera system and courtesy of NOAA.

A large submarine eruption on the East Pacific Rise produced the 8 degrees S lava field, probably in the last 25 years. The estimated volume of the eruption is about 15 cubic km. The great size of this eruption is illustrated by comparing it to a few other volumes. For example, the average annual volume of lava erupted from all of Earth's volcanoes is estimated to be 4-5 cubic km, about 3 cubic km erupts at mid-ocean ridges. The 1783 eruption of Laki in Iceland, the largest historic basaltic eruption, had a total volume of 12.3 cubic km. Macdonald and others (1989) point out that the volume of the 8 degrees S lava field is enough to bury the entire U.S. Interstate freeway system to a depth of 10 m. The eruption originated at either the axial summit graben or from a fissure and line of cones just 2.5 km east of the graben. Timing of the eruption is constrained by the high reflectivity of the flow, earthquakes in the area in the 1960's, and the presence, volume, and location of a plume of 3He. Map from Macdonald and others (1989).

In February of 1996 a swarm of earthquakes were detected on the northern Gorda Ridge. Geologists visited the area shortly after the earthquakes and found warm water and fresh lava (Haymon and others, 1991). The photo below shows the end of the fresh, new black lava flow on top of an older gray lava flow. Photo courtesy of the NOAA/VENTS Geology Program.

Features and Deposits Conditions during submarine eruptions are very different from eruptions on land. Water quickly quenches lava , turning the outer surface of flows to glass. The weight of the overlying water can make the pressure 250 times greater than atmospheric pressure. This pressure is so great that bubbles have great difficulty in forming and growing in magma and lava. Volcanologists are currently debating if explosive submarine eruption are even possible in deep ocean basins. The following photos show the most common volcanic features and deposits associated with submarine volcanoes. This handheld photograph was taken by Bob Embley of NOAA/OSU and shows lava "spires" near the summit of northern Juan de Fuca Ridge. The spires are probably formed when superheated water trapped beneath active flow forces channel to surface, creating pipe of rapidly quenched glass. Horizontal shelves on side of spires form as inflated lava recedes and drains away. Lava erupted underwater forms pillows. They are shaped much like toothpaste squeezed a short distance out of the tube. They form in much the same way. The crust on the molten interior of a flow splits and the lava oozes out, flows a short distance, and then solidifies. The process repeats to create thick stacks of pillows. The bulbous shape of pillows is very different from pahoehoe , aa, or blocky lava flows found on land. Pillows can form in the ocean, lake, or rivers. Just add water. This photo shows pillow tubes flowing down side of volcanic cone in summit caldera of Axial Volcano. The photo was taken by Bob Embley with a handheld camera from the research submersible Alvin. Sheet/corrugated lava surface in the floor of the axial trough of the East Pacific Rise crest near 9 degrees 31'N, depth 8,455 feet (2,578m). White sediment is residue of barite mud used by Ocean Drilling Project when they drilled this site in 1994 on Leg 142. Crack in middle of photo is ~16 inches (40 cm) wide and is a cooling crack developed in the flow which is estimated to be 9-12 feet (3-4 m) thick. Photography courtesy of Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution and members of the Adventure dive (Principle Investigators: D. Fornari, R. Haymon, K. Von Damm, M. Perfit, M. Lilley, and R. Lutz). Tumuli and sheet flows have recently been found in submarine lava flow fields. Tumuli form as the interior of the flow inflates. The presence of tumuli and long sinuous ridges on submarine lava flow fields suggests that lava tubes help distribute the lava. The presence of inflation features, like tumuli, on the surface of lava flows indicates lava tubes play a role in generating submarine lava fields (Appelgate and Embley, 1992). Tubes help lava travel tens of kilometers from their vents. This photo shows young sheet flow lava on the Cleft segment of Juan de Fuca Ridge. Photo is from a towed camera system and courtesy of NOAA. Looking down into eruptive fissure, southern Juan de Fuca Ridge. Note pillow lava frozen as it flowed back into fissure. Eruption probably took place in early-mid 1980s. NOAA towed camera system. Photo and caption courtesy of Bob Embley and Bill Chadwick, NOAA Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory, Hatfield Marine Science Center, Newport, OR. Skylight in lobate lavas, summit caldera of Axial Volcano. "Smoke" being emitted from below is hydrothermal fluid. White fringe around cavity are specially adapted tubeworms that utilize hydrogen sulfide in the rising fluid. NOAA towed camera system. Photo and caption courtesy of Bob Embley and Bill Chadwick. Lava "spires" on lip of fissure, southern Juan de Fuca Ridge. Alvin handheld photo taken by Bob Embley. All of the following photographs are courtesy of Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution and members of the Adventure dive (Principle Investigators: D. Fornari, R. Haymon, K. Von Damm, M. Perfit, M. Lilley, and R. Lutz). Captions by D. Fornari. Left: Collapse margin of the axial summit collapse trough of the East Pacific Rise near 9 degrees 50'N, showing layering in the wall, crust thickness is ~7 cm, depth 2510m. Right: Breadcrust pillow and tube shaped lava on the East Pacific Rise crest near 9 degrees 50'N, 2600m depth Lobate lava on the East Pacific Rise crest near 9 degrees 51'N, 2522m depth

Lava cylinders with breadcrust texture on the East Pacific Rise crest near 9 degrees 49'N, 2564m depth. Contact between ropy/sheeted lava flow (foreground) and lobate flow surface in background on the crest of the East Pacific Rise near 9 degrees 50.3'N, 2518m depth. Lava pillar with shrimp (middle left) and broken plates of lobate/sheet lava in the floor of the axial summit collapse trough of the East Pacific Rise near 9 degrees 50.1'N, 2524 m depth.