Seafloor spreading events lead to eruptions, hydrothermal plume release

A Oregon State University researcher has found through analysis of earthquake records, that rapid, high-velocity injection of magma during seafloor spreading events typically leads to lava eruptions onto the ocean floor and the release of massive hydrothermal plumes.

Washington, July 2 : A Oregon State University researcher has found through analysis of earthquake records, that rapid, high-velocity injection of magma during seafloor spreading events typically leads to lava eruptions onto the ocean floor and the release of massive hydrothermal plumes.

One of the most important discoveries in the study of the global mid-ocean ridge system has been the first real-time detection of a deep-ocean volcanic eruption and the associated release of huge volumes of anomalously warm water (called hydrothermal plumes) into the ocean.

Real-time detection of this event allowed the researchers to investigate, in situ, the many biological, chemical, and hydrothermal after-effects on the seafloor and water-column ecosystems.

According to R.P. Dziak from the university's Hatfield Marine Science Center, the key to rapid on-site investigations is the accurate evaluation of the remotely recorded earthquake data indicating that a large-scale seafloor eruption is in progress.

These findings, he said, have offered a new method for predicting the likelihood of a seafloor eruption and hydrothermal plume release during future deep-sea earthquake swarms.

The findings appear in the journal Geology.

ANI