New Insights into the Origin of the Galapagos Islands
The Galapagos Islands are formed by the action of a mantle plume, a column of hot rock that ascends from the core-mantle boundary to produce the fascinating volcanic islands of this archipelago. In this presentation, we will synthesize recent geochemical and volcanological studies in the Galapagos to gain insight into the deep mantle origins of the plume, the compositional structure of the deep Earth, and the evolution of Galapagos volcanoes. And of course we'll include plenty of images of Galapagos flora, fauna, and volcanoes in the process.