Chapter 1 - The Canary Islands: An Introduction

Abstract

The Canary Islands, approximately 100km off the African coast, display all features of an active ocean island chain. Their origin is linked to a hot spot or plume that causes anomalously hot mantle material to intrude the African plate. The islands are dominated by mafic rocks and comprise uplifted submarine volcanic, subaerial shield volcanoes, and the remains of giant lateral collapses. Tenerife and Gran Canaria also display extensive felsic pyroclastic deposits. Teide on Tenerife (>3700m), in the center of the island chain, is the emblematic volcano of the Canaries. For these reasons, the islands are a spectacular destination for volcanological field excursions and offer a deep and thorough insight into volcanic processes and ocean island evolution. This chapter provides an overview of the geology of the seven Canary Islands. Reference is made to the history of geological research in the region and to pioneering works of the past century, leading to a summary of the current literature and a review of the most modern geological concepts discussed for the archipelago.