Mechanism of the formation of volcanic chains of French Polynesia

Abstract

A possible mechanism of the formation of chains of intraplate seamounts and islands alternative to the “hot spot” hypothesis is considered. It is related to the appearance of additional stresses in the lithospheric plate when it ascends over a mantle inhomogeneity and descends from it. The magnitude of these stresses (∼600 bar) is sufficient for formation of deep fracture zones. In the paper, schemes of formation of volcanic chains are described. The formation of the “faults-volcanoes-volcanic chains” sequence may follow two different ways. The first is controlled by the fracture zones formed along the direction of the plate movement. In this case, feeding channels are localized along the boundary of the rise. If the chain is gradually formed simultaneously with the plate motion, the age of the volcanoes along the chain may change in a more or less regular way. The second type is formed by fractures orthogonal to the movement direction. They may be formed when the plate ascends over a mantle inhomogeneity and/or descends from it. In this case, adjacent volcanoes may have similar ages. A combination of these two variants may also be encountered. The mechanism posed allowed us to explain selected facts referring to the volcanic chains of French Polynesia and may be applied to other regions of the Pacific Ocean.