hot spot volcanism

Africa is threatened by "scorching hot blobs of magma" according to the CSM. Nothing like some fabulous headlines to make your day. The first (courtesy of the Christian Science Monitor)Massive blob of scorching magma discovered under southern Africa Oh my! Yes, again, it seems that the many people in the media seem to be very confused about the nature of magma when it is underground - always expecting giant vats of swirling, molten magma rising up to destroy us all. Very few have a good sense of the real state of the Earth's mantle - mostly solid. The article is in fact about a recent study…

The Icelandic coast of Reykjanes where the Mid-Atlantic Ridge comes above sea level. A number of Eruptions readers have noticed that seismicity along the Reykjanes Ridge that runs to the southwest of Iceland onto the island has increased over the last few days. Sure enough, checking the Icelandic Met Office page on seismicity on the island finds a lot of earthquakes on the southwest peninsula that is the manifestation of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge hitting the hotspot-related Icelandic landmass. The interaction between the Iceland plume and the Mid-Atlantic Ridge is complex, with a step in the mid…