- Tuzo Wilson Seamounts
Infobox Seamount
Name = Tuzo Wilson Seamounts
Depth = ~Unit m|1410|0
Height = 500m-700m
Location map
British Columbia| label=Tuzo Wilson Seamounts
mark=RedMountain.svg|marksize=18
lat_deg=51|lat_min=04|lat_dir=N
lon_deg=130|lon_min=09|lon_dir=W
position=left |float=right
caption=Location of the Tuzo Wilson Seamounts
Map caption =
Summit area =
Location = Unit km|200|0 northwest ofVancouver Island
Group =
Coordinates = coord|51.4|N|130.9|W|type:mountain_region:CA
Country =Canada
Type =Submarine volcano es
Volcanic group =Kodiak-Bowie Seamount chain
Age =Holocene
Last eruption =Holocene (active)
Discovered =
Discovered by =
First visit =
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Photo =
Photo caption =The Tuzo Wilson Seamounts, also called J. Tuzo Wilson Knolls and Tuzo Wilson Knolls, are two young active
submarine volcano es off the coast ofBritish Columbia ,Canada , located Unit km|200|0 northwest ofVancouver Island and south of theQueen Charlotte Islands . The two seamounts are members of theKodiak-Bowie Seamount chain , rising 500-to-700 meterscite web | title=The Tuzo Wilson Volcanic Field, NE Pacific: Alkaline volcanism at a complex, diffuse, transform-trench-ridge triple junction|url=http://adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/1993JGR....9822367A| accessdate=2007-08-13 ] above the mean level of the northeasternPacific Ocean and is a seismically active site southwest of the southern end of theQueen Charlotte Fault . They are named after Canadiangeologist John Tuzo Wilson .Geology
The two submarine volcanoes are capped by
hawaiite and are surrounded by numerous smaller vents, with a total edifice volume of about 12 km3.The
lava emitted in eruptions at the Tuzo Wilson Seamounts is made ofbasalt , a common gray to black or dark brownextrusive volcanic rock low insilica content (the lava ismafic ) that is usually fine-grained due to rapid cooling of lava. Glassypillow lava is found at the seamounts, a type of rock typically formed when basaltic lava emerges from a submarine volcanic vent. The viscous lava gains a solid crust on contact with the water, and this crust cracks and oozes additional large blobs or "pillows" as more lava emerges from the advancing flow.The origin of the Tuzo Wilson Seamounts is not without controvrsy. Some
geologist s theorize that the Tuzo Wilson Seamounts are linked with a hotspot because lava at the Tuzo Wilson Seamounts are fresh, glassy pillow basalts of recent age, as expected if these seamounts are located above or close to a hotspot south of the Queen Charlotte Islands. [http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v266/n5600/abs/266344a0.html J. Tuzo Wilson Knolls: Canadian hotspot] Retrieved on2007-08-13 ] [ [http://books.google.ca/books?id=9aVUTgKDNYEC&pg=PA66&|pg=PA66&|pg=PA66&pg=PA66&dq=Tuzo+Wilson+Knolls&source=web&ots=k|WbmcKBMa&sig=RCPW0|KQet|IoAqyqTkBel9WRAM&h|=en#PPA66.M1 Origin of Igneous Rocks: The Isotopic Evidence] Retrieved on2008-03-08 ] Others preferrift ing as the cause of volcanism because the seamounts are close to the Explorer spreading center. No theory is close to airtight. Part of the controversy is due to the uncertain origin of theKodiak-Bowie Seamount chain . There is a Unit km|360|0 long gap between recently (Late Pleistocene to Holocene) active Bowie and Tuzo Wilson Seamounts, both of which have erupted alkaline basalts of similar composition. If amantle plume was responsible for activity at both seamounts, then it is likely that there would be evidence for alkaline volcanic activity in the area between these two seamounts. [http://article.pubs.nrc-cnrc.gc.ca/ppv/RPViewDoc?_handler_=HandleInitialGet&journal=cjes&volume=36&calyLang=eng&articleFile=e99-008.pdf A near-ridge origin for seamounts at the southern terminus of the Pratt-Welker Seamount Chain, northeast Pacific Ocean] Retrieved on2008-03-07 ]ee also
*
Volcanism in Canada
*List of volcanoes in Canada
*Geology of the Pacific Northwest References
External links
* [http://encarta.msn.com/map_701578402/Tuzo_Wilson_Seamounts.html Map of Tuzo Wilson Seamounts (seamount), Pacific Ocean]
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