Evidence for Petit‐Spot Volcanism in the Puerto Rico Trench

Abstract Petit‐spot volcanism occurs in intraplate settings along the outer rise of subducting plates. Here we present evidence for petit‐spot type of volcanism from multibeam bathymetry and backscatter data from the Puerto Rico Trench (PRT). It is the first report of such volcanism in the Atlantic basin. Up to 34 possible petit‐spot volcanic cones are mapped in the eastern section of the PRT, with an average diameter of 950 m and a mean height of 92 m. The seamounts are in a region of the PRT that has the longest and highest bending faults, up to 50.6 km long and 1.49 km high. Some of the volcanic cones are associated with fault scarps. The larger bending fault scarps in the region of the volcanic cones suggest the stress state in the eastern PRT is favorable for allowing asthenospheric melt to escape to the surface.

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Publication Details

Journal
Geophysical Research Letters
Published
2025-05-26
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1029/2024gl114362
Primary Topic
earthquake and tectonic studies
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
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article

Evidence for Petit‐Spot Volcanism in the Puerto Rico Trench

Wayne E. Baldwin, Nicholas Harmon, J.L. Granja-Bruña, J. P. Canales et al.
Geophysical Research Letters
earthquake and tectonic studies
article

Evidence for Petit‐Spot Volcanism in the Puerto Rico Trench

Wayne E. Baldwin, Nicholas Harmon, J.L. Granja-Bruña, J. P. Canales, Elizabeth Vanacore, L. E. Moser, Shuoshuo Han, Seth D. Ackerman, Uri S. ten Brink, William Danforth, Elisaveta Sokolkova
article en

Abstract

Abstract Petit‐spot volcanism occurs in intraplate settings along the outer rise of subducting plates. Here we present evidence for petit‐spot type of volcanism from multibeam bathymetry and backscatter data from the Puerto Rico Trench (PRT). It is the first report of such volcanism in the Atlantic basin. Up to 34 possible petit‐spot volcanic cones are mapped in the eastern section of the PRT, with an average diameter of 950 m and a mean height of 92 m. The seamounts are in a region of the PRT that has the longest and highest bending faults, up to 50.6 km long and 1.49 km high. Some of the volcanic cones are associated with fault scarps. The larger bending fault scarps in the region of the volcanic cones suggest the stress state in the eastern PRT is favorable for allowing asthenospheric melt to escape to the surface.

Geophysical Research LettersVol. 52(10)
Universidad Complutense de Madrid (ES), United States Geological Survey (US), Planetary Science Institute (US), Woodwell Climate Research Center (US), GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research Kiel (DE), University of Texas Institute for Geophysics, University of Puerto Rico-Mayaguez (PR), Massachusetts Institute of Technology (US), Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (US), The University of Texas at Austin (US)
National Science Foundation
Openalex Percentile: Top 86%
earthquake and tectonic studies
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