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The Volcanism of the Comoros Archipelago Integrated at a Regional Scale

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Active Volcanoes of the Southwest Indian Ocean

Part of the book series: Active Volcanoes of the World ((AVOLCAN))

Abstract

The development of the Comoros archipelago in the Mozambique channel has been diversely interpreted since the 1970s. The two end-member causes are, on the one hand, a deep mantle plume that developed a hotspot track from the Seychelles Plateau to the Grande Comore, and, on the other hand, a lithospheric deformation that reactivated transform faults and controlled the magma path. The present work first surveys the sparse geological, geophysical and geochronological data available for this archipelago, re-evaluates the age of the magmatic activity and integrates this evolution at a regional scale. Combining realistic magma production rates, the volume of each edifice and the geochronological, it is showed that the magmatic activity started first in Mayotte about 20 Ma and second, almost simultaneously, in Anjouan, Mohéli and Grande Comore about 10 Ma ago. This magmatism, coeval with magmatic periods in areas surrounding the Mozambic channel, the southern East African rift and Madagascar, is organised in three periods since Late Oligocene. Magmatic provinces are now superimposed with seismic zones and graben structures. In consequence, the Comoros archipelago is tentatively interpreted as part of the East African rift rather than related to a distinct deep mantle plume.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Laboratoire Géosciences Réunion, Université de La Réunion, Institut de Physique du Globe de Paris, Sorbonne Paris Cité, UMR 7154 CNRS, 97744, Saint Denis, France

    Laurent Michon

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  1. Laurent Michon
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Correspondence to Laurent Michon .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Laboratoire Magmas et Volcans, Univ. Blaise Pascal - Clermont-Ferrand, Clermont-Ferrand, France

    Patrick Bachelery

  2. Laboratoire Magmas et Volcans, Univ. Blaise Pascal - Clermont-Ferrand, Clermont-Ferrand, France

    Jean-François Lenat

  3. Piton de la Fournaise Volc. Observatory, Institut de Physique du Globe de Paris, La Plaine des Cafres, France

    Andrea Di Muro

  4. Laboratoire GeoSciences, University La Réunion, Saint-Denis, France

    Laurent Michon

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Michon, L. (2016). The Volcanism of the Comoros Archipelago Integrated at a Regional Scale. In: Bachelery, P., Lenat, JF., Di Muro, A., Michon, L. (eds) Active Volcanoes of the Southwest Indian Ocean. Active Volcanoes of the World. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-31395-0_21

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