Glossary
Hotspot
A hotspot is a plume of very hot rock rising from deep in the mantle that punches through a plate far from its boundaries. The plate moves over the hotspot, which stays nearly fixed.
The result is a chain of volcanoes that get older in the direction the plate moves, like the Hawaiian Islands or the islands of Polynesia. Réunion and Iceland are also linked to hotspots.
Examples on the Map
Other Definitions
- Tectonic Plate
- Subduction
- Mid-Ocean Ridge
- Transform Fault
- Fault
- Earthquake, Epicentre and Hypocentre
- Magnitude
- Intensity (Mercalli Scale)
- Aftershock
- Tsunami
- Active Volcano
- Stratovolcano
- Shield Volcano
- Caldera
- Volcanic Explosivity Index (VEI)
- Pyroclastic Flow
- Lahar
- Tropical Cyclone, Hurricane, Typhoon
- Saffir-Simpson Scale
- Aurora and Kp Index