Magnetotelluric measurements above Axial Sea Mount, Northeast Pacific Ocean

(G.S. Heinson)

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Axial Sea Mount is a hot-spot undersea volcano that intersects the Juan de Fuca mid-ocean ridge in the north east Pacific Ocean. It is an active volcano with evidence of recent eruptions, and is about 1000 m higher than the average water depth of the ridge. In 1994, a small-scale magnetotelluric experiment was conducted on the sea mount to determine its geological structure. Interpretation of the data in 1996 and 1997 showed evidence for the first time of a crustal magma chamber connected to melt in the mantle at a depth of 60 km below the sea floor.

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