Numerical and laboratory experiments on the dynamics of plume-ridge interaction. Progress report

Mantle plumes and passive upwelling beneath ridges are the two dominant modes of mantle transport and thermal/chemical fluxing between the Earth`s deep interior and surface. While plumes and ridges independently contribute to crustal accretion, they also interact and the dispersion of plumes within the upper mantle is strongly modulated by mid-ocean ridges. The simplest mode of interaction, with the plume centered on the ridge, has been well documented and modeled. The remaining question is how plumes and ridges interact when the plume is located off-axis; it has been suggested that a pipeline-like flow from the off-axis plume to the ridge axis at the base of the rigid lithosphere may develop. Mid-ocean ridges migrating away from hot mantle plumes can be affected by plume discharges over long times and ridge migration distances. Salient feature of this model is that off-axis plumes communicate with the ridge through a channel resulting from the refraction and dispersion of an axi-symmetric plume conduit along the base of the sloping lithosphere. To test the dynamics of this model, a series of numerical and laboratory dynamic experiments on the problem of a fixed ridge and an off-axis buoyant upwelling were conducted. Results are discussed