Andy Saunders et al. critically review geological evidence of regional uplift in five continental flood basalt provinces (Emeishan Traps, North Atlantic, Deccan Traps, Siberian Traps, Yellowstone) as a case study. Each of these five provinces is associated with surface uplift. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay The authors believe that the models we try to explain for LIP formation without hot mantle plumes have difficulty explaining surface uplift, rifting, and magmatism. They conclude that initiation plume models remain the most convincing way to explain the formation of LIPs. Saunders suggested that in Iceland the plume is the cause of the large volumes of basalt, and is the only reason why the oceanic crust is thick (30 km) despite its presence in the MOR. The newly developed Al-in-olivine geothermometer was used to find the olivine-Cr-spinel crystallization temperature of a series of picrites spanning the spatial and temporal extent of the North Atlantic Igneous Provinces (NAIP), which is widely accepted as the result of the deep mantle plume that currently underlies Iceland. Iceland is the only part of the NAIP that remains active. Here the Al-in-olivine thermometer calibrated by Wan et al. (2008) and extended by Coogan et al. (2014) is used. The Al content of olivine phenocrysts was measured using the Cameca SX100 electron microprobe at the University of Edinburgh. The geothermometer is based solely on the temperature dependence of Al exchange between olivine and Cr-spinel and is largely independent of melt pressure and composition, so an estimate of these parameters is not required to calculate crystallization temperatures of olivine. It turns out that large-scale changes in the crustal architecture of the North Atlantic region can be explained by long-term cooling of the Icelandic plume up to 35 million years ago, followed by a gradual increase in temperatures up to the present day. This suggests that mantle plumes are susceptible to long-term (107 years) temperature fluctuations throughout their lifetime. area before focusing on a narrow ascent. These findings are independent of traditional petrological approaches to mantle temperature estimation and provide another important piece to the growing body of evidence indicating that the temperature of the LIP source region in the mantle is substantially higher than that beneath mid-ocean ridges. . However, some authors have argued that a mantle plume is not necessary to produce the increased melting beneath Iceland (Foulger and Anderson, 2005; Foulger et al., 2005). Please note: this is just an example. Get a custom paper from our expert writers now. Get a Custom EssayFor LIPs Saunders suggested that their initial explosions are due to the sudden increase in mantle flow as the plume head begins. Their sudden explosions could also be the result of an initial decompression associated with lithospheric extension into the overlying plate. Related process is the Réunion hotspot which lay beneath India in the Late Cretaceous forming Deccan traps.