HOTSPOT MODEL FOR ICELAND AND THE VORING PLATEAU.

The hotspot fed rise model, when applied to the Iceland hotspot, is able to predict the observed plateau structure of the Norwegian-Greenland Sea. The analysis suggests that both the Greenland-Faeroe and Voring plateaus could have been formed by the Iceland hotspot. Material being channeled from the hotspot to the closest section of rise crest created thicker crust and formed the plateaus over time. A plate tectonic evolution for these plateaus can be traced using reconstructions based upon magnetic isochrons and a fixed hotspot reference frame. This paper presents the simplest model that satisfies what few data are available. However, debate remains as to whether the Faeroe Islands are underlain by oceanic or continental crust; whether extinct spreading centers are located on the Iceland-Faeroe and Voring plateaus; and whether the age progression of the plateaus corresponds to what is predicted by the model.