An Angus/Argo study of the neovolcanic zone along the East Pacific rise from the Clipperton fracture zone to 12°N

Still photographs and video images collected along the Neovolcanic Zone of the East Pacific Rise from 10°15′N to 11°53′N show that recent volcanic sheet flows, possibly less than 100 years old, are superimposed on an older sediment-laden pillow terrane. This recent activity is restricted to a narrow zone that crosses two topographic highs at 10°55′N and 11°26′N and diminishes along-axis away from these highs. The association of recent sheet flows with older flows and collapse structures on the overlapping spreading centers at 11°45′N supports the evolutionary model for the occurrence and evolution of overlapping spreading centers by MacDonald and others (1986, 1988).