Geology Reference
In-Depth Information
dynamic origin - in other words, as resulting from the internal dynamics of the
mantle.
A further important implication is that the plate mode must be the dominant
mode of convection in the mantle, because any other mode would produce different
patterns of topography and heat flow. The plate mode accounts for essentially all
of the heat flow through the sea floor, so heat transport by any other mode must be
secondary. We will see this explicitly in the next chapter, where we consider mantle
plumes and their associated topography and heat flow. Plume-related topography
is recognisable and distinctive, but clearly secondary compared with plate-related
topography, implying that plume convection is secondary in the mantle, a subject
that will be explored in the next chapter.
