Hotspot Volcanism and the Role of the Oceanic Lithospheric Mantle - An Integrated Geochemical Case Study

9725681 Goldstein The PIs are studying the Grande Comore Island, in the western Indian ocean, to test the importance of shallow level lithospheric mantle contributions to oceanic island volcanism. The PIs have shown that the isotopic variations of the shield building lavas reflect plume-lithosphere interactions. The PIs will extend their study by analyzing He and Os isotopes and directly characterize the isotopic composition of the lithospheric mantle beneath the Grande Comore, through a geochemical and isotopic study of mantle derived xenoliths. They will extend the study to the older islands of the Comores Archipelago.