Anahim Volcanic Belt

The Anahim Volcanic Belt is a 600-kilometre-long volcanic belt, stretching from just north of Vancouver Island to near Quesnel, British Columbia, Canada. The Anahim Volcanic Belt has had three main magmatic episodes: 15–13 Ma, 9–6 Ma, and 3–1 Ma. The Nazko Cone last erupted only 7,200 years ago. The volcanoes generally become younger eastward at a rate of 2 to 3.3 centimetres a year. These volcanoes probably formed as a result of the North American Plate sliding westward over a small hotspot, similar to the one feeding the Hawaiian Islands, called the Anahim hotspot. It is defined by three large shield volcanoes (Rainbow, Ilgachuz and the Itcha Ranges) and 37 Quaternary basalt centers. Future volcanism is most likely in the form of basaltic cinder cones, but eruptions of less mafic magma, typical of the eastern portions of the belt, cannot be ruled out.

Major volcanoes of the Anahim Volcanic Belt include:

• Ilgachuz Range, 2,410 metres (7,414 ft)
• Itcha Range, 2,368 metres (7,768 ft)
• Rainbow Range, 2,478 metres (8,130 ft)

See also

• List of volcanoes in Canada
• Volcanoes of Canada
• Anahim hotspot
• Stikine Volcanic Belt
• Garibaldi Volcanic Belt
• Chilcotin Plateau Basalts
• Wells Gray-Clearwater Volcanic Field

External links

• Natural Resources Canada

Donate to Wikimedia