The objective of this project is to test the hypothesis that the near-bottom character of the Central Amonaly Magnetic High reflects both the width of the neovolcanic zone and the spatial distribution of lava emplacement on the fast spreading East Pacific Rise. Seismic data in the area show that layer 2A doubles in thickness within 1 to 2 km of the rise axis which suggests the possibility of lava disposition off-axis. This project seeks to verify the presence of off-axis lava depocenters and to establish the correlation between the shape of the magnetic anomaly and the distribution of lava emplacement. A detailed multi-sensor near-bottom survey will be conducted i tow 10x10 km areas located on the axis of the East Pacific Rise at 9 degrees 30 minutes north and at 9 degrees 50 minutes north. The autonomous vehicle ABE will collect high resolution magnetics data and near-bottom DSL-120 sidescan sonar will map the volcanic and tectonic features in the area. The ROV Jason will be used to ground-truth seafloor lava contacts, and to collect samples.
