Tamu Massif

High school (ages 12+)
Geography

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Step 1 · Read the article

Open the article and read it at the level above. Then answer the questions below in your own words.

https://smallwhale.org/articles/tamu-massif

Write what each word means, using the article.

Do not copy the article. Write two things you learned, the way you would explain them to a friend.

Answers below are taken from the article’s stored facts, so they match what the student read.

1. How tall is Tamu Massif?Approximately 4,460 meters (14,620 feet) from its base on the seafloor
2. How big is Tamu Massif?553,000 square kilometers (214,000 square miles)
3. What is the location?Shatsky Rise, northwest Pacific Ocean, approximately 1,600 km east of Japan
4. What is the classification?Largest known single shield volcano on Earth
5. Where is Tamu Massif located?It is in the northwest Pacific Ocean on the Shatsky Rise. The volcano sits at a special spot where three mid‑ocean ridges meet.
6. How did Tamu Massif form?It grew over millions of years from many flows of very fluid basaltic lava. The lava built a gentle, wide‑sided shape, likely coming from a mantle plume or a spreading center.

Seamount: A submarine mountain, typically of volcanic origin, that rises at least 1,000 meters above the surrounding seafloor.
Shield Volcano: A large volcano characterized by a broad, gently sloping profile formed by effusive eruptions of low-viscosity basaltic lava.
Triple Junction: A point where the boundaries of three tectonic plates meet.
Magma Upwelling: The process by which molten rock from the Earth's mantle rises towards the surface.