Geologists have discovered a large submarine fault between Gran Canaria and Tenerife with magnetic anomalies. The elongated and narrow trench extends from East-Northeast to West-Southwest, reaches depths between 6,000 and 13,000 below the seabed and has a volume of 2,100 to 10,000 cubic kilometers. Although this fault between Tenerife and Gran Canaria has not been active in recent times, their magnetic model indicates that it conditioned the rise of magma in the central part of the archipelago during the first growth stages. And what if it started spewing magma again?
The scientists consider that this type of geometry points to magmas that emerged in the growth phase of Gran Canaria under the influence of a large fault, and at a time in the past of the Earth in which the magnetic poles were inverted with respect to the present.
This is not the first time scientists suggested the existence of an underwater fault between Gran Canaria and Tenerife. But now it has been verified, showing the importance of tectonic during the rapid evolution – on a geological scale – of the islands.
The underwater fault is currently inactive… But what if it started ‘living’ again? Yes, the Teide is near!
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Nature.com and translation of El Diario
If the volcano “El Teide” ever explodes; the island of Tenerife will sink into the Atlantic Ocean.
Hopefully this never happens.