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Yellowstone National Park Cutthroat Trout leaping at LeHardy Rapids.
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Yellowstone National Park
Hot Spot Theories

Two Hotspot Theories

MOLTEN ROCK, or magma, rises in convection cells, like water boiling in a pot. The left side of this illustration shows the traditional view of a hotspot as a plume of magma rising from the earth's core. The right side shows another theory that the Yellowstone hotspot originates at a much shallower depth.

View Caldera | Caldera Rim |Track the Hotspot | Eruptions

 
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Last Updated: March 06, 2008 at 15:43 MST